Suuzanne E.
Bamboo trees creaked above me, swaying in the evening jungle breeze. Air thick with the terror from bombs dropped hours earlier in this small village in Karen State, Burma. Tears filled my eyes as I looked at the small child, her mother and three other villagers killed in the bombing. All were dead but nearby I saw life. A stricken water buffalo hit by shrapnel from one of the bombs dropped by Burmese military jets, was still alive. One foot was torn off and a stream of blood flowed out of his other wounds as he lay on the ground. I knelt there helplessly wishing I could heal him and save his life. With no way to treat him as he bled out, the only way to bring him relief was a bullet to the head. Looking in his eyes, I stroked his face and told him the pain would be gone in a moment. I stepped away as my father brought his pistol to bear, praying for the animal and asking for the end of his torment. I tried to contain the tears running down my cheeks. Hearing the shot and looking up at the sky I said, “God give me the ability to help animals like this.” This water buffalo was one of the five casualties of this bombing along with two pastors, a church elder, a mother, and her child.
As I left the village, I thought about the water buffalo which started a barrage of memories from the various animal cases I had treated during my life in Burma. Born in Thailand and raised in Burma I was surrounded by exotic animals and their diseases. My animal experience started on missions into conflict areas only accessible on foot or horse. I grew up riding Mongolian ponies and mules in pack trains carrying relief supplies in the jungles of Burma. My love for animals is deeply rooted in rural villages, watching water buffaloes plowing rice fields, elephants pulling logs, mules carrying load, and playing with my pet monkeys, ponies, and mules. Learning how to treat tropical diseases and wounds on pack animals is where my love for veterinary medicine started.
I realized how critical vets were in the jungle to treat diseases that swept through villages causing hundreds of animals to die or sending displaced villagers who were into further crisis. Sickness is a chronic danger, but the presence of landmines laid by the Burma army is another threat to livestock. Once a water buffalo or elephant steps on a landmine the only option is to put him down. One commonality I experienced is rural areas all over the world was dependency on healthy animals, and their direct relationship with their community’s prosperity. Whether sheep herds, camels, and donkeys in the deserts of Iraq or Syria, or Elephants pulling logs in the tropical jungles of Thailand or Burma, healthy animals are the foundation of a thriving community. Due to the wars in both the Middle East and Burma, injuries and illness are accompanied by traumatic wounds inflicted directly and indirectly on the battlefield. Injuries from Livestock and pets stepping on landmines, getting hit by airstrikes, and being caught in direct mortar and gunfire are debilitating to not only the animals but the villagers who do not have the knowledge or resources to provide effective treatment.
Burma has been in civil war for over 75 years resulting in thousands killed and millions of villagers displaced. My father started the Free Burma Rangers over 27 years ago to provide relief, hope, and love to the frontline areas of Burma. At two months old I was brought on my first of many missions with the Rangers. In 2014 the Free Burma Rangers were invited to Sudan where we were bombed daily as we helped the people under attack. In 2015 onward we were also serving in Kurdistan, Iraq, and Syria during the fight against ISIS where I later would be able to rescue a donkey foal, and abandoned Saluki. These experiences have grown my love for veterinary medicine and my desire to bring it to areas deficient of vets. Additionally, after interning at a clinic in Thailand, with vets in Burma, and vets in Texas, I’m committed to pursuing veterinary medicine and growing the relationship between these diverse worlds I’ve experienced. This fall I will take the next step towards being a vet by beginning my first year at Texas Tech School of Veterinary Medicine.
Bamboo trees creaked above me, swaying in the evening jungle breeze. Air thick with the terror from bombs dropped hours earlier in this small village in Karen State, Burma. Tears filled my eyes as I looked at the small child, her mother and three other villagers killed in the bombing. All were dead but nearby I saw life. A stricken water buffalo hit by shrapnel from one of the bombs dropped by Burmese military jets, was still alive. One foot was torn off and a stream of blood flowed out of his other wounds as he lay on the ground. I knelt there helplessly wishing I could heal him and save his life. With no way to treat him as he bled out, the only way to bring him relief was a bullet to the head. Looking in his eyes, I stroked his face and told him the pain would be gone in a moment. I stepped away as my father brought his pistol to bear, praying for the animal and asking for the end of his torment. I tried to contain the tears running down my cheeks. Hearing the shot and looking up at the sky I said, “God give me the ability to help animals like this.” This water buffalo was one of the five casualties of this bombing along with two pastors, a church elder, a mother, and her child.
