Crettyard native Christopher proves doubters wrong by becoming top vet in Sweden

CHRISTOPHER Cornelissen from Crettyard has been working as a vet in Sweden for the last 11 years.

Christopher had dreamed of becoming a vet throughout his childhood. He told The Laois Nationalist: “When I was a kid, a neighbour of ours was a veterinarian and we sometimes got to go out with him to the farms and see what he got up to. I was completely flabbergasted by how he treated the animals, whether it was disease in the cows or caring for the cats and dogs.

I was always a lover of animals and always had animals around me growing up, so when I got a bit older and was studying for my leaving certificate, I thought I would at least try and go for it.” Despite not getting into the veterinary course he had hoped for, Christopher never gave up on his dream.

“I was never an A grade student in school. The one thing I can say I’m most proud of is that when I was in secondary school, I was told by one teacher I would never get the grades to get into veterinary school and then I actually did.

“Then when I went to study veterinary nursing and on my first day I asked if this could be a back door into veterinary and I was told you’ll never become a veterinarian.

‘‘I really believe if someone really puts their mind to it they can achieve their goals. If you stay believing in yourself, you never really know what you can achieve.” Christopher studied for two years in AIT in the bachelor of veterinary nursing programme before being accepted into the University of Veterinary Medicine in Budapest. He was the first of two veterinary nurses from Ireland to be accepted into the programme.

He worked in a veterinary hospital in Ireland for a few short months after graduating, working 100-hour weeks before moving to Sweden to work there.

Since moving to Sweden 11 years ago, Christopher has been nominated for vet of the year twice. He is not only the first Irish candidate to be nominated twice, but the first in Sweden to receive a nomination two years in a row.

Christopher has completed countless courses in veterinary medicine, including his most recent graduation from the European masters in small animal veterinary medicine programme at Luxemborg University, where he was the first of 19,000 graduates in over 23 years to complete the course in just two years.

He was both the first in Sweden and in Ireland to hold a masters title in any discipline from the European School for Advanced Veterinary Studies.

He is one of ten vets in Sweden approved for dilated cardiomyopathy screenings in Dobermans and one of 26 approved for HCM heart screenings in cats.

Christopher, although proud of himself and his accomplishments, said his main source of pride is the stubbornness that got him there.

“I worked really hard to achieve these things and there’s other people who have way more potential than me or who are more intelligent, but they aren’t trying as hard or don’t believe in themselves enough. My main message is to keep going. If you believe in yourself enough, you’d be surprised with what you can do.

“Every time I get a case it brightens up my day. It’s always so nice when owners tell me that beforehand their dogs or cats were really tired or depressed or couldn’t go for walks, but after we put them on treatment they are suddenly back to their old selves, almost like puppies again. And owners are always really thankful, too, it can be very rewarding.”