Dr. Maxwell “Mack” Lea, who served as the state veterinarian with the Louisiana Department of Agriculture and Forestry for nearly 20 years, died Monday at the age of 79.
Lea was a native of Baton Rouge who studied undergraduate sciences at LSU for two years before transferring to Oklahoma State University, where he earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree.
Back in Louisiana, he worked in private practice in large-animal care in Zachary for 20 years, treating the livestock of area and out-of-parish farmers…