As I left the village, I thought about the water buffalo which started a barrage of memories from the various animal cases I had treated during my life in Burma. Born in Thailand and raised in Burma I was surrounded by exotic animals and their diseases. My animal experience started on missions into conflict areas only accessible on foot or horse. I grew up riding Mongolian ponies and mules in pack trains carrying relief supplies in the jungles of Burma. My love for animals is deeply rooted in rural villages, watching water buffaloes plowing rice fields, elephants pulling logs, mules carrying load, and playing with my pet monkeys, ponies, and mules. Learning how to treat tropical diseases and wounds on pack animals is where my love for veterinary medicine started.
I realized how critical vets were in the jungle to treat diseases that swept through villages causing hundreds of animals to die or sending displaced villagers who were into further crisis. Sickness is a chronic danger, but the presence of landmines laid by the Burma army is another threat to livestock. Once a water buffalo or elephant steps on a landmine the only option is to put him down. One commonality I experienced is rural areas all over the world was dependency on healthy animals, and their direct relationship with their community’s prosperity. Whether sheep herds, camels, and donkeys in the deserts of Iraq or Syria, or Elephants pulling logs in the tropical jungles of Thailand or Burma, healthy animals are the foundation of a thriving community. Due to the wars in both the Middle East and Burma, injuries and illness are accompanied by traumatic wounds inflicted directly and indirectly on the battlefield. Injuries from Livestock and pets stepping on landmines, getting hit by airstrikes, and being caught in direct mortar and gunfire are debilitating to not only the animals but the villagers who do not have the knowledge or resources to provide effective treatment.
Burma has been in civil war for over 75 years resulting in thousands killed and millions of villagers displaced. My father started the Free Burma Rangers over 27 years ago to provide relief, hope, and love to the frontline areas of Burma. At two months old I was brought on my first of many missions with the Rangers. In 2014 the Free Burma Rangers were invited to Sudan where we were bombed daily as we helped the people under attack. In 2015 onward we were also serving in Kurdistan, Iraq, and Syria during the fight against ISIS where I later would be able to rescue a donkey foal, and abandoned Saluki. These experiences have grown my love for veterinary medicine and my desire to bring it to areas deficient of vets. Additionally, after interning at a clinic in Thailand, with vets in Burma, and vets in Texas, I’m committed to pursuing veterinary medicine and growing the relationship between these diverse worlds I’ve experienced. This fall I will take the next step towards being a vet by beginning my first year at Texas Tech School of Veterinary Medicine.
Taylor H.
Horse poop is a significant part of my life. Did you know a horse poops between 35 to 50 pounds a day? Did you know the quantity, color, odor, and consistency tell you about your horse’s health? I’ve been scooping poop since age four. Why do I happily perform this less than glamourous task? Trainer Anthony Lothian explains it the best, “Horses teach you a lot. Very little of it actually has to do with horses.”
I wasn’t concerned about learning life lessons at four, when my daycare sent home an advertisement for equine assisted therapy. I saw a person riding a horse and begged my mom to go. The program was for veterans, but I was allowed to work and ride when space was available. I weighed 40 pounds, yet the trainer gave me chores and trusted that I would accomplish them. I mucked stalls even as I struggled to lift the rake, filled water buckets while simultaneously drenching myself, “helped” the Wounded Warriors groom horses, and rode on a lead line. From that day on, I was determined that horses would be a permanent part of my life.
I asked Santa for a horse and when he failed, I asked the Tooth Fairy. I had no luck with her either. My military parents had no connection to horses and were surprised by my tenacity. My birth mom was only 16 when she had me, so she selected my adoptive parent to raise me. She didn’t ride either. No one could explain my horse addiction. I moved thirteen times before I graduated from high school, twice my parents were stationed at different locations, I attended ten schools, rode/worked at twelve barns, and learned from 35 amazing horses. At each new duty station, my first task was to find a barn. A barn is my happy place; I see the results of hard work, I watch young riders gain confidence in themselves and their teammates (equine and human), and I witness the benefits of caring for animals, touching grass, and breathing fresh air. I want to share my passion with future riders and barn kids. I want to help them set goals and work to achieve them. I want to teach them the work ethic that will serve them well at a barn and in life. I want them to see the appreciation in horses’ eyes as their way of saying thanks. Toward this end, I am majoring in Business Management and Equine Science, and I hope to lead an equestrian program to coach, teach, and mentor young people.
