Life Begins At.....
Issue link: http://ebook.aprs.com.au/i/23233
GIVEAWAY BONDI VET DR CHRIS BROWN If you had never seen celebrity vet Dr Chris Brown in the flesh, it would be easy to imagine he was a character invented by TV executives. He’s got the rugged looks, the all-Australian blokey personality, the Bondi lifestyle (starting each day with a surf) – and he loves small, furry animals. But when a talent agent spotted Chris at a Sydney pub, regaling his mates with animal stories, even he couldn’t have imagined that this dashing vet from Bondi would soon become one of Australia’s most loved television personalities. By Margaret Ambrose n fact, it was never a given that Chris would follow in his father’s footsteps and become a vet. While Chris enjoyed sharing the family home with an ‘animal hospital’ full of recovering chickens, dogs, koalas, cats, birds – and even once, a penguin! – He also saw the downside of being a vet: the late night emergency calls, and informing a family of the death of a pet. I “But I think the biggest reason why I was questioning it was because it was what Dad did!” he laughs. “You don’t want to just blindly follow in your dad’s footsteps.” The turning point for Chris was the death of his best mate – a poodle named Claude. For years, the sight of Claude and Chris was a regular feature on the streets of Newcastle, where Chris grew up: the muscle-bound, would-be rugby player, running alongside his black, fluffy poodle companion who sometimes sported a pom-pom clip job, thanks to the girls at his father’s vet clinic. “I was 17 at the time [of Claude’s death] and it really shook me up,” he remembers. “I wanted to know everything about the heart condition that killed him.” The experience confirmed to the young Chris that his passions were not just with animals, but also caring for and helping them. After graduating from Sydney University, Chris began work at a north shore clinic, and just three years later, was spotted by the talent agent at a Sydney pub. A successful screen test resulted in Chris landing a gig as the resident vet on the Seven Network’s Harry’s Practice. It wasn’t long before the young vet was taken into the hearts of Australia’s viewing public and in his first year, Chris was nominated for a Logie in the category of Most Popular New Talent. Following a short stint as the resident vet on Nine’s Burke’s Backyard, Chris jumped at what he saw as an opportunity of a lifetime: to star in the new Network Ten’s real-life drama, Bondi Vet, which chronicles the life of a vet in one of the world’s most recognisable beach locations. These days, Dr Chris Brown is a familiar face on the airwaves, regularly appearing on The 7PM Project and The Circle. He also contributes a regular column in the weekly women’s magazine, Woman’s Day, and is author of The Family Guide to Pets (Murdoch Books), which he wrote to help families choose which pet is most compatible with their lifestyle and circumstance. 42 THE RETIREE SUMMER