It all started with baby mice. When Dr. Margaret Meier Jones DVM’96 was a child in Mondovi, Wisconsin, she and her sister stumbled upon a nest of mice. Feeling that something was wrong with one of them, she rushed it back to her mother for help.
Jones’s mother kindly informed her that it was probably best to return the baby mouse to its mother, who could care for it better than she could. Not only did the experience encourage Jones to pursue a career in veterinary medicine, but it also served as the inspiration for a college essay titled, “Of Mice and Me.”
After graduating from the UW-Madison School of Veterinary Medicine in 1996, Jones first practiced in Wisconsin Dells at the Dells Animal Hospital, where she was one of five veterinarians. Having always wanted to practice in her hometown, however, she later accepted the position of small-animal veterinarian at the Buffalo Valley Veterinary Center. But there was still something else that she wanted to accomplish.
I do believe they provided me with the best veterinary-medicine education.
“In high school, I was really active in Future Business Leaders of America, and I was elected a secretary for the state of Wisconsin,” says Jones. “And that was actually the platform I ran on: that I was going to be a veterinarian, and I was going to open my own practice in the Mondovi area.”
In October 2001, Jones made good on her campaign promise by founding the Animal Wellness Center of Buffalo Valley, where she treats small animals. Her practice distinguishes itself by being the only clinic in the area that provides chiropractic, acupuncture, and traditional services.
Jones credits her experience at the University of Wisconsin–Madison with giving her the tools and self-confidence to open her own practice.
“I do believe they [UW-Madison] provided me with the best veterinary-medicine education,” says Jones. “The faculty was very much like an extended family. Madison also gave me the desire for lifelong learning.”