While this isn’t a traditional education career like my civil engineering college professor uncle or my 5th grade elementary school teacher aunt, working with animals can teach children more than you can imagine. Life is hectic and stressful for everyone, as I’ve experienced in my first year of college and my first year of “adulting.” But stress can be mitigated, and obstacles overcome, if you find the right coping mechanism and do the work. Horses help. I witnessed a shy introvert bond with a pony, a body-shamed girl realize she isn’t “chunky” but strong and capable, a social media addict put down her phone to paint a black horse with white paint to look like a skeleton for a Halloween costume contest, a self-conscious teen boost her self-confidence by competing in her first horse show and an anxious young man find peace working with a horse mirroring his emotions. There is significant research on the physical and mental benefits of horses ranging from reduced post-traumatic stress symptoms, help with anxiety, cerebral palsy, down syndrome, autism spectrum disorder, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, neuromuscular functions, balance, emotional regulation, improved speech and cognitive abilities, and increased confidence, patience, and self-esteem.
I want to lead an equestrian program where learning never stops, we’re a family, and horses, to include horses enjoy retirement, are loved by hardworking kids who genuinely adore them. My mentors recommended more profitable career choices, because any money I make will go back into horses and barn maintenance, warning me that, “You’ll be living on Ramen Noodles.” Well, I guess I’d better go to Costco and buy Ramen in bulk.
Horse poop is a significant part of my life. Did you know a horse poops between 35 to 50 pounds a day? Did you know the quantity, color, odor, and consistency tell you about your horse’s health? I’ve been scooping poop since age four. Why do I happily perform this less than glamourous task? Trainer Anthony Lothian explains it the best, “Horses teach you a lot. Very little of it actually has to do with horses.”
I wasn’t concerned about learning life lessons at four, when my daycare sent home an advertisement for equine assisted therapy. I saw a person riding a horse and begged my mom to go. The program was for veterans, but I was allowed to work and ride when space was available. I weighed 40 pounds, yet the trainer gave me chores and trusted that I would accomplish them. I mucked stalls even as I struggled to lift the rake, filled water buckets while simultaneously drenching myself, “helped” the Wounded Warriors groom horses, and rode on a lead line. From that day on, I was determined that horses would be a permanent part of my life.
I asked Santa for a horse and when he failed, I asked the Tooth Fairy. I had no luck with her either. My military parents had no connection to horses and were surprised by my tenacity. My birth mom was only 16 when she had me, so she selected my adoptive parent to raise me. She didn’t ride either. No one could explain my horse addiction. I moved thirteen times before I graduated from high school, twice my parents were stationed at different locations, I attended ten schools, rode/worked at twelve barns, and learned from 35 amazing horses. At each new duty station, my first task was to find a barn. A barn is my happy place; I see the results of hard work, I watch young riders gain confidence in themselves and their teammates (equine and human), and I witness the benefits of caring for animals, touching grass, and breathing fresh air. I want to share my passion with future riders and barn kids. I want to help them set goals and work to achieve them. I want to teach them the work ethic that will serve them well at a barn and in life. I want them to see the appreciation in horses’ eyes as their way of saying thanks. Toward this end, I am majoring in Business Management and Equine Science, and I hope to lead an equestrian program to coach, teach, and mentor young people.
While this isn’t a traditional education career like my civil engineering college professor uncle or my 5th grade elementary school teacher aunt, working with animals can teach children more than you can imagine. Life is hectic and stressful for everyone, as I’ve experienced in my first year of college and my first year of “adulting.” But stress can be mitigated, and obstacles overcome, if you find the right coping mechanism and do the work. Horses help. I witnessed a shy introvert bond with a pony, a body-shamed girl realize she isn’t “chunky” but strong and capable, a social media addict put down her phone to paint a black horse with white paint to look like a skeleton for a Halloween costume contest, a self-conscious teen boost her self-confidence by competing in her first horse show and an anxious young man find peace working with a horse mirroring his emotions. There is significant research on the physical and mental benefits of horses ranging from reduced post-traumatic stress symptoms, help with anxiety, cerebral palsy, down syndrome, autism spectrum disorder, and Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder, neuromuscular functions, balance, emotional regulation, improved speech and cognitive abilities, and increased confidence, patience, and self-esteem.
I want to lead an equestrian program where learning never stops, we’re a family, and horses, to include horses enjoy retirement, are loved by hardworking kids who genuinely adore them. My mentors recommended more profitable career choices, because any money I make will go back into horses and barn maintenance, warning me that, “You’ll be living on Ramen Noodles.” Well, I guess I’d better go to Costco and buy Ramen in bulk.
