Peace out school!

Well once again it's been way too long since I've written on here but I figured I had to finish it up because I'M DONE SCHOOL!!!!
After ~22 years straight of school (wtf) including 9 years of post secondary, I wrote my last exam today.
I don't know what to do with myself! So far I've ordered pizza and had a nap 😂 I'm taking some time off until graduation in June and then hopefully starting work (still job hunting) as a real veterinarian! So crazy to think about. It's been such a long road to get here and I'm so so excited to start my career!
Not sure what else to say at the moment because I'm still in awe, so I'll end it here. To anyone who has read any part of this, thanks!!

The end is near

Well here I go again waiting 2 months before updating this - remember when I thought I would do it weekly?? hahah ;)
My Christmas break ended up not being as laid back as I expected but it was still great to not be at school. As soon as I got back it was right back to non-stop rotations until now; I managed to squeeze in a week off :)

Raptors game with Matt :)

Catch ups with the girls :)

The most notable event that has happened since my last post: I PASSED THE NAVLE! Such a relief - especially after an almost 2 month wait!

All that's left now is a few more rotations and graduation. It's pretty surreal to realize that I'm almost done!

Next week a bunch of us are going to North Carolina to do 2 weeks in a spay-neuter program called Humane Alliance. I'm really looking forward to it and am going to have to use all of my willpower to not smuggle a shelter dog home..

That's about it for now, I'm going to take advantage of this week off and go do some non-school related things! Bye :)

Time to do nothing!

I knew it had been awhile since I posted an update, but I didn't realize it had been 2 months! This year is insane.

Since my last post, I've gone through 5 more rotations:

- Surgery: known as one of the most exhausting rotations at OVC, we are responsible for many patients throughout the week and basically live at school. We spend one week on soft tissue and one week on orthopaedics. I definitely prefer soft tissue; ortho is too much like carpentry for my liking! I got to scrub in and watch some pretty cool surgeries including some laparoscopic procedures.

- Diagnostic Pathology: a review of hematology, parasitology, cytology and bacteriology/virology. It was a lecture/wet lab based rotation and I was looking forward to a break from the crazy hospital hours, but after a day of sitting in lecture I realized that I'm much happier on my feet!

One of the coolest/creepiest parasites, the giant kidney worm. Here is is inside of a dog's kidney, completely destroying it. Gross!

- Radiology: helping with taking radiographs and observing ultrasounds. This was a pretty laid back rotation which was perfect because I wrote my NAVLE in the middle of it.

Doggie ultrasound :)

- Ophthalmology: I went into this rotation knowing little about eyes and came out feeling much more confident. I'm now constantly inspecting Ricky's eyes - the life of a vet student's dog!

- Anesthesia: This was one of the weeks that I was worried for, as I've never felt too confident with pharmacology and anesthesia. But the team has been awesome and I'm getting the hang of it - it's been really helpful to be able to see the effects of all of the drugs we learn about in class.

The NAVLE is now behind me and although it was an exhausting 7 hour exam and I won't get my results until next month, it feels soooo good to be done.

And now I'm on CHRISTMAS BREAK! I've never needed a break so badly. Today I've done absolutely nothing, and it's been amazing. I know I'll get bored pretty quickly, so I'm making lots of plans with friends while I'm here.


That's all for now! I'm going to get back to my bed and Netflix :)

Merry Christmas from this adorable reindeer :)

Another 3 rotations down!

Ok so it's almost mid-October which means it's just over a month until my licensing exam and I still have SO much to review - so let's make this quick, shall we?
A brief run down of the past month:

I'm back at school until Christmas now. So far I've completed:
- Oncology - at OVC's beautiful new animal cancer centre :) It was an awesome rotation and I feel more confident when it comes to cancer - although most patients will be referred to a specialty practice like OVC, I think I am better educated on what I can tell owners regarding treatments and prognosis. It was amazing to see how well animals can do when they are battling cancer - tails still wagging :) We got to see chemotherapy and radiation being done, and it was pretty mind-blowing to see all of the resources that my school has to offer.

- Theriogenology - just a fancy way of saying reproduction. This was a very laid-back rotation of mainly case discussions - I was hoping to see a C-section and lots of puppies but that wasn't the case during the week that I was there!

- Emergency and Critical Care - blood transfusions, urinary catheters, hit by cars, cardiac arrest, CPR, septic peritonitis, severe anemia, leptospirosis, foreign bodies...those were just a handful of things that I saw on this rotation, and it was only a week long! Although I don't see myself going into this field, it was a great introduction to the world of emergency and ICU and solidified a lot of things that we learned in class but that I never really understood (ECGs, fluid rates, etc)

Now I have a week "off", which means a study week - and I need it!! After this I have 2 weeks of surgery which is known for being an intense one, so I'll take the time off while I can get it.

I'll leave you with this National Post article about OVC - I find that we are so busy as students that sometimes we forget all of the amazing research that is going on around us. I even show up in the first video because I was on Neuro that week ;)
http://nationalpost.com/feature/heal-boy

Bye for now!

