Dr. Atwood C. “Woody” Asbury, retired equine veterinarian and a consultant to the Grayson Jockey Club Research Foundation, died Nov. 17 in Versailles, Ky., after a lengthy illness. He was 80.
Asbury graduated with top honors from Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1956 and practiced large animal veterinary medicine in California. He also served as a faculty member at the College of Veterinary Medicine, University of California-Davis. In 1977, he relocated to Florida and helped develop the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Florida, where he held numerous faculty positions including chief of staff of the Veterinary Hospital and chairman of Large Animal Clinical Sciences.
After retiring in 1996, Asbury and his wife, Clare, relocated to Kentucky where they bred horses and he consulted with the Grayson Jockey Club Research Foundation. Among the horses bred and raced by the couple is current graded stakes winner Gleam of Hope.
Private services will be held at a later date for Asbury, who is also survived by sons Douglas and Russell Asbury.
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