Mary Carlson

Mary Carlson, DVM, MA, CVA, has worked across an unusually wide range of roles, including physical education and science teacher, community volunteer and school board member, lecturer in anatomy at Colorado State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences, guest researcher at the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, and veterinarian focused on cats.

She founded and ran Blue Spruce Cat Clinic, a feline-exclusive practice, and is also internationally certified in veterinary acupuncture. According to her author biography, she has lived in Fort Collins, Colorado, and Tucson, Arizona, where she volunteered with the Tucson Wildlife Center.

Drinking from the Trough is described as her first book. It grew out of a long career in veterinary medicine and the difficult decision to step away from clinical practice after injuries and the physical risks of continuing the work made day-to-day practice harder to sustain.