All the feels...

(Started this post on March 22, 2015)

Better late than never!

I hesitated to compose any blogs between all the big milestones that awaited me with the end of my veterinary school career in sight.  So many things have been accomplished!

Proudly, I am thrilled to announce the following amazing milestones and accomplishments in my life:

• I passed my NAVLE board examination!
• My boyfriend has been awarded the Kansas State University equine surgery residency!
• I have happily accepted a job as the associate veterinarian at a small animal emergency clinic in Kansas!
• We found the perfect home in Manhattan, Kansas that has plenty of room for both of us and the critters as well as a giant fenced in yard!

Clinics at THE Ohio State University has been beyond amazing.  I have made some amazing connections with students, clinicians, residents, and interns.  Words can't begin to relay my sincere gratefulness for their role in my time at Ohio State.  The rotations have been extremely educational and taught me so much.  I'm thankful for the interactions with clients and the variety of cases that I have been exposed to.  Like my previous post, I've just tried to be a sponge to everything.  Trying to just soak it all in.  Even after passing boards, I still yearn for those lessons and the exposure to the cases.

I'm definitely excited for the real world and the learning experiences that await me.  I truly feel that the knowledge that I've gained in clinics is going to allow me to be as prepared as possible for the world beyond clinics.

During clinics, I spent one month at Metropolitan Veterinary Hospital in Copley, Ohio.  I externed there and was able to spend time with their emergency service, internal medicine service, and their soft tissue/orthopedic surgery service.  I got to engage in their weekly rounds on various topics.  I was able to see the workings of a private referral hospital.  The variety of cases that came through were extremely educational on all three services.  And lastly, I realized that I still absolutely love surgery.  During my time at Metro, I was hosted by a fellow veterinarian and friend who practices at a local small animal hospital in the area.  We enjoyed some fun local summer fun like going to a neighborhood deep fry, a fun family 4th of July get together, and even a fun country concert featuring Toby Keith.

I was also very fortunate to spend an entire month with Dr. Karl Maritato at MedVet Medical & Cancer Center for Pets in Cincinnati, Ohio.  At that point, I had decided that my time would be entirely dedicated to the surgery department.  From GDVs to BDLD (big dog, little dog) to TTA (tibial tuberosity advancement) to THR (total hip replacement) procedures.  I saw it all!  I loved the staff at MedVet.  I loved the opportunity that I was given to evaluate patients prior to Dr. Maritato or the resident and being able to formulate my own interpretation of the findings that I had come across.  We discussed differentials, interpreted diagnostics, and discussed post-operative care together.  I was trusted to sterily drape the patients for procedures, assemble the surgery instrument table, and....I even got to approach some abdominal procedures with the guidance of an amazing mentor.  The staff won me over at both the Cincinnati and Dayton locations...they were beyond caring, helpful, and so very knowledgeable.  I really enjoyed my time in Dr. Maritato's OR, the opportunity to learn, and being able to make additions to my clinical knowledge.

While I was in Cincinnati, I took my board exam.  I have to admit, I'm really glad that I was away from campus and clinics the month before I took the exam.  My own anxiety about it all was enough to deal with!  I managed to finish 100% of VetPrep review material prior to taking my examination.  I also took two of the practice board exams that the NAVLE website has available.  I guess the go-home message for preparing for boards is don't not study!  Prepare yourself as much as possible.  Prepare for the worst but hope for the best.  There is a chance that you might have to take it the next time the exam is offered.  So prepare yourself for that.  It's not the best case scenario...but at least you have another opportunity!  Be brave...be prepared...just try your best.  That's all you can do.

I feel like it wasn't until after my board examination was over that I truly was able to take some time to focus on my application materials like my cover letter and CV.  I reached out to SEVERAL people to review these materials before deciding on the final products.  I lined up my references.  I hoped that Jarrod would receive an offer to continue at KSU, so I started reaching out to clinics in that area.  My first job application went to Banfield located in Topeka.  I received a notice after I submitted my application that I was going to get a phone interview!  One of my favorite professors from RUSVM, Dr. Brad Simon, offered up his time to stage a phone interview with me so I was as prepared as possible.  I highly recommend doing this!  As silly as it may seem and feel, take advantage of these opportunities to practice!  Look at those typical questions asked and prepare a response!  It made me more confident and it allowed me to really iron out my responses (because I really saw phone interviews in my future especially applying to jobs in another state).  Dr. Simon's pseudo-interview truly was what set me on the path to success.  I can't thank him enough for the opportunity to practice and be put on the spot with interview specific questions.

