ABC Veterinary Assistant Program
Student of the Month
February 2015

Monica Mabry

Monica Mabry, originally from a small town in Michigan called Marine City, has spent the last four years living and working in San Antonio, Texas. She works at Wal-Mart as a personnel coordinator. However, her dream is to own her own animal shelter one day. When Monica was in high school, she knew she wanted to work closely with animals, but wasn’t quite sure which direction to take until she found Animal Behavior College. Monica is now on track to getting into the profession she feels she belongs in.

• What has been your most rewarding moment during your externship?

I can’t really say there was one overall rewarding moment that was better than the rest. Every week I went to my externship, I was able to learn something new and different. I was excited every week. I was able to help animals by administering medicine or assisting the veterinarian. Learning to do the many different tests and witnessing all the surgeries was very rewarding as well. Due to all the different things I learned and was able to accomplish, I can’t pinpoint a single most rewarding moment.

• What are your future career plans?

My future career plans are to own my own or manage an animal shelter. I did an externship for the dog training program at a shelter and I fell in love with the animals there. There were so many dogs with so many different personalities. The stories I would hear about their previous homes—the neglect, possible abuse, owners having to give them up—just broke my heart. I could do so much good working with the animals in the shelter so it’s rewarding for both me and the animals in need.

• What has your experience been like in the ABC Veterinary Assistant Program?

I loved the program. It was so easy to fit into my busy routine. Then, when I started the externship, everything really came together and was making sense. I would definitely do it again.

• What skills do you want to master during the next 12 months?

I had a lot of fun and learned a lot at my vet assistant externship. However, the skill I want to continue to work on and master in the next 12 months would be training shelter dogs. Every dog is so different and varied, I’ll have to constantly work and adapt how I handle different dogs. All dogs respond in various ways due to their diverse experiences and backgrounds. I want to be able to train them to be adoptable and loving pets.

• Describe a humorous moment you witnessed or took part in while working at your externship location.

The clinic where I was assigned had resident cats who would roam around. Needless to say, there was never a dull moment. Winston seemed to always like to check out the new patients who were in the kennels awaiting treatment. If you tapped your foot on the ground, Rascal would come and start pawing or “make biscuits” on your foot. Swiper was the troublemaker. He loved trying to get into food we were preparing for the patients and would wait by the sink for you to turn it on so he could take a drink from the faucet.