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Friday, October 16, 2009

For her love of animals, vet is
on call 24 hours.
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Dr Pauline Njoki holds her puppy, Kiki, outside her house in Upper Kabete in Nairobi. Photo/JOHN
MAKENI
Saving the lives of a cow and a puppy might not seem major feats, but these have been significant
achievements in the career of Pauline Njoki.
“For me every case I do, as long as the animal has recovered, and that I have helped the farmer to
maintain an animal is always a success to me,” said Dr Njoki, who holds a master’s degree in
veterinary medicine in dairy cow reproduction.
The cow was close to death after delivering a calf, and the farmer was worried he would lose his
highest milk producer. So when Dr Njoki was able to administer the appropriate drugs and the animal
survived, the farmer was elated.
Close to death
The puppy had fallen from a third-floor window and had been rushed to the small animal clinic at the
University of Nairobi’s Upper Kabete campus where the 31-year-old vet works. The injuries were
serious, but she nursed the small animal to recovery.
She often has to explain to her friends what her work entails because, even though many have heard
of veterinary doctors, few can imagine what it is like to treat a pig or a dog. “Many say, ‘you are a
vet doctor; what exactly do you do?’’ said the woman with an easy smile in a green lab coat with a
stethoscope hanging from her neck. “I usually tell them that animals get sick, just like human
beings.”
Her passion is caring for dogs, cows, pigs and goats, and she has been devastated by the death of so
many animals during the long drought that has hit Kenya. “Most of the diseases we see in human
beings are also found in animals. In dogs and cats, the common ailments could be intestinal diseases
such as diarrhoea,” she said, adding that treating animals is a challenge because they cannot say what
the problem is.
She first relies on the owners’ explanation and then her own visual observations. Does she really love
animals or is it just a job? The woman, who had initially dreamed of becoming a paediatrician, said
animals don’t judge humans and that her life would be quite dull without them. Dogs are her
favourite.
“I think dogs are brilliant. They are loyal and entertaining,” she said. “It is among the animals that
you feel appreciated. Dogs are not hostile. Animals pick up on your emotions. They operate by
observing you to see if you are barking or reacting in fear. If you fear an animal, it picks up on that
so it can be aggressive.”
As a career woman and a mother, Dr Njoki says she does what every woman does: cook, go to the
salon, have a pedicure, but nothing makes her happier than receiving constant reassurance from her
husband Maithya Musunga that he loves her.
“A women wants to get occasional reassurance that he still loves her. Up to this day there is no day
that passes by without my husband telling me, ‘you know I love you,’” she said. “So when you know
someone cares that deeply for you, you have no fear.”
God-fearing
Describing herself as God-fearing, compassionate, resilient and happy, Dr Njoki said she always
knew she wanted to do something in medicine and actually volunteered to work in a hospital before
she began her university studies a decade ago.
At her home nearby, Dr Njoki has three dogs, Chichi, Kiki and Goldi, and two cats, Tom and Jerry.
She says the pets are like her babies and that her friends tease her for treating them like children. She
wakes up every day at 5.30 a.m. and reads the Bible. She leaves home at 8.30 a.m. after her husband.
It’s the nature of her work that she is on call at any time to attend to the animal patients and recently
had to rush off at 8 at night for an emergency in Kiambu. “In life, family is important, but family is
not marriage. Just because you are not married doesn’t mean you don’t have a family,” she said,
adding that one of the challenges facing working mothers is that they have too little time to pursue
reading.
“That’s why, being a woman, you have to know how to juggle the two. You have to know how to
juggle family and career,” she said, adding that her favourite foods are chicken and chapati.
Asked what she thought of people who mistreat animals, she said they “need to be sensitised. These
are living things, and they need your compassion. Domestic animals, people should just know, are
living things and if you treat a living thing well, trust me, it will not hurt you.”

jmakeni@nation.co.ke

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For her love of animals, vet is on call lifestyle - nation.co.ke

  • 1. ? Friday, October 16, 2009 For her love of animals, vet is on call 24 hours. 0 Comments Print Dr Pauline Njoki holds her puppy, Kiki, outside her house in Upper Kabete in Nairobi. Photo/JOHN MAKENI Saving the lives of a cow and a puppy might not seem major feats, but these have been significant achievements in the career of Pauline Njoki. “For me every case I do, as long as the animal has recovered, and that I have helped the farmer to maintain an animal is always a success to me,” said Dr Njoki, who holds a master’s degree in veterinary medicine in dairy cow reproduction.
  • 2. The cow was close to death after delivering a calf, and the farmer was worried he would lose his highest milk producer. So when Dr Njoki was able to administer the appropriate drugs and the animal survived, the farmer was elated. Close to death The puppy had fallen from a third-floor window and had been rushed to the small animal clinic at the University of Nairobi’s Upper Kabete campus where the 31-year-old vet works. The injuries were serious, but she nursed the small animal to recovery. She often has to explain to her friends what her work entails because, even though many have heard of veterinary doctors, few can imagine what it is like to treat a pig or a dog. “Many say, ‘you are a vet doctor; what exactly do you do?’’ said the woman with an easy smile in a green lab coat with a stethoscope hanging from her neck. “I usually tell them that animals get sick, just like human beings.” Her passion is caring for dogs, cows, pigs and goats, and she has been devastated by the death of so many animals during the long drought that has hit Kenya. “Most of the diseases we see in human beings are also found in animals. In dogs and cats, the common ailments could be intestinal diseases such as diarrhoea,” she said, adding that treating animals is a challenge because they cannot say what the problem is. She first relies on the owners’ explanation and then her own visual observations. Does she really love animals or is it just a job? The woman, who had initially dreamed of becoming a paediatrician, said animals don’t judge humans and that her life would be quite dull without them. Dogs are her favourite. “I think dogs are brilliant. They are loyal and entertaining,” she said. “It is among the animals that you feel appreciated. Dogs are not hostile. Animals pick up on your emotions. They operate by observing you to see if you are barking or reacting in fear. If you fear an animal, it picks up on that so it can be aggressive.” As a career woman and a mother, Dr Njoki says she does what every woman does: cook, go to the salon, have a pedicure, but nothing makes her happier than receiving constant reassurance from her husband Maithya Musunga that he loves her. “A women wants to get occasional reassurance that he still loves her. Up to this day there is no day that passes by without my husband telling me, ‘you know I love you,’” she said. “So when you know someone cares that deeply for you, you have no fear.” God-fearing Describing herself as God-fearing, compassionate, resilient and happy, Dr Njoki said she always knew she wanted to do something in medicine and actually volunteered to work in a hospital before she began her university studies a decade ago.
  • 3. At her home nearby, Dr Njoki has three dogs, Chichi, Kiki and Goldi, and two cats, Tom and Jerry. She says the pets are like her babies and that her friends tease her for treating them like children. She wakes up every day at 5.30 a.m. and reads the Bible. She leaves home at 8.30 a.m. after her husband. It’s the nature of her work that she is on call at any time to attend to the animal patients and recently had to rush off at 8 at night for an emergency in Kiambu. “In life, family is important, but family is not marriage. Just because you are not married doesn’t mean you don’t have a family,” she said, adding that one of the challenges facing working mothers is that they have too little time to pursue reading. “That’s why, being a woman, you have to know how to juggle the two. You have to know how to juggle family and career,” she said, adding that her favourite foods are chicken and chapati. Asked what she thought of people who mistreat animals, she said they “need to be sensitised. These are living things, and they need your compassion. Domestic animals, people should just know, are living things and if you treat a living thing well, trust me, it will not hurt you.” jmakeni@nation.co.ke