I didn't get the job at Banfield...but it did prepare me for what was to come.  It gave me the confidence that I needed to conduct an interview over the phone and speak to future employers from a distance.  To be confident in me and presenting why I was going to be a wonderful addition to wherever I applied to.  Don't beat yourself up if a door closes on a place that you applied to...just keep applying and striving.  It is important to trust your path and be open to possibilities in areas of veterinary medicine that weren't on your radar.

So after my let down with the Banfield position, I pressed on and kept working on my cover letter revisions.  I started researching clinics that were near and far surrounding Manhattan, KS (at this point I had found out that Jarrod had in fact secured his residency at KSU through the match program).  I made sure to look up and write out info from the websites as well as facebook pages from clinics that I was interested in.  I even went as far as to call my top 10 and act like I was a soon-to-be client moving to the area to see who was on the other line and if I liked what I heard!  I mailed out 10+ very professional and focused cover letters and CVs to my favorite places I came across.  I printed off my application materials on the best Kinkos paper and even had labels printed for my address and the address of the hospitals I was reaching out to.  Filled nice, new manilla envelopes with them and went to the post office and paid for the little over $1 shipping of each mailing.  It was an experience!  There were my hopes and dreams going out to these clinics.  I was so hopeful that someone would return the call.....

Nope they never did!!!  But that's ok!

In addition to my googling and facebooking (regardless if I had seen an ad posted for employment opportunities), I also utilized the AVMA Career Center site DAILY!  I attribute this daily search to my current employment success story.  As soon as I saw a post for a position within 1 hour of Manhattan, I submitted my application materials.  Did I originally think of going into ER straight out of veterinary school??  Nope!  But I applied with the intention that if this door opened for me, I would know that it was worth investigating.  Sure enough...this door opened.  The answer to my prayers (and Jarrod's).  I messaged a friend who is currently employed in Kansas and let her know as soon I pressed the send button to my email that I was applying.  Luckily she had externed at the ER and had some really great things to say.  My amazing friend also offered to supply a letter of reference to the clinic to help support my application (AMAZING!).  I received a call about my application and I spoke frequently with the head ER vet and got a feel for the job as well as who I would be working alongside.  Needless to say I was excited.  She was enthusiastic to talk to me about scenarios, willing to share employment benefits and give me the layout of my future job, and she was just so down-to-earth.  She said she would present my information and application materials to the board of veterinarians that ran the ER and would let me know when they would be available to interview me.

I had an interview over Skype with several of the board members and set myself up at OSU in the equine surgery viewing room to have the interview.  It was nerve-wracking but I had prepared myself accordingly so I felt as prepared as I could be.  The interview went really well!  And after it was conducted I stopped at my favorite indian food restaurant and grabbed a Corona to relive the interview in my head and attempt to relax.  So I sat there, drink in my hand...hashing it all over in my head.  Texting family and friends on how things went.  And then I got a call from the ER vet's number. They offered me the position!

I felt relief...I felt nervous...I felt excited.  I made arrangements to see my contract before saying a yes or no.  Long story short (after picking the brains of very trusted friends about this decision)...I said YES!!!  I'm so excited for this opportunity and adventure!  Who knew that my first steps out into the real world would be with emergency medicine!  It's exhilarating!

So I'm wrapping my time up at THE Ohio State University and cherishing every moment I have left with friends and family in the Columbus area.  I'm packing one brown box at a time with the belongings in my apartment...so bittersweet!!

Preparing to move to another state has been stressful!  But it's going to work out and it's going to be SO worth it!  I plan on giving my pets that I know will be anxious the appropriate sedation for the drive (LOL).  I have friends that are lending a helping hand to send me on my way and bring my belongings down 3 flights of stairs and into the moving trailer.  PS...I am putting a trailer on my Santa Fe and driving it 12+ hours...there's a first for everything!

4/28/15
Since starting this post, I've completed my clinics at Ohio State and moved to Manhattan, Kansas to live with the love of my life in our new home with a giant yard. The move was crazy. The drive was 15+ hours long and it was so stressful with a super heavy trailer and all my furbabies with me. It was hard to say goodbye to so many. But I'm so blessed to have had the amazing group of folks that showed up and helped me move. It definitely wouldn't have been possible without them! 

