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| Old sign in front of hospital |
When Dr. Hatton first opened his practice here in Elk Grove,
some of our current staff, RVT Suzanne, RVT Lisa, and Vet Tech Assistant Rhea,
were among the few who were working in the early years.
We asked them to elaborate on their years here at Hatton
Veterinary Hospital. In 25 years, there
are a lot of memories amongst our staff…
DR. LAURA TAKATA: Veterinarian
When did you start working with or met Dr. Hatton?
I started working with Dr. Hatton (and Dr. Sahara) in 1985 at Greenhaven Veterinary Hospital when I did a preceptorship before my senior year of Veterinary School. They were kind enough to give me the opportunity to work with a great team, and they hired me upon graduation in 1986.
I started working with Dr. Hatton (and Dr. Sahara) in 1985 at Greenhaven Veterinary Hospital when I did a preceptorship before my senior year of Veterinary School. They were kind enough to give me the opportunity to work with a great team, and they hired me upon graduation in 1986.
When did you start working at Hatton Veterinary Hospital?
I started working at Hatton Veterinary Hospital in 1994, a year after it opened.
What inspired you to work with animals?
When I was in middle school, I knew I wanted to work in a medical/science field. While I was in high school, I began to explore the possibilities and found that I really loved working with animals. For many years I put in my hours cleaning kennels, walking dogs, working at the zoo, fish and game and wildlife care . As I gained the confidence that I might be able to go to Veterinary school someday, I really began to focus on that goal. I wanted to be able to know as much as I could about the diseases affecting our pets, and wanted to be able to provide the best care to them. I feel a deep connection to animals and to their humans.
What is your favorite story or most memorable moment since working at Hatton?I honestly can’t pinpoint a single most memorable moment. There have been so many special pets and moments. I feel very lucky to have such great clients and pets to work with . Every special thank you from them means so much. We have a beautiful cat quilt on the wall which was made by a very special client who passed away. Her husband felt she would want us to have it, so we have displayed it ever since, sharing her talents and love with all who come to visit us. Our dedicated clients are the reason we are here!
DR. GLORIA KU: Veterinarian
When did you start working with or met Dr. Hatton?
In 1989, I worked with Dr. Hatton while doing my summer internship at Greenhaven Vet Hospital during my senior year in veterinary school.
When did you start working at Hatton Veterinary Hospital?
June 2003
What inspired you to work with animals?
The challenge of working with animals inspired me. It is not only the science of medicine and disease, but also learning to communicate with different species that don't speak English. Our pets are so trusting that I wanted to be able to help them and families have optimum experiences together.
What is your favorite story or most memorable moment since working at Hatton?
Most of our pets have originated from work situations, but one
stands out especially today, because she is still with me now. I first met “Flora” when our staff caught her
running around the hospital and the field across the street on Labor Day
2005. She was very friendly and quite
happy to be “found.” She had a microchip
but it wasn’t registered and had been placed by Sacramento City Animal Control,
so we took her there on the next business day where she was held for 4 days in
hopes of her owner finding her there. No
one called. On her last day before she
would have been put down, as the shelter was particularly full that week, I
called to check on her. When I heard
that she wasn’t reclaimed, I convinced my husband to come take a look at her
and see what he thought. She had been so
friendly when I first met her and her colors matched one of our dogs (black and
tan). We certainly didn’t need another
dog because we still had two young large dogs at home, but we had recently said
good bye to two of our older pets and we felt like we could handle it. When we got to the shelter, the dogs had
been kept 4 or 5 to a pen because they were so crowded. He pointed to each dog in the pen asking if
that was the one, before I meekly confessed it was the last one, hiding in the
back. But when we brought her out, she
lit up again as I had seen her at Hatton’s 4 days earlier. Now she is probably about 15 years old and
enjoying her senior years as an only child.
Kids have left, dogs and cats have “left”, and for the first time, she
is “Queen Bee” at our house. She earned
it! Thanks for finding us at Hatton’s,
Flora!! 😊
JUDY: Registered Veterinary Technician
When did you start working with or met Dr. Hatton?
I started working with Dr. Hatton in 1976 at Greenhaven Veterinary Hospital. I watched Dr. Sahara and Dr. Hatton build the Greenhaven Veterinary Hospital and when Dr. Hatton built Hatton Veterinary Hospital, I came to Elk Grove to work at his practice.
When did you start working at Hatton Veterinary Hospital?
October 1993
What inspired you to work with animals?
I wanted to work with and help care for small pets.
What is your favorite story or most memorable moment since working at Hatton?
