If It Breathes I Can Fix It....Apparently

Canine's Canine To The Face

2012-02-14T16:06:00.003Z

The vet world can be a dangerous place, bites and scratches are the usual hazard that we are all aware of. Everyone can recognise the grumpy cat, the Collie that gives you that "look" and the sore old Labrador who can give a growl when you move him. We all know to take precautions. As one of my friends put it, "If you're not careful you could lose a finger, and that's the end of your career".

It wasn't a big scary dog that managed to get me however. It wasn't a cat. Or a parrot. It was a 20 week old Labrador puppy. She had had surgery a few days previously and was just about to go home, so I went to say goodbye. She is the softest puppy you would ever meet, but now getting to full bounce. We'd been having a few talks about jumping up and it looked like she was getting the message.

This time she got a little overexcited though and bounced at my face. Not too scary, she'd be trying to lick me all week, except I was just getting up at the time and took the full force of her nose to my face. Initially I didn't think much of it, then the bleeding started. Oh yes, the bleeding started from my nose. A quick investigation revealed a split inside my nostril out to the real world. Lovely! The poor puppy looked very sad and a bit scared!

I was all for using tissue glue to close this up. Apparently it wasn't allowed, so a trip to A&E was in order. Two sutures (and a bit of a chat about dentals with the doctor) later I was released to head on home.

Everything has healed now, there is a small scar that is barely noticeable, and I'm back to work once again. It's not the big scary dogs that get me apparently, it's the little cute one that lull me in to a false sense of security!

Back Yet Again

2012-01-26T14:07:00.002Z

Well I'm back again. It's not been a fun few months and I've had quite a few things to get on with at work and out of work meaning I've let this slide a bit. Things have started to calm down now so I've decided to write again.

So since last time I've had a pretty dull time being off ill. After the illness in October I've had a range of signs and symptoms which have meant I've been unable to work, especially at nights, for a variety of reasons. To combat this I was given a month off work in November to recover my strength. In this time there were various trips to doctors around and about and too many tests to count. Thankfully all these have come back negative for nasties, but I'm still having the main symptoms of feeling exhausted and occasionally weak and dizzy. Not fun.

I was back at work over Christmas, but found I was truly exhausted after only 5 days of work and would be sleeping for 14 hours a night. My doctor also recommended that I don't work nights as that would make me worse.

All of this meant I wasn't able to keep up with my rotating internship. It wasn't fair on the other interns and I couldn't be signed off as having completed an internship if I wanted to progress to a medicine or surgery residency. I was however offered a chance to continue working at the hospital in a different intern position which I happily took.

So now I'm the anaesthesia intern! This means I may be able to become an anaesthesia resident and continue to learn more, which is where I was leaning towards anyway. Currently I'm only in 3 days a week, but hopefully I'll be building this up to 4, then 5 days and then possible on call at some point. I even have a few projects to do on my days off to keep my mind busy.

I do have a few fun stories and some cute puppy pictures to post later, but now back to work!

Back Again

2011-10-02T15:17:00.003+01:00

So what's happened recently? Not much really apart from work and play. I've been on quite a few rotations since my last entry and mostly loved them. There wasn't a whole lot of work on imaging, but oncology was fairly busy.

A few weeks ago I was a bit ill and had a brief hospital stay. It wasn't the most fun experience (I'm pretty sure our patients get treated better) that ended up with me discharging myself after waiting for an ultrasound scan for several hours.

Feeling better now though and back on to night duty. I'm still feeling tired a lot of the time, but the current batch of students are very useful and I'm getting some rest.

Time Off

2011-08-16T21:10:00.002+01:00

Internship is all fun and lots is being learned but sometimes time away is required. This weekend I took an evening off to escape to the city, see some of the festival and meet up with a few old friends who were visiting. It was a great night out!

I find it far too easy to stay late here and follow cases that I've become involved with even if I should have been away hours earlier. Work-life balance is important though, and so more time will be spent escaping.

Night Shift

2011-08-01T21:34:00.002+01:00

Well that was fun! I survived my week on the night shift. It was fairly bad with at least 3 cases there each night, but everything survived, even the 2 animals that tried to die at once.

There were a variety of emergency cases such as the feather plucking cockatiel at 3am and the sick Labrador (has he eaten something? Are you sure?), although most of the people that called me weren't actually our clients. It was very strange that I had to send at least 4 people back to their own vets, including one complex cases that was in Northumberland who we'd never seen! They weren't even in the area! Weird.

Still catching up on sleep. I went to a friend's wedding this weekend. It was great, but I was exhausted.

First Few Weeks

2011-07-21T18:52:00.002+01:00

It's been a while since I've been able to write anything due to lack of computer access and no internet connection, but so far today the wireless is working. Woo!

The internship is going well. I have been switching from service to service as required including exotics and feline medicine. So far I'm loving being back, it's great to see everyone again. Some people even seem to remember my name which is rather worrying.

Night work starts tomorrow which I am not looking forward to, although at least there will be various people around for backup should it be required. After that I'm moving from one flat to another in the intern building, then heading off to a wedding.

Back to journal review for tomorrow.

Interning changes

2011-06-22T18:27:00.003+01:00

There's been a few changes to the intern program whilst I've been in Wales! First of all I'm starting a 13 month course instead of the usual 12 to cover various holidays and locum on the services. It will hopefully give me extra time to figure out what I'm doing and get me settled in too. And any more time in Wales and I'd go insane.

Currently there are 3 interns who share the load between them. This means 1 week in 3 is nights, and they work every 3rd weekend. I think someone may have mentioned the working time directive as on a busy weekend the on call vet may only have 8 hours sleep total! So now there are 4 new interns.

This means we will only be working 1 in 4 weeks of nights (only 12 weeks? Doesn't sounds like a lot!) but to cover the weekend efficiently we are going to be working 1 in 2 weekends. Basically if anyone is looking for me, it's a good bet that I'll be at work.

And finally a big YAY! to all the final years who passed their exams, including my Lab Partner from first year. Well done!

New Job

2011-05-12T16:30:00.000+01:00

Well it's confirmed, I have a job for next year - I'm heading to be an intern at University! Very strange way to get a job, they heard I was looking and offered me a position. I didn't even apply for it! Not that I'm complaining in the slightest.

So next year I'll be back in the vet school learning loads and hopefully not hating all of the out-of-hours work too much. There is an element of teaching and supervision the final years involved but that shouldn't be too much of a problem.

Before then I'll be heading between locum work and staying Wales where hopefully there will be time (and the right weather) to climb a bit. I have a load of gear that needs testing!

Quick Update

2011-05-03T14:53:00.002+01:00

I'm back off to Wales tomorrow for a while, but first I have to give the talk to the 4th years. I decided to be honest in the end about the shortcomings of the job I've had, but also about myself. Should be fun!

I also got a phone call yesterday about a potential job but I'm still waiting to hear back for certain. It's only for a year, but I'll hopefully learn a lot. More details soon!

Goodbyes

2011-04-18T20:21:00.002+01:00

Over the past week or so I seem to have been seeing the same clients that have stuck in my memory (for better or for worse) over the past six months.

First was the lady with a new puppy. I sadly had to put her oldest dog to sleep on boxing day, so I'm so happy to see her with a new dog as well as the regular pup too. Then came my first caesar dog along with the pup that the owners were keeping, followed closely by a dog who I saw roughly every other day for a few weeks to re-dress a wound.

A few other memorable faces popped up too, such as the lovely lady who thanked me for putting her old dog to sleep with a lovely card and the twitching dogs I'd seen a week or so before.

I will miss the people here. Mostly.

In a more fun note I'm back off to uni for a bit in 3 weeks. I am going back to lecture the 4th years on how terrible the life in practice is. Not too sure whether I should be nice or honest about my experience so far. Probably honest.

Long Weekend

2011-04-13T19:29:00.002+01:00

This was my last weekend on call. Yay!

It was also horrible. Boo!

Most of my time at work is spent with small animals. In the past month, not counting the weekend, I can count the numbers of times I've seen a cow or horse on the fingers of one hand. This makes visiting things out of hours very difficult.

