Wild Vet Adventures: Saving Animals Around the World with Dr. Gabby Wild
A WORD FROM GABBY When I was a little girl ALL I WANTED TO DO WAS READ ABOUT WILD ANIMALS Every day I would study facts about different critters and dream of working with them I was fascinated with science and animal medicine too and soon it became obvious that I should become a veterinarian But not just any veterinarian I WANTED TO BECOME A WILDLIFE VETERINARIAN The life of a wild animal doctor is exciting fun and rewarding No two days are ever the same because I get to work with so many different types of animals and each species is so different and fascinating You do not need to be a wildlife veterinarian to love and protect animals though EVERY PERSON CAN HELP ANIMALS by working hard to keep the planet clean through simple acts like recycling not littering and making less unnecessary trash We live on this planet together people and animals And TOGETHER WE MUST RESPECT AND PROTECT IT After reading this book about some of my wild friends I hope you will feel inspired to protect them and their homes too AND MAYBE YOU’LL EVEN BECOME A WILDLIFE VETERINARIAN ONE DAY In each chapter YOU’LL MEET SOME OF MY FAVORITE PATIENTS Check out the EXAM TIME section to learn more about some of the body parts that make each animal so unique LOOK FOR THE FOLLOWING SYMBOLS TO LEARN MORE ABOUT where each animal lives and what their family what they eat the dangers they face both from predators We’ll visit six of Earth’s seven continents and learn about some of the kinds of wildlife you’ll find on each The animals don’t live separated by the lines that make up a country or a city or a forest though They coexist in their ecosystems and ours unaware of human made boundaries Along the way you’ll LEARN ABOUT SOME OF THE GEOGRAPHICAL FEATURES ON EACH CONTINENT that are important to the animals that live there as well as an example of a SPECIAL RELATIONSHIP THAT EXISTS BETWEEN WILDLIFE AND PEOPLE On GLOBAL GLANCE pages you’ll even get to learn about a special challenge that a particular group of animals faces as well as a little about what we’re doing to take on that challenge in the wild and those caused by people How to Explore This Book this book will take you on a journey around the world life is like Let’s get started on our adventure STAY WILD dr gabby wild 6
A DAY IN THE LIFE OF A VET What does a typical day in the life of a veterinarian look like The answer is that there’s hardly ever a typical day Every exam of every animal can bring new questions to answer and new challenges to tackle We all know that animals can’t talk to let us know that they’re not feeling well So you really have to be a sort of detective to be a good veterinarian The results of an examination examination give me clues to what might be wrong The first part of my job is to put these clues together to try to figure out what’s going on Once I know the problem I can figure out how to make the animal feel better There are a few questions I ask even before every exam whether it’s in the wild in a zoo or at my clinic They include 1 Who’s here The basic answer to this question is called the signalment It includes the animal’s species age and whether it’s male or female 2 Why are they here Why did the animal come in today Is it for a checkup Does it have the sniffles Something else 3 What’s been going on I take a good look at what we call the animal’s history If it’s a pet does it have all its shots Has it been sick recently The more clues I have the more likely it is that I can put the puzzle together 8 These steps might go something like this Who’s here 5 year 10 month old female Labrador retriever 3 month old male snow leopard Why is the patient here She’s been limping for two days on the left back leg and cries when she puts weight on it He has a runny nose is sleeping more than usual and seems to have some difficulty breathing What’s been going on She went on a hike with her owner two days ago and has come to see me before with a sore knee He was orphaned in the wild rescued and brought to my clinic
After I find out the animal’s history it’s time to meet the patient What happens in an animal visit is a lot like what happens in your doctor visits I find out how much the animal weighs I listen to its heart and breathing I feel its belly and other parts of its body Younger animals and older animals get a bit of special treatment at an exam I look at baby or young animals to make sure they are growing properly and are gaining enough weight I look at an older animal’s teeth to make sure they are healthy Unhealthy teeth might mean the animal isn’t able to chew its food well If that’s the case the animal might not be getting enough nutrition from its food Older animals also have more bone and joint problems than younger animals What’s that shot Animals get vaccines shots to keep them from getting certain kinds of diseases Here are just a few of the common vaccines that animals get NAME OF THE VACCINE WHAT DOES IT DO The rabies shot protects your pet from getting rabies This disease is caused by a very tiny germ called a virus that affects the brain All mammals including people can get rabies but we usually see it in wild animals like skunks foxes and raccoons which can carry the disease The distemper shot in dogs and cats helps keep your pet from getting a few different diseases These diseases affect body parts like the lungs nose and throat and stomach People cannot catch distemper Lyme disease can cause fever and a rash It is often spread by ticks which can bite people and pets when they are outside Rabies Distemper Lyme Disease Staying Safe in the Wild at the Zoo and at the Clinic One other thing I always think about when I’m examining an animal is keeping myself safe it’s no fun getting bitten or scratched by even the small est puppy Most pets that come to the clinic can be held and kept calm by either their owners or by one of my helpers Even though animals at the zoo are still wild animals they’re much more used to people than animals that live say in the rainforest Zoo animals can be trained at least a little to learn what to expect during a vet exam For example a big cat can be trained to put its paws up to the fence of its enclosure Then I can have a good look at them and the cat gets a treat for helping me out If I need to take a close look at an animal at a zoo I give the animal anesthesia with a bit of a special gas or sometimes a shot The anesthesia puts the animal to sleep for a little bit Since wild animals aren’t trained I also always use anesthesia in the wild no matter what I’m examining this is safest for me my team and the animal 9
