At 70, Alpha Wann is still a veterinarian. A passion for the profession that he evokes with pride.
Alpha Wann, this name may mean something to you. At the age of 70, and after more than 36 years of career as a rural veterinarian, he continues to exercise his profession, which he considers to be a real passion. Equipped with his boots and his famous hat, he works with farmers on the Aubrac plateau.
A passion since childhood
For Alpha Wann, it all started in 1978 when he arrived in France, finally the “July 14, 1978 to be precise”, he says. Originally from Guinea, from a merchant father, the man who today works in Nasbinals has always lived with animals. “My father used to buy sheep and then resell them in Sierra Leone, remembers the vet. My mother and my aunt had cows. It is this closeness to animals that pushed me to do this job.”
A fan of wide open spaces, driven by the desire to move and be in constant contact with the agricultural world, Alpha Wann initially carried out numerous replacements throughout France for nearly ten years. “The first was in Angoulême, he remembers. I also went to Corrèze, Nièvre, Côte-d’Or and several other departments.”
But before being able to practice, Alpha Wann completed six years of study at the Toulouse veterinary school. After having chained replacements here and there, he settled in 1993 in Nasbinals, a small town in Lozère. “I worked with a partner for seven years, from 1994 to 2001, he explains. From now on, I work alone and have done so for more than twenty-one years.”
an atypical man
Recognizable by his hat screwed on his head, Alpha Wann does not count his hours. Like many colleagues, he works seven days a week, 24 hours a day. This Saturday, April 2, he also had to go to one of the farmers he used to follow, but with the snow, which s fell on the roads, the movement could not be made. He had to go and vaccinate calves against bluetongue. A disease transmissible from sheep to cattle and which causes malformations in newborn calves in particular.
“This job, we do it out of passion, indicates Alpha Wann. ATWith all the constraints that we can have, it is not possible otherwise. Sometimes you can be called in the middle of the night for an intervention. For example, from January to April is calving time. We can intervene quite regularly.”
Despite the constraints, the veterinarian feels grateful to the farmers who have chosen him to take care of their animals. “It’s a difficult job, but a joyful one. I like taking care of the calves. As long as the head and the body are working, I will continue.”
Looking for a successor
Alpha Wann has been practicing as a veterinarian for 36 years now. While he could retire, the Lozérien is looking for a successor. In vain. “It’s complicated to find a replacement, the rural environment is morally and physically complicated. The climate can sometimes be harsh. If you work alone, loneliness can also set inhe explains. I have the impression that the profession no longer appeals to young people as much.
Other arguments are put forward by the veterinarian to explain his difficulty in finding a replacement: “With the internet, farmers are increasingly trying to treat their animals themselves. There is also the fact that the profession is little known. We know about veterinarians in town, but very little in rural areas and Lozère n “Is not attractive to young people. If I were to find one, I would not leave like that. I will support him and accompany him so that he can integrate and start properly.”
–
–
–
