This week, Evie's been at Zoo Camp and has had a blast. She's in the middle schooler group now, and the theme for her camp is volunteerism so she's gotten to see a lot of cool behind-the-scenes stuff, like how the staff keeps the enclosures clean and interesting for the animals. She's also gotten to help prepare their food, which she found super-exciting. She told me all kinds of things I didn't know about animal diets and preferences. At the end of this, she'll get a certificate stating she's completed 10 volunteer hours, which is helpful for future applications for other kinds of opportunities on her way to becoming a vet.
But this has also given her some insight into other careers that she can go into that still help animals. Since veterinary school is more competitive than medical school, while I'm sure that she is smart enough and capable enough to become a vet, I don't want her to feel that if she doesn't go into that career that she's lost her dreams. The specialized vet that helped Beau mend his broken leg 2 years ago told me, when I asked him what advice he'd have for my daughter who wanted to be a vet, "Tell her to be a lawyer." He went on to say that veterinary practices are becoming more and more corporate-owned, removing veterinarian independence and earning potential, and that the career has a higher rate of depression and suicide than most. So, with that in mind, I keep reminding her that at the heart of her interest in being a vet is a deep compassion for animals, and that there are a lot of ways to help animals beyond a veterinary career.
Snuggles with Beau:
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