I like working with our clients and patients, especially with reconditioning. A Chihuahua named Lola came in weekly for us to get her desensitized with being here. We were not able to touch her at all. We used a lot of peanut butter as a treat for her. With our help, we are now able to pick her up with some “complaints.”
SUZANNE: Registered Veterinary Technician
When did you start
working with or met Dr. Hatton?
September 1993 (about 2 weeks after the practice first opened).
What inspired you to
work with animals?
I have always had a love for animals and wanted to help
them.
What is your favorite
story or most memorable moment since working at Hatton?
Evacuating animals by rowboat during the flood of 1996 and
Lisa’s car floating around in the parking lot!
LISA: Registered Veterinary Technician
When did you start working with or met Dr. Hatton?
In October 1994, I started out as an ROP (Regional Occupational Program) student. On my 2nd day, Dr. Hatton offered me an employee position.
What inspired you to work with animals?
To be honest, cats inspired me to work in the veterinary field but I have always known that I wanted to work with animals. I grew up with a love of animals as my home was always filled with pets. I have always been passionate about science. I have always known that I would love and enjoy helping animals in need to love, aid care and support.
What is your favorite story or most memorable moment since working at Hatton?
In 2005, a mama cat with her newborn litter arrived at our hospital. Someone in the past had borrowed on of our extra carriers here, put the mama cat and her kittens in the carrier, and then slipped the carrier into someone’s car at the nearby gas station! When the owner of the vehicle saw the carrier in their car, they saw that our “Please return to Hatton Veterinary Hospital” label was on the carrier and brought it to us. Mama cat was a great tortoiseshell cat. She had 6 kittens that we took in and we instantly fell in love with mama and her babies. 3 of the kittens went to Hatton Vet employees. I have the black and white domestic short-haired named Danica. She is 13 years old now. The last 3 kittens were adopted out to a few clients.
RHEA: Veterinary Technician Assistant
When did you start
working with or met Dr. Hatton?
I started volunteering at Hatton Vet in my senior year of
High School, through the ROP program.
Dr. Takata interviewed me and offered me a volunteer position. I met Dr. Hatton after starting my volunteer
position.
When did you start
working at Hatton Veterinary Hospital?
September of 1999 as a volunteer and then in October 1999 as
a part-time employee.
What inspired you to
work with animals?
My Grandma had a farm for most of my childhood so I grew up
having many types of animals around me.
She and I would buy fertilized chicken eggs then incubate them and raise
them. My Grandma raised pigs, sheep,
chickens, a horse, cockatiels, love birds, an ostrich, cats and dogs. I gained a lot of animal experience and bonded
with them. I think the love and bond I
formed with animals for many years made me want to be a Veterinarian. I can remember being in the 2nd or
3rd grade and my teacher asking everyone what they wanted to be. I
always replied, “A Veterinarian.” I’ve
always wanted to work with animals.
What is your favorite
story or most memorable moment since working at Hatton?
Being here for over 18 years, it’s hard to narrow down a
single story with all these memories. We
had this chinchilla that came in with a broken hind leg. Dr. Ku and I were able to bandage the leg,
and fitted him with a homemade cone on his head. Yes, a cone can be used on all types of
animals. We saw him multiple times for
rechecks and he was healing as planned, except for his decreased appetite. Since I have chinchillas, I gave the owners
some advice on what my “Chicka Girls” liked.
He began to eat better and was thriving!
Right before he had his bandage taken off, he broke the same leg again,
but in a different spot. This was a bad
spot to break as it could not be healed with a splint and bandage. This now required surgery with a
specialist. The family decided to do
surgery and amputate his leg. He made a
full recovery and was a happy 3 legged chinchilla! It was a great, fulfilling experience to help
him through his healing process.
(To read the blog about this Chinchilla’s broken leg, click
here: http://hattonvethosp.blogspot.com/2013/04/mews-leg-2013.html )
I like learning how to work with each patient and learning
about their quirks. I don’t want their
experience to be traumatic so I work hard to gain their trust and make them as comfortable
as possible in order to accomplish the treatments needed to help our patients. We get to know families and their pets,
especially if we have seen them ever since they were a “baby”. Unfortunately, it is hard for us to see
beloved pets get older or sick and even harder to help them through their last
days and then saying goodbye.
IN THE BEGINNING....
Pictures of Dr. Hatton building Hatton Veterinary Hospital.
(Click on picture to see larger image.)
STAFF EVENT PICTURES
 
Hatton Staff Boat Outing & Picnic 1995
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| Staff & Family Holiday Party 2002 |
Staff & Family Holiday Party 2006
