As a child, Dr. Raven Jackson-Jewett could have lost her dream of becoming a veterinarian. After all, there were barely any role models in the nation who looked like her.
Fortunately, she found motivation from her parents, education at Tuskegee University and a spark of inspiration from the Montgomery Zoo. I just believed that I could be whatever I wanted to be, she said.
Today, she s the attending veterinarian and director of veterinary care at Chimp Haven, a 200 acre chimpanzee sanctuary in Keithville, Louisiana. There, known as Dr. J , she helps care for more than 300 chimpanzees.
The work is rewarding, and has been captured for the world to see in a six-part National Geographic documentary Meet the Chimps, released in 2020 on Disney+.