Everything is in line to graduate on April 30th from RUSVM (special/early graduation date that I had to apply for so I could start working May 1st). I have met with my associate and am actually at the clinic shadowing for a night to get the lay of the land.

So this is where I leave you all...my veterinary school career has been completed. To those that have followed me, my journey, and my blog, thank you!  I hope this blog has helped all those pursuing veterinary medicine as well as those interested in attending RUSVM. 

(I'm debating if I should start a new blog focused on the start of my career and experiences from the ER veterinary clinic...stay tuned!)

Selfie with my clinic's sign!

Be the Sponge

Clinics has been an amazing experience to be honest.  I've loved just about every moment so far.  Every case that I've had to work through has brought to light and solidified so many of the things that I sat in class learning and understanding.  I'm working with live patients that have involved and loving owners attached to them.  I've gotten a great handle on how to work with the owners, relay to my clinicians what the presenting complaint and physical exam findings are, and figure out what the next steps should be.

Clinics is empowering and defeating all at the same time.  Just embrace it.  You are a sponge in clinics.  You are in clinics to just absorb all the things that you can.  Embrace it!

You are going to have moments where you feel like you are on cloud nine.  You really understand what is going on with your case and you can communicate the next steps and diagnostics with your clinician and rotation mates.  You feel comfortable with everything that is going on surrounding your case and feel confident in how you are interacting with your clinicians.

Then there's the opposite of course!  You aren't totally comfortable with the subject of your rotation.  You aren't a whiz at the problems that your case is presenting with.  You aren't confident in sharing your findings and thoughts with your clinicians/rotation mates.  You just feel at a loss!

I don't think either of these feelings are foreign to anyone that goes through clinics.  Someone may be stronger in one subject and you may be stronger than others in another subject.  And I'm here to tell you that that is COMPLETELY okay.

You are a sponge and your job is to just absorb all the things that you can from clinics!  Embrace the moments that you feel empowered and knowledgeable.  Share your knowledge with those that may be struggling in your rotation.  Embrace the moments that you feel less comfortable with your cases and reach out to those around you to seek out the answers and information.  Be the sponge!

Clinics will build you up and tear you down at the same time...and that's okay!  The best advice I can give to you is...just keep swimming.  And of course be a sponge :)

The End of 7th Semester and the Start of My Clinical Year!

Since my last post a LOT has happened!  (yes, Cassidy...I know I'm a slacker!)

7th semester was by far one of my most successful semesters academically.  I kind of struggled in therio but pulled it together in the end :D  Large Animal Surgery was actually one of my favorite courses and I did really well on my exams.  By far my favorite part of the semester was the hands on procedures with both small animals and large animals.  I loved loved loved doing surgical procedures.

It was sad to say good-bye to the many students and professors that I had really grown close to but good news is the veterinary profession is one small world and I'll definitely be running into them in the future.

By far the hardest good-bye I said was to RUSVM's Josh Project.  I had taken a backseat in all the action as a co-chair but I was fortunate to complete one last project after the completion of the "Under the Sea" mural painting at the pediatric ward.

Hopefully this last project I completed will benefit the organization for a long time.  I had always wanted to create a video that would not only promote all that Josh Project does but also educate those that see it about what Josh Project is.  I hoped to include interviews from children and parents that have been impacted by the efforts of Josh Project, members of Josh Project that were enthusiastic about the role they play, the founder of Josh and Friends to share his hopes and motivation to start the organization, and for community members to share their insight on the impact that Josh Project has had.  Fortunately, I was able to make this happen thanks to the collaborative efforts of Brian Spugnardi (photographer) and Laura Byers (current Josh Project chair).  I lined up our interviews and before I knew it we were done with interviews and it was time to let Brian do his thing and put together a video that would capture the essence of Josh Project.

The final product turned out to be the most beautiful video compilation I could ever ask for.  The interviews that contributed to this amazing message were:

Christian Nathanial - A Josh Kit recipient from one of our hospital donation visits.  Christian shares a very personal take on how Josh has impacted his life and become a furever friend.  It was extremely special to meet Christian and have him really articulate the impact Josh has had in his life and the meaning of the friendship he has with Josh.  Christian continues to reach out to his peers who may be going through their own difficult experiences and allowing his Josh to lift up their spirits.