Sometimes I need backup but I try not to call someone unless I really really need help. Sadly as a new grad this is more often than I'd like. Such as a cow caesar. Sadly my bosses don't think the same as I do and aren't as helpful as I'd like.

Grumpy doesn't really describe my reaction to the lack of backup and the attitude given by a member of the group. It all makes me glad I'm leaving.

Label Reading Mk 2

2011-04-05T19:34:00.002+01:00

The last incident of a client not reading the label on the various drugs we hand out was quite daft, and quite funny. Sadly this one isn't as much fun.

We routinely hand out flea and worming "spot-on" products to clients. These days it seems like most of the things we give out go on the back of the neck, and we just assume everyone knows how to use them. Not so.

A combined flea and worm product is not meant to be put in the dogs food. It causes seizures, twitching, vomiting and generally unhappy dogs. The drug company was very helpful and gave great advise for which I can only thank them. Three dogs, all with the same signs. It was a fun day!

One dog has gone home. The second and third dogs are staying in overnight for monitoring and we hope they will sort themselves out. Someone is in the doghouse at home.

Please Read The Label

2011-03-23T20:22:00.003Z

Conversation with a client this week:

"My dog's arthritis isn't doing very well on this liquid stuff you gave me. Her ears are so much better, if only she was happy to go for walks again"

Discussion ensues about the effects of non-steroidal drugs, how all dogs react differently and how we can try tablets instead of liquid, or we could just up the dose to a little higher.

"The dosing syringe? That's for the stuff I've been putting in her ears..."

Silence.

*slight giggle*

"Urrrrm...that's the one that's meant to go on the food. You mean she's been having ear drops in her food and metacam in her ears?"

"Oh yes, wasn't I supposed to do that?"

You have to wonder sometimes. The big label saying apply to both ears on the ear cleaner may have been a bit of a give-away. And the picture of the ear. And the instructions.

The ears got better though!

Mystery Dogs

2011-03-20T18:42:00.002Z

We've had a few weird cases in recently, but this one wins the prize.

This young dog had been running in the woods, left her owners behind, and then gave a huge yelp. The owners found her standing against a tree hold up a back leg. Seems fairly straight forward so far!

Quick exam - one leg shorter than the other. Breathing a bit fast, how's the colour? Ooooh, bit pale. Very sore though, could be pain and shock. First things first, lets break out the painkillers. Another poke and a prod to check for other injuries showed up a bit of crackly skin over the ribs. Air under there is a bad plan!

A few x-rays later we found a broken pelvis, 4 broken ribs and a collapsed lung. And no clues as to how this happened.

Calving Mk 2

2011-03-05T16:38:00.002Z

Another day, another calving. Different farm this time, and at least this farmer had an idea of what was going on and knew to call the vet before it was too late. In this case he'd had a feel and there were two hindlimbs coming and the feet were quite big.

Thankfully I wasn't sent alone this time and we examined the cow and tried to assess if the calve could come normally. After a bit of pulling the decision was made - caesar.

It's been a good few years since I've seen one so I was happy to have the help! We had a nice debate on the merits of various local anaesthesia techniques - distal paravertebral, line block, inverted-L etc - then got on with it.

She was fairly well behaved considering what we were doing! The only difficult part was lifting the big 60kg calf in to the big wide world. They aren't the easiest things to lift at the best of times, and even worse when wet and slippery. The student put his back in to it, lifting and pulling and was rewarded by falling over in the shed with the calf on top. Thankfully he saw the funny side.

End results was one live calf, one live cow, one happy farmer, and a couple of vets with a few more bruises than we started. I've never yet managed to suture a cow without stabbing myself with the needle.

Calving

2011-03-03T21:43:00.002Z

Calving number 1 appeared the other day. I was the only "large animal" vet around the place who was marginally free. Never mind that I'd booked an operation in just for me to do...but that's a different story.

I arrive to find a cow still in the shed with quite a few others, not at all separated. Suspicions that this was going to go badly started then. The suspicions were confirmed when the farmer asked why we needed to move her, and why we couldn't just get on with it in the shed.

Calving is a messy, painful and generally suboptimal time for all involved. This time is aided by proper restraint for the cow. Attempting to calve whilst the cow is allowed to run free is just asking for a broken arm.

The epidural went in fine. Tail floppy. Everything relaxed and easier to feel. There are feet. Tick! Ideal! And then a head appears. Tick! This shouldn't be too hard thinks me...bad mistake. Thought number 3 was "these feet feel a little small". Possibly twins. Sadly already deceased. Not too bad though, done this before. I can't trace the legs all the way back to the shoulder, my arms are too short. But there's a head right there, this all has to be the same calf right?

Wrong.

Somehow the calves were coming both at the same time. Calf 1 on top had head forward but legs all the way back. Calf 2 had legs forward, head all the way back. This made for a poor mix.

Thankfully help was at hand. I was rescued by another vet who was "just passing" and happened to see my car. She has longer arms and, more importantly, over 10 years experience doing this kind of thing. And she struggled too.

It was an OK outcome - the cow was still alive. Sadly the calves were dead. We were covered in bruises, sweat and blood, but that's just part of the job. Back to the practice for tea!

Leaving

2011-02-16T21:09:00.002Z

Well the time has come to escape my job. There are a variety of reasons, most of them really boring and grown-up. Basically I'm not getting the exposure to the farm animal work that I'd like and thus I'm not confident in it at all. Most of the time this isn't a problem, however during on call periods it's the source of major stress that I just don't need.

Anyone need a vet?

Dear Driver

2011-02-07T22:28:00.002Z

I'm sorry I wasn't going fast enough down the dark country road at night to suit your needs.

I'm sorry I didn't really know where I was going.

I'm sorry I delayed your journey by about 30 seconds.

Yes, I understood you were upset by the flashing of light and beeping of the horn, there was no need to shout too.

I was on my way to my first equine emergency call you see, and I had other things on my mind such as - What will the heart rate be? Will I need to rectal this horse? Do I have all the emergency numbers? What's the dose rate for all these drugs? Where am I going? What's around this corner? What if I need something I don't have in my car?

Vets driving to emergencies are a dangerous breed, especially new graduates, especially those new to the area who don't know the roads.

I figure getting sworn at, or arriving 5 minutes later than planned is better than a dead vet. So if you're stuck behind me, I'm sorry.

Weekend On Call

2011-01-23T20:02:00.002Z

Weekends on call have to be the toughest part of the job, especially in a mixed practice. So far I've had about 3 hours sleep since I started work on Friday morning.

Last night was hard work - just me and various sick animals. I'd have killed for a nurse to be there to give me hand! Dogs having seizures filled the majority of my evening after a busy day consulting and the night was spent monitoring them at work. In the end I gave up coming home between visits and just bedded down at work.

This morning I planned to come home for a shower and breakfast...which didn't happen until 1. Only 21 more hours to go.

Quick Change

2011-01-17T20:19:00.002Z

I love this job because of the variety we see on a daily basis.

Today I was visiting a farm for some sick cattle, we had the usual chat about housing, the weather, the job and everything else whilst trying to examine some mad yearling beef cattle. Just when I thought we were done for the day, liberally coated in various bodily fluids, the farmer pops the question that always comes up:

"While you're here, can you just look at....."

This is why all calls take twice as long as they should. Examining cow to cat in the matter of minutes. Love it.

This isn't the cow I was examining. But hey, close enough.

Sometimes I forget...

2011-01-15T14:52:00.003Z

...that I'm actually qualified and a real person now. People keep asking for opinions on clinical matters, but even more worrying I seem to have the answers at least some of the time.

The past 2 weeks have been manic with busy consultations and various emergencies. In the space of 48 hours we had 5 RTAs! One day I started to X-ray a cat at 9am calculating sedation drugs and then met the first of many RTA dogs. On the plus side most of them survived with only one casualty. It was so manic we even had students keeping an eye on some of the inpatients.

Farm work isn't going as well though. There isn't a lot of it going around and the usual farm vets take most of it. This leaves me with the emergency work which would be great if only I had the experience to deal with it. Over the next few weeks I'm hoping to be more proactive and grab some more farm work to get me up to speed.

Equine work, as ever, is evil.

Happy New Year!

