National Vet Tech Week: Getting to know Happy Hollow’s Vet Tech, Rachel Atkins

October 16, 2024

Written by Zoo Educator Emily Cole

This week is National Veterinary Technician Week, so it’s time to celebrate one special member of the Happy Hollow team: Veterinary Technician Rachel Atkins!

Rachel has been at Happy Hollow for eight years, and over that time you have likely seen stories on Happy Hollow’s social media about the critical work she does to help keep the zoo animals healthy. Beyond animal health, Rachel is an integral part of any veterinary-themed summer or school break camps at Happy Hollow.

Campers get to tour Doc’s Critter Care, where Rachel does much of her work, and interview her to ask all their burning questions. Here is a glimpse into a recent interview Rachel did with the campers from the “Vets in the Making” Fall Break Camp. 

Rachel shared what a vet tech does and answered questions about what it takes to become a veterinary technician.

What training do you have to do to become a vet tech? Ross, Age 12.

“I [went] to school to become a veterinary technician. I have a background in biology, I went to just a regular university for that. And then I went back to school many years later for two more years and did my veterinary technician program…at Foothill College here in the area. I have also done wildlife rehabilitation. Before I was here at the zoo I did wildlife rehab where we [took] in sick, injured, and orphaned animals, hopefully make them all better, and then release them back into the wild…I did not always know I wanted to be a Veterinary Technician, I didn’t even know this job existed until I was older…I was 26 when I went back to school.”

What does your job look like here? Cecilia, Age 8

“Everyday is really different, which is what I really like about this job. Right now, things are sort of quiet over at Doc’s [Happy Hollow’s onsite vet clinic]…I don’t have any animals that need to be in the hospital, which is great for the animals, but it does mean it is a little slower for me. Yesterday I was helping out the veterinarian…Today, I am doing paperwork related to that visit…I’m kind of like the nurse. If you want to call the veterinarian the doctor, I do all of the nurse-type stuff; things like medicating animals…[making] sure the keepers have what they need to medicate the animals, I assist the veterinarian when they are here. [In surgery,] I am monitoring the animal, making sure they are doing okay, making sure the vet has what they need to do that surgery. I also do a lot of paperwork, which isn’t always fun! But it is necessary.”

What role do you play in bringing an animal to our zoo? Vivian, Age 9

“Getting an animal to a zoo is a much longer process than a lot of people realize…We network together [with other zoos] in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums [to bring in animals]…I do the medical side of things. If we’re shipping an animal out, we will do a medical exam on them, make sure everything is healthy. If they are the one coming in, then we will review their medical records, review their diet, make sure we have everything…so they are comfortable when they arrive here.

Where do we get the medicines for the different animals? Do you have to make medicines for the animals? Corbin, Age 8 and Matteo, Age 11

“A lot of our medicine comes from companies that supply [them]…I can order [when I need to] restock or if something needs [a medicine] we don’t have, I can order it and have it the next day, which is nice. Sometimes I do have to…not make the medication, but change the form of it. Maybe we have a pill that could be used on a much larger animal, but if I’m medicating something that tiny, I will crush it up and put it in a liquid.”

Rachel also shared some stories of past cases with the campers.

What was the first animal you worked on at Happy Hollow? Maddie, Age 9

“The first big case I had was a scarlet macaw named Vivian. She had something going on where all of a sudden, she was not able to perch, and she was not able to walk around. We had to do a lot of really intense care with her. Unfortunately, she did end up passing away from that. She had a fungal infection in her spine. Even though we do things like necropsies…and we do everything we can, we don’t always get the answers that we would like, so we still…don’t know how she got that infection…But it was something where I felt very confident once it got to that point, that I knew what to do.”

Do you have a favorite story, working here at Happy Hollow? Ross, Age 12

“Probably our surgery for Sophia [Happy hollow’s jaguar] is an exciting one. So, Sophia seemed to not be feeling well, and then all of a sudden, her eyes got really cloudy…It’s not like she was blind…just all of a sudden, she had a harder time seeing. So, we called in specialists…we called in our vets…We put her under anesthesia…We did an ultrasound and we found out she had an infection in one of her organs, so we needed to take that out. We gave it a couple of weeks [and] we had her on antibiotics to get the infection under control, scheduled that surgery, and we actually ended up spaying her. She was 17 years old at the time which is quite old for a cat…[Now] she’s doing great, she’s down there living her best life. That was cool because we got to work with a lot of neat specialists.”

Read an old blog post about Sophia’s Surgery here.

The campers also asked Rachel to play favorites.

What is your favorite medical tool? Corbin, Age 8

“I’ve never been asked that…It’s so simple but a good pair of scissors probably my favorite. I carry a pair of scissors around. Bandage scissors are really smartly designed where its not sharp on the end…so you can slip it under a bandage without cutting the animal. Those are really handy.”

What is your favorite animal at Happy Hollow? Ella, Age 9

“I think right now, my favorite animal is probably Tortellini, one of our Desert tortoises…I’ve worked here long enough that a few of my favorites have already passed away, but right now, Tortellini, and he should hopefully live a nice long time. More than my career here, likely.”

Next time you visit Happy Hollow, make sure to check out Doc’s Critter Care in the Zoo on the Hill. You might get to see a procedure, an animal’s check-up, or Rachel doing paperwork!