Auburn University and its esteemed veterinary community have been devastated by the killing of one of its “bright lights,” Professor Emerita Dr. Julie Gard Schnuelle.
“She was amazing,” said Destinee Bearden Patterson, a former student and friend.
“She was a force. She was only a little bit over 5-foot-2, not your typical large animal veterinarian. She was a force in this world, such a bright, bright light, just an all-around wonderful human being that is going to be missed terribly.”
Dr. Schnuelle had just been in Birmingham last month teaching a 4-hour professional certification class for veterinarians at the Wynfrey Hotel in Hoover on Aug. 7, said Dr. Allen Riley, a 1985 Auburn veterinary graduate and program chairman of the Jefferson County Veterinary Medical Association.
“I’m in shock,” said Dr. Riley. “She’s been here before speaking to veterinarians from all over the state. She was well-known.”
Auburn University released the following statement: “Julie Gard Schnuelle, DVM, Ph.D., was a beloved member of the Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and the Auburn Family. She served as a faculty member in the Department of Clinical Sciences in the Large Animal/Food Animal section from 2003 to 2021, when she retired as a professor emerita.
