Training the Next Generation of Zoo Veterinarians

Kathryn Gamble, D.V.M., director of Veterinary Services at Lincoln Park Zoo, has been mentoring veterinary students since 1994—just two years after graduating as valedictorian from Texas A&M! Between her prior appointments and her work at Lincoln Park Zoo, she has taught 30 students, with almost 50 percent now in full-time zoo practice. Through adjunct professor appointments with the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine and University of Wisconsin-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine and by guest lecturing with the London Zoological Society Master of Science in Wildlife Health program, Gamble works with veterinary students all around the world.

Beyond Gamble’s mentoring efforts, Lincoln Park Zoo has partnered with Brookfield Zoo, the John G. Shedd Aquarium and the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign to present a postgraduate veterinary residency program.

Where are they now?

Veterinary students taught by Gamble are now working in institutions including zoos, veterinary schools and animal clinics. Look below to find out more about what a specific student is doing.

Katy Parr

After graduating from Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine, I moved to Chicago (which I came to love during my time at Lincoln Park Zoo!), and now I work at the Animal Ark Veterinary Clinic in the city. The zoo is constantly researching and collaborating on projects to improve both captive animal medicine and wild animal conservation, and I enjoyed this aspect very much. Part of my work at the zoo was in aid of an intra-national zoo workshop on the threat of tuberculosis to captive wildlife; we developed a “decision tree” for protocols to diagnose this problem in birds. The tree in the picture is meant to symbolize this project. I am proud to have worked with Dr. Gamble, and I count my experience there as both life-shaping and rewarding.