Kamoy and G'Neika Liburd - Mother and daughter duo.  G'Neika was in the states undergoing surgery and chemotherapy for a brain tumor when she had a special delivery Josh Kit sent to her.  Josh has helped her with all of her stateside trips and treatments.  My interview with G'Neika was the first time I got to meet G'Neika and Kamoy in person.  We had been in contact over facebook since I first learned about G'Neika.  I felt like I was there with her and her mom every step of the way.  When I finally met G'Neika and her mom, their love for each other really came into focus.  The love between them was tangible.  G'Neika is such a beautiful and strong little girl inside and out.

Toni Frederick - I was first put in touch with Toni when I went on WINNFM (a local radio station in St. Kitts) for a radio program that RUSVM does every so often with them called Animal Answers.  Our program theme focused on the human-animal bond and I got to discuss how we utilize this concept with our Josh Kits for the children in the hospital.  Since that interview, Toni has always been a huge fan and supporter of Josh Project.  She has also been a huge personal support to me as I journeyed through the semesters at RUSVM.  It was very special to be able to incorporate her insight into this video because I knew she had a good take on it from a community member perspective.

Dr. Randy Lange - I was able to meet Dr. Lange and Josh (Junior) the Golden Retriever for the first time when I accepted the 1st place Josh Challenge award on behalf of RUSVM's Josh Project at the 2013 LSU SCAVMA Symposium.  Dr. Lange is the founder of Josh and Friends (the parent organization to all the Josh Project chapters at participating veterinary schools).  It was important to me to incorporate him into our video in order to really bring to life the original mission of the organization.  His message is incredibly special.  Dr. Lange has been a huge supporter since I first contacted him when I took on the chair position at RUSVM and he continues to be a tremendous supporter in my life even now that I am in clinics.

Laura Byers - I picked Laura to be the chair in my place as I moved on into some more challenging semesters at RUSVM (6th and 7th).  I felt it was important to have her in this video because she started out in JP as a very passionate member.  She continues to utilize that passion with her new role in JP.  You can tell that not only does she understand the role that the organization plays in the lives of all the children that receive Josh Kits, but also the role that the organization can play in the lives of students who become involved and give back to the community.

Without further adieu...The Josh Project Promotional Video.

After finals, Jarrod flew down to the island and helped me and the pets get back to Ohio.  But before we left we had some fun around the island :D

Where our journey together began

Ziplining with Sky Safari St. Kitts!  It was our first time and it was such a blast!

We stopped out at Major's Bay.  Neither of us had been to this beach before.  It was very quiet and so beautiful.

We had dinner together at The Beach House Restaurant.

We stopped by the Dorset's home and enjoyed some coconuts right off their trees as well as some homemade Hammon (local moonshine St. Kitts style).  I already miss them and their family cat "Puddy" very much.  But will keep in touch with them and hopefully visit again one day.  I'm so grateful I met them at that one RUSVM Open House that I volunteered at.  They were so kind and I can't wait to see their son pursue his dream of becoming a veterinarian.

Traveling wasn't too bad.  We overnighted in Miami and stayed at the airport hotel.  Overall all the pets did really well and it wasn't horribly stressful.  We arrived pretty late to the Cincinnati airport but everyone got settled in really well.

Where did I sleep??  Oh I found room on the pull out of course!

My gorgeous handmade gift from my Uncle Jay...best present EVER!

My new ride in the states!

Packed up and ready to move up to Columbus (again)

All 7 pets are in the car (4 cats and 3 dogs) and ready to go.

Go Bucks!!

Yup, people stare at us but I love these goobers and they love their short walks together around our new neighborhood.

Cats get along for the most part lol and yes they have a whole room to themselves.

I finally live where I have a great view of a sunrise :)

My transition to Ohio State has been so easy.  All the students in the class that I have joined are absolutely amazing and so helpful.  I do have to admit the hardest transition for me coming back to the states has been grocery shopping.  The stores are huge and there's everything and anything you could ever need in one store.  I have gotten to see most of my best girl friends since I've been back.  I wish I had more time to hang out with them but they are all very understanding of my schedule in clinics and how limited I am with time to do much else other than study VetPrep and my rotations.  Sadly I had to say good-bye to my bestie, Caitlin, shortly after my return to Ohio as she set off to start her journey towards pursuing specializing in small animal internal medicine with a small animal rotating internship at Texas A&M.  But we are pros at distance and keeping in touch and I definitely see a visit to see her in my future :)

My clinical year has been amazing so far.  I started off my time at Ohio State in an Applied Pathology rotation.  It was extremely educational and I loved all the disease processes that we got to see when we did autopsies that did reveal lesions.  I do have a word of advice to all those that go through these rotations that perform autopsies...bring Vick's Vapor Rub.  Helped so much getting through this rotation.  This rotation definitely gave me an appreciation for the peace of mind it was able to give veterinarians and the owners of the animals we worked on.  Many owners wonder if they made the right choice by humanely euthanizing their pets...was it the right time...etc.  And in performing an autopsy, we were able to give them answers to these concerns.  Often times, the answer was yes...you definitely made the right decision.  And lastly, the reports that we had to do for all the autopsies that we were primary for really helped solidify the diagnosis and pathophysiology behind the lesions that were found.

