Page 12 - Outlook - Volume 17 Issue 3
P. 12
Zoo job is a
‘dream come true’
for Whitney Greene
“
W hitney Greene, DVM ’16 and graduate of the This is a very tough job to
WesternU’s College of Veterinary Medicine, had been
staff veterinarian of the New Bedford, Mass.,
Buttonwood Park Zoo not quite a month when the zoo’s 58-year-
old Asian elephant fell seriously ill with a gastrointestinal get right out of veterinary
blockage. school, but there are
The elephant, named Ruth, had been constipated for a week and various reasons we chose
would not eat or drink. The very worried zoo director Keith Lovett
consulted elephant experts, and the local newspaper, South Coast her. We thought her
Today, kept the alarmed community informed.
positive personality was a
The experts decided to try enemas; elephant-sized enemas.
very good fit, and she has
“In comparison to a normal small animal or even human enema,
Ruth’s enemas were wicked big,” Dr. Greene said. “Fifty-five tons and tons of energy.
gallons big, to be exact, using a garden hose seven to 10 feet up,
over about 15 minutes. We did two to three enemas a day over the
course of about eight days.” – Buttonwood Park Zoo director Keith Lovett
Finally, the contents in Ruth’s intestines were released. Soon she
was snacking on bread and coconut water.
“
“Ruth is doing very well,” Dr. Greene said. “I am currently
managing her with laser acupuncture, foot soaks, a special diet and
exercise.”
But her inaugural month had more excitement in store. Within a
couple of weeks of treating Ruth, Dr. Greene, with the assistance of
a local veterinary dental specialist, extracted an infected three-inch
long tooth from the mouth of a 220-pound black bear named
Ursula. The infection was deep and required a bone graft, but the
bear rebounded quickly.
“Ursula is doing great and is now back onto her normal diet and
showing no signs of pain or discomfort with having one less
tooth,” she said.
That successful surgery also made headlines in the local paper,
making Dr. Greene a celebrity vet only a few months out of
veterinary school.
10 College of Veterinary Medicine
‘dream come true’
for Whitney Greene
“
W hitney Greene, DVM ’16 and graduate of the This is a very tough job to
WesternU’s College of Veterinary Medicine, had been
staff veterinarian of the New Bedford, Mass.,
Buttonwood Park Zoo not quite a month when the zoo’s 58-year-
old Asian elephant fell seriously ill with a gastrointestinal get right out of veterinary
blockage. school, but there are
The elephant, named Ruth, had been constipated for a week and various reasons we chose
would not eat or drink. The very worried zoo director Keith Lovett
consulted elephant experts, and the local newspaper, South Coast her. We thought her
Today, kept the alarmed community informed.
positive personality was a
The experts decided to try enemas; elephant-sized enemas.
very good fit, and she has
“In comparison to a normal small animal or even human enema,
Ruth’s enemas were wicked big,” Dr. Greene said. “Fifty-five tons and tons of energy.
gallons big, to be exact, using a garden hose seven to 10 feet up,
over about 15 minutes. We did two to three enemas a day over the
course of about eight days.” – Buttonwood Park Zoo director Keith Lovett
Finally, the contents in Ruth’s intestines were released. Soon she
was snacking on bread and coconut water.
“
“Ruth is doing very well,” Dr. Greene said. “I am currently
managing her with laser acupuncture, foot soaks, a special diet and
exercise.”
But her inaugural month had more excitement in store. Within a
couple of weeks of treating Ruth, Dr. Greene, with the assistance of
a local veterinary dental specialist, extracted an infected three-inch
long tooth from the mouth of a 220-pound black bear named
Ursula. The infection was deep and required a bone graft, but the
bear rebounded quickly.
“Ursula is doing great and is now back onto her normal diet and
showing no signs of pain or discomfort with having one less
tooth,” she said.
That successful surgery also made headlines in the local paper,
making Dr. Greene a celebrity vet only a few months out of
veterinary school.
10 College of Veterinary Medicine
