PROFESSOR VANMICROBE
Dr. Vanessa Hale
Assistant Professor, The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine | MAT (Masters of the Arts in Teaching – Secondary) 2007, Western New Mexico University | DVM 2012, Purdue University College of Veterinary Medicine | PhD 2014, Purdue UniversityVetaHumanz Live! Podcast
Dr. Hale was featured in Episode 25 of the VetaHumanz Live! Podcast. Listen now.
My Story
I didn’t know that I wanted to be a veterinarian until after I graduated from college! During college, I discovered that I loved doing research on animal health and behavior, and I wanted to pursue a research career. (Okay, really, I dreamed of being Jane Goodall.) But before I started a graduate degree, I decided to teach high school for a few years with a program called Teach for America. After three years of teaching, I began applying for graduate programs in animal behavior. At one point, my boyfriend (now husband/partner!) asked me if I’d ever thought about being a veterinarian. I considered his question and realized that studying anatomy and physiology and disease processes could help me better understand animal behavior, so I looked through my list of graduate schools and realized that one of them – Purdue University – also had a College of Veterinary Medicine! A combination of a great mentor for my graduate studies, and a joint DVM PhD program helped me decide that Purdue was the perfect place for me to learn about animal health and behavior. As it turned out, my research didn’t end up focusing on animal behavior, but I did study wild and captive primates… just like I’d dreamed of!
My Struggles
When I started veterinary school, I felt a little bit out of place. I was older than many of the other students, and it seemed like all my classmates knew that they wanted to become veterinarians from the age of 3. I also didn’t have as much animal experience as most of them (but I did have more research experience than many of them!) I was afraid I wouldn’t be good enough or smart enough to be a veterinarian like my classmates. Over time, I learned that we all came in with different backgrounds, and different interests, and that we could all be great veterinarians doing different things. It was hard to see that at first though.
My Heroes
My parents: My dad inspired my love of science with Saturday morning “Science Clubs” at home, and my mom showed me (and continues to show me!) what courage looks like. She left her home and family in Hong Kong to come to the United States for college. She studied in a language and culture that were new to her, and she eventually married a long-haired hippie (my dad!) who her family struggled to accept. I was also inspired by Jane Goodall and her dedication to studying chimpanzees.
My Typical Day
I study gut microbes and how they affect animal and human health. This means that I collect a lot of poop. Some days I’m visiting zoos or farms or forests to collect poop from animals like lorikeets or deer or dogs. Some days I’m in the laboratory extracting DNA from the poop and using microbiological tools to help understand what bacteria are present in different animals and in different health conditions. Some days I’m on the computer analyzing these data. I also spend time teaching and working with graduate students…. And there’s always lots of emails.
My Stressors
My job is about teaching and research. I spend a lot of time thinking about how to be a good teacher and a good mentor to help students toward successful and fulfilling careers. I also think about my research. How can my research best serve animal health, and how do I fund this research? Finally, I think about how to balance my work so that I get good quality time with my family and my friends. Some of the things that help me manage stress: Hanging out with my dog, baking, yoga, laughing with my partner, hiking, running.
My Why
I love that veterinarians are truly like superheroes – they can do anything! From public health to neurology, food safety to biomedical research, teaching to disaster preparedness, and conservation to clinical care, there are so many opportunities for veterinarians.
