{"id":15313,"date":"2022-06-24T08:52:33","date_gmt":"2022-06-24T12:52:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/qa.vet.purdue.edu\/news\/?p=15313"},"modified":"2024-11-21T09:50:17","modified_gmt":"2024-11-21T14:50:17","slug":"senior-dvm-student-pursues-passion-for-animals-around-the-world-pvr-s2022","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/senior-dvm-student-pursues-passion-for-animals-around-the-world-pvr-s2022.php","title":{"rendered":"Senior DVM Student Pursues Passion for Animals Around the World"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Bre restrains Bartolome, a broad-winged Hawk, before releasing him back into the wild.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cIf it doesn\u2019t scare you, your dreams aren\u2019t big enough.\u201d This is the affirmation that has guided senior Purdue veterinary student Bre Wilson\u2019s life and her incredible journey around the world for the past few years. Bre most recently completed a study abroad trip to Costa Rica, where she learned invaluable lessons on the importance of appreciating differences in culture and perspective \u2013 but her collection of small steps and giant leaps toward a career in veterinary medicine did not begin there.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Raised in Bend, Oregon, a mountain town in the Pacific Northwest, Bre loves to run, play soccer, hike with her dogs, paddle board, and participate in any other outdoor activity. Her life revolved around soccer growing up, so much so that her devotion to the sport led her to play division one soccer at the University of Idaho on an athletic scholarship from 2010-2014. Bre had dreamed of becoming a veterinarian from a young age, but upon entering college, she was drawn to the social sciences and decided to pursue another passion.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Global Aspirations<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

After four years at the University of Idaho, Bre received her Bachelor of Science in anthropology and a minor in psychology. Her desire to understand human behavior and differing cultures led her to solo travel internationally. Immediately following graduation in 2014, Bre spent a month in Cusco, Peru working in a children\u2019s hospital with physically and mentally disabled children. When she wasn\u2019t working, she immersed herself in the local culture. In 2015, she solo traveled for six months through Australia and Southeast Asia. Upon her return, she enrolled in an Oregon State University satellite campus in her hometown to complete her veterinary school pre-requisites. There, she coached high school soccer and worked as a veterinary assistant before finally taking the next step towards her dream: applying for admission to the Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Bre and Mia, her dog, are all smiles at the college’s Dr. Skip Jackson Dog Jog<\/a>.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

\u201cIf I\u2019m being honest, the main reason I didn\u2019t go pre-vet originally in college is because I was terrified,\u201d Bre reflects. \u201cI was terrified that I wasn\u2019t smart enough and terrified that it would be too hard. While I don\u2019t regret the path I took for a second, I\u2019m also thankful that my dream of being a veterinarian never stopped.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Sure enough, Bre\u2019s passions held true even as she crossed the globe. In Southeast Asia, Bre found herself with just a backpack, a heart full of curiosity, and what she realized was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. The Elephant Sanctuary in Northern Thailand was looking for volunteers, and soon Bre was spending her time with hundreds of rescued dogs within the park. \u201cI went to bed every night in the heart of the park falling asleep to howling dogs and started each morning by running through fields of water buffalo and elephants, trying to catch the dogs that somehow had slipped out of their enclosures,\u201d Bre said. But while her nights were filled with magical moments, her days were filled with heartbreak. Bre worked as a veterinarian\u2019s assistant, treating rescued dogs diagnosed with parvovirus. The majority of the dogs had not been previously vaccinated, so the park declared a state of emergency. Bre spent twelve hours each day dedicated to their care. But where there was hardship, there was also hope. Every single dog fought and survived. \u201cNever had I seen such resilience and strength,\u201d Bre recalled. \u201cThis was my moment. I knew I was there for a reason, and I knew that I wanted to dedicate my life to fighting for animals.\u201d Bre ended up adopting a dog named Mia rescued from the Elephant Nature Park \u2013 a pet that is now a daily reminder to Bre of why she wants to become a voice for the voiceless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Gaining New Perspectives<\/h6>\n\n\n\n

After her first year at Purdue, Bre studied abroad in South Africa, learning about wildlife capture, relocation, and conservation. Then, this spring, she returned from a trip to Costa Rica, where she worked at Kids Saving the Rainforest (KSTR). This experience spoke deeply to her as she continued to refine her knowledge on treatments and conservation efforts while also learning more regarding wildlife rehabilitation, handling, and advocation. Her favorite experience studying abroad came through a companionship with a broad-winged hawk named Bartolome. Bartolome was an inpatient for several months at KSTR while he was being treated for chlamydiosis and suspected head trauma. After some time working with Bartolome in his large enclosure, Bre learned to capture, restrain, give intramuscular injections, administer subcutaneous fluids and oral medications, and feed him all by herself. Before her departure from KSTR, Bartolome healed, and Bre received the honor of releasing him back into the wild.<\/p>\n\n\n

