Practice History

He was born in 1870,  graduated from Edinburgh Veterinary College in 1895 and worked in a veterinary practice located at 89 High Street, Barnet before relocating the practice to 74 Wood Street. Back then, the practice was very much a mixed practice tending to the needs of all kinds of animals including horses, pigs, cattle, dogs and cats.

Then, as now, many students from the Royal Veterinary College came to the practice for work experience. One of these students, Mr Jack Pickup, graduated from the RVC in 1923 and joined the practice as an assistant.  He then married his employer’s daughter, Edith, and together they ran the practice through the difficult years of the 30’s and 40’s after the death of W. Dawson Wallis in January 1928.

In the latter part of the 1940’s Jack Pickup was able to take on an assistant who helped him move the practice forward through a very changeable climate following the Second World War. Michael J. R Stockman qualified from the Royal Veterinary College in 1949 and joined the practice in 1954. He worked initially as an assistant and later became a partner, and worked alongside Jack Pickup until his retirement in 1967.Mike Stockman and his wife Valarie then worked together at the practice, and managed to obtain the status of Veterinary Hospital for Wood Street. Our hospital was one of the very first to be given the accreditation, which is a true reflection of the dedication of the Stockmans and their staff.

Mr and Mrs Stockman were later joined at the hospital by John Graham (Bristol University 1961) and later Mark Winwood (Liverpool 1971).

The current Partners of Wood Street Veterinary Hospital and its branches are Tony White  & Phil Barr, both of whome graduated from Bristol University in the early 1990s.

Please see our Staff page for more information on Phil and Tony, as well as all  our other current vets. should you need them.