I can still remember the day I would not let my dad kill a spider in our house. I carried it outside, and it bit me, but I was still glad he got to live. I have always had a love for all creatures and a strong interest in animal science. My dream is to become a veterinarian. Starting this fall, I will be majoring in Animal Science at West Virginia University to prepare for vet school. I plan to participate in the Pre-Vet Club and continue to build on the animal experiences I have had through volunteering, pet sitting, and unique experiences like delivering puppies and vaccinating horses. During my undergraduate years, I will work to gain veterinarian clinical experience. Doing so will help build my application for vet school while allowing me to help animals and my community. My goal is to attend the NC State College of Veterinary Medicine. After graduation, I intend to practice at a clinic and work towards opening my own. I dream of providing affordable care to my community so that animals can receive veterinarian care regardless of financial limitations their owners may have. Earning scholarship money is important to me because it will help lower the cost of my student loans so I can focus on providing care at affordable costs. Over the past few years working with shelters and rescues, I have learned to appreciate the importance of spaying and neutering. I plan to increase awareness and help to provide affordable, accessible spaying and neutering. Being an exotic pet owner, I have also noticed a lack of available care for many of my pets. Most emergency after-hour clinics will not take exotic or small animals. This broke my heart when I needed immediate care for an animal and could not find help anywhere close to me. In addition to traditional pet care, I hope to prevent this situation from happening to others by providing care options for many unique pets including emergency care. To give back to my community, I would love to hold summer camps to teach youth about animals and give them a taste of what it is like to have a career in animal care. Providing care and resources for shelters and rescue groups will also be an important part of my career and community impact. This includes fostering animals, which I want to continue to do throughout my life. I plan to get involved in fundraisers and events in my community to help animals and people in need of animal companionship or service animals. At West Virginia University, I will have the opportunity to train a service dog for a veteran. I plan on using this experience to continue helping people through service animals after college. In the end, I hope to continue volunteering in my community while providing affordable, accessible animal care. I will strive to educate people about pet care and work with young animal lovers and aspiring vets like me.

I can still remember the day I would not let my dad kill a spider in our house. I carried it outside to let it go, and it bit me. I was young, so I flung it into the grass and started crying, but I was glad he got to live. I never hesitate to help all creatures, no matter what I might have to sacrifice. Growing up, my grandparents had numerous animals. They shared their love for animals with me and I began begging my parents for pets. Convincing my parents to add more pets to the family was challenging, but I continuously proved my love and ability to responsibly care for them. I kept taking in more, whether they were from people who could no longer care for them or were animals I just dreamed of having. Most of my room is dedicated to animals, which includes a large bioactive terrarium I constructed for my crested gecko. I have spent considerable amounts of time researching animals and learning about their care, training, and health. I have read case studies and learned about the anatomy and physiology of various reptiles, rodents, birds, and other animals. Just before Covid hit, we lost our beloved dog, Lilah. The house seemed so empty without her so we began fostering other dogs. I loved each foster dog as if it were my own, and even though I missed them when they were gone, I was happy to see them find a forever home. One foster in particular struggled to find a home. She was with us so long that we could not see her leaving us, so we adopted her. While volunteering at an animal care camp, I met the exotic animal coordinator for a local rescue. I talked to her about my love for rats and how I became passionate about them in elementary school. We quickly worked out an arrangement where I began fostering rats and other rodents for the rescue. So far I have fostered over 15 rodents who have since found permanent homes. I plan to continue fostering animals throughout my life. There are too many animals in shelters and on the streets that are suffering or are euthanized to open up kennel space. The dog we adopted was scheduled to be euthanized, and thinking about this makes me sad for all the animals who never had a chance to find a forever home. Overcrowding in shelters is often caused by a lack of awareness about the importance of spaying and neutering. I recently delivered twelve puppies for owners who did not spay and neuter their dogs. They had a difficult time finding homes for the puppies and were close to taking them to a shelter. The situation showed me how much of a lack of knowledge exists among pet owners and the responsibilities that come with them. Promoting animal rescues and adoption while reducing breeding and shopping is important to help animals overall. I hope to inform people about the importance of spaying and neutering so we can reduce the numbers in shelters. I also hope to improve the affordability and accessibility of spaying and neutering. I want to help care for animals while finding new ways to better understand and care for them through research. I will major in Animal and Nutritional Sciences as an undergraduate while preparing to attend vet school. I am excited to work on animal science research projects and gain laboratory and clinical experience. I look forward to running my own clinic to pursue my lifelong passion for caring for animals.

