In 1992 Dr. Tricia Stimac graduated from Marquette University majoring in Business Administration. After working in the realm of business for sometime she changed her career path to follow her life’s passion of caring for animals. She then attended Elmhurst College to complete her biology and chemistry pre-requisites and soon after graduated from the University of Illinois at Champaign-Urbana earning her DVM degree. In pursuit of developing her animal knowledge she worked as an intern in Tropic World and a zookeeper in the Swamp at Brookfield Zoo in Brookfield Illinois, worked as an extern at the Anti-Cruelty Society in Chicago Illinois, managed a medical team at the Wildlife Medical Center at the University of Illinois, worked with the Southeastern Corporative Wildlife Disease Study in Athens Georgia, attended Envirovet in Jacksonville and Fort Perce Florida, worked with APHIS/USDA Emergency Veterinary Services in Washington DC, and worked as an extern in the Wildlife/Exotic Medicine and Surgery Department at the University of Illinois.