The Next Vet

I think I spotted the world’s next veterinarian today.

I often wonder what the next generation of this profession will be like. I may have found out today in one of my mid-morning appointments with a new client. This family had recently adopted a mix-breed puppy from the pound.  As I started into my talk with the mother about house breaking, I got a pull on my pant leg.  I look down to see this adorable little girl looking up at me.  She says, “Excuse me, but this is my puppy and I cannot see what you are doing because you have him on the table. Will you perform his exam down here on the ground so I can see?” Needless to say, I was floored! She must have been only 7 or 8, and usually kids this age get bored in our office. Especially the boys, who usually start messing with things and somehow find a way to make weapons out of the supplies in our exam rooms.

Per her request, I sit down on the floor with her right in front of me, and I begin the exam. I start with eyes and tell her that they look good, they are symmetrical (she asked me what that meant), they are clear, and they both move in the same direction. She agrees with me.  Whew!

We move on to the ears and they are dirty. I have her look down in the ears and get some of the junk out. I tell her it might be an infection or ear mites. She looks horrified, but asks me how I can tell it is not dirt. I show her how we make some slides to look at under the microscope. As I send off the slides with one of my nurses and try to move on with the exam, my future little vet interrupts, “Excuse me! We need to go look at those slides.” Indeed! So I hand the puppy to her mom and we walk back to look through the microscope. We see just yeast and no mites. However, she is not convinced. She wants to know what an ear mite looks like to be sure I did not miss anything. So I get the book out and show her, and thankfully she concurs that we did not see those under the microscope. Whew!

After this we go back into the exam room and start listening to the heart. I let her listen and she agrees it sounds good. As I am wondering how she would know whether it is good or bad, she informs me she knows it sounds good since she listens to her puppy’s heart when he is sleeping.  Wow, what a smart kid! She is already ahead of some veterinary students I know.

Next come the shots. At this point, even the most interested kid usually turns away in fear of the dreaded needle.  As I am about to give the vaccines, she says, “Wait! I have some questions. Does it hurt? Because if so, I’m not sure I want you to give the shots.” I told her it would hurt a little but we are going to distract her puppy with a treat. She looks at me skeptically, but allows the vaccines. Thank goodness the puppy was a good sport and did not make a sound. I think this little girl might finally believe I know what I am doing!

As I finished up, I realized I had really only spoken to the girl during this whole appointment and not the mother. I looked up at the mom and started to apologize about only talking to her daughter, but she reassured me it was ok. She said her daughter had been reading up on dogs and all their medical problems for the last six months. She said that all her daughter ever wanted to be, even before they had a pet, was a veterinarian. I told the mother that her daughter is going to make an excellent vet, and I thought to myself that our profession is in good hands. So keep a look out for this little girl, she will graduate sometime in 2039, but in the meantime, she will have one well examined puppy. You go girl!