LOMPOC
Lompoc man a military vet and local veterinarian
Posted: Feb 25, 2011 5:48 PM by Monica Quintero
Updated: Feb 25, 2011 9:54 PM
A Lompoc man is a military vet as well as a local veterinarian. Dr. Raghavan Sampathkumaran, Dr. Sam for short, is now back at the West Valley Vet Clinic after a seven month Army Reserve deployment.
He returned from Kuwait and Kyrgyzstan in December where he was helping a different class of canines, Army dogs and that was only part of his job.
Dr. Sam has a passion for pets. Laurie Litwiler, works with Dr. Sam, said, "His focus is the animals, that's the most important thing. I'm always really impressed what he'll do for the animals and the lengths he'll go."
The Lompoc vet also has a passion for serving our country. He joined the Army Reserve back in 2004. Litwiler said, "I think it's pretty cool. I like the reasons he's in the military to give back to the country. I think a lot of people in Lompoc respect that as well." Dr. Sam said, "I think it's very gratifying and you feel like you're contributing in a small way."
Dr. Sam performed life-saving surgery on a dog named Edy. The military canine had just returned from a six month deployment in Afghanistan. Dr. Sam said, "They are our first line of defense in terms of potentially detecting explosives." Litwiler said, "They are a very important part of the military, they save a lot of lives."
During his deployment, Dr. Sam also worked in food inspection to make sure the Army's food supply was safe and never poisoned. "You see all the people going in and out of both wars and you meet some incredible people," said Dr. Sam. He goes on to say, "They're experiencing something most of us never experience in our lives."
Some of the dogs Dr. Sam cared for included guard dogs as well as bomb sniffing canines. They're military dogs that worked in combat zones alongside soldiers in Iraq and Afghanistan.
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