Chat Transcript from The Incredible Dr. Pol

Last week, the Nat Geo Wild team hosted a chat with Dr. Jan Pol, Veterinarian and star of the Nat Geo Wild show, The Incredible Dr. Pol.  Over the hour, Dr. Pol answered questions from animal lovers all over the country. Check out the chat transcript as Dr. Pol shares his perspective on the job he loves, his favorite hobbies, life in the Netherlands and more!

4:28 Comment From Dr. Jan Pol

Hello, this is Dr. Pol. I’ll be taking your questions shortly.

4:31 Comment From Stephanie
How long is the schooling to become a vet? And do you prefer large animals or small animals?

4:31 Comment From Clayton
What’s the most rewarding moment you have had as a vet in your career?

4:32 Dr. Jan Pol:
The schooling is roughly 2-4 pre-vet and 4 years of veterinary school. Since I was raised on a dairy farm, I prefer the large ones!

4:34 Dr. Jan Pol:
When you save the life, those are the most rewarding moments. Like a mother cow giving birth to a calf, and being able to save it and the calf. Or doing a c-section on a dog. Any incident where you can save a life, that is the most rewarding. It makes no difference if it is a large or small animal. Anytime you can save a life, that’s the most rewarding.

4:34 Comment From Serinity
What farm animals are the most difficult to treat or work with?

4:35 Dr. Jan Pol:
The bulls on a diary farm are always the hardest. You have to watch them the most. Also on a rodeo farm. They have no respect for human beings and will take you down if they have a chance.

4:35 Comment From Emily
how do you not wear gloves when you examine the cows and horses for gestation? i know they don’t have the same diseases as humans… but eeekkkk!

4:37 Dr. Jan Pol:
I do! I wear arm-length plastic gloves. However, when you do a calving or a fetotomy you don’t, because the tools would tear the gloves instantly.

4:38 Comment From janice
what is the most unusual animal you have treated?

4:39 Dr. Jan Pol:
It makes no difference what kind of animal. Iguanas, lizards, ferrets, mice, porcupines, hedgehogs. I’ve seen them all. None of them are unusual to me. Snakes are the hardest to treat. They’re nice pets. Smart. But at the same time, they are hard to examine.

4:39 Dr. Jan Pol:
The thing is, with common sense – and if you know what normal is – it makes no difference what kind of animal you have – you can find the abnormal and you can treat it.

4:40 Comment From julie
you have horses? what breed are they and how old

4:41 Dr. Jan Pol:
I have imported Friesian horses. We brought those over 28 years ago. And their offspring (which are two mares) are 6 and 12.

4:41 Dr. Jan Pol:
It’s a very old breed of horse. Used in the Middle Ages. They are very strong. The knights in shining armor would use them. The people expired a long time ago but the horses are still here!

4:41 Comment From Jill
Have you ever gotten a speeding ticket?

4:42 Dr. Jan Pol:
Yes

4:42 Comment From Martha
I love your Great Dane. Do you find they have lots of health problems?

4:45 Dr. Jan Pol:
No. Diane and I have had Great Danes for over 40 years. The biggest problem is that they’re a short-lived breed. They don’t live much more than 10 years. That’s a problem. Some dogs can live to be 14/16. I don’t know if it’s because of the giant size (but probably). We haven’t had many health problems with ours.

4:46 Dr. Jan Pol:
But you find in most large breed dogs (Rottweilers, German Shepherds, etc.), that the stomachs can get twisted. But that can be prevented by not exercising the dogs after they eat. If you let the dog run around after they eat, this can happen. I recommend a strict regimen where the dog only eats after exercise, not before.

4:46 Comment From Guest
Are any of your siblings vets??

4:46 Dr. Jan Pol:
No

4:46 Dr. Jan Pol:
I was the youngest of 6. None of my siblings are. And none of my kids are either.

4:47 Comment From Sandra Walter MI
What advice would you give a child dreaming of being a vet?

4:47 Dr. Jan Pol:
Basically, you have to hit the books hard. Study, keep the grades up. Start volunteering at clinics. Get as much experience as possible. It all factors into your acceptance at vet school.

4:48 Dr. Jan Pol:
We have a lot of HS students come to the clinic to see what the job is like. Because it’s a lifelong commitment.

4:48 Comment From Nikki
Do you think you will ever move into a larger clinic???

4:49 Dr. Jan Pol:
No. I started this clinic and we have more than one vet here. My clinic is large enough for the area we work in. There are other neighboring clinics, so there is a choice. I would not want to move into a larger, corporate clinic.

4:49 Dr. Jan Pol:
And at my age, who would want to change anymore!

