True compliments in vet school are few and far between; but I got a very nice one today.
Dr Bonin, Caroline and I were leaving ICU after doing a final check in on our patients and he said "you two are the hardest workers on this rotation. You do such a good job and have such a good attitude. And you're pretty knowlegable too."
He also told us that we were going to do well this year if we keep up this attitude and work ethic.
(He also mentioned that 2 of our rotation-mates are not doing a very good job. On top of being lazy, one of them makes really stupid mistakes because he doesn't ask questions and doesn't take initiative.)
Overall, a very uplifting moment!
Showing posts with label totally awesome. Show all posts
Showing posts with label totally awesome. Show all posts
Monday, July 4, 2011
Tuesday, September 28, 2010
My Own Animals Are a Great Learning Experience
My kitty, Elli, has a long and sordid medical history (this is my favorite way to start this story! It’s the vet student equivalent of “on a dark and stormy night…”)
The important part of her history is that she has a history of (really severe) reaction to vaccinations. This is really not all that uncommon, though I would argue that the degree of severity she had is out of the ordinary. She also is really freaked out at the vet… she spikes a stress fever and even develops a heart murmur only in the clinic (I can hear it at the clinic and not at home, and she’s even had an echocardiogram).
When we moved back to vet school after a summer at home, I noticed that Elli was coughing. She’d had a coughing spell for a couple minutes a couple times a week. One of those all out cat coughs where they flatten themselves toward the ground and streeeeetch their necks out. I took her home with me to the Banfield I worked at over the summer and we narrowed it down to being feline asthma or potentially an upper respiratory tract infection. We ended up giving her depo-medrol (a long acting steroid) with a presumptive diagnosis of feline asthma.
A week and a half later, I noticed that she has a mass about the size of a pecan right where she got the injection.
I talked to one of the feline internal medicine professors (Dr. Zoran) about her medical history, long term and her more recent. She told me to never ever ever again give Elli depo-medrol, because she’s probably reacting to the substances that make the depo-medrol a long acting steroid. She told me to aspirate the mass and take the stained slides to Dr. Barton (the oncologist/cytologist). I actually went and told Dr. Barton the same story and she told me that she’s never seen/heard of/read about a sarcoma (cancer) associated with depo-medrol (though they are associated with vaccines). She gave me instructions about what kind of sample to take (she wanted a core biopsy.)
My friend Ashley and I pinned Elli down at home and took a core biopsy of the mass. When we pulled the needle out, she oozed out some lemon pudding consistency material. (Don’t you love how pathology uses food descriptions?) So we took an impression smear of that and then decided to try to aspirate the mass.
I stained the slides then looked at them with Dr. Barton. We went over them and found the mass was just full of necrotic tissue, with some degenerating neutrophils and a little bit of the drug.
It’s fun to learn from my own pets! (Though, I hope Elli doesn’t develop any more medical problems for a long time!)
The important part of her history is that she has a history of (really severe) reaction to vaccinations. This is really not all that uncommon, though I would argue that the degree of severity she had is out of the ordinary. She also is really freaked out at the vet… she spikes a stress fever and even develops a heart murmur only in the clinic (I can hear it at the clinic and not at home, and she’s even had an echocardiogram).
When we moved back to vet school after a summer at home, I noticed that Elli was coughing. She’d had a coughing spell for a couple minutes a couple times a week. One of those all out cat coughs where they flatten themselves toward the ground and streeeeetch their necks out. I took her home with me to the Banfield I worked at over the summer and we narrowed it down to being feline asthma or potentially an upper respiratory tract infection. We ended up giving her depo-medrol (a long acting steroid) with a presumptive diagnosis of feline asthma.
A week and a half later, I noticed that she has a mass about the size of a pecan right where she got the injection.
I talked to one of the feline internal medicine professors (Dr. Zoran) about her medical history, long term and her more recent. She told me to never ever ever again give Elli depo-medrol, because she’s probably reacting to the substances that make the depo-medrol a long acting steroid. She told me to aspirate the mass and take the stained slides to Dr. Barton (the oncologist/cytologist). I actually went and told Dr. Barton the same story and she told me that she’s never seen/heard of/read about a sarcoma (cancer) associated with depo-medrol (though they are associated with vaccines). She gave me instructions about what kind of sample to take (she wanted a core biopsy.)