2011-01-01T20:46:00.002Z

It's New Year! Woo! I've been coughing up a lung for the past couple of days, and I'm on call. Not a great start to the year, but these things happen. Not too many patients in and hopefully people will realise it's Sunday and we are still closed. Tomorrow morning may be a different matter.

I may try to blog a night on call at some point, but it depends on if I can be bothered to turn the computer on at 3am. Unlikely.

Still Learning

2010-12-21T18:18:00.002Z

It's nearly Christmas time! I'm thankfully not on call for Christmas Day, but I am surrounding both Christmas and New Year. It's to be expected I think. Don't really mind as I'm not heading home anyway.

Work continues as usual. After the bad couple of weeks with many euthanasia consultations it seems to have calmed down for now. I did my 2nd bitch spay today. It seemed to go ok, no oozing from the stumps, happy with all my ligatures and closure. She should be back in a couple of days for a post-op check so we will see then.

We've got a great vet student with us this week - someone I know from uni. I'm quizzing her on various cases I've seen, and learning in the process. I have learned a lot over the past couple of months. It's very surprising to see gaps in her knowledge, and I have to wonder if I was like that last year. And now I'm a proper person...Scary stuff!

Christmas Cull

2010-12-10T21:51:00.002Z

The cold weather is harsh on everyone. With a pet it can bring out illness that was previously undiagnosed. Worst case scenario these animals don't improve and the owners opt for euthanasia.

I've had quite a few PTS (put to sleep) cases recently, breaking the 3-a-day barrier on more than one occasion. In recent memory there have only been 2 days when I haven't had a euthanasia consultation, and on those days I actively avoided anything that looked liked it would die to the point of hiding in the server room for a few minutes until someone else took it.

In some cases it's people I've met before. For one Labrador I'd become the personal vet for the past few weeks. The owner respected my open-ness when I told him that his dog wouldn't survive beyond Christmas. That was a home visit, particularly tough. Technically it went fine, jab went in to vein, dog died. Reminded me of my own dog though quite a bit.

Other cases I have just picked up. The cat that possibly had antifreeze toxicity. Turned out to have a horrible heart problem that we picked up ultrasound scan. The cat was only with us for a day, but I stayed with it monitoring its condition all night as it had tried to die in the morning. Successful resuscitation only for a PTS 10 hours later.

There are times when I really hate my job. I know I wouldn't do anything else though.

Snow!

2010-12-05T19:33:00.002Z

As a kid snow was amazing fun, it meant time off school and general play until you were too cold having built a snowman and thrown snowballs. As a student not a lot changed! Snow days were still fun and spent playing and building snowmen.

As a mixed practice vet living close to the practice, snow is a pain in the bum. For a few days this week I had sole charge of the hospital with only a receptionist, a nurse and myself looking after the place. Scary stuff! It was good fun, though a little manic at times. I can't get my car to many of the farm clients so I'm just being a small animal vet for now.

So far I've only nearly died twice driving in the snow. Blizzards are not good fun when you can't see the road. And the emergency pager going off when I was driving nearly got me killed yesterday due to shock. Oh well!

First Days

2010-11-13T11:55:00.002Z

Work has started! At the moment I'm mostly trying to settle in and find out where everything lives around the practice. Everyone is really helpful, and the mix of work is just what I need at the moment.

So far I've been out to see calves and horses, stayed in and treated cats, dogs and rabbits and been on call a couple of nights. It's going pretty well! Not too many fun stories yet, but I'm sure they will come along in time.

The only downside at the moment is we don't have internet in the new flat, and won't for another 2 weeks. I'll be back then...

Moving House

2010-10-30T16:27:00.002+01:00

Ahhhhhh! Packing!

I'm uncovering things that haven't seen the light of day for about 3 years, finding lost notes that may have been helpful for uni, and generally making a mess. There's dust everywhere. Not too much actual packing has been done.

Unprepared? Me? Never.

Tigers!

2010-10-23T17:42:00.002+01:00

There's a new button, and it's all about tigers. As the information from the WWF says:

"Right now, there are as few as 3,200 tigers left in the wild and that number is falling. Tiger habitat is being lost at an alarming rate and poaching has surged over recent months."

Tigers are amazing creatures. If you have a spare moment, take a look at the petition which aims to help increase tiger numbers, or just click the button on the sidebar.

I'm the proud sponsor of a tiger, thanks to a friend, called Kamrita. Her avatar, a cuddly tiger, goes quite a few places with me. She's now a regular at the pub, has been photographed with Nessie, driven 3 boats and will go out on call with me. Photos to follow maybe...

More Goodbyes

2010-10-20T22:46:00.005+01:00

Today was spent with the vet practice where I have spent a good portion of my life, saying farewell to the various people.

Some people, such as one of the office staff, I've known since I first went there as a kid about 13 years ago. The vets change fairly regularly but some I've known for the past 4 years, others for just 2 years, but we still get on really well. I've worked with the head nurse since she started in 2001. New people to the practice generally got me to work with when I was on EMS as I knew the place so well.

At interview I was asked why I didn't want to work with this practice. It's mainly because it's not what I need in terms of support for a first job, i.e. there is none really.

Maybe one day I will come back. I love the area, I love the people I'd be working with. Sadly not all the memories are as amazing though. One for the future.

More On The Job

2010-10-18T19:47:00.002+01:00

So a bit more about the job situation...

In the end I applied for about 6 or so. I had interviews with 2, rejection letters from 2 more and I've heard nothing at all from the final 2 - strangely enough the first and last ones I applied to.

The two interviews all seemed fairly straightforward. I've heard some horror stories from others about aggressive questioning and other badness. For me they just seemed to want to chat! Very nice.

So my work in a mixed practice job with a couple of other branch practices in the Edinburgh area. The best part is they really seem to be switched on to the requirements of new grads such as myself. I'll start off slowly according to their schedule, learning various procedures until I'm comfortable with them.

All sounds pretty good really! I can't wait to start. There's just the small matter of having to pass the driving test first.

Really need to revise everything too before I start. My medicine isn't as great as it should be, and I haven't done any surgery for months. Hopefully it will all come back.

Job

2010-10-13T19:20:00.001+01:00

I have a job! Very excited, just accepted it.

It's a mixed practice job in Scotland, close enough to Edinburgh. I don't start for a few weeks so time for getting sorted.

Yay!

Meeting Freshers

2010-09-28T16:30:00.002+01:00

I'm back in Edinburgh and helping out with a few of my old societies during the rush. This means meeting a whole bunch of new people, mostly freshers. They aren't all bad by a long shot, but I had this conversation at the sports open day last week...

Me> So what do you study?

Fresher> Oh, I'm a vet student.

Me> Just started? How's it going?

F> Yeah we've just done the first week. It's really easy so far, I expected it to be harder. We went out to Langhill farm and had to practice handwashing. They gave us cold water! And we have to have an exam on handwashing in December when the water will be colder! This is terrible.

Me> Don't you think you may have to put up with that kind of thing as a vet?

*cue 10 minute talk about how great she was and shouldn't have to put up with it*

F> So...what do you study?

Update

2010-09-20T13:13:00.005+01:00

I'm back in Edinburgh for a week or so for some sanity restoration. Sadly I didn't pass my driving test. It was going perfectly until right at the end when I completely messed up a reverse parallel park. Last thing on the test! It wasn't even slightly wrong, it was terrible.

I've booked another one, sadly the first test available is at the end of October! Kicking my heels until then.

At the end of the week I visited Chester Zoo with a friend. It's such an amazing place. Just how a zoo should be. All the animals looked happy and well cared for. The facilities were brilliant too.

Cute animal picture time.

Hi There!

Tiger

On Lookout

After all that fun I fled to Edinburgh for a week or so of relaxation and time spent actually seeing people I know. It's full of freshers though. I feel old.

Geocaching

2010-09-12T21:00:00.003+01:00

A new form of entertainment has presented itself - geocaching! I've always wanted to play, but never had the kit. Now with GPS found pretty much everywhere it's easier to get involved.

It started a few days ago, but everything kicked off this weekend with the hunting of 16 caches all around the North Wales area. Today we were in Llandudno and found quite a few. Some of the fun is trying to bag the cache without others seeing.

