jessica Lin

Veterinarian at Van Isle Veterinary Hospital

Jessica was born in the UK but grew up here in BC, graduating from Brentwood as a Lifer in 2004. Her studies, work, and passion for traveling have taken her to dozens of countries all across the globe, but she has ultimately ended up back on Vancouver Island… for now! She is currently working at a very busy small animal hospital in the Comox Valley, where she lives with her husband Pierre, and their tripod cat Nina.

After a few years based in Victoria, Jessica moved to Western Australia to study veterinary medicine and surgery at Murdoch University in Perth. When not in class, she was kitesurfing the Indian Ocean and exploring the wilds of Australia’s outback. Following graduation, she completed an intensive year-long internship at one of the UK’s top equine referral hospitals where she was responsible for horse anaesthetics, diagnostic imaging, and the care of critical patients ranging from tiny miniature donkey foals to famous racehorses worth hundreds of millions of £’s. No pressure! She then worked in mixed equine/small-animal general practice before spending a few years with no fixed address while traveling abroad and locuming all over the UK - from the island of Jersey to the Scottish borders and everywhere in between! After meeting her now-husband while backpacking in Jordan, she eventually joined him to live in the French Pyrenees before they relocated to Canada mid-pandemic, in late 2020.

During her 13 years abroad she worked in various settings from remote communities in Australia, Asia, the South Pacific, and Africa, to modern hospitals in the UK and Canada. Understanding that human and animal health are inextricably linked, a highlight of her career so far was helping to run a Rabies vaccination camp in an Indian slum, alongside her sister Katie (yes, another speaker this year!) who documented the event in picture and film. Treating “all creatures great and small”, Jessica has been fortunate enough to work with all sorts of animals; she has placed an IV catheter in a rhino, shaved a lioness for surgery, injected a crocodile, and even taken blood from a platypus!

Jessica values having a life outside of work, and enjoys all things outdoors. You might find her running, biking or hiking in the forest, skiing or snowboarding, on the water surfing or

kitesurfing, or simply enjoying a book in the sun. She also likes to think she has a pretty decent green thumb.

Find Jessica on Brentonian Connect

https://www.linkedin.com/in/lindrjess/