Goodbye Kate and Carmen!

As of this last week, Carmen and Kate have been our lead veterinarians in the clinic. Carmen has run the clinic for a total of two years over a three-and-a-half-year period. Kate joined her for the past six months. They have left this clinic in good hands, with Ben Howitt. Before they took off, we asked them to give us a little interview about their experiences and their future plans.

What was your most impactful case during your time at the clinic?

We’ve had a lot of interesting medical and surgical cases but the one that touched us, and the volunteers the most, was Frankie. She was brought to us after being hit by a car and abandoned.  She had a crushed paw and fractured pelvis and was close to death from the resulting infection. After her amputation surgery she stayed in the clinic for 6 weeks while her pelvis healed. We all got very attached to having her here in the clinic to cuddle and play with every day. She was adopted by a wonderful new family in Quito and we are so proud to be a part of her happy adoption story!

To read about Frankie’s adoption story, click here!

What was the best part of your experience in the Galapagos outside of the clinic?

Diving! We both love to dive, so in our limited time away from the clinic we got in the water as much as we could. We were lucky enough to go on a dive cruise to Darwin and Wolf, small uninhabited northern islands. We go to see lots of beautiful creatures but our favorites were hammerhead sharks, manta rays, dolphins, orcas, and whalesharks!

Where are you going next?

First, we are first going home to visit our family and friends. Then we will work over the summer: Carmen in South Africa at a Cheetah Park, and Kate in emergency medicine in the States. What we are most excited about is moving to Grenada, one of the Spice Islands in the Caribbean, in September to be the new head vets for the Grenada SPCA. We will get to continue with our mission of helping animals in underserved areas by providing the best veterinary care possible.

Do you think you will come back to work with DAD?

Who knows where life will take us next?? But we will always hold the DAD Clinic close in our hearts for the many happy memories we have here and most importantly, introducing us to each other!

From everyone at DAD, we want to thank you, Carmen and Kate, for your hard work at the clinic. Your dedication was evident as you put in long hours, especially during the parvo-outbreak, and helped train many veterinarians and students that came through the clinic. You touched the lives of many animals and people that you encountered during your time in the Galapagos. It has been an honor to work alongside of you.  Good luck on your next adventures and enjoy your vacation! You deserve it!