Meet the Staff : Clinically Wild : Animal Planet

Laura Kelly

Laura was raised in Coeur d'alene, Idaho. She often left a bread crumb trail for stray animals to "follow" her home. Laura received a B.S. degree in Animal Science at Washington State . She originally moved to Alaska because of a man, but claims to be living proof of the old Alaskan saying about the male-to-female ratio: "The odds are good, but the goods are odd."

Laura has been working at P.E.T. for almost 18 years in various capacities including licensed technician, crematory technician and currently as the business manager.

Laura is the mother of two boys and has one Bernese Mountain Dog, a chinchilla, hamster and finches. In her spare time, Laura she enjoys skijoring and drafting with her dogs, practicing with her firearms, learning belly dancing, and working out at the gym.

What drew you to Alaska?
I moved to Alaska after graduating from college, in 1981, to be with the man I was dating. So, it was a man that brought me to Alaska. Like the Alaska women always say, "The odds are good, but the goods are odd." This refers to the high ratio of men to women.

What is one of your most memorable cases?
It was winter, after a windy snowstorm, my three dogs all became violently ill with bloody vomit and diarrhea. They all stunk badly, some strange odor. There were brown floaters in the water dishes, brown wood looking slivers all over the floor, and in the water dishes. I took all the dogs to P.E.T. to get treated for vomiting/diarrhea and dehydration.

I went home to look in the fenced backyard to see if there was anything they could have gotten into. I found a large piece of whale Baleen. This is a piece of flexible bonelike material that filters the plankton and makes up part of the Baleen Whale's jaw. It was about 7 feet long. The dogs had chewed strips and pieces off of it and eaten it. I'm sure the sharp pieces had cut and irritated their digestive tract. Unfortunately, there wasn't any literature on how to treat Baleen ingestion in dogs, but they managed well on a regiment of stomach medications and a bland diet.

Dr. Nelson and Laura enjoy their time off with range shooting and laughs.

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clinically wild

Meet the Staff

Laura Kelly

Meet the Staff

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