COLUMBUS, Ohio — All his life he had a passion for tending to animals and dreamed of making an impact on Ohio’s veterinarian industry. His work has not gone unnoticed.

Dr. Tony Forshey, chief of Animal Health and State Veterinarian for the Ohio Department of Agriculture (ODA), received the National Institute for Animal Agriculture’s (NIAA) prestigious Chairman’s Award during the organization’s annual conference last month in Denver.

This award is bestowed on an outstanding volunteer for his unselfish dedication and tireless devotion to the advancement of animal agriculture. “Dr. Forshey’s passion for animal agriculture has had a positive impact on countless producers and veterinarians across the country, with his thoughts and guidance helping animal agriculture think of where it is and where it should be,” said Dr. Robert Fourdraine, chair of NIAA’s board.

“His innovative thinking and leadership motivates others. He takes the art of listening to a new level. He possesses a knack for listening to people and helping them develop and achieve significantly more than they ordinarily would. This skill is evident in all arenas of his professional life. If you want to think big and understand what’s possible, just be around Dr. Forshey for a minute or two.”

Forshey grew up in Noble County in the southeastern part of the state, along the foothills of the Appalachian Mountains. As to many young children, the thought of becoming a veterinarian was intriguing.

“When I was little I, too, had that aspiration to become a veterinarian and as I got older, I became enthralled with it because I was starting to realize how much the farm and the livestock meant to us as children,” he said. “I’m the third-oldest of 13 children and the farm fed us. We had beef cattle, swine, chickens and we planted four acres of garden every year. To feed 13 children it took a lot of food.

“I started my practice out of college in northwest Ohio and the food animal was my primary interest. I began with swine consulting because there was a need and no one was doing it. It just grew over the years and eventually, I was practicing that in five states throughout the Midwest.”

Forshey practiced veterinary medicine for 27 years, with an interest in swine production, and has served on several major swine health manufacturer advisory boards including Elanco Animal Health, Pfizer Animal Health, Newport Laboratories and Schering Plough.

For the past 10 years, he has been an adjunct associate professor at The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, Department of Veterinary Preventive Medicine. He also serves as vice chair of the Ohio Livestock Care Standards Board and is co-chair of the Ohio Veterinary Medical Assoc. Swine Subcommittee to the ODA.

“I stayed with my vet studies because I knew the value of agriculture in feeding this world. I wouldn’t change what I did for anything,” Forshey said. “We’re four generations from the farm, so people don’t know where their food comes from. And it’s critical that we tell our story in agriculture and tell how important it is to feed nine billion people by 2050.

“We’re going to have a hard time keeping up to do that. When you see that one of every five people in this country go to bed hungry, it’s hard to believe. With agriculture we need to feed the world. We continue to adapt technology and move forward to produce more food for the world.”

In 2010 Forshey received the Ohio Veterinary Medical Assoc. Veterinarian of the Year Award. From November 2011-February 2012 he served as interim director of the ODA, too.

NIAA is a nonprofit, membership-driven organization that unites and advances the beef, dairy, equine, goat, poultry, sheep and swine industries of animal agriculture. NIAA members include farmers, ranchers, veterinarians, scientists, state and federal officials and business leaders.