#vetstudy

[cecifazvet]

integumentary system ఇ

[lizziedoesvetpath]

Final exams start Monday and I am NOT LOVING the studying... But it means I'm going to be a vet in 2 weeks!!!!

At the moment studying is a lot like looking after a toddler - "Study for another 30mins and you can have a cookie! And a shower!" - bribes get me everywhere 😂

[vetdownunder]

Dermatology and Dentistry Rotation

This was by far the most relaxed rotation, with only two and a half contact days during the week. Although it was nice to have a bit more spare time than usual, I found it concerning how little time is allocated to the two most common areas of general practice.

On Monday we had a three hour dentistry prac where we practiced nerve blocks and dental extractions on dog cadavers. It was gory, but a really valuable learning exercise. That was it - three hours to become competent dentists!

Wednesday and Thursday were spent in the dermatology clinic, working through real clinical cases, assisting with procedures and practicing diagnostics. The veterinary dermatologist has a bit of a reputation for embarrassing students, which was confirmed within the first half hour when she asked me for the dose rate of Prednisolone in front of the clients. “Errrrr… I don’t remember” was the best I could come up with. She justified the attack by saying I’ll never forget it now, and she’s probably right. For any vet students reading, it’s 0.5-1 mg/kg - stash that one away!

I found dermatology surprisingly interesting, but it was evident that being a veterinary dermatologist would become repetitive pretty quickly. Of the three dog consultations I was involved in, all three had suspected allergies. After hearing the vet’s food trial spiel three times, I feel pretty confident managing an allergy case myself.

On each of our patients, we practiced performing diagnostics such as otoscopic exams, sticky tape preps, superficial and deep skin scrapes, and ear cytology. I witnessed a couple of intradermal allergy tests, which I found really interesting having been through the same process myself for my cat allergy. I also saw an ear flush on a dog, and a skin biopsy procedure on a cat with severe dermatophytosis (ringworm) that had caused deep ulcerative lesions all over the body.

On Thursday afternoon, a couple of the medicine interns taught us how to do skin biopsies on pig trotters. Unfortunately, someone had taken the trotters out of the freezer prematurely and they were well into the decomposition process. The smell had us all retching and gagging, so we worked quickly and finished in record time. I don’t think I’ll be eating pork for a few weeks!

[lizziedoesvetpath]

After a very big (very stressful) test on small animal and equine medicine and surgery (which went very well, helped by the horsey lecturers asking simple questions), I’m now back to a peaceful weekend in my happy place - catching up on all the pathology I’ve neglected for this test! A whole afternoon dedicated to liver pathology is actually a really good way for me to unwind....

On a related note, I also now have what in vet school passes for free time... at least until I actually let myself realise I have a cattle reproduction assignment to start

[vetdownunder]

Clinical Pathology Rotation

Ah yes, the time fondly remembered as the week of microscopes. After a fortnight of driving around the countryside and working outdoors, it was difficult to switch to sitting at a desk and staring down a microscope for eight hours a day. They say you are what you eat, and I’d argue you are what you do too. I spent so much time looking at microscopes that I felt as though I was becoming one. It wasn’t the most thrilling rotation, but it was definitely up there with the most useful. Over the week, we covered haematology, biochemistry, cytology and urinalysis. We also practiced some technical skills including fine needle aspirates (on store-bought liver), urine sediment slides and blood smears. Those pink and purple amorphous blobs you find on under the microscope gradually began to take shape, and the puzzling numbers on biochemistry reports started to have meaning (even if that meaning was vague and obscure). The final exam was open book, meaning we were allowed to use textbooks and the internet, because in reality clinical pathologists use those resources all the time. The exam was difficult even so! I still have a lot to learn before graduation, but at least I now have a foundation to build on throughout the year.

[vetdownunder]

In today's episode of 'Things You Can Find In A Vet Student's Car': two week old congealed horse blood! 🚙💉🐴