Amy MacKay was FAB Scholar at Bristol between 1996 and 1998.  She returned to her home town of Cleveland, Ohio and, since 2003, has run her own feline-only practice – Nine Lives Cat Clinic.   PIX

I attended The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine from 1992-1996.  Just prior to graduation, all seniors pursued an elective activity, and I was able to visit the University of Bristol Feline Centre for a six-week interval.  I had entered vet school specifically to become a feline veterinarian, and it was really exciting to go to a university that had a separate cat facility.  I was thrilled to be seeing cases with Sarah Caney, Andrew Sparkes and Tim Gruffydd-Jones.  I learned more about cats in six weeks at Bristol than in four years at Ohio State!

During my visit, applications were being accepted for FAB Scholar and I was delighted to learn a few weeks later that I had been successful.

The next two years at Bristol were rigorous, educational, emotional, and simply great.  I met a lot of wonderful cats with wonderful owners - in fact, I still get Christmas cards from some of them, even though I left Bristol almost ten years ago!  It was amazing to know that I made a difference in the lives of these people and their cats.  I also really enjoyed teaching the students and I hope that my enthusiasm for feline medicine was influential. 

After my term as FAB Scholar, I returned to my hometown of Cleveland, Ohio to join a feline-only practice as an associate veterinarian.  Thanks to my internal medicine training, I brought new skills to this practice, including endoscopy and chemotherapy.  Four years later, in 2003, I opened my own feline-only practice, Nine Lives Cat Clinic.  The practice is growing rapidly and I will be expanding soon to keep up with demands.