House Officer- Dr. Wong
Dr. Amanda Wong our wonderful Zoological Companion Animal Resident recently completed her residency at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. She spent countless hours at the University of Illinois Zoological Service and the Wildlife Medical Clinic for the last three years. And many of our volunteer students had the honor of working with and learning from her. She always put her students first and motivated them to take on the challenge of practicing new skills. This July, Dr. Wong left the University and moved on to the next chapter of her career. Although we were sad to see her go, we wish her the best in the next chapter of her career. However, before she left we conducted a mini-interview with her and are excited to share!
Dr. Wong graduated with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree with a background in small animal medicine with an interest in internal medicine and emergency care. Over time, she developed a career interest in zoological companion animals (ZCA), pets that are not small or farm animals. She especially enjoys human and pet ownership in the ZCA world and the potential of medicine, which has a lot of room to explore.
Favorite Memories
She highlighted her interaction with our students when asked about her favorite memories at the Wildlife Medical Clinic. “… working with students, especially during the summer months, were some of my best memories.” Dr. Wong said she was impressed with the student’s potential and ability. “I remember working with Becky (DVM candidate, class of 2026) on her turtle patient. She took the initiative to learn to place the feeding tube. And she successfully performed the procedure on the patient by herself with only verbal instruction!” Another case that left a deep impression for Dr. Wong was a coyote patient that she worked with student volunteers, “… we don’t get adult coyote often. It was a unique opportunity for students and us (house officers) to think about patient and student safety.”
Virginia Opossums are the best!
Dr. Wong has worked with hundreds of wildlife patients at the WMC, and opossum is her top wildlife patient to work with. They not only are incredibly charismatic (think baby opossum here), but they are also great for the environment with their fantastic pest control ability.
Future Career Plans
After leaving the University, Dr. Wong plans to return to California’s Bay area. She will be joining a private practice focusing on the zoo companion animal. Her long-term goal is to become a board-certified specialist working in private practice and emergency care and one day open her own practice!
Words of Wisdom
Before we close the interview, she would like to share a word of encouragement with all the readers and our current and prospective students. “WMC, in general, is a fantastic opportunity; learning from the WMC and the cases will serve you very well. I Highly encourage getting involved in the clinic.”
THANK YOU, Dr. Wong, for all of your hard work and the guidance you provided to our students; we will miss you so much! We are sending all the best wishes for your future endeavors.
Written By: YiYing, co-chair and class or 2026 and Rachel, co-chair and class of 2027.
