Suzanne Jaynes: Why did you become a veterinarian?

I have wanted to be a veterinarian since I was six years old, maybe earlier.  Growing up, I heard endless stories about my Dad’s family and their involvement with animals.  My grandfather was a top polo player at Harvard.  After my grandparents were married, they owned thoroughbred racehorses and Shetland ponies.  My Dad loved telling me about his pony Cookie and how in the 1930’s he used to ride Cookie down to Newton Center, MA to share an ice cream cone.  My grandfather was also a Great Dane breeder and had over 30 dogs at their Boston estate at one time.  (Clearly I was born in the wrong generation!) 

At age 9, I started taking riding lessons with one of my best friends, Zanna.  I remember thinking that my first school pony, Lucky, was soooooo huge!  He was a mischievous blue roan bugger but I adored him!  I still remember how he smelled.  His favorite trick was to put his head down and take off with me on board at the first sight of green grass.  Let’s just say that he was very 'character-building’ for me, as many ponies are.  

Zanna’s dad was our little town’s, (aptly named Littleton), resident veterinarian.  I loved going to their house to play.  At most times their personal pets included 9 cats, 3 dogs, an unknown amount of reptiles, 3 birds, a sheep named Luke and a pony named Spiderman.  At any time we could walk into her dad’s surgery suite and see an anesthetized animal on the table.  I’ll never forget the time we got to touch an injured loon that he was working on.

Like so many horse-obsessed kids, I desperately wanted my own horse, but it just wasn’t in the budget.  I spent countless hours at the barn.  Since the closest vet was a state away, my instructor, Sara, was a very resourceful horse woman.  She taught me how to clean and treat wounds and I absolutely loved it.  I knew I wanted to work with horses, but after I passed the 100 lb. mark, I knew it wasn’t going to be as a jockey.  I honestly wanted to become a vet so that when I did finally get my own horse, I’d know ‘enough’ to take care of him.   

There were many nay-sayers along the way.  I had a guidance counselor tell me I’d never get into vet school.  My organic chemistry professor in college told me I should consider a different career choice.  Shame on them!  I will never discourage anyone from pursuing their dream.  I used their negativity to fuel my fire and was accepted into vet school in Dublin, Ireland in 2000.  When I told my Mom, she cried tears of joy.  When I told my Dad, he said, “It’s a damn miracle!”