Good day. Tired now as there was somehow no lunch due to being on a hill. More job hunting tomorrow, then driving test Tuesday. Paws crossed...

Boredom

2010-09-10T14:22:00.002+01:00

Well I've applied for more jobs...and heard nothing back! Ah well. Just going to carry on applying. Someone has to reply at some point.

There's still nothing to do around here. My excitement of the week was getting a new book in the post. Haven't even managed to get out to the animal shelter due to a lack of transport. There are several walks around here to explore, but I lack puppy-based company.

Instead I've just dug out my old soldering iron and ordered a couple of electronics kits online. I'm going to build a small signal generator and amplifier, set it to about 200Hz then hopefully attach a speaker and play with non-newtonian fluids. It's worrying when watching goo jump around is considered fun.

I've forgotten so much of my electronics knowledge. Can't even remember the resistor colour codes any more. I'm hoping that's because my brain is full of great vetty knowledge, but I think I'm just kidding myself.

Jobs

2010-09-03T21:29:00.002+01:00

I've applied for a couple of jobs, both mixed, for the moment, and I may be applying for more soon when I get myself motivated. Still not sure if I want to go in to small or mixed straight off.

The first job is in west Wales with 2 jobs going and I was meant to hear back today from them. So far it's all quiet. Don't think that's a good sign! I guess I'll just wait until next week to find out.

Apart from that, life here is the same - fairly dull. At least I'm getting a break, although I feel I'm losing knowledge at the same time. I need to practice somewhere.

Volunteering

2010-08-31T09:37:00.002+01:00

Unfortunately the puppy was not to be. Mum has just had to increase her work and the dog would have to be left for 12 hours whilst she was at work. So that's going to happen.

On the plus side I volunteered to work at the North Clwyd Animal Rescue where I'll be walking dogs whenever I want. NCAR is a great place that looks after dogs, cats, as well as rabbits. At the moment they have around 100 dogs, so they have a lot of walking to be done.

For me it's pretty much perfect! I cycle over there, walk some dogs for an hour or two, then cycle back home again. The weather is amazing at the moment so I'll be spending a lot of time up there.

Oh, but I haven't told them I'm a vet yet. Seemed easier.

Dog!

2010-08-26T10:32:00.003+01:00

My mission, should I choose to accept it, is to find a suitable dog for my Mum. It's going to be a tough assignment, but it may get me out of the house.

I'm going to head off to the nearest animal shelter soon. It's only 3 miles away so should take too long to run over. I may even volunteer to go back and walk some dogs or something if the places is nice. There's nothing else to do, and I miss the time with animals.

Cute pictures when I get back.

Leaving Again

2010-08-24T10:54:00.002+01:00

The past 10 days have been spent in Edinburgh, hiding away from Wales and enjoying doing the touristy type of things I always seemed to have missed when I was studying up here.

The main event was the whisky fringe. Over the 4 hour period I sampled various whiskies, mainly Scottish, although there were some others in the mix. They ranged from the excellent ones to the just plain nasty. From the smooth, to the smoky, peaty type. It's all personal preference, so this is just my opinion.

Recovery the next day was uneventful thanks to the magic healing powers of Lectade Small Animal. Tastes fairly horrific on its own, but mixed with orange juice it's pretty useful stuff.

Over the next week we visited Dumfries, Castle Douglas, Moffat and various other places on the way.

One of the more shocking places was the Galloway Wildlife Conservation Park at Kirkcudbright. Some of the enclosures were so overgrown you couldn't see animals, in others the animals appeared ill - one poor stork had terrible bumblefoot - and it looked like it could do with a good tidy. There was a snake handling session where no-one was instructed to wash their hands afterwards. I could go on, but it's just depressing.

Anyway, today I'm heading off back to Wales for about 3 weeks. I don't know when I'll return to Edinburgh. It feels more like a final goodbye this time. I'm just off to uni to say goodbye to various people, then I need to pack.

Hopefully I'll return soon.

Wales

2010-08-01T22:20:00.002+01:00

It's been a while since graduation, and I'm still checking the results once a week!

Now I'm in Wales, in a little village in the middle of nowhere with maybe 2 buses a day and not much of anything else. I don't know anyone around here, so things I can do with my day are limited.

I applied for a locum position at the local vets due to parental intrusion, but nothing has come of it. Still looking for proper jobs anywhere that isn't here really.

My next challenge is to pass my driving test. The theory was fairly easy, but I'm not too sure if the practical bit will be that simple. The only problem is that the first available test date is September 14th. I may have gone insane by then. Regular trips to Edinburgh, and to see friends are required.

Still Searching

2010-07-12T19:59:00.002+01:00

I'm heading back home for a bit, but still on the lookout for jobs. There are several people waiting with computer problems that I can fix, but I really want to get on with vet work. I don't think I'll believe it until I do my first consultation.

So close, and yet so far.

I may go insane at home. There isn't too much to do in rural Wales apart from run and walk the non-existent dog. Although it may mean I get fitter. Final year really destroyed me.

It's Official

2010-07-07T16:36:00.001+01:00

I'm a vet!!!

Graduation was a great day. We first had to get our degree certificates, then there were various photos, then back for the swearing of the oath and signing of the register.

I'm now BSc(hons) BVM&S MRCVS.

Might have to change the name of the blog...oh and find a job.

Graduating

2010-07-02T17:43:00.002+01:00

Graduation is tomorrow! I'd like to say I'm all prepared, but it'd be a lie. I'm very much not prepared.

On the plus side I've found a shirt that fits, my trousers, a bow tie and some cuff-links. I know where I'm going and when I'm meant to be where. And which pub to go to afterwards.

On the down side I've lost my shoes. Somewhere, somehow. Shows how often I go to formal events! Oh and my family are here and annoying me already.

I may go insane(r).

Passed!

2010-06-22T23:30:00.002+01:00

Woo! Marks from finals were out today. Passed with credit. So very happy...

Done

2010-06-18T14:55:00.003+01:00

That's it, I'm done with uni! Hopefully. Not counting my swans before they hatch. Today was...well, not great. Ortho wasn't much fun, although I think that's mainly my fault for not knowing and revising more. The others may have gone OK, but I was in a bit of a mess after the ortho station and not really knowing what was going on.

So I've spent the afternoon not really knowing what to do. It feels strange to be able to do what I want without having to feel guilty about not revising. Guess I should tidy up the huge mess that is my room. For now though I'll go for a walk in the park in the sun.

48 hours

2010-06-16T13:56:00.002+01:00

In just under 48 hours I'll be done with uni, hopefully forever! It's been a long 8 years and I think I may deserve a holiday afterwards. Plans at the moment include heading to Loch Ness for a couple of days to relax, walk and generally mess around.

So tomorrow are the large animal orals. At the moment it looks like I'm stuck with 2 equine stations, rather than more farm :-( And maybe even equine anaesthesia! Oh joy. At least every single animal seems to get the same drugs - romifidine & opioid pre-med, then ketamine & diazepam to induce. Easy. I think.

Friday will be the more fun part with smallies and, to finish off my time at uni, a bit of a chat about my case reflections. Not too sure if I should reflect on the reflections. Or reflect on how my reflection on the reflections went. You see where this is heading.

However it goes I have a hip-flask of Balvenie Doublewood for afterwards.

3 days

2010-06-14T23:56:00.002+01:00

Not long to go until all is over. The last exam....well we won't talk about the last exam. It was not optimal. Very little time, and some really crappy questions that weren't in the notes. But it's done. Hope I've scraped a pass.

Not long now until the practical exams, and for some strange reason I feel less stressed about these. This obviously means things will go horribly wrong on the day though. Some random question about disease of the ferret, or the budgie or something odd like that.

To be honest I just wish it was over. Time without exams looming overhead would be great. I intend to take the weekend between exams and results off and climb as much as possible. Haven't hit the walls for months now so hopefully the routes will be new and exciting. As long as they've kept the overhanging route of insanity I'll be happy.

Pharmacology

2010-06-09T12:55:00.002+01:00

Whilst trying to be productive for a change (it does happen), I have managed to delete pharmacology.

Balls.

