Alyssa enjoys horseback riding, singing, and helping younger children in her school learn to draw. She is interested in a career as a veterinarian because "animals surround us, as helpmates and companions."
Dogs often develop painful yeast and dermatophyte (fungal) infections in their claws, which are sometimes diagnosed too late to benefit from treatment. Alyssa learned that useful information for veterinarians regarding baseline levels of these pathogens was poor. She determined to investigate such levels. She hypothesized that yeasts are more prevalent in the claws of young dogs than in those of old ones, that for dermatophytes it's the reverse, and that both pathogens colonize healthy dogs to some extent.
Alyssa worked with a veterinarian and groomers to obtain 112 claw specimens from working and companion dogs of various ages. She pulverized the samples to expose the keratin layer and any pathogens and halved each specimen. One portion she tested for yeast, the other she grew in culture for 21 days to test for dermatophytes. Alyssa found yeasts and dermatophytes in every age group of dogs. And although dermatophytes showed up more often in old dogs than in young ones, yeasts were not specific to any age group.
