Ordinary veterinarians may be content with their work-a-day office careers but then there are those who take the bull by the horns, literally, by bringing their special brand of care to rural areas and the wild. Fortunately, for fans of Animal Planet network – and especially the animals who call Alaska their home – Dr. Dee Thornell is of the latter variety of caregivers.
As the star of the new series "Dr. Dee: Alaska Vet," Thornell certainly knows no boundaries. From traveling across glaciers and mountains to enduring sub-zero temperatures and endless days without daylight, Thornell stops at nothing to bring care to the animals who need her most in America's largest and wildest state.
One simply doesn't become a veterinarian of this stature overnight. Thornell's career was many years in the making, and as she reveals exclusively to Headlines and Global News, her love of animals was prevalent even as a child.
HNGN: When did your love for animals begin? What sparked it?
Dr. Dee Thornell: I got to bottle-raise sheep when I was a little girl – although they didn't tell me until later where they went when they got older! My sisters and brother were always involved with 4-H. My sister was one of the first girls back in the '60s to raise a pig. My brother, Dickie, wanted to be a veterinarian; we just happened to live next to one in Ohio.
Tell us about your veterinary business before going to Alaska.
When my brother was killed in Vietnam, my dad quit his job with General Motors in Kalamazoo, Mich., and moved my sister and me to Benzonia, Mich., where he and mom purchased a motel (the 4-k's). It was pink! As long as I said I wanted to go to vet school, I got any animal I wanted – which meant I got a horse. I had to purchase the horse myself by making beds in the motel at 50 cents a bed. When I saved $200, I bought my first Morgan "Tuffy." Dad helped me take care of him. I didn't have enough to buy a saddle, but that just made me a better rider! Then I started volunteering at Dr. Wagner's veterinary practice in Benzonia to get experience.
Going from the Midwest all the way to Alaska is quite a big step. What triggered the move?
I love my home in Michigan but disliked the snow coming at me at a horizontal 60 mph. Plus, I needed some adventure after five straight years of college. I had written a paper on Alaska in grade school and always had a bug to come here. I had the opportunity to bring a horse to Alaska and check it out. I never left. There is still snow, but very dry and it "floats" to earth.
Tell me about your practice, "Animal House."
I started working out of the back of a pickup truck and thought how nice it would be to have a heated table to do surgery on. Then [I] thought how nice it would be to have lab equipment. Then an ultrasound. Then I needed more space to keep it all in, so I bought an old warehouse and remodeled it. The rest is history. My contractors are great. They can build almost anything I draw on a table napkin! Actually, I took a long time with a miniature layout of the equipment and how big rooms had to be to make it work in the building I have now.
You can also fly planes – right?
I had my first super-cub plane ride 33 years ago when I first came to Alaska to go out and do health certificates on some horses. It was insanely fun! Plus, I live in Alaska and I haven't seen 85 percent of my own state. The only way to do that is with a plane. I used to love doing clinics when I worked out of my pickup, so I've gone full cycle: I'm back doing rural clinics – just with an airplane instead!