Kyla P.
I’ve always respected my dad. He started out in the Ranger Battalion and then became a Night Stalker. He is part of the Special Operations Aviation Regiment at joint base Lewis-McChord. Dad’s example taught me the importance of service and the impact that can be made if I dedicated myself to others. Just like him, I want to serve but in a way that aligns more with my interest in veterinary science.
The way my dad enables himself to help others is through his career choice. He could’ve chosen an easier, safer job, but instead, fights for freedom of others. I too want to serve day after day, but by being a veterinarian. The AAVMC projects a 76% shortage of veterinarians by 2032. Combined with the falling numbers of farms, this shortage could hurt a number of facets within Agriculture. As a 4H club member, FFA Chapter President, and livestock producer, I have a deep passion for agriculture. I have witnessed firsthand how harmful the vet shortage can be, especially in rural areas. It’s not just about the numbers of vets; it’s the availability of care. I aim to be part of the solution and will practice telemedicine and work out of a mobile clinic.
My interest extends to human medicine in an unexpected way. See, studying the bodily systems of animals can help us solve issues regarding human health. Here’s an example: At Washington State University, researchers have a bear enclosure. They study these bears to determine how they’re able to gain weight over summer, hibernate, lose all that weight over winter, and somehow come out perfectly healthy. If a human had such drastic weight changes, they would be at risk for many metabolic disorders including diabetes-so why is that not true for bears? Unlocking that secret could help us find the cure for diabetes. This is just one example of how veterinarians can conduct lifesaving research for both animals and humans alike. I’ve been accepted to Washington State University as a member of their Honors college and Top scholars because I’m entering the field of STEM with the intent to make a difference in the world.
My dad had dedicated his life to fighting to protect the US. I can only aspire to live up to his level of service. Being a military kid has been challenging, but hardening, as my dad sets high standards-after all, the Night Stalkers don’t quit, even in the face of adversity. The values my dad and his fellow Rangers hold are the reason that Rangers lead the way. I am eternally grateful that my dad has instilled many of these values in me. Being a leader in the medical field will be hard, and there’s no doubt I will face challenges. But in the end, I will have lived a life of service just like dad-and to me, that’s a life well lived.
I’ve always respected my dad. He started out in the Ranger Battalion and then became a Night Stalker. He is part of the Special Operations Aviation Regiment at joint base Lewis-McChord. Dad’s example taught me the importance of service and the impact that can be made if I dedicated myself to others. Just like him, I want to serve but in a way that aligns more with my interest in veterinary science.
The way my dad enables himself to help others is through his career choice. He could’ve chosen an easier, safer job, but instead, fights for freedom of others. I too want to serve day after day, but by being a veterinarian. The AAVMC projects a 76% shortage of veterinarians by 2032. Combined with the falling numbers of farms, this shortage could hurt a number of facets within Agriculture. As a 4H club member, FFA Chapter President, and livestock producer, I have a deep passion for agriculture. I have witnessed firsthand how harmful the vet shortage can be, especially in rural areas. It’s not just about the numbers of vets; it’s the availability of care. I aim to be part of the solution and will practice telemedicine and work out of a mobile clinic.
My interest extends to human medicine in an unexpected way. See, studying the bodily systems of animals can help us solve issues regarding human health. Here’s an example: At Washington State University, researchers have a bear enclosure. They study these bears to determine how they’re able to gain weight over summer, hibernate, lose all that weight over winter, and somehow come out perfectly healthy. If a human had such drastic weight changes, they would be at risk for many metabolic disorders including diabetes-so why is that not true for bears? Unlocking that secret could help us find the cure for diabetes. This is just one example of how veterinarians can conduct lifesaving research for both animals and humans alike. I’ve been accepted to Washington State University as a member of their Honors college and Top scholars because I’m entering the field of STEM with the intent to make a difference in the world.
My dad had dedicated his life to fighting to protect the US. I can only aspire to live up to his level of service. Being a military kid has been challenging, but hardening, as my dad sets high standards-after all, the Night Stalkers don’t quit, even in the face of adversity. The values my dad and his fellow Rangers hold are the reason that Rangers lead the way. I am eternally grateful that my dad has instilled many of these values in me. Being a leader in the medical field will be hard, and there’s no doubt I will face challenges. But in the end, I will have lived a life of service just like dad-and to me, that’s a life well lived.
