One hundred and one working dogs: A military veterinarian’s purpose
Who is U.S. Army Capt. Latoiya Templeton? That’s a question even she struggled to answer.
“Oh gosh, I am so many things, I am a mom, I’m a veterinarian, I’m a sister, I’m a daughter. All the things,” said Templeton, Joint Base Andrews branch chief assigned to the Veterinary Readiness Activity, Fort Belvoir.
Templeton grew up on the south side of Chicago to 17-year-old parents. It wasn’t an easy life growing up, she described her early childhood as a community effort to raise her and her siblings. But it was those formative years that pointed her toward her true calling. Her parents and grandparents, including a grandfather who enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1958, paved the way with a simple message: “There’s nothing you can’t do.”
“The thing I saw growing up was so much need,” said Templeton. “It was very important to me, whatever my purpose was, would be giving back, in which ever way I was most effective.”
And that was as a veterinarian.
A few weeks before her third year of veterinarian school, Templeton gave birth to her daughter, Kennedy. Describing that as one of her defining moments in life, veterinary school and a newborn was an unthinkable challenge. Templeton was given the option to delay her schooling by a year or to continue juggling classes and a brand-new daughter. She chose to continue with her classes to graduate on time.
“Everybody helped out, even with the little things,” said Templeton. “They left it up to me, to write my own path and I knew I could bet on myself.”
Her professors were very helpful, allowing their classes to be didactic, which meant that she was able to sit at home and listen to lectures, one of the first time this was allowed at the Ohio State University.
“I think that’s why I advocate so hard for the dogs, because a lot of times we’re doing things one way, but that’s not the only way to do it,” said Templeton. She emphasized that someone must be brave enough to voice an alternative and dedicated enough to run with the vision.
Capt. Templeton arrived at Joint Base Andrews in December 2025 but didn’t fully take over as the Branch Chief at JBA until April 2026. Responsibility for the largest operational MWD kennel in the Air Force with 36 dogs was daunting for Templeton, but that didn’t deter her from tackling the challenge.
“If I can have a kid in vet school, if I if I can direct commission into the U.S. Army Veterinary Corps at age 38 … it reminds me that I can do this too,” she said.