My friend Ashley and I pinned Elli down at home and took a core biopsy of the mass. When we pulled the needle out, she oozed out some lemon pudding consistency material. (Don’t you love how pathology uses food descriptions?) So we took an impression smear of that and then decided to try to aspirate the mass.
I stained the slides then looked at them with Dr. Barton. We went over them and found the mass was just full of necrotic tissue, with some degenerating neutrophils and a little bit of the drug.
It’s fun to learn from my own pets! (Though, I hope Elli doesn’t develop any more medical problems for a long time!)
Friday, April 9, 2010
Poinsettias
I think it's pretty common myth/knowledge/lore that poinsettias are toxic to dogs. I know I had always heard that.
We learned this week in Toxicology that while poinsettias were quite toxic in the 70's, the ones sold commercially aren't anymore. The poinsettia sellers have bred the toxic agent out of the plants.
I think that's really awesome! (especially because it means I can have poinsettias at Christmas now! Sadly, lilies are still out.)
We learned this week in Toxicology that while poinsettias were quite toxic in the 70's, the ones sold commercially aren't anymore. The poinsettia sellers have bred the toxic agent out of the plants.
I think that's really awesome! (especially because it means I can have poinsettias at Christmas now! Sadly, lilies are still out.)
Friday, April 2, 2010
April Fool’s Day
Overall, I had a very low-key April Fool’s Day. But the one prank I was privy to was hilarious!
In my 8AM surgery class, the professor came in and said that due to historically bad attendance in the second half of the course, the course coordinator had given her permission to administer the points for her section on the exam as a pop quiz. We all kind of nod and pull out some paper to write down our answers.
Then she puts up the first question and it’s really hard. We aren’t sure of the answer and are starting to sweat.
She puts up the second and it’s just mystifying. We have no idea! We didn’t talk about that!
She puts up the third question and it’s impossible. It’s something that might show up on the board exam to become a surgical specialist.
By then, I figure it out but most of my classmates are still panicking.
She puts up the last question and it’s just so impossible it’s hilarious.
Then she asked us what day it was, and you could just see the realization dawn on all of us.
We applauded.
In my 8AM surgery class, the professor came in and said that due to historically bad attendance in the second half of the course, the course coordinator had given her permission to administer the points for her section on the exam as a pop quiz. We all kind of nod and pull out some paper to write down our answers.
Then she puts up the first question and it’s really hard. We aren’t sure of the answer and are starting to sweat.
She puts up the second and it’s just mystifying. We have no idea! We didn’t talk about that!
She puts up the third question and it’s impossible. It’s something that might show up on the board exam to become a surgical specialist.
By then, I figure it out but most of my classmates are still panicking.
She puts up the last question and it’s just so impossible it’s hilarious.
Then she asked us what day it was, and you could just see the realization dawn on all of us.
We applauded.
Sunday, March 21, 2010
Spring Break is Over!
We went on a cruise and it was awesome!
The vet school blogging will start back up tomorrow!
Thursday, March 11, 2010
Club Lectures
One of the coolest things about vet school is the extra-curricular activities. I really love going to the lunch and dinner meetings hosted by various clubs. Mostly I’m in clubs that apply directly to my interests (AAFP for cats, LAM for lab animals, ACVIM for internal medicine), but I enjoy going to meetings when other clubs host meeting that they invite everyone to.
Tonight’s meeting was hosted by SFT (The Society for Theriogenology) and the speaker was the guy who does artificial insemination for Sea World. The lecture has been awesome.
The procedures they do are so cool. There are neat pictures of dolphins and baby dolphins and orcas and baby orcas. (Baby marine mammals are so cute!) The speaker is hilarious! (Or, maybe, it’s so funny because even vet students aren’t immune to the reflexive giggle when somebody says “penis.”)
My favorite quote of the evening: “The last killer whale I got pregnant…… Never mind. Moving on…”
Tonight’s meeting was hosted by SFT (The Society for Theriogenology) and the speaker was the guy who does artificial insemination for Sea World. The lecture has been awesome.
