By: Julianna Palffy

It was a massacre. There were dead bodies everywhere, including actual skeletons. Kristen Craig had never seen anything like it before. As a veterinary assistant and animal foster parent, one of Craig’s clients sent her photos of this tragedy—a colony of stray cats in Dexter, Oregon that were killed as a result of a heatwave. Most of the cats didn’t survive, but Craig’s client was able to save one and asked her for assistance. Eager to help, Craig accepted and took the orange tabby in as a new foster and named him Leo. However, Craig didn’t expect to fall in love with Leo and adopt him as her own. “He just ended up being so awesome, I had to keep him,” said Craig. Working at Edgewood Animal Clinic, fostering kittens, and encountering situations like Leo’s reminds Craig of how much she truly loves animals and why she chose this work in the first place.

Craig had pets her whole life growing up. Whenever she would want another pet, Craig would make a presentation for her parents which listed all the reasons why they should get her one. Throughout her life some of Craig’s pet cats ran away, which was hard for her. However, it was not nearly as hard the first time she experienced one of her pets dying. As a young girl, Craig had a pet cat for 9 years when suddenly it died of a stroke. The cat’s lungs collapsed and had to be taken to the doctor, but there was nothing they could do. This moment changed everything for Craig, because she never wanted to feel the way she did again. Craig stated, “I just hated that feeling of being helpless.” All Craig wanted to do was help animals after that. There were occasions when one of her pet cats would capture and bring back a small rabbit. Craig would try to nurse it back to health, but all she really did was hold the rabbit. She wanted to know what exactly she had to do to heal it. Craig wanted to learn how to help animals properly.

After she graduated high school, Craig started fostering animals and has continued to do so since. Craig went on to the University of Oregon and studied biology. She graduated in 2015 and used her degree to get her current job as a veterinary assistant. By gaining experience at Edgewood Animal Clinic, Craig plans on applying to veterinary school next year. One day, Craig would love to do mixed animal practice. This would involve working with a variety of different farm and exotic animals. No matter where life takes her, Craig wants to spend her life helping animals.