More Than a Neighborhood Vet: The Story Behind Kalvig & Shorter

By Fisher Greenwood, Teen Guest Writer

Fisher, 15, is volunteering with the Murray Hill Neighborhood Association as a teen guest writer. His interview with Dr. Barbara Kalvig is the first in a new series giving young people the opportunity to meet local
business owners, learn their stories, and share them with the community.

Dr. Barbara Kalvig and her longtime business partner, Dr. James Shorter, are the owners of Kalvig & Shorter Veterinary Associates, which has been part of the Murray Hill community since 2013. I sat down with Dr. Kalvig to learn more about the practice, and I ended up learning a lot more than I expected. Walking into the clinic, I could tell Dr. Kalvig is a very passionate person because the place itself had a really homey feel. Before moving to Murray Hill, in one of her roles, she ran a veterinary house-call practice on the Upper East Side. I did not even know a house-call vet was a real thing. I always thought vets were just stationed in a building. Dr. Kalvig dreamed of being a veterinarian since she was little. In her own words, “I don’t really even remember if I was in grade school yet, or at least grade school when I wanted to be a veterinarian.” Learning that she knew what she wanted to do since childhood was the most surprising part of the interview. I have no idea what I want to be, so just knowing your path since you can remember is insane to me.

Dr. Kalvig was drawn to Murray Hill for a few different reasons. The location near Grand Central Station was great for clients traveling from further away. It is also a very family-oriented neighborhood where she could continue to build real relationships with the people she served. Having direct interactions with people makes her feel connected to the community. In her own words, “I think down here, more clients bring their own pets in. On the Upper East Side, it could often be someone else bringing in the pet for the client. So we had close relationships with many people, the caretakers and the owners.” I saw this family-centered approach firsthand when I went into the back of the pet hospital. I saw an owner sitting right next to her cat who had just gone through surgery. It showed me how committed the owners are and how caring the employees have to be to let her stay there with her pet.

I asked Dr. Kalvig what her favorite part of owning her own practice was. She said it was being able to have their own space and do things their way. Owning a practice fulfilled a lifelong dream. Even though it is difficult to own a business and keep it going, the freedom it offers makes it worth the effort. She makes her practice stand out from others in the city by offering a personal approach. Customers feel like they are part of something familiar instead of a large company where you never see the owners. During our talk, I asked what her favorite kind of pet to take care of was. She said she couldn’t say. I found that funny because it reminded me of how a teacher won’t admit to having a favorite student, but it also showed me how much she loves her work.

Dr. Kalvig and Dr. Shorter have also done so much to help out during disasters. When 9/11 happened, they were among the first veterinarians on the scene with medical supplies. They originally went downtown thinking they might use their medical training to help people, but soon found that search-and-rescue dogs needed veterinary care. It is wild to think about how they organized everything back then because there were no smartphones in 2001. Much of the veterinary response was coordinated using desk phones and handwritten schedules.

October 2001 Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association coverage of the veterinary response at Ground Zero.

After their work at Ground Zero, Dr. Kalvig and Dr. Shorter helped co-found the New York City Veterinary Emergency Response Team (NYCVERT), a nonprofit that helps make sure veterinary care is available during disasters in New York City. While talking about these disaster stories, I learned something else that really stayed with me. I found out people were previously not allowed to bring their pets into shelters with them. I never knew that was an issue. After 9/11, Dr. Kalvig and Dr. Shorter continued working with other veterinarians to make sure animals were better included in plans for future emergencies. Their work became important during later disasters like Hurricane Irene and Superstorm Sandy.

Ground Zero veterinary relief schedule from September 2001, showing the volunteer shifts coordinated by Dr. Kalvig.

Their humanitarian work also went beyond the U.S. After the 2010 earthquake in Haiti, Dr. Kalvig, Dr. Shorter, and their NYCVERT team raised funds and traveled there to deliver medical supplies. Then, during the COVID outbreak in New York City in 2020, their Murray Hill practice answered calls for help from local medical professionals. They donated supplies and raised money to buy and deliver protective gear to hospitals and shelters around the city.

Hearing about their incredible disaster relief work around the world made me appreciate what they do right here in Murray Hill even more. Today, Kalvig & Shorter Veterinary Associates continues to be a welcoming neighborhood practice for local pets and their owners. Meeting Dr. Kalvig showed me that being a veterinarian isn’t just about staying stationed in a building. It’s about stepping up to help your community, whether that’s right next door or in the middle of a disaster zone. It left me really inspired to find a career path that I can care about just as deeply.

Learn more about Kalvig & Shorter Veterinary Associates in Murray Hill.