My second rotation was with Oncology.  I was not sure what to expect with this rotation and was honestly nervous about it.  What this rotation enabled me to have is more confidence with preliminary diagnoses of cancer, types of cancer and their characteristics, the approach to these cancers and what expectations you can have with the different treatment options.  I was extremely impressed with the clinicians I worked under during this rotation.  The department also has ongoing research studies that are contributing to improvements with canine and feline cancers.  It was very cool to see these projects.  The rotation also solidified a variety of ways to utilize the diagnostics available to us with cancer patients.  It was also very humbling to be present when the clinicians were discussing a diagnosis and options to pet owners.

My third rotation at OSU was Equine Surgery.  We hit the ground running during this rotation!  My first day I was assigned 5 inpatients during our rounds.  I do feel like I got the hang of what was expected during this rotation and how to manage treatments, SOAPs, discharges, surgery reports, etc...might have taken the whole rotation, but I strived each day to do it to my clinician's liking!  The clinician that I mainly worked with definitely had high expectations of his students, but personally it only made me work that much harder every day to hopefully make him proud of my efforts and progress throughout the rotation.  This rotation was also awesome because....it was SURGERY!!  I really have a special place in my heart for surgery.  During this rotation I met two blood donor horses that I grew to really love.  I also made sure that they got all the TLC I could give during my two weeks on this rotation.  All the clinicians and staff that I got a chance to work with during this rotation were really awesome and I can't wait to work with them again in September.

My fourth rotation was Anesthesia.  I really loved this rotation.  I loved the challenges that each patient presented when coming up with a safe anesthetic protocol to use during their procedures.  The technicians and clinicians were amazing to work with.  They really enabled you to become more confident in your drug selections, anesthesia set up, intubation, IV catheter placement, monitoring, etc.  Most days you are doing small animal anesthesia but you do get 1-2 days of large animal anesthesia.  I switched with a rotation mate to get a second day with the large animal anesthesia team because I really had a lot of fun with the large animals since I wasn't getting to work on them all the time during this rotation.  Overall, the rotation was just so satisfying because you really had to put some knowledge to use and you also got to fine tune your clinical skills.

For my fifth and sixth rotations I have been off-site at Metropolitan Veterinary Hospital in Copley, OH.  I've been staying with a veterinarian and her family for the past month.  We actually became facebook friends in 2011 because we had mutual facebook friends and a love for Greater Swiss Mountain Dogs.  We've kept in touch all these years and she helped me get in touch with the folks at Metro to land my externship.  I have spent a week with ER, a week on internal medicine, and my last two weeks have been with orthopedic and soft tissue surgery.  ER was intense but a good introduction to how it will probably be at Ohio State when my ER rotation rolls around.  I've really enjoyed working with all the technicians, clinicians, interns, and residents during my time at Metro.  One of the interns is a Rossie, one of the surgical interns is a Rossie, and one of the surgical residents is a Rossie...small world!  So it was good to see some familiar faces while I have been there.

Aside from gaining insight into a referral hospital and being able to observe client interactions in this setting, I've also been able to have some down time this past month.  I've been able to really kick my NAVLE studying into the next gear and have made a ton of progress with my VetPrep material.  I have also been able to go to Cedar Point for the first time over a weekend.  I went to my first country concert and saw Toby Keith perform after tailgating of course.  And I went to my first deep fry cookout...YUM!  Hanging out with my hostess and her family has been a blast and I'm soooooo very thankful for her hospitality this past month.  None of this would have been possible if she hadn't allowed me to stay with her during my externship.

