Let’s hear it for Carrie G., Cat Adoption Team’s main Certified Veterinary Technician (CVT). Carrie has been an integral member of our onsite hospital team for the past three years. Having been in the animal welfare field for over 20 years, Carrie’s job at CAT is ideal, given her unwavering obsession with all things feline. In the hospital, she spends most of her time assisting our veterinarians with surgeries and dental procedures. Additionally, Carrie administers rabies vaccinations, collects samples, runs in-house lab tests, and helps wherever she can! Read on to find her entertaining answers to our questions.
CAT: What’s your role at CAT and how long have you been involved with us?
Carrie: I’ve been a CVT in the hospital since 2020. I got my license in 2005 and have been in the veterinary industry since 1998. Making me Old. I’ve also been practicing in feline-only medicine (mostly) since 2002 — there was one year of small animals in the middle but we don’t talk about that year.
CAT: Do you have any pets? What can you tell us about them?
Carrie: Now is this just a silly question? I have three cats. Libby, the matriarch of the house, she’s about 12 years old and has many GI issues. Hossa, 6.5- years-old #CATalumni, is named after the great Chicago Blackhawk Marian Hossa (and former Winterhawk!). If she could have her way, she’d be the only cat and I would not work. Last is Walter, the 3-year-old named after the great Chicago Bear Walter Payton. He was found in the center lane of Highway 99E as a very young kitten. He was less than a pound in weight and his body temp and glucose did not register so when he came into the clinic where I was working. We took him in thinking he likely would not make it. He did, so I agreed to foster him for a co-worker who wanted to adopt him but was in the middle of a move. Walter did not agree to this arrangement and became very vocal, violent, and went on a hunger strike at his new home but went back to a normal knucklehead kitten when he came back to my house. He had a huge crush on Hossa, he’s since moved on to Libby. I call him a foster fail, but I am not the failure.
CAT: Besides a cat, what’s your favorite animal?
Carrie: Um… This question does not compute.
CAT: What advice would you give to somebody interested in getting involved in animal welfare?
Carrie: It is great to volunteer at an organization you admire. There are also many aspects to animal welfare. I’m on the medical side, but there is also fundraising, caretaking, community outreach, office support, and more. I think really evaluating your passion and skill sets and how it would best be used in the setting.
CAT: What do you enjoy most about your role at Cat Adoption Team?
Carrie: The kittens, Duh. I also get to use my education and training in a way that helps the feline community.
CAT: If you could have dinner with anybody in history, who would it be and what would you serve?
Carrie: My dad. He passed in 2008 and I’d make him cook biscuits and gravy like he used to! (Don’t tell him I became a vegetarian since he’s passed).
CAT: When you’re not at CAT, what do you like to do with your time?
Carrie: Servant to previously mentioned cats. I paint and crochet. I recharge at waterfalls so I do some mandatory hiking there.
CAT: Have you ever met a celebrity?
Carrie: I used to live downtown when everything was being filmed here. I’ve run into most of the cast of Grimm but Russell Hornsby (Hank from the show) was a really cool guy and we bonded over football — even though he was a Raiders fan. Just to bring it full circle, while waiting for a bus to work downtown by the Nike store, I spotted a man who was my childhood heartthrob, three-time world Champion Chicago Bull guard B.J. Armstrong. I’ve always said that the only “famous” person that I would be starstruck over was him, and I indeed, became a giggly 13-year-old girl when I went over to meet him. I think it made his day that someone recognized him.
CAT: If you had to teach a class on one thing, what would you teach?
Carrie: How to intubate a cat.
CAT: Would you rather be the funniest or smartest person in the room?
Carrie: Neither! I want to be entertained and educated!
We hope you had as much fun learning about Carrie as we did. If you happen to catch her outside the operating room, start a conversation about cats. We promise, you won’t be disappointed at what you hear!
