Published: September 14, 2008 12:55 am            

Health of the herd

• When Leslie Lovett graduates with her veterinarian degree, she plans to go to work — on the cadets of the Air Force

Leslie Lovett planned to be commissioned into the Air Force before she began her third year at Oklahoma State University’s Center for Veterinary Health Sciences.

That plan was almost derailed when 1st Lt. Matt Andrews was sent to Las Vegas on a temporary assignment for a few weeks.

“I refused to be commissioned by anybody else until he got back,” Lovett said. “We had to postpone things until we got home. That was the only person I wanted to commission me.”

Andrews, her boyfriend of two years, came back and commissioned her as a second lieutenant on Aug. 26.

The couple met while doing undergraduate work at OSU.

Andrews, a native of Big Spring, Texas, was in the Air Force ROTC and earned an aviation management degree. He is now an air battle manager stationed at Tinker Air Force Base near Midwest City.

Lovett, a Tulsa native, completed an animal science degree in 2006 and is expected to finish her veterinary studies in 2010.

She will then join Andrews as an active member of the Air Force for the following three years.

It was seeing his lifestyle that convinced her she wanted to join.

“The Air Force takes care of people,” Lovett said. “I’ve always wanted to serve my country in some manner. The Air Force is just a great way to do it.”

She will be a public health officer for the Air Force after she finishes school.

“I probably wouldn’t have gone just to be in the Air Force,” Lovett said. “It’s definitely the public health.”

Lovett is studying animals, but she wants to make a career out of the interaction between animals and people.

“It’s incredibly fascinating,” Lovett said. “There are so many places you can take it. I’m excited by new and emerging diseases.”

In fact, she said private veterinary practice is not for her, though she considers it an honorable profession.

“I will work mostly with humans (in the Air Force),” Lovett said. “(Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) is one of the most versatile degrees. We are experts in infectious diseases, in zoonotic diseases, preventative medicine and herd health. Herd health for a herd of cattle doesn’t vary that much from a herd of people, if you will. You approach groups of people in the same way that you approach groups of animals. They just have different nuances.”

Dr. Michael Lorenz, dean of the school, wrote in an e-mail that they encourage their students to consider a variety of careers, including the military.

“We have faculty members that have either served in the military or currently serve in the military who actively mentor students,” he wrote.

“We have a long-standing and excellent relationship with military recruiters and our graduates have performed well. So, in summary, we have the right pipeline to the military for our students.”

Attempts to reach Andrews were not successful as he was given a temporary assignment last week.

        

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