This past month has also been a time of reflection for me.  As I've mentioned before, I have a soft spot for small animal surgery.  I had given thought to pursuing a rotating small animal internship in hopes to begin the journey towards specializing in small animal surgery.  This rotation allowed me to speak to others that are on that journey, to speak to those that have even been in general practice prior, and to speak to those that I know are currently in general practice.  I really picked their brains and after some contemplating on the pros and cons of the small animal surgery path, I've decided to put pursuit of this path on hold temporarily.  Jarrod is in the midst of an equine rotating internship at KSU as of June of this year and he has hopes to landing an equine surgery residency in this next year.  Long story short, we are both exhausted with spending our relationship apart and I've decided to find a small animal general practice job where ever he ends up for his residency (fingers and toes crossed he is scooped up by someone during this next match period!).  So he will enter the match program that matches internships and residency positions and hopefully come February of next year we will know more!  And Jarrod knows that if and when I decide to pursue small animal surgery, he has to come along for the ride :)  But who knows...maybe I will find that general practice is an even better fit for me!  I'm keeping my mind open :)

I am really excited about not only being with him come next June, but also being in general practice where I will get to be an amazing advocate for my patients and even perform surgeries.  But that is a little ways away so I'm trying to remain focused on the immediate hurdles I have to clear first...the NAVLE!  Wish me luck and I will continue to keep all of you posted on my time at Ohio State and all that is to come in the next 9 months of clinics!

Organized Chaos

The traditional 7th semester class photo

7th semester has been flying by just like everyone told me it would!

~Clinical Placement~
First, some amazing news to share...I got my top choice for clinical placement and am heading back home to finish my clinical year at THE Ohio State!!!

Karla and I celebrating after finding out my placement

I was so thrilled when I was given this news because for me it means not just being back in Ohio, but being near several mentors that I hope to turn to during my clinical year and beyond as I determine my career path.  I was given my (tentative) rotation schedule the other week and able to also successfully secure two externships, MedVet of Cincinnati and Metropolitan Veterinary Hospital.  I don't know the exact date of my NAVLE examination but I know it will be some time in November or December and I've already purchased the VetPrep study material and am hoping to begin it in the near future.  And as you can see my rotations start on April 28th (moving to Columbus on the 23rd, orientation for clinics on the 25th)...I finish my last final of 7th semester on the 16th, fly home on the 18th (overnight in Miami) but don't arrive until the 19th...hold onto your hats!!  It's not much of a "break" between 7th and clinics, but I'm ready to rock'n'roll!  Because I have very little time between my arrival in Ohio and the start of clinics, I've been sure to get things in order before I even get back (ie. purchasing a car in the states, securing a place to live, etc).

~Intro to Clinics~
Since my last post I've had several Intro to Clinics rotations so I'll run through those with you all.

I got my review of my Small Animal Surgery rotation and am really happy with it.  The clinician is a difficult one to impress, so being marked for meeting the expectations is GREAT!

For week 4, I was on Communications.  I was skeptical about this rotation but very happy that I was a part of it.  Elpida is the passionate and extremely knowledgeable coordinator and does an amazing job providing real life scenarios with clients, discussing all aspects of communications, and giving constructive feedback to students.  The rotation was a 2 day rotation (Monday and Thursday).  Both days we were given scenarios to discuss and one student would role play with a "client".  From discussing cryptorchidism in a dog to giving the diagnosis of lymphoma, we had great exposure to various topics.

Week 5 was my Equine rotation week.  I was honestly so excited to be back around horses.  I was assigned one of the campus horses, Kassara, and had to SOAP her on specific days of that week.  On our first day of the rotation we were thoroughly introduced to the rotation and discussed various lameness exam topics.  Kassara was lame the week I took care of her and had a moderate case of "rain rot" (the "winter" season here is known for causing this among the university's horses).  Every AM and PM I would SOAP Kassara and work with the on-call clinician on updates with her condition as well as her treatments.  I was able to help her "rain rot" slightly by giving every other day iodine scrub baths (taking care to not get the bandage on her left front hoof wet).  Kassara had a left front lameness that was localized to an area in her hoof.  Care was taken to provide her with pain relief and proper dressing/bandaging on the affected hoof.  It was later emailed to me during week 6 that a subsolar abscess was finally found, drained, and treated allowing Kassara to show 70-80% improvement immediately after.  I see her every day when I am out SOAPing my sheep and donkey and she seems to be doing great so I'm really thrilled that it resolved!  I had never seen a horse with that kind of lameness so it was a great learning experience.

