Sophomore Shares Her Unique Experiences with Animals

Sophomore Emily Sneed has always loved animals. Before she could walk, she was constantly picking up bugs and was always drawn to people’s pets. By the time she had her very own pet at the age of four, her parents could tell that her love for animals wasn’t just a phase; it was a passion. Now, eleven years later, Emily continues to explore her passion by caring for her four pets, observing veterinarian surgeries, and volunteering at Lakeside Nature Center.

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Numerous Pets

The gecko’s soft, suction cup-like feet slowly saunter over sophomore Emily Sneed’s hands, then her arms. Dante, her gecko, makes quick jumps from Emily’s arms to her stomach, then over to her back and finally to her hands. But the rapid movements don’t scare Emily—she’s had three lizards, along with four snakes, multiple beta fish, 10 rats, a handful of hermit crabs, one guinea pig and one dog.

“My parents recognized I loved animals when I was little and let me get pets,” Emily said.

Emily’s parents even took her to reptile shows. At the shows, reptile vendors bring their scaly and slithery creatures to be awed at and sometimes sold to reptile lovers from all around the Kansas City area.

“It’s basically like a reptile petting zoo,” Emily said.

The shows are where Emily buys some of her pets, including the two snakes and Crested Gecko she has now.

Along with the reptiles, Emily also has owned rats as pets. While most people are grossed out by rats, Emily is just the opposite. She compares rats to miniature dogs, each one having their own personality. Even though she’s had 10 rats, she still remembers her favorite-her first one named Sweetie

“She loved to snuggle,”  Emily said.

While her rats warm up to her just like dogs, Emily still has a real dog,  a gray poodle named Sadie.

From geckos to guinea pigs, Emily loves each and every one of her pets.

“They all have their  own personalities.” Emily said.

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Dog Surgeries

A few years ago, Emily’s dog’s veterinarian asked Emily if she wanted observe a dog knee replacement surgery after noticing Emily’s love and interest in animals.  Intrigued at what those might look like, she accepted.

Emily watched with focus as one doctor made quick sterilizations, incisions and cuts while another doctor watched the vital monitors the dog was hooked up to.

While the doctors performed their jobs, they explained to Emily what was going on in the surgery and what tools they were using.

“The surgery was really interesting. They get in there and get things done,” Emily said.

Emily has also sat in on a tumor removal and a spay and neuter surgery.

The smell of the surgery room made Emily queasy, but watching the actual surgery didn’t make her feel sick or uncomfortable at all.

And while she thought the surgeries were interesting, she didn’t find them particularly inspiring.

“I’ve always just been less drawn to the surgeries on dogs and cats and more to working with animals in the wild,” Emily said.

Thus, Emily began volunteering even more often at the Lakeside Nature Center.

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Lakeside Volunteer

As a 10 year old, Emily received the title of “Junior Keeper” at the Lakeside Nature Center. She earned the label by attending two  all-day classes where she learned how to feed, clean, and bandage each animal in the center.

As a young girl, Emily volunteered at the nature center about once a month.

“Sometimes parents make their kids volunteer there to get hours, but clearly that wasn’t an issue with Emily,” Emily’s mom, Dena Sneed, said.

After the employees at the center realized Emily had a passion for working with animals and gift for handling them, they urged her to come even more often. Even though the Junior Keepers aren’t allowed to work with anything with rabies or venom for safety reasons, Emily was invited by the employees to watch them work with those types of animals and reptiles. She was able to watch how the employees treated baby coyotes and fox kits and how they fed the giant rattlesnake.

Now, she goes to the center about once a week.

At Lakeside,  she starts her work by cleaning the animals and their cages on display. This includes the cleaning the opossums, feeding the turtles, putting water in the snakes cages, and doing other odd jobs around the center.

Then, she goes to the back rooms where all the injured and certain rehabilitating animals are. These rooms are each dedicated to a species- one room to mice, another to birds, one to newborn animals, one to turtles, and one to snakes. There’s also a kitchen and a medical room, like a doctors office for animals.

Some of the latest occupants of the rehab section of the center include newborn mice, a massive owl with an injured wing, and a curious little rabbit named Chaps.

Emily helps the animals in this part of the center, bandaging broken wings and hurt paws. Her favorite time to help out in the back rooms is during springtime, when all the new babies are born.

“I love feeding the baby squirrels when they just open their eyes and are really hyper and tiny.” Emily says.

Emily hopes to continue working with animals, preferably animals in the wild. Schools in northern California, like Pamona, appeal to her because of their impressive marine biology programs.

“I don’t have my plans for the future narrowed down yet, but I want to work out in nature with wild animals, maybe with elephants or somewhere in Australia,” Emily said.