I thought that by writing a little about myself; my personality, likes/dislikes, beliefs and such-like, it might make it a little easier for people to relate to my situation and understand where my desire to become a veterinarian comes from, so here goes nothing!

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I have always loved animals, despite the fact that I have always suffered from allergies, particularly to cats and horses when I was younger, but I now find that pretty much anything furry or dusty can set me off sneezing in the wrong type of environment. For this reason, people often laugh when I tell them I want to become a vet, but to me it has never been something that would ever stop me from being around animals and so I absolutely do not see it as a problem!

Horses were always my favourite animal and I have been riding from the age of five. On top of a horse in the middle of the beautiful countryside is the only place I truely feel at peace and I just think they are amazing, magical creatures that you can only really appreciate once you have loved a horse.

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​While I have always lived in the suburbs of a town (currently right behind a busy A-road - which drives me a little mad!) I am definitely a country girl at heart. One of the reasons I am so excited to have the chance to go to Bristol University to study veterinary science is the breathtaking countryside that the Langford site is set within, living out there would be a dream come true in itself! If I can't get out on a horse to explore the countryside, the next best thing for me would be to go hiking with my dog Kassy and I am currently organising a sponsored walk for 'Compassion in World Farming' to raise money for their cause.

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I always try to do my bit for animal charities, even if it is just signing every petition that comes my way and dropping my spare change in the charity boxes. However, the Dogs Trust is a local charity that I have been able to do a bit more for in the form of volunteering at their Sadberge centre, where I work in the kennels carrying out cleaning, feeding, walking and cuddling duties! I particularly enjoy exercising the dogs, as it gives me chance to practice a little obedience training with them, which is something I get a real sense of achievement from, especially when I succeed in teaching a dog something new that will hopefully help them through the rehoming process.

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Animal behaviour is a part of my Zoology degree that I found extremely interesting and I hope that some of what I learnt during these modules in my first degree will hold me in good stead for parts of my veterinary degree and also give me a greater insight when distinguishing between medical symptoms and behavioural problems in a patient.

A larger part of my Zoology degree that really affected me and made me want to make a difference to lives of animals, not just as a medical professional, but also as a zoologist, was the conservation and welfare aspect of the course. I am very passionate about promoting the highest possible welfare standards for domesticated and wild animals alike and cannot tolerate cruelty to any animal, whether it be a dog, a bear or a spider, the latter of which I am not overly fond of, but I believe that every animal has a right to live a healthy, long and full life free of pain and danger. My dream job as a vet would be to work for a charity, bringing together my passion for protecting the welfare of animals, working towards their conservation and practicing veterinary science.

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While I have discovered other interests to do with animals during my time studying Zoology, at the end of it all I found that I still wanted to be a vet. I would not be content working just with my Zoology degree in research or conservation, because I have a need to understand the workings of animals, not just outside of their bodies in their behaviour and interaction with each other and their environment, but also on the inside. Present me with a list of symptoms and all I want to do is figure out what could be causing such symptoms and what I can do to alleviate the animal of these symptoms and cure it. I find it to be the most exciting puzzle and so satisfying when it can be solved. To not be able to learn how to diagnose and cure animals myself and to have to leave it for someone else to do would just be so immensely frustrating that I think I would find it hard to work alongside vets. So, this is why I decided I had to be one myself!

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