Dr Thomas Vowell
BSc (Biodiversity), BVSc (Hons), M.AppSci (Wildlife Health), GpCertEXAP, PgCertEXAP. RCVS Recognised Advanced Practitioner in Zoological Medicine.
After completing a Bachelor of Science and a Masters in Wildlife Health, Dr Tom graduated from The University of Sydney with a Bachelor of Veterinary Science in 2015. Shortly after, he started work in a semi-rural mixed practice in Sydney, where he particularly enjoyed working with exotic animals and wildlife.
In 2019, Tom moved to the UK to gain further experience with exotics, and some of the animals he would regularly see included lizards, snakes, tortoises, fish, small primates, rabbits, guinea pigs and other small mammals, plus a large variety of birds.
Since living in the UK, Dr Tom has focused his career on exotic pet medicine. He was awarded an ESVPS General Practice Certificate in Exotic Animal Practice (GPCertEXAP) and a Postgraduate Certificate in Exotic Animal Practice (PgC EXAP). He has been certified as an RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Zoological Medicine. Dr Tom has also worked with some small and medium zoo collections, including lions, penguins and small to medium primates. He was promoted to the position of Head Exotics Vet for a busy, predominantly exotics practice, developing a keen interest in endoscopy, orthopaedic surgery and ultrasonography in all exotic species. In this role, Dr Tom began an orthopaedic surgery service and endoscopy service.
As part of his role at this practice, he was responsible for the clinical exotic pet medicine placement for Nottingham University for their final year students. Dr Tom also provided locum veterinary services for Twycross Zoo in Nottingham, which focused heavily on primates of all kinds, from small marmosets to chimpanzees and orangutans.
Alongside teaching veterinary students, Dr Tom has a keen interest in contributing to the ever-growing body of knowledge in exotic pet medicine, contributing to publications for new surgical and diagnostic techniques, and understanding diseases.
Tom has always been excited about keeping and learning about exotic animals. From a young age, he kept all kinds of pets, including bearded dragons, geckos, snakes, tropical fish, axolotls, budgies, cockatiels, and rabbits. I have also previously bred geckos and pythons. He looks forward to getting back into herpetology as a hobby when I am back in Australia.
Hobbies and Interests
Outside of work, Tom enjoys spending time with his family, woodworking and doing DIY projects, playing touch rugby, and watching rugby.
Owned Pets
Since relocating to Brisbane, Tom has yet to welcome a pet into the family. In the past, Tom has owned a royal python, two poison dart frogs and a Hermann’s tortoise.
Publications
Vet Record Case Report – https://bvajournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/vrc2.273
iHerp Australia – https://iherpaustralia.com.au/product/issue-6/
