About Andrew

Despite a busy childhood in the Northern Ontario town of Kapuskasing,  Andrew Peacock managed to find time to be born in the city of Toronto. His lifelong fascination with animals began during summer holidays spent with the dog and cattle on his grandparents’ farm. Summer jobs working with the provincial government later introduced him to the world of wildlife.

While the rectal examination of a cow may not rate as an important milestone in many people’s lives, it was observing one of these procedures that first interested him in the world of veterinarians. After this introduction to animal medicine he completed an undergraduate degree at Trent University and then a veterinary degree at the University of Guelph.

Immediately after graduating from Guelph he moved into solo practice on the island of Newfoundland off the east coast of Canada. The job promised work with. the usual complement of farm animal patients – cows, horses, pigs, goats and chickens. The practice was not limited to these creatures and he soon found himself working with species as diverse as bald eagles, moose, humpback whales, lynx and ostriches.

His first book, Creatures of the Rock was published by Doubleday Canada in 2014. The book won the Newfoundland and Labrador Book Awards prize for the best non-fiction book in the province and was long listed for the Leacock Medal for Canada’s best humour book.

His second book One Brave Boy and His Cat was published by Flanker Press in 2019. The book is a childrens book dealing with the important issue of euthanasia of pets. The wonderful illustrations in the book were provided by Angie Green.

In the years immediately before the COVID-19 pandemic, he wrote the eerily prescient Viral. The book was published by Engen Books in August of 2020.

Outside of his writing, Andrew has enjoyed a variety of extra-veterinary activities. Along with enjoying photography, kayaking, triathlons and camping, he holds a third degree black belt in Kenpo Karate and has run the Boston marathon. Andrew lives in Freshwater, Newfoundland with his wife Ingrid and an Australian Shepherd who calls herself Charlotte. Andrew continues to write and in non-pandemic times joins Ingrid at the Freshwater Coffeehouse to do unspeakable things to Beatle songs.