Q: My daughter insists she's going to become a veterinarian when she grows up. She's only 12 but never a day goes by that she doesn't ask what more she should be doing to help reach her goal. I've enrolled her in animal-related camps, taken her to horseback riding lessons and encouraged her to care for all our pets. Is there more we should be doing to prepare her?

A: Count yourself lucky -- and challenged. You and your child have a lot of work ahead, not the least of which is pinching your pennies to save for an expensive post-graduate education. As for the nuts and bolts of preparing a preteen ``pre-vet'' (or one of any age), direct experience with animals in a variety of settings is crucial, of course, but what separates aspiring animal lovers from will-be veterinarians is their ability to master science and math at the high school and college level.

Academic application is essential: There are fewer than 30 veterinary schools in the United States, and all demand a high grade point average. Precious few are willing to accept C's in either calculus or the sciences.

But that doesn't mean your prevet has to spend her life in a science classroom, 4-H camps or vocational programs that would steer her purposefully towards veterinary medicine. A well-rounded education that includes the arts, athletics and community endeavors is highly valued by veterinary schools. (Indeed, my own undergraduate degree was in art history.)

In years to come, direct veterinary experience will be important, but don't worry about that until her later teens. For now, focus on basic schooling and activities that endear her to animals -- and on building your college savings account, of course.

Dr. Patty Khuly has a veterinary practice in South Miami and blogs at www.dolittler.com. Send questions to khulyp@bellsouth.net, or Dr. Dolittler, Tropical Life, The Miami Herald, 1 Herald Plaza, Miami, FL 33132.

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