by Evan Antin
Writing a book is a different kind of adventure from the ones I usually take. The process was, in part, a fantastic trip through nearly fifteen years of memories, taking me back to many favorite moments and reminding me how much I appreciate each trip and wildlife encounter. It was also a long and winding trek, one that required an expert guide—or in this case, an experienced and dedicated publishing team—to lead the way. I’m grateful to this team for embracing my stories and priorities and helping me capture on paper the places and the animals, and the pains and joys I’ve experienced with them. Many thanks to my literary agent, Cait Hoyt, for encouraging me to get started on a book and for setting me up with my publisher; to editor James Melia for his enthusiasm for my work and expert guidance throughout this process; to Kerry Cullen for her careful and thoughtful review; to Bonnie Thompson for her concise copyedit; to Brendan Murphy for checking my facts; and to the entire amazing team at Henry Holt, including Amy Einhorn, Maggie Richards, Kenn Russell, Caitlin O’Shaughnessy, and Carolyn O’Keefe for their generous and professional support. And of course thanks to my writer, Jana Murphy, who helped me find my voice and elegantly transformed my stories into a book of which I’m extremely proud.
Everybody knows choice of travel companion can make or break the experience, and I’ve been lucky to see the world with people who share my adventurous spirit, my passion for wildlife, and even (sometimes) my willingness to go without creature comforts to access some exceptionally exotic locations. Among them, I want to thank Timothy Diggs for literally being down for anything, even when he has no idea what wild or legitimately dangerous situation we may find ourselves in. And Joey Brown, who’s devoted his education and career to learning more about our wildlife and how to protect it—and has generously included me on many of his most significant projects. And I especially want to thank Nathalie Basha for seeing my vision from day one, for actively supporting it as my camera operator and video editor and for sharing some of my favorite adventures.
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About the Author
Dr. Evan Antin originally hails from Kansas City, Kansas, where he grew up spending the majority of his childhood in search of native wildlife, including snakes, turtles, and insects. He went on to study evolutionary and ecological biology at the University of Colorado at Boulder and veterinary medicine at Colorado State University. For fifteen years Evan has traveled the world, working with wildlife in ecosystems on six continents. In addition to his wildlife veterinary and conservation work he is a practicing veterinarian in Thousand Oaks, California. You can sign up for email updates here.
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Contents
Title Page
Copyright Notice
Dedication
Epigraph
Introduction
PART ONE: See the World
1: Australia
2: Tanzania
PART TWO: Welcome to the Jungle
3: Ecuador
4: Panama
5: Costa Rica
PART THREE: Southeast Asian Quest
6: Thailand and Cambodia
7: Indonesia
PART FOUR: Critical
8: Fiji and Tahiti
9: South Africa
10: Uganda
11: Philippines
12: Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo
13: Bahamas
Photographs
Acknowledgments
Works Consulted
About the Author
Copyright
WORLD WIDE VET. Copyright © 2020 by Evan Antin. All rights reserved. For information, address Henry Holt and Co., 120 Broadway, New York, N.Y. 10271.
www.henryholt.com
Cover design by Catherine Casalino
Cover photograph by Mariusz Leglinski
The Library of Congress has cataloged the print edition as follows:
Names: Antin, Evan, author.
Title: World wild vet : encounters in the animal kingdom / by Dr. Evan Antin with Jana Murphy.
Description: First edition. | New York : Henry Holt and Company, 2020. | Includes bibliographical references.
Identifiers: LCCN 2020018959 (print) | LCCN 2020018960 (ebook) | ISBN 9781250314482 (hardcover) | ISBN 9781250314499 (ebook)
Subjects: LCSH: Veterinarians—Biography. | Exotic animals—Anecdotes. | Wildlife conservation.