Week 6 was Bovine 1 rotation (one day rotation).  We got a nice introduction to approaching cows, pointing out their kicking zones, where are safe places to stand when working with cows, performing a flank hold, how to make a cow urinate, tail jack techniques and how to steer a cow using their tail, applying a belly cinch in front of the udder, applying flank hook and Kow Kan't Kick kicking restraints, High/low tail ties, casting rope (half hitch method), placing a halter correctly, restraining their head using a halter and halter tie, safe use of nose tongs, passing oro-ruminal tubes (EWWW!), catching and restraining calves (cute little buggers!), herding cattle, and operating a cattle chute.  By far the most intimidating species I've had to work with yet!!  These cows are HUGE!  I loved the experiences during this rotation and the knowledge it equipped me with, but I'm not sure that I will ever make a career working with this species!

Week 7 was my Small Animal Clinic rotation (one day).  I was given an appointment and worked with one other classmate.  The appointment was a vaccine appointment (the client was actually a classmate of ours getting her cat ready for traveling back to the states in April).  This experience gave us an opportunity to demonstrate our physical exam and client communication skills and communicate our findings and plan with the clinician that was overseeing the rotation.

Week 8 I had no rotations!

Week 9 (current week) is my anesthesia rotation so I prepped all weekend reviewing material from 5th semester (focusing on drugs and their side effects).  I'm excited for this rotation and working with Dr. Simon on our cases/patients.  I did a physical exam along with the surgeons on a ~1 year old male, mix breed dog who is undergoing a castration on Thursday.  I created an anesthesia protocol for him, had it approved and discussed some aspects of it with Dr. Simon, and will carry it out on Thursday all by myself!

~Large Animal Procedures~

Now that I've ran through my rotations, I'll run through the procedures with our sheep (we've worked on two) and donkey that I've participated in with my SOAP group.  The best part of all of these is that there are clinicians/technicians right there during your entire procedure.  With anesthesia, you are responsible for meeting with your assigned clinician/technician at least 3 to 5 days prior to the procedure and having an anesthesia protocol already written up and properly presented.

Week 4:  Arthorcentesis procedure on our donkey.  I performed an arthrocentesis on the radiocarpal joint.  Really great experience and fairly easy if you know your anatomy.

Week 5:  I managed our sheep's entire anesthesia for his epididectomy/castration procedure.  Anesthesia is kind of intimidating to me but I was successful in creating a solid anesthetic protocol and carrying it out without any complications that required intervention (ie. IPPV, fluid bolus, etc.).  Anesthesia for these procedures means that you create a pre-med, induction, and maintenance protocol.  You also are in charge of monitoring various vitals on your patient while they are under (ie. systolic/diastolic/mean blood pressure, respiratory rate, heart rate, temperature, PCO2, fluid volume given, etc. are recorded at 5 or 15 minutes).  It is your job to set up and check all the equipment before the procedure as well as place all the various monitors once the patient is successfully intubated by YOU.  Anesthesia is a lot of calculations, understanding the effects of the drugs you have given, recording/documenting, and having a plan when something of concern arises.

Week 6:  I managed the anesthesia for our donkey during his nerve identification procedure.  I gave an abaxial nerve block for my partners to work on the medial palmar digital nerve of the left front leg.  While my partners did the surgical aspect of the procedure, I carried out my anesthesia protocol.  Hypotension tends to be a common complication of anesthesia with the large animals.  I had to bolus IV fluids as well as give a couple doses of ephedrine during the procedure to help our donkey maintain a safe systolic blood pressure.  His recovery was a little exciting because he was pretty ready to move around when he finally stood up with our help, but we stuck with him and kept him safe until he was ready to go back to his pasture.

Week 7:  I was the primary surgeon for our sheep flank skin incision.  I made a 6" incision on the left flank of our sheep that went no deeper than the cutaneous trunci.  After incising through the appropriate layers, I performed a simple continuous suture pattern to close the cutaneous trunci layer.  I then used a ford interlocking pattern for the proximal half of the skin and then placed horizontal mattress patterns for the remaining half of the incision.  There was great skin apposition and our sheep healed wonderfully!

