AFTER nearly fifty years of caring for the pets, horses and livestock of Moree and district, well-known veterinarian Charlie Bunce has decided to hang up the stethoscope.

Originally from Inverell, Charlie began his career in 1975 in Western Australia, before returning to the black-soil plains in 1977.

Charlie and his wife Wendy established Gwydir Veterinary Clinic on the Mungindi Road the following year.

The practice later evolved to Moree Veterinary Hospital and in 2010 relocated to purpose-built facilities at the current Heber Street site.

The new premises allowed the expansion of services and modern facilities for the care and treatment of family pets and livestock.

Charlie semi-retired in early 2023, but was never far away from the clinic.

Charlie still works part-time alongside veterinarians David Hunter, Eliza McInnerney, Holly Gall, Alice Boland and Kodi Woerner, receptionist Jasmine Bartelen, and veterinary nurses Chyla Heinemann, Phoenix Sweeney and Fiona Hynes but later this month, he’ll officially clock off from the clinic he established 48 years ago.

“I opened the doors on February 1, 1978 out on the Mungindi Road,” Charlie said.

“When I graduated from uni, my first job was in Western Australia, and then I came back here.

“I met Wendy through one of her cousins, John Crowley, who I was doing vet science with at the time. John was my next door neighbour in our first year at college.

“I wanted to find somewhere in this district to establish a practice, and Moree was the perfect spot,” he said.

Charlie says he’s never quite worked out the most satisfying aspect of being a vet.

“People say we must love animals. I think it’s a combination of the animals and the people – I like the animals and I like the people,” he said.

“In saying that, my patients have bitten, scratched, kicked and jumped on me, but one thing they’ve never done is complain about the bill,” he laughed.

In 2023, Charlie cut back to about two days a week at the Heber Street practise.

“I’ve had three years of winding down, which has been great,” he said.

Moree Veterinary Hospital has been an important part of the Moree community for nearly 50 years, and one of the key drivers behind that connection is Charlie Bunce.

During that time, Charlie became one of the best-known and respected veterinarians in the region, working with a wide range of animals, including cattle, horses, sheep, working dogs, pets and wildlife.

“I worked by myself during the early years, and had to do every animal that walked through the door,” he said.

His career echoes the important role rural vets play in regional Australia, where dealing with everything from emergency calvings and horse injuries to disease management and animal welfare on farms is all in a day’s work.

“One thing about this job is that every morning for 50 years, I’ve gone to work wondering ‘what’s going to happen today’, because every day is different,” Charlie said.

“There’s always that little bit of apprehension. That can be good and bad, because it keeps you on your toes,” he smiled.

Charlie, now 73, built his reputation during a time when veterinarians in rural areas were often on-call at all hours, every day of the week.

Travelling long distances across farming districts was his stock-in-trade.

“The after-hours and the weekends are the difficult part of the job. At one stage for seven years, I was the only vet in Moree, and was on-call seven days a week, 24 hours a day,” Charlie said.

“That can get you down a bit, but you owe it to your patients to try and look after them.”

Colleague and good friend, David Hunter, said the Moree district has been extremely fortunate to have benefitted from Charlie’s knowledge and expertise for nearly half a century.

“Charlie’s enthusiasm and willingness to help and go the extra mile is always present, and he treated every creature large or small expertly and professionally,” David said.

“Many young veterinarians have been fortunate to benefit and learn from Charlie over time, none more so than myself – we’ve worked together for more than 37 years.

“The community has also benefited through Charlie’s involvement with Rotary, Moree Pony Club, his time served on the board of Fairview and Whiddon Retirement Village and still through his current role as a member of the Moree Race Club committee.

“Charlie’s helpful, friendly manner will be missed by all the staff at Moree Veterinary Hospital and all of our clients, many of whom have become close friends over the years,” David said.

Away from veterinary medicine, Charlie has long been involved in the social and sporting life of Moree.

He currently serves on the Moree Race Club committee and has been active in the local horse-racing industry for decades, as a veterinarian and racehorse owner.

Charlie has been involved in racing syndicates connected with locally-owned horses for years, primarily the picnic racing circuit.

Picnic cup winners include Midas Boy, Track Flash, General Relativity and Dungiven, all trained by Peter Sinclair, now based at Murwillumbah.

“I’ve known Charlie since I was a kid at pony club, nearly 50 years ago,” Peter said.

“Charlie is, without doubt, one of the best vets around. If there’s something he’s not quite sure about, he’ll thoroughly research the problem until he knows everything about it – until he has all the answers. He’s one of the best horse dentists I’ve seen, too.

“I can ring Charlie at any time of the day or night and ask him for information and advice. He was always on-call, and it never seemed to be a problem for him,” he said.

“Not only is Charlie a good vet and the ultimate professional, but he is also a good family friend with a great sense of humour.”

The trainer’s dominance of bush racing’s Golden Triangle peaked when he trained the first four across the line in the 2024 Boolooroo Cup at Moree picnics – Peak Road, Waitapu, Fiocchi and Always Hunting.

The trainer can rightly call the Boolooroo Cup his own.

He’s won the race 17 times since 1995, and Charlie Bunce’s big syndicate of owners has figured prominently during that time.

“I’ve had a ton of fun training racehorses, and got some decent winners of good races,” Peter said.

“But I guarantee, there’s no better result than winning a picnic cup for Charlie Bunce and his syndicate.

“They have heaps of fun and the competiton and rivalry between all the picnic racing syndicates is great. If there’s one thing I miss about leaving Moree, it’s the picnic circuit,” he said.

Oddly, Charlie’s syndicate hasn’t got a runner at this year’s Golden Triangle.

“It felt very strange going to the Moree picnics without a horse – there’s been close to 48 years of having a horse at Moree,” he said.

“Over those years, there’s been some good horses, but also a few slow ones.

“Midas Boy won three picnic cups in one year – Moree, Mallawa and Quirindi – and won again at Moree the following year.

“Track Flash was a lovely horse and everyone’s favourite, but Dungiven was my favourite.

“He was a funny horse, and was never terribly well-behaved – a nice rascal,” Charlie laughed.

“Our first good horse was Boogie Flash, trained by Mark Mason and ridden by Henry Cameron. He went on to win a Warialda Cup and a few other races, including a Narrabri Bracelet.

“He’s the horse that sort of got us on our feet,” he said.

Charlie will remain close to the racing industry, particularly the picnics – that’s a given – but retirement beckons on his professional life.

“I want to get bored initially. I’m always busy, so I want to get bored for a while,” he laughed.

“I also want to travel a little bit – not too much. We’ve got a son, Peter, in America, and we’ve got a little unit in Yamba so we might spend some time at the coast as well.

“I’m sure all that will keep me busy for a long time,” he smiled.