Title: Vet Detective, Tolani Francisco
(16 minutes)
Producer: Joe Turco

"The way I appreciate being an American Indian comes from the time that I spent with my grandparents on the reservation just enjoying nature. My grandfather is the one who taught me to handle critters when I was a little girl."
– Tolani Francisco

Wildlife veterinarian Tolani Francisco travels to Native American reservations in New Mexico to check on the health of bison and elk. She searches for signs of disease in fresh dung patties and blood samples she collects and tests in her lab. Tolani directs a U.S. Department of Agriculture agency that works with Native American tribes in the Southwest. Her mission is to stop the spread of animal diseases and help reestablish healthy stocks of bison and elk on tribal lands.

Introduction to the Video

I'm having a hard time hearing its lung sounds because it's purring so loud.

Oh there you go. Thank you, kitty.

Everybody thinks that um that that's what veterinarians do. That we are just dog and cat doctors. While that's kind of the traditional view of veterinarians, what I do right now with the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture is much different.

We're looking at the consistency of the feces out here.

I'm, right now, just one of a handful of Native American or American Indian veterinarians in the country. And I'm one of only three that work for the U.S. Dept. of Agriculture Veterinary Services.

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