Week 8:  I was selected by another group to be an assistant surgeon for their skin incision lab.  I helped them set up their anesthesia equipment and get their sheep ready for the procedure.  I scrubbed in but only to assist and observe so the primary surgeon of the group could do the entire procedure.  After the procedure, I helped clean the entire surgery area that the group occupied and then went on my merry way.  I did get one of the best compliments from the primary surgeon that I have had all semester.  She told me that I made her extremely comfortable and confident to the point that her hands were more steady than they have been in past procedures.  OH!  How could I forget!  The best part of this procedure.....we had multiple power outages and periods of working with no lights except the sun that was coming in through the surgery suite's windows (luckily we had a table by the windows)!!  I had to just assist the surgeon by holding the suture so she could see it better (dark suture on a dark colored patient in the dark).  Funniest thing about the whole experience, when the lights did go out throughout the procedures, no one flinched...no one missed a beat...the show went on!  And that's what it means to be a Rossie!!

Week 9:  Tomorrow is our casting lab for our donkey (I'm an assistant).  We will place a cast on our donkey, allow it to set, and then remove it before we wake him up from general anesthesia.

~Bovine Palpation and Beyond~

So we have consistently had a bovine palpation lab every week since the semester started.  The good news is that I've been able to identify all the structures of a cow's reproductive tract (cervix, uterus, uterine horns, ovaries and associated structures such as corpus luteums and follicles, and if the cow is pregnant, attempting to determine how far in her pregnancy she is).  Some palpation sessions are more frustrating than others because you may not be able to identify or correctly take measurements.  Every cow is different!  As I said, you have to take various measurements of the cow's that you palpate.  You are supposed to try to correctly measure the cervical diameter and the diameter of the base of both uterine horns.  How in the world do we do this?  With our finger tips!  I measured the length of my index finger tip (1.5 cm) and then my index finger plus my middle finger tips (3 cm) and then my index, middle, and ring finger tips (~5 cm).  Aside from bovine palpation, we have also had an obstetrics lab (learning about different presentations of the calf at birth, how to use chains and various other tools in assisting the cow with giving birth, etc.), sheep ultrasounding, and this week (week 9) we are having a fetotomy lab.

~Everything Else!!~

Aside from all the things I've already talked about, I've also been juggling getting my pets ready for traveling out of the country in April.  Ting decided to get injured by pulling a dresser on top of her when I wasn't home at the beginning of the semester and ultimately needing a femoral head osteotomy for the dislocated hip she acquired.  She's on the road to recovery (could take up to 6 months for full recovery).  As much as it sucks to have to have gone through all of this...I'm just so thankful she's alive and nothing worse happened (ie. paralysis, etc.).

Ting showing off her shaved leg

The coconut retrievers decided to give me a scare and eat something out in the yard that I wasn't totally sure about so I ended up being an over protective pawrent and getting blood work to confirm it was in fact NOT rat poison.  I have good reasons to being an over protective owner because in St. Kitts it's not uncommon for dogs to be poisoned via rat poison whether it is hidden in some kind of food or not.

How could I be mad at these faces??

We had our 6th and 7th semester beach party out at Banana Bay.  It was so much fun!!  I love my orange semester classmates!

I was able to find an apartment to rent for my clinical year (and will be living fellow Rossies so we can hopefully help each other out if needed) that has some great features and am slowly gathering furniture/supplies to fill it with.  I also have an SUV to come home to thanks to Erin (a vet tech that has known me forever and works with my aunt) and my aunt.

 Good-bye my awesome island car...I'll miss you, Meg's Egg!

 Hellooooo sexy SUV!

My mornings that I SOAP usually start like this...

And end like this (well sometimes I get to go to the beach)...

Earlier in the semester I rescued a pup off the streets.  She was limping on the main road across from campus one morning and on my way home that evening she was still wandering around.  She let me approach her and I took her to the VTH to get looked at.  Luckily all that she had was a torn up paw pad.  So she stayed with me briefly and I was able to find her a forever home (YAAAAAAAY!).  She is living at a foster home currently that is giving her tons of love and care since my schedule is toooo crazy to really give her all the attention she deserves.  She was originally named Kanga (short for Kangaroo) but now is rightfully named Penny (after Penny from Big Bang Theory) by her forever momma.

I have been working my butt off all semester to finish the Josh Project "Under the Sea" mural painting at the pediatric ward and am happy to say that it is one more session away from being COMPLETE!  Stay tuned for a blog entry on that entire experience and project!

Jen and I with the mural (one session away from completion!)

All my current classes are going really well...not that I didn't expect them to but we are so busy this semester, it is definitely challenging to throw studying for classes in the mix!  We have 43 days left in the semester and I know they are going to continue to fly by.  There's still a ton left to do this semester in regards to rotations and procedures so stay tuned as I wrap up my time on the island!