Meet Palm Beach Equine Clinic Veterinarian Dr. Katie Atwood

This month, Palm Beach Equine Clinic welcomed a new face to their team. Dr. Katie Atwood, hails from Jacksonville, FL, and attended veterinary school at the University of Florida, making her return to south Florida from Lexington, KY, a special homecoming.

What brought you to Palm Beach Equine Clinic?

I grew up in Florida, so I wanted to be closer to family and the ocean! But, I was also looking for an opportunity to grow and become a better veterinarian. This is a difficult industry to get into, but it is especially difficult to find the right practices. This is a chance for me to work with some of the best doctors in the country.

What would you say is your specialty at Palm Beach Equine Clinic? 

In addition to general, preventative and sport medicine, I will be focusing on Palm Beach Equine Clinic’s reproductive work. I did an internship and a fellowship in reproduction and realized that it is what I am most interested in. I will be working on breeding mares, performing frozen and fresh semen inseminations, as well as breeding management and embryo flushes for transfers to recipient mares.

What inspired you to be a veterinarian?

When I was a little kid we had a trail behind our house that was really popular and I would sit on the back wall and watch everybody ride by on their horses. We do not have any other veterinarians in my family, but when I was five years old I realized that I wanted to work with animals. During my undergraduate studies in Animal Science at Berry College in Rome, GA, a professor named Dr. Martin Goldberg really pushed me to pursue veterinary school.

I wake up every morning so excited to go to work and if I don’t come home exhausted and filthy then I have done something wrong. It is an “every minute of every day” commitment, but very rewarding.

When you aren’t working, where can we find you?

I like to spend as much time as possible in the water. I can usually be found swimming, diving or paddleboarding at the beach and spending time by the pool

What advice would you give to someone considering pursuing veterinary school?

Do it! It will be the most difficult time of your life, but if you have a passion for it, it will be so rewarding. Dedication is so important; take advantage of every wet lab you can, go to any conference that is available, and take advantage of opportunities to meet new people and gain mentors. Who wouldn’t want to do what they love for a living?

Name one thing most people wouldn’t know about you? 

I am a pretty open book at this point. But, when I retire, my fiancé Mackenzie and I want to sail around the world!