Page 42 - Scholarship Guide Aug 2020

40 SCHOLAR’S PROFILE

Welcome To What sparked your interest in your course
of study?
My family had many pets when I was younger, including a dog,
two budgies and a few betta fi sh. When a family has pets, it's
The Jungle take care of them. From this experience, I realised that I enjoyed
important for everyone to pitch in, so I did my fair share to help
being around animals and interacting with them, and started to
consider becoming a veterinarian. I began reading short stories
by James Herriot about the life of a veterinarian working in rural
A love for animals took NParks practice. The stories were particularly endearing, and made me
even more interested to learn about the job of a veterinarian. I
Undergraduate Scholarship then spent time interning in veterinary clinics in Singapore, get-
ting experience in caring for animals, understanding their basic
candidate Shawn Chia on a journey healthcare needs, and the role of a veterinarian.
into veterinary and wildlife care. There is one defi ning memory that was etched into my mind
during my time as an intern. I was working in a clinic where
the veterinarian had formed a close relationship with a family
and their pet dog. Since it was a puppy, the family had brought
their pet into the clinic – for vaccines and check-ups, sterilisa-
tion, when it was injured or ill, and fi nally as it was succumbing
to old age and sickness. In its last hours, the veterinarian had
the privilege of ensuring the animal was comfortable and joined
the family in grieving for their pet. It was an emotional moment,
with the family reminiscing about the ups and downs in their
pet’s life and how the veterinarian had helped them along the
way. This helped me to understand the variety of roles that vet-
erinarians play in the lives of pet animals and their caregivers
– sharing their joy and laughter, sadness and grief, and not just
treating the animals when they are sick.