Dr. Peter Louis Malnati

1929 - 2022

Peter Louis Malnati Jr. DVM

Peter Malnati passed peacefully at home in Port Tobacco, MD on September 26.

He is survived by his beloved wife of 69 years Gail Hoyt Malnati, sons Donald Malnati (Ragnhild) of Washington DC and Larry Malnati (Donna) of Tennessee, brother Paul Malnati (Mary) and nephew Brian Malnati of New Jersey. He had 4 grandchildren and 8 great grand-children. Also Luci and Brady, the current generation of a long line of Golden Retriever companions.

Peter, the eldest son of Peter and Lena Malnati, was born on January 9, 1929 in Sheffield, MA, where he was raised on the 500 acre Cooper Hill dairy farm.

After graduating from Cornell School of Veterinary Medicine as the youngest member of the 1951 class, he established his first practice on his parents' farm in nearby Great Barrington. There, one of his early patients was Reddy, an Irish Setter owned by his future wife Gail Hoyt.

He fulfilled his ROTC military obligation at the Chicago stock yards and the Walter Reed clinic in Washington DC. He also worked at the Tail Waggers clinic in Washington, DC. In 1958 he returned to the DC area and, although having no prior building experience, he built and established Coolridge Animal Hospital, a small animal practice. The practice thrived, growing to have 4 veterinarians when he sold it in 1969. He and Gail then moved to Port Tobacco, MD to live. He founded and built another veterinary hospital in Waldorf, MD that same year. Again the practice thrived until he sold it around 1990. After selling the practice, Dr. Malnati helped establish yet another practice in White Plains, MD. He also continued to work in various veterinary practices into his late 80s.

Having graduated from Cornell just after WWII, Peter had many former GIs in his graduating class. He greatly respected those who had served in active combat and was close friends with several of his graduating class members who had participated in invasions of Italy and Normandy. One of Peter's most memorable trips was to visit Normandy with a close friend/veterinary colleague.

Familiarly known as Pete or Doc, he rode motorcycles from his teen years until his nineties, touring most of the US including the Sturgis, SD and Laconia, NH rallies. He used these opportunities to keep in touch with most of the members of his Cornell DVM graduating class, who were spread out over the country. He also was an amateur race driver with his Ferrari GTO and completed the One Lap of America in 1988 in a Saleen Mustang.

Pete was very physically active throughout his life, which included personally cutting and splitting all the wood needed to heat their house for over 30 years. He became the subject of articles in the Washington Times, when, in retirement, this lifelong hunting enthusiast expanded his interests into boating, fishing, and crabbing on the nearby Port Tobacco River.

Dr. Malnati was a committed member of the American Veterinary Medical Association for 72 years. He was a founding member of a local MD veterinary group and spearheaded their annual trips to a large veterinary conference held in Orlando, FL for over 30 years. His intense interest in and attention to veterinary medicine and veterinary business inspired many colleagues, who remember him fondly.

Pete's philanthropy was motivated by his love of animals and his practice, as well as Cornell University. All who wish to honor Pete with a donation, please do so to Morris Animal Foundation, https://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/.