Internship Stress

As if being in veterinary school isn't enough, I have recently been informed that getting veterinary journal articles published during veterinary school is key in getting an internship after graduation. Great. Of course I have time to write academic papers and do copious amounts of research. I have SO MUCH free time.


Even though it's a huge pain, I've decided to suck it up and get going on some projects that will help me get published. I'm co-authoring an article for the Veterinary Wound Management Society newsletter on (hopefully) equine skin grafting. And I also talked with an equine clinician on the possibility of summer research; I'm most likely going to be co-authoring a case study. Both of these projects are actually kind of exciting; it's great to be reading clinically relevant articles and books instead of memorizing cellular pathways. I feel like I'm doing something productive and useful. And it's only my first year, so if I get these articles published I'll be on the right path to having an excellent CV when applying to internships in a few years. 


The whole internship/residency process is SO competitive. And the "match" system doesn't seem that efficient. A combo that makes me less-than-comfortable with the whole thing. And of course, the equine internships are harder to find out about and get. Why does everything equine have to be weird and different than any other field of vet med? And I'm definitely worried about the role grades play in the selection process. My grades aren't bad by any means, but I doubt I'm in the top 10% of the class, let alone one of the top 10 students. *Sigh.* More pressure.


What am I interested in doing for a career? I would love to complete an internship and residency in Equine Internal Medicine, then go on to be a clinician/instructor at a university VTH. I think teaching veterinary students would be amazing and something that I would truly enjoy doing. 


On another note...2 weeks to Spring Break!!!! Will I be going on a tropical vacation full of alcoholism and debauchery? No. Will I be going on a veterinary-related trip to a remote country? No. I will be...MILKING GOATS! WOO! And also training for my job as a cashier at the VTH. As lame as my vacation sounds, I'm looking forward to relaxing. And besides, who doesn't love goats?

Exams, Round 1 - DONE!

We finished our first round of exams. WHEW! Can you say "vet school burn out?" It feels so nice to be able to sit around and take a breather from frantically re-copying notes and filling out study guides. I actually cleaned my house. Vacuumed, mopped, the works. And I went to yoga tonight for the first time in a week. Being human sure feels good.

What else is new? For anyone interested in exotics, here's an update on my bunny: 

Hazel has chronic nasal issues (sneezing, snorting, snoring, etc.). So after running the gamut on medications and home treatments, my veterinarian and I decided to move a step further to figure out what's going on. So Hazel had to get a CT and a nasal flush/culture done last week. Any time a rabbit goes under anesthesia it's scary; they don't respond well to it and have to be closely monitored. Of course, my damn rabbit likes to NOT BREATHE when she's under, which doesn't help with my stress level whenever she goes to the vet. However, she made it through both procedures just fine, and was rightfully pissed off when I brought her home. Her CT results showed that she actually has a bony growth in her right nasal passage! It isn't malignant, isn't inflamed, and it isn't disrupting any of the surrounding bone in her nose. However, the growth could be trapping bacteria behind it or around it, causing chronic infection, along with the mere presence of the growth as an irritation. Now we're just waiting on the results of the culture and sensitivity test, which determines what bacteria are present and which antibiotics they are sensitive to. This takes a few weeks, since aerobic and anaerobic bacteria are tested for. So we'll see what the next step is. In the mean time, Hazel is on NSAIDs (Metacam) to reduce the inflammation in her nose and hopefully reduce the sneezing/snotting. We'll see. Luckily she eats that stuff up like candy (thank god for oral meds) so she is easy to medicate. 

Speaking of Hazel, I've been surprised by the reactions of my classmates when I tell them about her trips to the vet. They ask me if it's "worth it to spend so much money on a rabbit," or ask why I've gone to such lengths to figure out a chronic snotty nose. I could understand this coming from "regular" people, but vet students? Our whole profession is built on people thinking their pets are worth it. Exotic veterinary medicine is a growing field because of the burgeoning interest in the proper care of exotic pets, including rabbits. There's a whole department dedicated to it at our own veterinary school. Would these same students respond that way if I said it was my dog or cat going in for a CT? Doubtful. Rabbits are seen as worth less by the general population, as they inhabit a strange place somewhere between livestock and pet. Most people think that rabbits should live outside in a small cage, and that all rabbits do is "sit there" or bite when someone goes to pet them. Rabbits actually make wonderful INDOOR pets that can be litter trained like cats, and require as much exercise and maintenance as a dog. 

My rabbit is spayed, litter trained, and has free range of my apartment. When I come home and sit on the couch, my rabbit hops up and lays next to me. She loves attention. She licks me. She follows me around. She knows her name and comes when called. She plays, runs, and jumps around; she's constantly active and exploring. Hazel is just as much of a companion as a dog or cat, and as a member of my family deserves the best care I can give her, especially when I have access to the resources and facilities to do so. 

I think that's an important lesson for would-be veterinarians, including myself, to learn: Don't be hasty to judge the bond between an owner and their pet. We want to become veterinarians because we believe that animal lives have worth, no matter the species.

Knee-Deep...

In EXAMS. Yes, it's the first big round of exams for the semester. We had Large Animal Anatomy last Thursday, then Physiology and Pathology this week. The following week we have Neurology and Immunology. Thrilling, I know. And unfortunately for me, I have been procrastinating all weekend, as you can tell since I'm blogging when I should be studying.


What else has been going on in the glamorous life of a first year veterinary student? I recently got 2 new jobs! I work Friday mornings in the Ophthalmology department as an assistant, where I type all of the 4th year students' and clinician's findings while they complete their exams, then generate the exam reports. I have already learned so many interesting things, and this job's definitely going to give me a leg up for 2nd year, when we have to take an Ophtho class! My other job starts in mid-March; I'm going to be a Cashier for the veterinary teaching hospital, and also helping out with other office-y tasks, like filing. It'll be a great way to get familiar with the computer system, which I'll definitely need to know later.


Also, my boyfriend got a job in Costa Rica for 4 months, which means that after school's out...I GET TO GO TO COSTA RICA! YAY! I've never been out of the country (sad, I know), so I am beyond thrilled that he's flying me down. What an excellent way to celebrate making it through the first year!


Other than that I've just been going to the gym and dealing with my rabbit's chronically snotty nose. Right now we've got her on 0.8 mLs of Benadryl twice a day, since we're wondering if it's allergy-induced. If it's not, then the 2 pound terror gets to have a CT scan and a nasal flush/culture. WOO! Bring on that 30% discount...Here she is, in full flopping glory:

I wish I was doing that right about now, but I'm off to study renal and respiratory Physiology! Happy Sunday, everyone!