Tomorrow

2010-06-09T12:31:00.003+01:00

It starts tomorrow with the spot exam. Ahhhhhh! I've done most of the cases and got a successful outcome from all of them. My drugs knowledge isn't too bad either. Now I just have to remember to take everything with me to the exam (calculator, laptop etc) and try not to panic.

One of my lecturers tips for passing finals:

Sleep
Show up
Don't panic

It'll all be over in 8 days...

Finals

2010-06-02T11:01:00.002+01:00

Well finals start in 8 days with our written spot exam. There are 35 short answer questions over 3 hours on pretty much every aspect of the course:

Cardiology - 3
Dermatology - 3
Diagnostic Imaging (LA or SA) - 3
Pathology - 3
Herd Health - 2
SA surgery - 3
Exotics - 2
Neurology - 2
Pharmacology - 3
VPH (to include 1 pig Q) - 3
SA Internal Medicine - 3
Professional skills - 2
Equine Medicine 1
Equine Surgery - 1
DVEP First Opinion - 1

This could either go very well, or very badly, depending on how much detail is required for each question. I'm not really sure what will happen for pharmacology, possibly a discussion of prescriptions or mode of action of various drugs. Hopefully not the latter!

Anyway, back to equine medicine.

Gratuitous Dog Pic

2010-05-12T18:13:00.003+01:00

Title says it all really... I took Kim to see the swans. That's his happy face!

Revision Week

2010-05-08T18:25:00.002+01:00

Or not as the case may be. The week off has gone all too quickly with not enough work done really. Managed to blitz most of anaesthesia yesterday and took an abbreviated tour of cardiology drugs again today in the hope that one day it will stick. All I know is the Vaughan-Williams classification is just daft.

I'm on elective now for the next 3 weeks at the small animal practice at uni, then we have about 10 days off, then it's finals time. Very, very scary. On the plus side I'm planning to escape to the Highlands post-exams with a friend, the dog and maybe some climbing gear. There may even be photos.

Farm Practice

2010-04-21T22:18:00.002+01:00

Farm animal hospital went well last week. I learned quite a bit in a short space of time and got to practice skills we hadn't used for a while.

This week is farm animal practice. Basically we go out with the vets from uni on farms and get involved. It's great! I seem to have become involved in one of the projects on a local farm because a) it's fun and b) you get to see loads of different things, although it does involve being in to uni really early and sometimes long days. Ah well.

Quick Update

2010-04-12T17:51:00.002+01:00

It's been a busy past few weeks, thus been light on the blogging. Here's the highlights:

- Survived equine ICU! The weekend was fairly relaxed and we spent some time in the sun. I escaped Sunday evening to...

- Head to Wales for a week. More EMS, which is great during lambing time. Did some sheep caesars, assisted on a cattle caesar, plus the usual array of consultations, surgery and banter.

- Now back to Edinburgh to start the final rotation on farm. Day 1 has been great! There's usually 1 person per group that can hit sheep veins, and turns out that's me.

Now it's sunny, so I'm off to go and revise outside somewhere. Only 8 weeks (ish) until finals. A truly terrifying though.

ICU

2010-03-21T21:09:00.001Z

I survived!! It was not great, but at least it's over. A friend wanted to switch weekends, so I have to go back, but the end is in sight.

1/4

2010-03-10T17:50:00.002Z

Well, I failed equine ortho! It was to be expected really with not really knowing what was going on. I do feel a little short changed as my practical skills (which were scored as poor) weren't even seen by my assessor! This week my practical skills have already been assessed as good...

We are only allowed to fail 4 rotations before we have to justify ourselves and maybe resit the year. Hopefully there won't be any more, I don't think I could take it this late in to the year.

So enough complaining. This week is far much more fun!

We are spending time away from the hospital off visiting equine cases all around Edinburgh seeing everything from vaccinations to lameness. It's brilliant to be outside in the sun. Love it. Apart from the horses that is!

Equine Ortho

2010-03-04T18:51:00.000Z

It goes badly. Very very badly. Only a day left to survive.

Anaesthesia

2010-02-27T12:14:00.002Z

Wow those 2 weeks went quickly! We covered so much in a short space of time that my brain had problem processing it.

Equine anaesthesia was so quiet with only 2 horses the entire week, so we spent our time enjoying tutorials! Two a day for the entire week covering a range of topics such as blood gas analysis, farm animal anaesthesia, drugs, emergencies and breathing systems. The days weren't too long, but very intense. On the Friday I placed my first IV cannula in a horse though! Very excited. Got it in first time without too much hassle - the are much easier than in a sick calf.

This past week has been small animal anaesthesia, and it was hectic. Often non-stop days from 9 until 5, and later, where we put the theoretical skills from the previous week to good use. It's a busy service, and at times can be slightly dull, but there are moments of total chaos that make up for it. All of my patients survived too, so can't have been doing things too badly.

Next week is the start of equine, and I'm dreading it. It's not something I enjoy, and the idea of covering the intensive care ward at the same time as being on medicine rotation doesn't fill me with joy.

Nursing

2010-02-10T15:33:00.002Z

A new challenge this week - professional studies. We get assigned a section of the hospital and follow people around. Either nursing, pharmacy, reception or finance, and I got nursing.

For the most part I really like nurses, and have several really great friends that I've either worked with or know from various places who are vet nurses. They do an amazing job and are highly skilled.

Unfortunately this week has been very quiet in the hospital meaning we haven't actually done much! Most of my days have been spent studying for next week or chasing up radiologists for the scans I need. It's been fun though. Made some new friends, learned some new things, taught some things too. Must get on with creating cake for them for Friday.

Next week is equine anaesthesia. Watching an unsteady half-ton animal wake up from a general anaesthetic is just scary.

5 Months

2010-02-03T16:44:00.002Z

There are only 5 months until graduation. Things are seeming rather more scary now and real. I've started looking for jobs, and should probably start revising all the rotations from last year fairly soon.

We had to teach the 4th years this week on radiology. They knew quite a lot, but we were all amazed about how much we knew. My knowledge seems to be coming together with everything linking - history, radiographs, blood tests all come together to form some kind of diagnosis which has various treatment options with it, plus all the side effects of those treatments. It's really quite scary at times!

ill

2010-01-22T16:01:00.002Z

I've been away from uni for most of this week with a cold, so nothing really exciting has happened. I would have loved to be in, but they don't want me infecting the rest of the hospital. Missed canine medicine, but hopefully back for feline medicine next week.

Reasons Why I Shouldn't Be A Doctor

2010-01-13T14:45:00.002Z

When you have a few ill people with no diagnosis, you must not kill one, PM them, and then treat the rest of the group. Apparently.

Human medicine is nothing like farm animal med.

Back To Work

2010-01-06T16:54:00.002Z

The holidays are over, and it's back to uni for another 11 weeks until the next break. So far it's been a short week - with the snow very few clients are coming in for the basic things. Today there were more than a few clinicians off leaving hordes of students without cases and they *unfortunately* had to go home. Very sad.

This week is oncology. Some people complain it's not a day 1 competency, but it's useful to getting knowledge about the kinds of drugs used in practice and what to expect from both the owners and the animals. The obvious ethical debates are going on as well. Should we be treating these animals as we do? Or should we just decide on euthanasia at all times? Difficult one.

Snow

2009-12-23T00:23:00.001Z

It's snowing a lot in Edinburgh at the moment. I'm so glad I'm not heading home with everyone. Can't imagine how busy the trains would be. Happy just to stay here alone.

50%

2009-12-14T10:52:00.002Z

A quick look at the timetable reveals we are half way through our rotations in final year. This is mildly terrifying to say the least! I feel like I know more than when I started, it's impossible not to learn, but do I know enough?

For now there are 3 weeks of holiday that will be spent revising and getting fit again. My fitness has declined over the past 3 months (or maybe years!) and needs a boost. Time to climb.

Parrot Anaesthesia

2009-11-24T18:16:00.002Z

Exotics this week, and so far, so good. My case at the moment is an old parrot with breathing problems. To find out what is wrong with him we had to take some x-rays and give him a thorough check over. Unfortunately he isn't the most friendly of birds (to some people, he loves me. Or he did.)