First day of school - but not for me!

Another month between posts and another 2 rotations under my belt - needless to say, life is busy!

I spent a week in Owen Sound at a small animal clinic and got to see how things worked in a small town hospital. I really enjoyed the pace and got to see some really cool cases and finally learn some dentistry tricks (something that vet school's curriculum is sadly lacking). 

Then I had a week off and a few of my good friends and I went to a cottage for a little getaway :) Sun, food, and drinks - it was a great time! 

Wine tasting :)

We canoed and no one drowned! Success

Onto the next rotation which was at a high volume spay and neuter/low income clinic. This one had a special place in my heart because I volunteered there before vet school and actually found out that I had gotten in while I was finishing a volunteer shift - so it was pretty surreal to go back as an almost-vet and be able to actually spay and neuter some kitties! 

Just a handful of kitten :)

Other notable events: 

- I booked my NAVLE (eeeek!) for December 1st, so I guess I should get serious about studying now!

- A tattoo place in London had a fundraiser for a local dog rescue where they were doing pawprint tattoos all day. I've been wanting an animal-related tattoo for awhile! I considered getting a specific one for Daisy but couldn't decide on something since she was such a special girl, so I figured this paw print could represent all the dogs in my life, past present and future! It turned out so cute :) 

Today is the first day of school for most students, but not for me! Since I did a bunch of rotations throughout the summer, I have this week and next week off before heading back to school. 4th year technically started back in May for us anyway! I definitely do NOT miss going back and sitting in class; so glad this year is all clinical :) I'm going to take this time to study and catch up on life before going back to the madness.

I think that's all I need to update you on for now - bye! :)

His face shows how much he loves photoshoots

Spays and Neuters

Another post, another 2 rotations down :)

A few weeks back I had my Neurology rotation at school. Other than learning how to use all of the new computer software, I had a great week! Students on the rotation get to run the initial appointment, do a physical exam, then bring the animal back to the neuro lab to do a neuro exam and discuss the findings with the residents and faculty vet. I was lucky enough to be the only student whose patient went to surgery, so although that meant more paperwork and going to school to do more treatments, I got to scrub in on a herniated disc surgery :) Since I plan on going into general small animal practice, it's something I may not see again so that was awesome!

Today marked the end of my 2 week rotation at a small animal clinic with a vet that I've known for years. He was Daisy's, and is now Ricky's vet and he wrote me my reference letter to get into vet school when I volunteered with him - so it was pretty cool to be able to go back and work with him and actually be able to discuss vet med. He organized a bunch of barn cat spays/neuters for me to get surgery practice, so I have added 12 more solo surgeries to my accomplished list! These basic surgeries are going to likely be an every day occurrence in my future so I'm very thankful to have gotten such a great amount of practice this early in my clinical year.

One of my patients - the most cuddly barn kitten ever :)

Next week I'm on the move again - I'm doing a week long rotation at a small animal clinic in Owen Sound, then I have a week off before starting another one here in London. 

4th year is scary and I know some rotations are going to be harder than others, but so far I have loved the challenge :) 

Talk soon!

On to the Next

Wow, just like that my externship is over!

Those 8 weeks went so fast and I learned so much. One of my favourite parts of my experience was being able to follow cases from start to finish - appointment, physical exam, diagnostics, treatments, and rechecks. I loved being able to get used to the process of approaching cases individually. I also brushed up on my medication knowledge such as typical post-op meds, antibiotic choices, and doses. That was one thing that we didn't spend too much time on in class so I went into my externship feeling pretty useless but now I think I have a better ability to choose which drugs a patient needs.

Solo surgeries were probably the highlight of my time at the clinic - although one day I will likely be bored of spays and neuters, that day hasn't come yet! Being in the middle of a surgery and having the vet pop in to ask how it's going and feeling confident when I say "good" is a damn good feeling :) On my last day I wasn't planning on doing a surgery but the vet asked at the last minute if I wanted to neuter a dog, and I realized I wasn't nervous when I agreed to do it. Thinking back to the past year when our group would feel nervous all week about our live animal surgeries, this was a pretty big milestone. Now I just have to work on my speed, but that'll come with time :)

Fell in love with mini horses during my externship

My first solo spay patient :)

A sweet 7 week old puppy who had a roundworm impaction..

..and the roundworms that were stuck in his intestines (spaghetti anyone?)

In the meantime I've been seeing friends and family as much as I can, hanging out with Ricky, and enjoying the time I have before I have to start seriously thinking about NAVLE studying (eek!)

Canada day selfie :)

So now I have to finish up some externship paperwork (yuck), but I have this week off to catch up on that as well as things that I've been putting off since I've been so busy (like cleaning my closet...so much fun). Next week I'm going back to Guelph for a week for my Neuro rotation at school, then I'm back in London and surrounding area for most of the summer.

If 8 weeks flew by, I can't imagine how quickly my 1 and 2 week rotations are going to go!

Bye for now :)