The doctor is in . . . the ocean Veterinarian Householder’s SCUBA safari
BY TERRY SCHMIDA
He spends most of his waking hours caring for Key West’s cats, dogs, and bird-life.
But even a busy veterinarian such as Dr. Thomas Householder gets a little time to himself. And when he does, Householder uses it in the best way he knows how: exploring the underwater world of the Florida Keys.
“I’ve been diving here since 1968,” said the PADI-certified Householder, who is the principal veterinarian at, and owner of Key West Vets & Pets, on White Street. “After I moved to Key West from Miami two-and-a-half years ago, I figured I had a decision to make. I could either sit on a bar stool, or find another hobby. So, I decided to really pursue diving.”
And pursue it he has.
Since arriving here, Householder has literally dove right into his pastime. He’s made over 100 dives on the USNS General Hoyt S. Vandenberg alone, and has also made his way to every other major wreck in the Keys at least once.
Along the way, he’s taken courses to expand his capabilities, becoming a Technical or “Tech” diver, and now dives in waters up to 200 feet deep, using a “tri-mix” oxygen and nitrogen blend, in the double-tanks strapped to his back.
“It’s a kick, man,” Householder said. “A real joy.
Like many local divers, however, the good doctor is concerned about the state of the reef.
“I’ve definitely noticed a deterioration in both the water quality and the state of the reef since I started doing this,” Householder said. “There are a number of reasons for it, and it does worry me.”
One solution to the problem is, he said, increasing the number of artificial reefs.
“What I would really like to help do is sink another four ships in the Keys,” Householder said. “If we spread them out between Key West, Marathon, Big Pine Key, and Islamorada, it would be a good way to both spread the economic benefits between those communities, and increase the number of fish in those waters. I’ve read that almost from the time an artificial reef goes in, sea life flocks to it.”
In the meantime, Householder is doing his best to document the undersea world he loves, with a camera. He’s an avid photographer, and has taken thousands of shots, mostly on the wreck dives he loves so much.
“I’ve actually lost two cameras along the way,” Householder said. “They just couldn’t take the pressure. Always pleased to share his work with the public, he’s posted many of them on his Facebook page, https://www.facebook.com/thomas.householder?ref=br_rsor Florida Keys Pro Divers on Face Book
Another problem for Householder, at least in the beginning, was finding serious dive partners, though for the moment, anyway, he seems to have solved that problem.
“I’m always looking for new dive friends, though,” he said. “People can contact me on my Facebook page, and who knows? Maybe we’ll end up doing a dive together.”
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