To get a really good look we had to knock him out. There are so many bits of kit involved that at times it's hard to actually see the bird. My job was the monitor the anaesthetic during the operation.

It's very difficult to take the heart rate of a parrot - it's normally somewhere about 240 beats per minute, depending on the species. Everything went OK apart from a small panic as his heart rate decreased a bit. It was decided to give up at that point.

The verdict? Chronic air sac infection from several years ago. We now have just 3 days to fix years of problems whilst he stays in. Suboptimal. But at least he's alive!

Back to Earth

2009-11-16T20:20:00.003Z

Yikes, we are back to proper work. Turns out I spent the weekend revising the wrong thing as did almost everyone else, so we failed badly at the tutorial today. I seem to be working hard for not much gain at the moment. Maybe more is required.

This afternoon was more fun. We got to see actual live animals and had 2 minutes to figure out what was wrong and then come up with a plan. History was minimal at best. It was great.

I don't feel quite as useless now, but still not great. Weird how one day can really make you doubt yourself and I hate this feeling. It'll be better tomorrow.

Holidays

2009-11-12T12:27:00.002Z

The past 4 weeks have seemed like an amazing holiday compared to the previous 4. Not too much work to be doing, late starts, sometimes (like today) we don't even have to go out to Bush at all. It won't last.

Next week is the small animal practice rotation. We have to fight with dermatology, dentistry, exotics and small animal first opinion practice, although soon it will be more holidays. Christmas already? Don't really feel much further along than September.

As of tomorrow we will be about 37% through rotations. That's just terrifying.

Path

2009-11-03T20:22:00.003Z

This week is pathology, and it's about as gross as you are imagining. Dead things. Lots of them. Turns out they don't really bother me though, especially after a certain point when dog is no longer a dog but a collection of separate parts.

Final year continues to try to murder us with work and things to be learning. At the moment I have a report to write, a few case reports and a presentation or two. Oh, and I'm meant to be revising state vet med for tomorrow.

In other news I've found a lovely medic who understands the species she treats are inferior in every way to the ones I work with. We spent most of last weekend together except when she had to head home and extinguish a burning sheep on the way. Oh and then everything flooded. Seemingly a weekend to stay away!

Anatomy

2009-10-22T23:28:00.002+01:00

I don't normally like horses, but this is awesome. Must go see.

Death in the Family

2009-10-22T00:05:00.002+01:00

I have missed a few days posting due to a small amount of badness.

Thursday it all went wrong. Lights were not on, there was noone at home when she was found. No response to any stimulus. She was examined by experts and others were brought in to check her over, to make sure she had the best care available.

Despite this she deteriorated overnight and crashed first thing in the morning. We don't know why. The won't be an autopsy.

I refused to give up and managed to breathe some life in to the old girl. A bit of care and attention and it all seemed to come together.

Now I'm happy to report that, after several days of intensive care, my computer is fixed, but not all there mentally. It went away for a day or so, but thankfully most of my files remained thanks to a timely bit of backing up.

I'm back!

7 hours

2009-10-14T22:10:00.003+01:00

Spent 7 hours in surgery on 2 ops. Only a bitch spay and a castrate, this shouldn't have taken very long at all. Maybe 3 hours at the absolute maximum.

Bitch spay was our first op at 9.30. Except she wasn't ready until 10.30 despite there being a plan and all sorts of things meant to be happening afterwards. No problems though, we got around to it and just took our time. She was a rather large Rottie so not great surgical conditions.

After that cue 3 hours of waiting around for the next op. Or not, as they decided at the last minute not to do it. And then another 2 hour wait for the next dog to be ready.

In my limited experiences from EMS these things shouldn't take this long. Maybe I'll appreciate it more when I'm on anaesthesia, but it was just annoying! I can do a dog castrate in under 30 minutes from the induction time, but the waiting around was just dull.

Oh and I don't like being watched, so having a group of 10 or so fourth years watching was not great. Run away!

On the plus side there are only a couple more days of ICU to go. Then microbiology. I doubt there will be very many late nights there. Plus I have a degree in that, so shouldn't be too taxing. Wonder if I can get an exemption...

ICU part 2

2009-10-08T22:50:00.001+01:00

*Names changed to protect the guilty*

Sooooo....Our one night when SpanielDog is off constant monitoring because he has no chest drains...

First a paracetamol toxicity dog. Not too bad. Fairly simple. Quite pissed off as back to constant monitoring. Just need one night off!!

Become happy that dog is not on constant monitoring. May get to sleep after all.

Some shitty little Yorkie with porto-systemic shunt (4yo!) decided to have a fit at 6pm. Resident puts it in ICU for seizure watch. Not impressed. Back to constant monitoring. I get the 1-4.30am shift.

Dog walking takes from 2030-2200. Ortho decide to take a case to surgery (after ordering/eating pizza for themselves) and takes the nurse and Laura away. Just me and Jane walking.

I'm having to do the midnight walks/meds with Rachel. This will not take long. I will then stay up for my constant monitoring shift and cover Laura's if she is a) too tired or b) still in surgery.

Grand total sleep - from midday til 1400. And maybe 0430-0600 if I'm lucky. I may become homicidal if the weekend is like this, except then I'd have to do all the work!

ICU Part 1

2009-10-06T23:15:00.002+01:00

Not too sure if I'll have to update this as much as I'd like, but I'll try.

At the moment I'm covering the small animal ICU here at uni. This involves two separate weeks of night and day work. Currently I'm on the night shift which involves working from 4pm until 10am the next day. It's quite a long shift! Especially the tutorial at the end.

It is said that a difficult ICU week can turn even the most reasonable of people into a homicidal crazy person at the best of times, and I can see why! Most of out time is spent sitting about watching animals all night, or walking everything in the hospital at least 4 times. It does not require a lot of mental power, but it gets tiring.

Tonight I'm on the 0430 constant monitoring shift. And I have to do rounds at midnight. So maybe 4 hours sleep if I'm very lucky and the damn pager doesn't go off. Ah well.

Soft Tissue

2009-09-30T19:00:00.003+01:00

Ortho week finished as it started - with no lunch and very little in the way of time off. I did learn quite a bit though, especially on the approach to an orthopaedic case. Very useful stuff.

This week is soft tissue surgery. It started off fairly badly, but now things have got going it's all fine. We are getting quizzed on many things. Today the main topics were wound healing and antibiotic choice. Turns out we don't know very much about it!

And a power cut when you are in surgery is baaaaaaad. Especially when you dog is on a ventilator. She survived though!

Brains!

2009-09-24T21:18:00.002+01:00

Apparently there is something wrong with mine. Or at least the doctor yesterday seemed to think so.

I'm having weird signs and symptoms. A few headaches, sometimes forgetting words. Not too sure if this is just my brain telling me it's full of uni and can't cope with the input, but it's embarrassing when I forget a dog is called a dog. My mind is just a blank for the word. Not too great.

Anyway, another MRI at some point, although it'd probably be quicker to do it myself at uni.

Hopefully I'm just getting old and crazy rather than broken and crazy.

Day 3

2009-09-23T22:09:00.002+01:00

Wow! There just isn't enough time to learn everything on 1 week of rotations. Not even a little bit. I feel sorry for the poor clinicians left with us students. They just have to get on with things and also consider us.

Yesterday we spent over 8 hours in surgery with 5 mins (literally) for lunch. When I eventually got home at 7.30 I flopped and did no work.

Today I took a half day as it is Wednesday. Had to make sure someone was treating my cases first. I love the nurses. Tried to have a nap at home, but ended up just sleeping for ages. Ooops.

Now I'm just tired. Again. On the plus side I've written up my grand round presentation and have figured out my treatment plan for my cases tomorrow. Nearly survived a week! On a few more to go...

Day 1

2009-09-21T22:12:00.002+01:00

Day 1 is over.

I'm exhausted. Not really sure why, we haven't actually done much all day. I now have 2 cases that are mine to watch over. I'm in at 8am to make sure they get their medications and physio. I'll then present the cases to the head of service.

Tomorrow we have a total hip replacement op on. The plan is this will take 4 hours if we are lucky. I've spent most of the evening reading up on the surgical approach but now I'm just too tired.