School is the most stressful thing in my life. It is difficult to keep up with my mental, physical, and nutritional health while juggling schoolwork and extracurriculars, and preparing for college. I still manage to keep in mind the importance of self-care, and I have made many efforts to improve my well-being. I have struggled with my mental health since I was very young. Living with anxiety, OCD, ADHD, and other disorders can be overwhelming. I have realized that seeing my psychiatrist and taking my medication is not enough. My mental health is affected by everything I do, like my sleep, technology usage, nutrition, and physical health. I have taken steps to improve my mental health by talking to a counselor about strategies to deal with my mental challenges. While it is difficult to keep up with my sleep schedule when I am overloaded with schoolwork, I do my best to get work done during the day so I can go to bed at a reasonable time and maintain a good sleep schedule, keeping me happier and more motivated. I limit my technology usage at night and set reminders to put my phone down. Spending more time with my pets, riding horses, and volunteering for animal rescues also gets me off my phone while relieving stress. When I do use my phone, I often use an app called headway which allows me to read and listen to books about improving my mental health, relationships, and lifestyle in general. One of the first books I read was “The Self-Care Solution” by Jennifer Ashton. She shared simple adjustments she made to improve her health, along with her results and scientific evidence. Some of these changes that I have incorporated into my life include drinking more water, eating more plant-based foods, and meditating every day. My mental and overall wellness is continuing to improve as I make more changes. Many of the things that improve my mental health come from practicing good physical and nutritional health. As a multi-sport athlete, most of the year I am regularly attending practices and games. I do cardio and strength training during practice and at home. Exercising improves my mood, helps me sleep better, and makes me healthier overall. I keep up with my diet and eat a good variety of food. Watching food documentaries has taught me the shocking facts about our food industry, and how difficult it is to escape processed food, added sugars, and other negative aspects of the food surrounding us. I pay close attention to food labels in order to avoid trans fat, added sugars, preservatives, and other bad ingredients. My mom and I grow vegetables and fruits and buy food from the local farmers market. When I go out to eat, I try to pick healthy restaurants and menu options, and I only order water as my beverage. Staying hydrated is just as important as eating well, so I track how much water I drink each day and never go to school without a water bottle. I do not always make the healthiest choices, but I am proud of the improvements I have made. I plan to continue improving in college by joining club sports teams and utilizing the gym and free counseling services offered. As Jennifer Ashton said, “Self-care isn’t a luxury and it’s not about being selfish, it’s something we owe to ourselves.” I will continue to improve my holistic health because it is what we all deserve.

I can still remember the day I would not let my dad kill a spider in our house. I carried it outside to let it go, and it bit me right in the palm of my hand. I was little, so of course, I flung it into the grass and started crying, but I was still glad he got to live. I have never hesitated to help other living creatures no matter what they are or what I might have to sacrifice. Many different animals deserve the same love and care that is so readily available for dogs and cats. Sadly, there is a lack of resources and willingness to help all the different animals who need it. I hope to be a solution to this problem and become a large animal vet so that I can provide services and resources to hardworking farmers and their livestock. Growing up in a suburban neighborhood, I never had the space to care for horses, pigs, cows, and goats. I enjoy the pets I can care for which include dogs and all sorts of reptiles, fish, rodents, chickens, ducks, and parrots. I spend lots of time researching my animals and learning about their care, training, and medical conditions. I read case studies and learn about the anatomy and physiology of all different animals. This has given me a better understanding and appreciation for them, as I have learned a lot about what makes each one unique. I love dogs and cats, but I have put so much time and research into exotic animals like rats, who just like pigs, are often viewed negatively, making them the victims of common metaphors used in comparison to something gross. They are not always seen as the intelligent and loving animals that they are. I see the value in all animals, but I cannot force everyone to see it. What I can do is take it upon myself to help the undervalued animals and the people who also want the best for them. While I love fostering and owning dogs and exotic animals, I have never stopped dreaming of living on a farm or a ranch out west surrounded by large animals. In my free time, I enjoy barrel racing and love spending time with horses. Being with the horses at the barn, in the arena, and in the pastures brings me so much joy, providing a beautiful and calming environment for me to escape to. I have family members who own all sorts of interesting animals that I have never had the experience of owning or fostering, but I always find myself gravitating to the animals they keep outside by the barn, the horses, goats, and pigs. I love being outdoors with these animals, away from the city and closer to nature. Working with large animals would give me more opportunities to get outside in an environment that both myself and the animals are comfortable in, unlike working in a small animal clinic. Becoming a large animal vet will be challenging, but I am prepared for the schooling and demanding work ahead of me. I know this is what I want to do in the future, and I cannot wait to achieve my goal and help make things a little bit easier for pet owners and hardworking farmers who need veterinary expertise to keep their animals happy and healthy.