Matt Davis (DVM ’03) believes in giving back. Even as a busy equine vet (he founded Davis Equine, located in Adrian, Michigan, in 2023 after years practicing in different states), he finds time to mentor future veterinarians. His commitment to mentoring has taken him to Mexico five times to help teach students as part of the Equine Welfare in Practice international trip.
Like many other mentors and educators, Davis can pin it all to gratitude for those who paved the way for him.
He was first inspired to attend veterinary school after shadowing Dr. Greg Crosley, a large animal veterinarian whom Davis describes as “so passionate about his work that he would inspire anyone to follow in his footsteps.”
In 1999, Davis arrived at Michigan State University’s campus. As a veterinary student, he spent two years working in the research lab of Dr. Hal Schott, professor of Large Animal Clinical Sciences at the College of Veterinary Medicine.
“If I were to think about how I ended up in private practice as an equine veterinarian, most of the credit goes to Dr. Hal Schott,” he says. In Schott’s lab, he participated in exercise physiology research, studying two-year-old Arabian horses as they ran on a treadmill.
“We were investigating the effects of endurance exercise on blood calcium levels, as well as using salt water of various salinity as rehydration options for horses competing in endurance exercise,” he recalls.
Schott remembers those days well.
“As a student, Matt was inquisitive and took advantage of every opportunity to learn about horses,” he recalls. “He was also mature and professional at a young age, with high integrity. These qualities have allowed his career to develop into a successful equine practice in which he prioritizes each and every horse and its owner.”
Davis’s work in Schott’s lab, and the mentorship received there, impacted Davis greatly.
“Dr. Schott inspired confidence and determination in me—that I could be an equine veterinarian,” he says.
Following Schott’s advice, he completed an internship at Littleton Equine Medical Center in Littleton, Colorado.
“It changed the course of my career,” Davis says. “I’ve been in private practice in Illinois, Michigan, Florida, and Ohio since then. I could not have chosen a better career.”
From Mentee to Mentor
Fast forward to 2026, and Davis has just returned from a three-week trip across southern rural Mexico, where he joined veterinary students, other practitioners, and MSU faculty in providing medical care to working horses, donkeys, and mules in villages and farms. Working long days in the field, Davis helped students as they gained hands-on experience with exams, dentistry, hoof care, sterilizations, and other procedures.
“This was my fifth time serving as a mentor veterinarian, and it continues to be one of the most meaningful parts of my work,” he says.
Schott, Davis’s longtime mentor, started the Equine Welfare in Practice clerkship in 2017, and when in Mexico, the two work side by side guiding the next generation of practitioners.
“Throughout his career, Matt has also mentored students and early-career veterinarians, instilling in them confidence in their knowledge and abilities,” says Schott. “He was a logical choice to invite to be a mentor in the clerkship.”
Together, the two advance a circle of mentorship through to future generations of equine veterinarians — whether it happens when Davis refers a patient to Schott at the Veterinary Medical Center, or in a field veterinary clinic far south of Michigan.
“I am very thankful for the mentoring and direction I received from Dr. Schott early in my education, as well as throughout my career,” Davis says. “He has always been available.”