It's only going to get worse over the next few weeks.

Bed time.

Beginning Of The End

2009-09-17T18:41:00.002+01:00

Well everyone survived Wales (mostly) and now it's time for final year to being. Some very kind people have helped out telling me what's expected and what not to panic about.

Next week: small animal orthopaedics.

For now: just enjoy life and prepare the best I can.

Wish me luck. I'm going in!

Hamster Critical Care

2009-08-31T19:09:00.002+01:00

Those words hardly even make sense to me, but there you go. At the moment I'm house sitting in Wales, looking after a hamster, fish and a cat. Oh and working EMS, but everyone knows all about that by now - dogs, cats, trauma, life saving etc etc.

There was a small party on Friday night, leaving me feeling slightly under the weather on Saturday morning. It was quite nice to have the cat come up to see me and lie on the bed for a bit. The cat is warm. He was also not bothering me about breakfast which, for him, is fairly unusual.

I wander downstairs to check on the other animals. In the lounge I am confronted by a hamster cage on the floor, sawdust everywhere and the top of the cage open. And a smiling cat.

Fuuuuuuuuck.

After a small amount of panic (oh god it's dead, what do I do now, what if it escaped and is running around, oh god) I figured the best option was to assume the hamster was still in the cage, stressed to heck, so I placed the cage back on the side, re-arrange the water and food, and head back to bed to convince myself it was all a bad dream.

By midday I had come to terms with the fact it was not just a bad dream and something had to be done. Luckily for all involved hamster solved my stress by calmly walking out of its bed, having a drink of water, then returning to bed.

Success!! Well, mainly due to luck, but I'm calling it a victory anyway. All that was left to do was tidy up. And count the fish...

Chill Out

2009-08-14T18:28:00.002+01:00

My relaxation week seems to be going well so far. I've done very little! So far time is spent reading, climbing, walking, visiting friends or going to the pub. It's doing wonders for my sanity.

We are worked so hard in, and out, of University it can be difficult to switch off and just relax for a change. The ones who don't manage it go slowly crazy. There is so much to learn, and so many things to do, I must remember to take a step back and let my body fix itself.

So the rest of my time here will be spent much the same. I have a whisky fringe ticket for tomorrow, there is recovery planned for Sunday, and then not a lot else. Apart from climbing.

4 weeks

2009-08-10T17:49:00.002+01:00

I've just completed 4 weeks of EMS in Wales.

4 weeks of solid work, two Sundays off.

It's taken it's toll, because now I'm exhausted. This isn't much of a surprise because I haven't really stopped since starting 4th year. I've even spent most of my nights on call. There are a few cases that stick out, and that I will probably write about later:

The good jobs - Tom the bleeding spaniel, Meg with her puppies, Jess with her bad paw, Ralph who couldn't breathe and Buck the sick cat.

As always there are the bad jobs too - the injured sheep, Scamp the dying dog, Mot the angry puppy, numerous sick cats and the caesar cow.

And the just plain daft cases - mostly these are cute puppies for their first vaccines, but Meg with the ear and the pregnant guinea pig are hot contenders too.

Most of the vets I know have a slightly strange sense of humour which is necessary to stop us all going insane from the daily grind. I'll try and tell a few of our stories, sorry if they offend! As one person wisely told me - "No-one wants to hear when it's gone well. They don't care that you made an excellent diagnosis and saved the day. They do however love to hear about when it goes horribly, horribly wrong." Thanks Pete!

Wedding

2009-07-25T16:03:00.003+01:00

Internet access is a rarity in Wales, and finding privacy to write on here is even more rare. I've hidden myself away for a few minutes to write a quick post about the past few weeks.

The main event, James and Anna's wedding!

I don't think I can sum it all up in words, it was an amazing day and an equally fun evening. There is photographic evidence of me dancing in a kilt, and apparently even a video somewhere that I have yet to see.

The wedding itself was lovely - Anna looked great , James was looking all pretty in his kilt, and I didn't lose the rings. The only slight hitch was that several people were delayed by bad traffic and trains (you know who you are), but in the end everyone was there.

This was followed by the meal and speeches. My speech went quite well, or at least it was over quickly and people laughed in the appropriate places. Then came the drinking and dancing section of the night. I think the less said about this the better...

Breakfast was a painful affair - I managed to concuss myself during the night, and combined with a hangover I was feeling quite ill. If there is a next time I shall prepare for this with IV fluids, metaclopromide and rehydration salts. I continued to feel bad for the next week in fact! Definately concussion coming in there.

From wedding there was a day of lazing at James's house before heading off to Wales. Some lovely people said goodbye at the station, then I faced the rail network on a Sunday. I eventually arrived home and slept - I was working the next day.

The To-do List

2009-07-08T09:26:00.002+01:00

Seeing as my life mostly consists of EMS at the moment various things that needed to be done have been left. Small things like changing a broken lightbulb, or big things like writing a best man speech just haven't been done as there was very little free time.

Now it's my summer holidays! Four whole days off to get through the huge list of tasks. I got quite a few out of the way yesterday, including climbing the bathroom walls to changes lights (I can see in the shower! Not sure if that's a good things though.) and getting a new railcard.

The afore-mentioned best man speech is due to be delivered on Friday and I still haven't written it. That's today's task. It's going to be a long day.

Escape

2009-06-28T13:24:00.006+01:00

Sometimes you just need to get away. You've had enough of the place, the people and the things you are doing every day and some time in a different area is required for sanity. Or at least that's how things are with me.

With uni finished for another term I was stuck in Edinburgh but longing for time away, and the opportunity came up, so I left for Wales. I didn't tell my family I was down, but stayed with a friend and relaxed. Most days I went to my vet practice, but it was a pleasant walk along the river with the dog instead of pavement, buses and humans.

Dolly on the train

One day we decided it was too nice to stay inside, so we fled to the beach on the train. The dog seemed quite happy to sit and watch the world go by as long as she had her own seat. We went for a walk along the beach, then for ice cream, then more walking. It was a lovely warm day so we just carried on walking for miles. When we got to the end, we just came back again.

Scary waves

I've returned to Edinburgh now feeling happier about life in general. Most of this is thanks to a certain friend and her hound who followed me for miles over the space of 2 weeks. It's nice to have a bolt hole when city life is just too boring.

Gratuitous dog pic. Because I can.

Final Year

2009-06-03T11:42:00.002+01:00

It's been 2 weeks since the results of the equine and exotics exam came out and sometimes I still don't believe it, I have to go back and check I've passed, because all this means I'm in final year of vet school! With any luck there is only 1 year between me and the wide world.

I was talking to a friend from home yesterday. We hadn't spoken for a while and she had no idea what I was up to. There were quite a few people who doubted that I'd ever get in to study vet medicine, and some who thought I wouldn't cope if I did get it. I know pride goes before a fall, but I pleased with what I've accomplished so far.

Next year is when it gets serious - rotations all day every day. We switch topics every week and are expected to be on the ball with everything. It's going to be hard work, but hopefully it will be fun. My final year group is fun, we seem to get on OK, so I can't wait. In fact the waiting is the hardest part.

I start ICU cover in just under 2 weeks, but until then I'm fairly free. Depending on what others are up to I may go to Wales for a bit, go climb or just be lazy. It's odd having free time...

Results

2009-06-02T11:13:00.003+01:00

And the results are all in for this year - aaaaaaaaaaand it's a pass!!

I'm so happy about having got through the equine and exotics exam. Didn't stop grinning for a week!

We have also just finished the CLIC course with the open book exam. I'm not too proud of the distinction, it was easy, especially as we did it as a group.

Soon we start final year, but until then we get a bit of time off. Woo! There are plans to climb and maybe do a bit of walking first.

Ow ow ow

2009-05-19T18:57:00.003+01:00

Went in, read James Herriot. Got stabbed. Went to sleep. Got stabbed some more. Woke up. Got stabbed yet again.

Well that about covers it. Gruesome details on request.

I don't think I'm far off in saying that was one of the worst experiences of my life so far and I'm never EVER doing it again. Hospital is very stingy with their analgesia.

