As a little girl, Lexie Hattaway enjoyed hanging out with animals.
“I love, love, love dogs; I always stayed around them,” said Hattaway, a 2016 Biology graduate from the Anderson University College of Arts and Sciences. A happy memory from her youth was doing odd and end jobs for a local dog groomer or boarding clinic.
Hattaway is now a veterinarian with Powdersville Animal Hospital in Piedmont, S.C. There are challenges, but also great joys treating family pets who, unlike humans, can’t tell you where it hurts.
“It’s kind of a mix of both joys and frustrations. We’re blessed to be able to find some relief and are able to finally figure out what’s wrong. It’s frustrating, but fun when you can figure it out. It’s kind of like being a detective,” Hattaway said.
Probably the most fun for Hattaway comes when a family brings in a new pet.
“Those first conversations with that family, helping them learn to navigate (pet care) are always so fun,” said Hattaway, who looks forward to seeing new puppies or kittens, having those initial conversations and getting to love on a new furry friend.
“One of the coolest parts about my job is being able to treat the Anderson County Sheriff Department K-9 unit. Working dogs are my passion, so being able to be around these magnificent creatures is definitely one of the highlights of my job,” Hattaway said.
While Hattaway’s practice is primarily a small animal practice (think dogs and cats), there is variety in her work.
“I do some large animal work for my family—horses, cattle—so I’ll do some of that for them, but I don’t actively practice as a large animal practitioner right now,” said Hattaway, adding that the practice also gets involved in wildlife rehabilitation.
“We saw people bringing in deer that had a broken leg we were able to rehabilitate. And then there was a hawk that got hit by a car and we were able to fix its wings,” said Hattaway, adding that the animals can survive when reintroduced to the wild.
Hattaway’s inspiration for pursuing a career in veterinary medicine came when her own dog developed congestive heart failure. She saw how her family veterinarian cared for her pet.
“Watching the way those veterinarians took care of my dog at the time and what they did for us as a family, I realized that’s where I wanted to go,” Hattaway said.
Growing up in Anderson, Hattaway was familiar with Anderson University. Throughout her years at AU, she benefited from studying at a strong faith-based College of Arts and Sciences, while learning leadership through involvement at Baptist Collegiate Ministry (BCM) and the Science Club. A competitive volleyball player in high school, Hattaway walked on as a Trojan when she entered college. On the court she learned the fundamentals of teamwork and later saw how well those principles transfer to her veterinary practice.
“I think AU gave me guidance with team sports at a higher level,” Hattaway said. “What does that look like in veterinary practice? We’re a team where it’s the veterinarians, the technicians, plus the receptionists, and we’re all working together to find out what’s wrong with patients (and) see if we can help them out any way we can. We can all reach toward that end goal. I think from the very beginning AU was teaching me lessons on how to work together.”
The intersection of faith and learning was important to Hattaway. She said gaining a deeper knowledge of science helped her gain a deeper knowledge of God.
“Honestly, just being able to connect the two (faith and science) and not feel like what I’m doing was separate from my faith has been a huge thing that’s allowed me to have a passion for what I’m doing,” Hattaway said. “Their first years out, a lot of people are experiencing burnout; I’m still loving what I’m doing and it’s because I was given that at an earlier time in my career. Your faith and knowledge can mean the same thing. They don’t have to contradict each other.”
Hattaway’s advice to anyone thinking of becoming a veterinarian is simple.
“Just keep going, keep pushing. Keep chasing your dream and surround yourself with people who believe in you, who you can count on and love you,” she said.