Frannie Allan grew up on a Nova Scotia farm with dogs, cats and Haflinger horses. Now she gets to care for both large and small species as a veterinarian at the mixed-animal practice, Woodbrook Animal Clinic in Wiscasset.

Her passion for caring for animals led her to veterinary school and gave her a drive to learn, she said. “I wanted to help those who can't help themselves.”

Allan, 29, has joined veterinarian Tammy Doughty's clinic on Mountain Road after a stint spaying and neutering pets at Greater Androscoggin Humane Society in Lewiston. It was good experience, but limiting compared to the preventive care and other work at the clinic.

“Here I can see the whole gamut of veterinary medicine,” Allan said. “And getting to know the clients and seeing the bonds they have with their pets is very nice.”

She also enjoys getting out to farms around Midcoast Maine. “One day I'm in the office, and another day I'm traveling the countryside.

“I love the community feel here, how friendly everyone is, and the scenery. It's kind of similar to home.”

Allan graduated a year ago from Atlantic Veterinary College on Prince Edward Island; she did her undergraduate work at the University of Maine at Presque Isle. That's where she met longtime boyfriend Jeff Graham, who works in the maintenance department at Bath Iron Works. The two live in Bath.

They're looking around shelters for a dog to adopt.

Allan's commute to work will soon be shorter: Her start at the clinic comes just weeks before the clinic moves to Hunnewell Lane in Woolwich, at a new building four times the size of the one in Wiscasset. The move will happen in the latter part of June, Doughty said.

Allan will be a good complement to the practice and will help with after-hours coverage, Doughty said. “We're excited to have her on board.”