Last month Mt. Tabor Veterinary Care donated a unique gift to the Mt. Tabor Middle School for their annual fundraiser - a chance to spend a day with us at the practice. They called it Dr. Doolittle for a Day and it was a popular item on the silent auction table. The winner - a student named Akiko and right away her mom emailed me to set up a day that would work to have Akiko visit. We decided on a friday because that day worked best for Akiko. I explained that it was our surgery day and Akiko was very glad to come on a day where we would be doing surgery. Obvious not one to shy away from blood or the inner workings of a patient. 

Akiko and Me after a fun morning of surgery

The day began when Akiko, her mom and her grandmother arrived and I gave them a tour of the practice. We chatted during the tour and I learned that Akiko had gone on a trip to Japan in an immersion program this past summer. I also learned that Akiko had lots of pets including chickens (one of my favorites) and that her family was incredibly supportive. Once her mom and grandma left we got to work checking in patients and preparing for the day. Paperwork is probably the most boring thing we do in the eyes of a child but soon enough we were sedating our first patient for his procedure. Akiko took pictures all day and talked about her pets and her trip to Japan. She learned the tasks of the veterinary nurses, distraction techniques for difficult patients, and what it means to work in the front area of the practice as well. We went through a spay step by step while she was capped and masked in the surgery suite with me and she photographed. She also spent the day entertaining our patients and she really enjoyed a kitten named Professor. He is one of the most outgoing kitties I know and a great patient for Akiko to work with. In fact we were going to do his surgery first but since he was so entertaining and unstressed in the hospital setting, we saved him for last.  

Akiko's thank you letter - with cute pictures of her pets

With most of our procedures done it was time for lunch. I announced pizza - figuring it is the all time favorite universal food (and it can be delivered) but when I asked Akiko her favorite food she said Sushi. So sushi it was and it was a bit of a challenge to get as the closest place was not answering their phones. Always resourceful we figured out a complicated strategy and Sushi was brought back to the clinic. Due to our late lunch, Akiko's grandparents arrived to pick her up right when lunch arrived so we all sat together and had a nice lunch talking of their past careers and how they met.

It was so fun to have Akiko with us at the practice for the day and to see what we do through the eyes of a young student. What a great opportunity for everyone.