Previewing Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet

Nat Geo Wild found some success with The Incredible Dr. Pol which routinely sets rating record for the channel. But now there is a new veterinarian. But do not call Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet, which premiers this Saturday at 9:00, a rip-off because this vet is different in almost every way aside from their job title. Michelle Oakley is much younger (and very much a different gender) and where Weidman, Michigan is within driving distance of bigger cities where Dr. Pol has some competition, as the title of her suggests, Dr. Oakley is very literally in the middle of nowhere where she is one of the few vets in Canada’s most northern, western providence.

Sure she still sees plenty of your usual house pets like cats and dogs, but the remote location means Dr. Oakley sees animals big and small, sometimes driving three hundred miles in the snow to see a patient. In the first couple episodes you will see her help out muskox, yaks, lynx, and caribou. Including her own practice where she works out of her house, home visits, Dr. Oakley also runs a satellite clinic in Haines, Alaska with the American Bald Eagle Foundation and is an on-call vet for the Yukon Wildlife Preserve.

Working out of her home does give her time to spend some time with her three teenage daughters, but there are too young to help out too much. Things do get even more hectic around the house when her husband, a firefighter, get called away to fight fires up and down the west coast. The viewers will get to know the whole Oakley family as they celebrate Michelle’s birthday and await word on one of the daughter’s application into acting school that would move her away from the family.

Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet airs Saturdays at 9:00 on Nat Geo Wild.