4:50 Dr. Jan Pol:
Which doesn’t mean that I’m not looking for new ways of doing things. In this business (of vet medicine) – standing still is going backwards. You have to keep up with the times. I am not a very good book learner, but if you show me a new technique, I will learn it, and I will pick up on it and make it part of my business.

4:50 Dr. Jan Pol:
Medicine is a life long learning process.

4:51 Comment From Gladys
Love your show and always record each episode. My question is “why do dogs eat poop?”

4:51 Dr. Jan Pol:
It’s a dirty habit. Sometimes it’s boredom. It’s not something that they need – they can’t digest it. It’s a habit they get in to. And it can be broken with medicine. Basically, you can teach an animal to leave it alone.

4:54 Dr. Jan Pol:
If your dog is eating wild animal poop (like deer or rabbits), the dog is looking for vitamins. So it’s different than a dog eating dog poop.

4:54 Comment From Guest
have you ever, like human doctors had to turn pet owners in for not taking proper care of their animals?

4:54 Dr. Jan Pol:
(forgive my typing)

4:55 Dr. Jan Pol:
Way too many times. The Animal Control places in the counties are looking for vets to help them out. I work with officers in 5 counties and they get complaints about animal mistreatment. Many times they need a vet to certify that the animals are neglected, and that’s where I come in.

4:55 Dr. Jan Pol:
It’s not a nice job to do. Because most of the times, you just can’t understand why people have these animals in the first place.

4:56 Comment From julie
what is the most dangerous situation you have been in with an animal patient?

4:57 Dr. Jan Pol:
The scariest was giving a TB test to a bull. And he was in a pen. The person holding him with a rope couldn’t hold him. And he said, “I can’t hold him!” So I said, “Ok” and he helped hoist me over the gate!

4:57 Dr. Jan Pol:
Fortunately, I was over the gate before he got me!

4:57 Comment From Philip
Is Charles married?

4:58 Dr. Jan Pol:
No, not yet.

4:58 Comment From Renee
How old were you when you decided to become a Vet? What animals you have as a family?

5:00 Dr. Jan Pol:
We’ve had all kinds of animals. I was 12 years old when my local vet took me to my brother’s farm to help me deliver piglets. I was a tall, skinny kid. I could reach up to my shoulders with these pigs and help pull the piglets out. That’s what started me on the road to becoming a veterinarian. My parents had all kinds of animals. Dogs and cats. Geese, turkeys. Cows, horses, pigs on the farm. When we had our own place here with the kids, we always had dogs and cats, pigeons, peacocks. We’ve had emus. Horses. The kids always had rabbits, goats, sheep.

5:01 Dr. Jan Pol:
We had a Jersey cow for a while. And we would milk it. But it was very bad because Jersey cows produce very fatty milk and so we all started getting fat. So we gave the cow away to someone with a Jersey herd and switched back to 2% milk!

5:01 Comment From 2 Cats in NJ
do you watch the show when it airs?

5:02 Dr. Jan Pol:
Yeah!

5:02 Dr. Jan Pol:
I watched the Christmas Day marathon from the clinic. Everyone else had gone home. It was weird seeing myself on TV all day!

5:02 Comment From Martha
Have you ever been badly injured by an animal?

5:03 Dr. Jan Pol:
Thank goodness no. The worst I had was a couple years ago. A cow ran into my stiff arm and I had my rotator cuff injured. It was fixed with surgery and I have full use again.

5:04 Dr. Jan Pol:
I’ve been kicked, but never hospitalized. People ask me how come? I guess it’s because I grew up with animals. So I’ve learned to read animals. I know not to just reach out to the animal right away. You have to let the animals come to you. With horses, walk up to the horse with your hands in your pockets and let it smell you before you do anything.

5:05 Comment From Philip
What do you eat for breakfast?

5:05 Dr. Jan Pol:
Most of the time it’s coffee, juice and cereal. Fast and easy breakfast.

5:06 Comment From Guest
do you ever go to vet schools to give lectures?

5:07 Dr. Jan Pol:
No. When I came from the Netherlands, I took my board exams in Ohio and Michigan. The veterinary school in Ohio was interested in me teaching. I said no. I want to have a practice. It would take way too much time. But at the same time, we have a lot of people who come to us and learn from me directly.

5:07 Comment From Lorrie
I Love your show, Dr Pol and his entire family are awesome! Dr. Brenda is great too. My question is….. is Dr. Pol he scared of any particular animal?

5:08 Dr. Jan Pol:
Not scared. But yes, I have been careful. Like the rodeo animals. It’s a completely different way of doing things. You can’t just put a hold on them and lead them around. Scared, no. Careful, yes. When I was in school in the Netherlands, we had to vaccinate camels and tigers. But they didn’t scare me either. You just have to know the animal that you’re treating. And be careful so you don’t put yourself in harms way.

