WHAT’S UP, DOC?

PALMER — A veterinarian, gold prospector and talented artist, James Leach embodies the romantic ideal of a true renaissance Alaska man.

To most who know him, however, Leach is simply the “Trail Doc.”

More than 35 years after moving his veterinary practice to the Last Frontier from Jacksonville, Fla., Leach has cared for thousands of animals in some of the most remote places in the state. He’s treated moose, reindeer, bears, llamas, alpacas and enough family pets to give Noah a run for his money.

These days though, the Trail Doc spends most of his days painting, teaching art classes and enjoying the natural beauty of the 49th state.

He and wife Annie finally sold their practice in 2000, but still respond to emergency animal welfare calls. As for his catchy nickname, “That’s actually a Frontiersman thing,” Leach said.

“There was a man who was a reporter at that time, probably 1974 or maybe 1975, who talked me into doing a weekly column on sled dogs, dogs in general and pet care,” he said. “He said, ‘We ought to have a title for this column. I know, how about Trail Doc?’ And it stuck.”

Leach spent part of Saturday painting at Rusty’s restaurant in downtown Palmer to highlight his latest local art show, “Seasons of the Valley.” His works, mostly oils and acrylics, show the colorful, vast spaces and splendor of Alaska’s natural beauty. Most of the pieces in the show, he said, may be landscapes Valley residents would recognize. The show runs through the end of March.

He’s picked up the pace of his art since selling the vet practice, teaching out of his Big Lake studio and at local senior centers, but Leach’s love of creating art began decades earlier.

“I started painting way back in the ’60s more as a stress reliever from the 24/7 more than anything else,” he said. “When we were able to get out of the practice, we were able to do art a little more full-time.”

While one can take the vet out of the practice, it’s much more difficult to take the practice out of the veterinarian. Leach said he and his wife still respond to those late-night emergency calls.

“I miss a lot of the aspects of the practice,” he said. “We developed a real feel for our clients and their pets. Of course, my first love was the orthopedic surgery, and I miss surgery. It was something we really, really enjoyed doing. But I don’t miss the 24/7 and the emergency calls that always come after midnight.”

Leach recalls one memorable emergency that had a happy ending.

“Probably one of the most challenging was a little shepherd dog that had been fed through the prop of an airplane,” he said. “She walked under the prop and it cut right at the base of her skull, then about every six inches all the way back to her tail. The man loaded her into the airplane and flew her to Big Lake. We got to put the little dog together and she walked home.”

Treating animals at their most vulnerable also means Leach has strong opinions on those who would abuse animals. He cited a recent story about a Willow kennel owner who had more than 150 starving dogs seized by the borough.

“That’s totally irresponsible on the individual’s part,” he said. “Unless you’re really competitive like the big boys — Martin Buser was a client of ours for years. He’d have 100 dogs and all of them were taken care of. It is a big responsibility, but that’s their job and they take on that responsibility. To me, there’s no reason to have dogs starving to death.”

Today, Leach and his wife still enjoy the company of their own pets, a schnauzer named Pixie and a big orange cat called Mr. G. And while the active and deceptively young-looking 73-year-old practices his art more than veterinary medicine these days, he’ll always be the Trail Doc.

Contact Greg Johnson at greg.johnson@frontiersman.com or 352-2269.