Kirkwood Native Lauded for Zoo Veterinarian Career
Photo credit: Javier Cuadrado/Adobe Stock
Growing up in St. Louis means growing up with a great zoo.
That fact is a prime reason why Dr. Thomas P. “Tom” Meehan, a Kirkwood native, pursued a career in veterinary medicine and decided to ply those skills at zoos.
And that has led to Meehan — now vice president of veterinarian services at Chicago’s Brookfield Zoo — recently being awarded the lifetime achievement award from the American Association of Zoo Veterinarians.
"I got my first zoo job at the St. Louis Zoo in 1970, working at a refreshment stand" Mehan said, adding that he had applied to be a starting zookeeper.
"You couldn't just apply and get a keeper's job. They'd put you in the concession stand," he said in an interview Monday. "But I guess I did OK, because the next year they made me a keeper at the Children's Zoo."