5:09 Comment From Bev
Is your wife from the Netherlands?

5:09 Dr. Jan Pol:
No, she was born in the USA, in Michigan.

5:10 Dr. Jan Pol:
But she did spend 3 years in the Netherlands after we were married. So she does speak Dutch.

5:10 Comment From Joanna
Being a vet, do you, if at all, hesitate to eat meat?

5:11 Dr. Jan Pol:
No. I do like meat.

5:12 Dr. Jan Pol:
Nothing against vegetarians of course. I’m fine with everyone doing what they want.

5:13 Comment From Camille
do you like doing your work in the winter?

5:14 Dr. Jan Pol:
Yes. People like to complain. In the winter, people complain that it’s too cold. Too much snow. In the summer, it’s too hot. In the spring and fall, you get stuck in the mud. Each season has a positive and negative.

5:14 Dr. Jan Pol:
Michigan is beautiful with the seasons. Fall with the foliage, winter with the fresh snow, summer and spring with all the plants blooming. I like all the seasons very much.

5:15 Comment From Teresa
Do you ever take a day off to just be around your house and relax there?

5:16 Dr. Jan Pol:
We have several vets at the clinic. So we have a 4-week rotation. At the end of the shift, you get a 3 day weekend. Which is nice. Most of the time, I’m around, so I’m a backup for people who need help. So even when I’m “off”, I often go to the clinic to help out.

5:17 Comment From Grace
what do you do after you cut a dogs balls off?

5:17 Dr. Jan Pol:
They go into the incinerator.

5:18 Comment From Ashley
Do you think someone who has not grown up around farms/farm animals could become successful in this field?

5:18 Dr. Jan Pol:
Yes. It all depends on what your drive is. If you want to, there are plenty of education opportunities with farm animals.

5:19 Dr. Jan Pol:
To be honest, I’ve seen farmers who can’t handle cows. It’s a psychology that you need to have. And if you’re a student, you can enroll in large animal training and get the experience you need.

5:19 Comment From Matt
I love how you always say ‘we’ll see ya’ when you are leaving. I don’t know why. It just seems friendly and comforting. Is that your own habit or did you hear someone always say that growing up?

5:20 Dr. Jan Pol:
I didn’t realize that I have a lot of these idioms that I use. “We’ll see ya” is just me being friendly and reassuring.

5:20 Comment From Barb
Do you plan on retiring anytime in the near future?

5:20 Dr. Jan Pol:
How do you define the near future?

5:21 Dr. Jan Pol:
I was thinking about it, but things change in life. IN the Netherlands, if you’re a vet and you’re 65 you have to retire. Not so here in the United States. I figure, as long as I’m able, I enjoy the work so I’m going to keep going. For a few more years anyway. How long exactly? I don’t know.

5:21 Comment From Martha
Are you aware of the cameras filming during your work? Do you ever have to edit out any scenes?

5:21 Dr. Jan Pol:
Yes. Do I care? No.

5:22 Dr. Jan Pol:
We do not play up to the camera. The camera is like a mouse in the corner that watches us. What we get is what you see. We do a lot more than what gets put in the show, though.

5:23 Dr. Jan Pol:
With the interviews afterwards, they’re always yelling at me “don’t look at the camera!”

5:23 Comment From Ashley
I may have misread this, but I thought I saw somewhere that you have a brother with the same first name… is that right?

5:25 Dr. Jan Pol:
Yea. In the Netherlands, it’s customary to name your children after your old parents. So the name Jan is very common. In the old days, the people were not giving double names (first and middle) to their children. Not so any more. It turns out that there were duplicate first names in both my mother’s side and my fathers side. So yes, there are more than one Jan, but we have different middle names. And we would go by our middle names. But technically we have the same first name.

5:26 Dr. Jan Pol:
It’s confusing.

5:26 Comment From jasmine
What are some hobbies you like

5:27 Dr. Jan Pol:
I love working with wood. I’m not a carpenter or anything. But I like to build things. And i like to fix anything. Doing things with my hands, basically.

5:27 Dr. Jan Pol:
I would work a little on cars, but the new ones are too complicated. Older cars are much simpler.

5:28 Comment From Guest
Have you ever cried when one of your patients had to be put down?

5:29 Dr. Jan Pol:
I’ve cried with the owners, yes. I’ve always been emotional and I can see how much it hurts when an animal is put down.

5:29 Comment From jasmine
What’s one animal that would love to work on that you haven’t had the opportunity with.

5:29 Dr. Jan Pol:
No, I’ve done it all. I’ve even worked with circus animals when they’ve come to town.

You can catch all new episodes of The Incredible Dr. Pol on Nat Geo Wild every Saturday at 9pm e/p!