Linda Rhodes is the author of the new memoir Breaking the Barnyard Barrier: A Woman Veterinarian Paves the Way. She was a dairy cow veterinarian, and she also spent many years working in the pharmaceutical industry.
Q: What inspired you to write this memoir?
A: In 1978, I was one of a very few women large animal veterinarians. I had to work hard to prove myself every day to a bunch of skeptical dairymen who had never seen a woman vet, and to my colleagues who were pretty sure a woman couldn’t do the job.
I thought the story of how I succeeded, including all my doubts and fears, the grit that was required, might be useful, and hopefully even inspirational, to young women in any male dominated profession.
Secondly, I wanted my son, who is now in his 30s, to hear the stories from my time on the dairy farms, since he only knows his mother as an entrepreneur, researcher, and developer of medicines for animals, which was my second career.
Q: How was the book’s title chosen, and what does it signify for you?
A: My working title was “Lady Cow Vet”, which is the nickname my dairymen gave me, but my publisher thought it might be confusing. They suggested “Breaking the Barnyard Barrier: A Woman Veterinarian Paves the Way” which gives a much clearer idea of what the book is about.
The barnyard barrier was the prejudice that being a large animal veterinarian is a man’s job—only men belong in the barn. The book is about how I challenged that belief by showing up and taking good care of their cows and calves.
They gradually came to realize that I was capable and dependable, and this in turn, paved the way for other women who wanted to practice large animal medicine. The dairymen could no longer say that a woman couldn’t do the job because they had seen me do it!
Q: What did you see as the right balance between your personal and professional lives in the memoir?
A: My readers get right inside the barn with me, and hopefully experience the smells, the sights, the drama of a middle of the night c-section, a twisted stomach surgery out in the pasture, the bleeding bull.
Along the way they learn about dairy cows and their various ailments. I wanted to make sure my readers felt the conflict of such hard work and long hours, with the needs of a marriage, and the anguish of dealing with serious health issues of parents.
I wanted to show how the personal and professional parts of my life were intertwined, rather than separate.
Q: What impact did it have on you to write the book, and what do you hope readers take away from it?
A: Writing a memoir helped me sort through so many memories—I had make multiple timelines in order to remember many of the scenes in the book. And one memory led to another that I thought had been lost, and I had some memories that when I checked with family and friends, that were mis-remembered. After all the stories were written, I had a real sense of pride in what I had accomplished.
I hope readers take away inspiration to follow their dreams, even when everyone is discouraging and things get tough. Particularly for women, I hope they see how it is possible to break into a challenging profession, with enough grit and determination.
Q: What are you working on now?
A: I am writing a follow-up memoir about the next stage in my life, when I was ready to step away from dairy practice. I went back to school, got a Ph.D., and entered the pharmaceutical industry, making new medicines for animals, remarried, and had a son.
The stories of that time in my life are focused more about breaking into an industry that also had its prejudices against women, and where the path to success was more nuanced and difficult.
My other interest is writing braided essays. I am writing a series of short essays about various scientific discoveries, and how they relate to my personal life.
For example, did you know that women’s tears cause a decrease in aggression in men? There was a fascinating article in a science journal about this effect, and I wrote an essay intermingling this study with my personal experience of my crying and its effect on the men in my life.
Q: Anything else we should know?
A: I am excited to bring this book to young veterinarians who know little or nothing about how the role of women in veterinary medicine has changed over the last 50 years.
Today 80-90 percent of new grads from veterinary schools are women, and women are now the majority of veterinarians in the country. This is in contrast to the early 1970s, when most schools only admitted one or two women per class.
Over the next few months, I will be doing readings at a half dozen veterinary schools across the country, hoping to connect with young vets about their career aspirations, and share the story of my journey.
This work has sparked my interest in women who have accomplished success against the odds, and I have a substack called Gutsy Women (Rhodesl.substack.com) that will feature women who have succeeded against the odds. Stay tuned!
--Interview with Deborah Kalb
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