Kinnidy Coley has known she wants to work with animals for a living since she was in high school. Her passion for animals includes not just the usual cats and dogs, but poultry, small ruminants, and camelids.

Although she is in the middle of vet school, her efforts to learn about animals are truly incredible. As a child she would sit and watch nature documentaries with a notebook taking notes and found opportunities to study animals all through her teens.

During one event Coley got a piece of advice that would help her gain a number of new opportunities. During a veterinary medicine event she heard someone say, “the worst thing I ever could be told is No when asking for opportunities.” 

She has taken that advice a great distance, and learned from the incredible number of opportunities that have told her “Yes” instead of “no.”

These opportunities included a fellowship as a Land O’Lakes Global Food Challenge Emerging Leader, as well as a “next generation delegate” to the Chicago Council on Global Affairs to address global food and nutrition security.

She’s a second year student NC State College of Vet Med, but that doesn’t mean she’s too busy with classes to look for more opportunities. She’s joined the Carnivore Team, which specializes in research and care of wild or captive carnivores as well as a broad swath of other clubs including Student Chapter of the American Association of Small Ruminant Practitioners, Swine, Poultry, and Aquaculture Club, V.O.I.C.E., BlackDVM Network and more. She loves these opportunities, and greatly enjoys taking the opportunity to learn in every possible way.

Although she is deeply invested in veterinary medicine, that is not her only side. Coley believes that something everyone should do at least once in their life is to immerse themselves in a different culture. Her own opportunity to do so came when she traveled to Malawi and South Africa. 

Seeing a different way of doing things can help you innovate in your own culture and bring about positive change for the world. 

When Coley has a stressful day, she likes to take a walk to help put her mind at ease. Taking a walk helps clear her mind, and help her to focus on the present and what she can do about things that are currently happening—not worry about the past or future which is out of her control.

Veterinary medicine is a flexible world, in it you have the ability to combine different skills, and do almost anything you set your mind to. Coley wants to be a big part of that, combing her love of solving problems such as food insecurity, with her love with medicine for her favorite types of animals, especially goats.

As she continues to look for and take these opportunities, she hopes to open up as many doors as possible and learn as much as she can about the animals and veterinary world she adores. Although she’s currently only in her second year of veterinary medicine, Coley has clearly shown that she will go far in the community and do great things in her career.

Follow her journey on Linked IN

Kinnidy Coley on Linked iN