Now I can just about see again and can open both eyes. One is horribly blood-shot which I shall be using to my advantage to scare small children whenever possible. Can't read for very long, but on the plus side it does appear that everything is in single vision at the moment. Yay!

Going In

2009-05-15T14:35:00.002+01:00

Yet another pre-op check has been accomplished and I've had a tour around the room of doom. Everything is set for next week, now all I need to do is get up on time! A few minor changes - they plan to operate on my working eye which has a few more risks but a better chance of outcome. It does however mean I'll be effectively blind for a few days post-op. Can I get a guide dog?

All Done

2009-05-02T12:03:00.002+01:00

Finished again. As predicted the equine and exotics written exam was a quite evil. There were never any easy questions, except for one about a ferret, and even the lameness work-up of a horse was made more complicated than necessary.

I had a plan to be lazy this weekend, but my room is a tip post-revision. Cleaning is required.

Now starts the most boring 3 weeks in the vet school calendar - the CLIC course. We won't even be learning about animals, just communications skills and other fun stuff like how to write a CV or use a computer. We could finish the course in about a week if we worked at it and get down to more important things like hands-on experience. I'm sure I'll bitch about it quite a bit over the next few weeks.

This does mean we get some time off however. Next week I'm only in for 2 days! There are plans afoot to disappear somewhere and climb. All I need is a partner.

Revisin

2009-04-28T14:31:00.001+01:00

It goes badly. For some reason equine and exotics doesn't seem to be sticking too well. Probably because I never actually intend to go anywhere near a horse in my professional career, and definitely never plan to operate on one.

Ah well. Back to it.

Blood

2009-04-22T14:36:00.003+01:00

Most people have problem finding sheep veins, especially in larger breeds such as Texels. My personal problem is finding calf veins. Still!

This time around I've found plenty of sheep blood (even in a small lamb), dog, cat and cow blood, but still no luck with the little calves. Perhaps it's because they are dehydrated or just wriggly. I need the practice, but it's difficult to justify catheterising a calf with decent veins.

I've been reliably informed we don't have to do anything like this in final year, or for our final exams. I just feel sorry for the first sick calf I have to look after on my own.

Another Week

2009-04-08T20:09:00.003+01:00

Another week of EMS, more fun stories about the various "oh shit!" moments and stupid mistakes I've made. Thankfully not too many this week except for some pretty terrible bandaging and covering a vet in cold drip fluid. Ooops.

Despite washing every day (go me!) I seem to always smell of cow or sheep and miss a spot of blood/poo on my arm or my shirt. In fact I've scrubbed up so many times over the past few days my hands are starting to take offence and are in desperate need of moisturiser!

Moment of the week - getting an IV in a fat dog with crap veins first time. Doesn't matter that I missed in a cow with veins the size of a hosepipe, the dog was a good shot.

After on call tomorrow there are a few days off (!) which so far I haven't filled with climbing. There will be a puppy walk on the beach, buying of some climbing gear and maybe time sleep if I'm not too busy revising.

EMS Again

2009-04-02T21:33:00.002+01:00

So I'm back in Wales once more seeing a variety of cases in both small and large animals - which is probably a good thing as we have a large animal practical exam after easter!

The trip down was fairly long, but not too much hassle. Then the real work started. So far I have:

Killed a sheep. She was toxic and going to die anyway, but still not optimal.
Made a HUGE hole in a dog's leg.
Examined various eyes, ears, noses and, of course, bums.
Only been covered in blood once.

Apart from the dodgy sheep start everything is OK at the moment. I need to write up my technique book before I forget everything! Not tonight though as I'm on call and may just go to bed whilst I can.

Zoo Trip

2009-03-25T14:35:00.002Z

I had an amazing experience yesterday - I was chatting to a lecturer I know about exotics work after our lecture and somehow got invited to go and assist her at the zoo!

Our first task was to sedate and examine a hog deer with an abscess on his face. To do this we needed to first dart the animal to get close enough to give more drugs. Fun! I was lead through all of the equipment and drugs involved, and then briefed on my task - anaesthetic monitoring for the procedure.

It all went fairly smoothly as the abscess was lanced and radiographs taken of his head to look for signs of dental disease. Unfortunately it looks like he may have to be knocked out again to get a tooth removed to stop the problem. Photos when I can find them!

We spent a few hours checking out various other animals around the zoo, my favourite being the rhinos again. I was tasked with distraction duty (food!) whilst the vets examined an injury to his horn, trimmed bits and flushed it all out. The rhinos are brilliant, I love being close to them as they are so big but can be very gentle when hand fed.

I'd love to go back again, but first we have a few exams and the Easter holidays. Fingers crossed for next term!

Teaching

2009-03-23T17:59:00.002Z

As part of our course we are expected to teach the other years when we eventually get to final year, a prospect that terrifies most of us. We not only have to know our subject, but pretty much anything else that is going on as well, for example we may be presenting equine ortho cases and be asked questions about neurology or anatomy. I guess it's good practice for finals!

I decided to get some practice in this week and went along to help the 2nd year students with animal handling and some 3rd year students with suturing and hand-washing. We mainly covered the basics of dog handling - breed, age, sex, restraint for blood samples, tape muzzles and how to give a tablet. Some people didn't have a clue which seemed really odd to me, although I guess my inability to handle horses must surprise some people.

These things become second nature in the later years, especially when you get to see practice - they won't be very impressed if you can't handle a dog for a blood sample. Some people got the idea fairly quickly, others took their time.

Overall I think it was useful for everyone. It was good revision for me, although I may have developed bad habits in the past few years. Good luck with the handling exams 2nd years!

Motivation

2009-03-22T14:22:00.002Z

It's nearly the end of term and I'm finding it increasingly difficult to focus and actually do some work. We have an exam in under a week and I really need to do some revision but it just doesn't really feel real yet. Just getting bored of the constant sitting in lectures learning stuff that just isn't that interesting for me.

Post-exam I'm off to see the tortoise post-hibernation checks which could be quite exciting, then covering ICU for the evening. Then back to Wales for 3ish weeks of EMS, so hopefully some fun stories. Just need to survive the week.

Busy week

2009-03-13T16:09:00.002Z

Another long one! For some reason things start to pick up towards the end of term giving us more information and less time to revise before the exams. It doesn't make much sense to me, but then again nor do a lot of things.

In just over 2 weeks, after a whole load of lectures, a few practicals and 2 exams I'll be heading back to Wales to work in practice again. It's lambing time at the moment and things are fairly swamped so hopefully there will be a great chance to learn new things and practice the old things such as a sheep caesar, but this time with new knowledge.

We had the chance to practice our farm animal clinical examination this week - possibly the only chance before the exam after Easter. I found the clinical findings were fairly easy but my main problem lies with the more basic knowledge - the breed and ageing an animal. Time to resit the old animal husbandry notes I think. And I finally found the pre-scapular lymph nodes in sheep!

Over half way!

2009-02-24T15:03:00.002Z

I've just had to work it out and we are over half way through the term! This is great is some respects, there are no more horse lectures, and really bad in other respects, such as there being no more horse lectures. I don't miss them at all, but I wish I knew more and had more time to learn more.

Vets from Wales have been complaining that I've been away too long and are asking when I return too! It seems that they only want me for my innate ability to repel phone calls when I'm on call with them, but still it's lambing time and there are many things to be learned still. Can't wait for my first sheep caesar of the year. If I can remember how they are done...

Not that it is the end of term yet. There is a lot more work to be done before we get there, and very little time to relax.

Walkies

2009-02-16T15:50:00.002Z

Recently I've been a little grumpy which is probably attributable to being stuck in the city or at uni most of the time. I can usually fend off these feelings by regular trips up the Crags and Arthur's Seat, but there just hasn't been the time. Even climbing didn't help.

A friend from uni was feeling similarly annoyed with everything so we decided to take a day trip up the Pentlands. We had a great day! We started at the ski slope and quickly ascended to the closest peak, and then we tracked along the ridge all the way to a reservoir to Balerno. Only about 10 miles, but more walking than we had both done recently.

There are now plans to go up again, but this time track a different way and take in more peaks. We may also just disappear for a weekend to the west coast or the Caingorms to bag some Munroes. And all this makes me happy, even in the light of a stats exam.