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Se\u00f1or Dona, a two-toed sloth at KSTR, basking in the sunlight in his hammock.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

One of the things Bre loved about studying abroad was the ever-present opportunity to explore diverse cultural backgrounds and gain new perspectives on the world around her. During a two-day excursion through the Bokeo jungle in Laos, Bre was shown what is believed to be the largest tree in the forest. While she called it \u201dcrazy,\u201d her guide called it \u201dbeautiful.\u201d \u201cHis respect and love for all things was both eye opening and inspiring,\u201d said Bre. \u201cTo him, he wasn\u2019t more important than the biggest tree in the Bokeo canopy or even the dirt below him. If that\u2019s not perspective, I don\u2019t know what is.\u201d Bre added that working in Costa Rica allowed her to realize how truly lucky we are to work and live in a country with exceptional resources and high quality animal health care. KSTR relies mostly on donations for supplies and medications. It can be virtually impossible to have sufficient funds to buy medicine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Bre is also grateful for the experience she gained in communicating with those who have a different language, culture, and background. When engaging in work experiences in Costa Rica, Bre often interacted with coworkers using translation apps on their phones. \u201cI have a medical brain, but the people working in the clinic taught me so much about enrichment, animal behavior, interspecies interactions, and the consequences of human interactions with wildlife,\u201d Bre said. These valuable insights sparked a flame of passion in her to raise awareness about such issues. Many fatal parasites present in Costa Rica are due to the blurred lines between wild and human life. Monkeys often become dependent upon humans as a food source as a result of being fed on trails. Other leading causes of primate death include electrocution and car accidents. \u201cWorking there taught me how to handle the cases that came through, but also how to educate others on how to prevent these devastating events from occurring,\u201d Bre said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As she looks forward to the future, Bre appreciates how she\u2019s grown with age and experience. As a little girl, Bre dreamed of being a wildlife veterinarian, though her fantasies looked much different than her present reality. \u201cMy vision entailed a cabin in the middle of the woods where sick bears would come to visit me so I could treat them,\u201d remembers Bre. \u201cWhile the \u2018how\u2019 of this dream makes me shake my head and smile at the thought, the dream of working with wildlife has always been there,\u201d Bre explains. Her post-graduation plans include moving to Northern Colorado to work in a general practice treating small animals and exotic species, while educating about and advocating for her patients. Further into the future, Bre hopes to own her own general practice and work as a veterinarian in the wildlife rehabilitation sector, participate in annual international veterinary volunteer jobs, and work directly with animal shelters and disaster relief.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Arfonzito, a juvenile capuchin monkey being treated for injuries caused by electrocution, was Bre’s patient throughout her stay at KSTR.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n
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Bre is shown recovering Alfonzito from anesthesia after teaching the team to do a tie-over bandage as part of his treatment.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/figure>\n\n\n\n

Bre provides valuable advice to anyone currently pursuing their own goals. \u201cIf it\u2019s your dream, it will be worth it. It will be hard and there are times you will want to give up, but when you think of the lives you will help and save, it will be everything. Just remember not to sacrifice your well-being in the process. I\u2019ve never looked back, and I couldn\u2019t be more excited to enter this field.\u201d <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

\u201cIf it doesn\u2019t scare you, your dreams aren\u2019t big enough.\u201d This is the affirmation that has guided senior Purdue veterinary student Bre Wilson\u2019s life and her incredible journey around the world for the past few years. Bre recently returned from a study abroad trip to Costa Rica, where she learned invaluable lessons on the importance of appreciating differences in culture and perspective.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":15327,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[30,44,499,28,29,42],"tags":[645,169,122,811,560],"class_list":["post-15313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-academics","category-dvm","category-global-engagement","category-our-impact","category-our-people","category-students","tag-dvm-class-of-2022","tag-engagement","tag-global-engagement","tag-pvm-report","tag-summer"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/7"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=15313"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15313\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":25609,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/15313\/revisions\/25609"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/15327"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=15313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=15313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/vet.purdue.edu\/news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=15313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}