When Anthony Cole was a young man wanting to study veterinary science, he discovered there were just two options available to him: The University of Queensland or Sydney University. There was no course in Victoria in 1960.
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Dr Cole, then 20 and an alumni of Wesley College, took himself to Brisbane where he not only completed his degree, he wrote a subsequent PhD.
After doing some time in Gippsland, mainly treating dairy herds, Dr Cole came to Ballarat in the late 1960s.
"We shifted to Ballarat because it had a hospital, it had a library; it had shops, it had industry," Tony Cole says.
"It was a place you could settle down in and say, 'this is home.' You could walk down the street and say hello to people. There was one vet in town, Charles Pope and his assistant; they had been here a long time."
Dr Cole established what is now the Eureka Clinic with fellow vet Bob Ward in Wendouree, before moving to Doveton Street, then to Creswick Road. Shortly after arriving in the city, he was invited to be a veterinary presence at the Ballarat Greyhound Racing Club.
"They needed a vet, and we said we'd help. We helped the Dog Club and the Cat Club; it was just something you did. Greyhound racing was competitive, but it was also convivial."
He says much has understandably changed since his invitation in 1969 - not just the bow ties and starched shirts the handlers were required to wear.
Much of the 'family' atmosphere has faded, he says, with the days of families raising a dog not only to race but as a family pet now gone.
Dr Cole says 'Mum Dad and the kids would meet and greet and huddle around burning logs in 44-gallon drums, watching the dogs race.'
"The kennels were awash with dark theories and treatments, complaints, arguments 'advice' to the vet, but above all a willingness to help each other and enjoy the meeting," he says.
"It's a big business now; some of the joy has gone out of it. Appearance money and prize money has come in."
It's a world of syndicates, trainers, large dog trailers and off-course betting; but also improved facilities and much better medical treatment of dogs, he says.
Now 80, the father of three is stepping back from 50 years as on-track vet for the Ballarat Greyhound Racing Club. He retired from general practice in 2010.
His name in Ballarat is familiar not only for veterinary work. Dr Cole is a passionate supporter of the arts in the city and a life member of the Royal South Street Society.
His work recording the performances of both the Ballarat Lyric Theatre and the Ballarat Light Opera Company on tape and video - indeed his work recording performances across Melbourne - has resulted in him possessing a significant collection of theatre, musical theatre, ballet and dance.
A passionate fan of electronics, his daughters' participation in ballet and competition led to his involvement at South Street. His first experience was to offer the use of a better sound system to the RSS dance competition, the one they were using being 'rather awful', Dr Cole says.
Although the offer was declined, he became chairman of RSS Dance for 30 years.
Under his watch it grew into the largest dance competition in Victoria; Dr Cole has provided trophies for the ballet section for many years. Has has been president of the RSSS in 1989, 1990, 1997 and 1998, and was awarded life membership in 1999.
He also designed and built a mechanism to raise and lower the rear curtain at Her Majesty's Theatre, and his passion for technical equipment construction and maintenance is extraordinary. His volunteer work has included electrical compliance testing on equipment for RSS and Uniting Care.
Dr Cole was presented with the Denis Bateman Award by the Ballarat Arts Foundation for his work and dedication to the creative life of the city in 2017.