The procedures they do are so cool. There are neat pictures of dolphins and baby dolphins and orcas and baby orcas. (Baby marine mammals are so cute!) The speaker is hilarious! (Or, maybe, it’s so funny because even vet students aren’t immune to the reflexive giggle when somebody says “penis.”)
My favorite quote of the evening: “The last killer whale I got pregnant…… Never mind. Moving on…”
Friday, May 8, 2009
Thursday, January 29, 2009
Vet School Jokes #4
To the tune of "It's a Small World"
It’s a life of classes; A life of fear.
It’s a life of textbooks, A life of beer.
Eight to five every day,
And for this we must pay.
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all,
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all.
It is our vet school.
There are just four years but it seems a ton,
And there’s lots of pets, some for everyone.
And although we may fret,
We will conquer this yet!
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all,
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all.
It is our vet school.
It’s a life of classes; A life of fear.
It’s a life of textbooks, A life of beer.
Eight to five every day,
And for this we must pay.
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all,
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all.
It is our vet school.
There are just four years but it seems a ton,
And there’s lots of pets, some for everyone.
And although we may fret,
We will conquer this yet!
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all,
It’s a vet school after all.
It’s a vet school after all.
It is our vet school.
Monday, December 1, 2008
Vet School Jokes # 3
Caroline and I have composed another song, because the first one went over so well! (We sang it to the whole class and won a contest with it for a $50 prize we split between the 2 of us!)
This one takes a little more slurring/creative liberty, and wasn't quite as popular. Oh well, sequels never are.
The 12 Nerves of Cranial
1:
On the first day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
One olfactory.
2:
On the second day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory.
3:
On the third day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
4:
On the fourth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
5:
On the fifth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
6:
On the sixth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
7:
On the seventh day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
8:
On the eighth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
9:
On the ninth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
10:
On the tenth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Vagus a-wandering
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
11:
On the eleventh day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Accessory, who cares?
Vagus a-wandering
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
12:
On the twelfth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Hypoglossal, tongue
Accessory, who cares?
Vagus a-wandering
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory!!!!
This one takes a little more slurring/creative liberty, and wasn't quite as popular. Oh well, sequels never are.
The 12 Nerves of Cranial
1:
On the first day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
One olfactory.
2:
On the second day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory.
3:
On the third day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
4:
On the fourth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
5:
On the fifth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
6:
On the sixth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
7:
On the seventh day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
8:
On the eighth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
9:
On the ninth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
10:
On the tenth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Vagus a-wandering
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
11:
On the eleventh day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Accessory, who cares?
Vagus a-wandering
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory
12:
On the twelfth day of classes
Doc Hoffman gave to me
Hypoglossal, tongue
Accessory, who cares?
Vagus a-wandering
Glossopharyng’l
Vestibulocochl’r
Facial nerve as motor!
Abducens abducing!
TRI-GEM-IN-AL!
Fourth, trochlear
Oculomotor
Optic, to see!
And one olfactory!!!!
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Vet School Jokes #2
So, there is this structure in the abdomen that rhymes with Supercalifragilisticexpialidocius (the celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus.) Today during our study time, Caroline and I were singing the Mary Poppins song, but with mostly the real lyrics (except replacing the ganglion and plexus.) It was pretty hilarious... but, even better... Caroline and I have composed a better version!
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Found near major arteries and other things that vex us.
You’d better know just where its found
Cuz’ likely they will test us,
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Looking in the abdomen
can make you very sad
The tangle of the vessel s and the nerves can get quite bad
But finding the aorta sure will help you stay on track
And if you find this structure you will surely get the knack!
Oh, Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Found near major arteries and other things that vex us.
You’d better know just where its found
Cuz’ likely they will test us,
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
So when you’re taking the exam
And you get all confused
Remember all the very weird mnemonics that you used.
Don’t breathe the formaldehyde and try to find the answer,
And don’t forget to wash your hands or else you might get cancer!
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Found near major arteries and other things that vex us.
You’d better know just where its found
Cuz’ likely they will test us,
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Looking in the abdomen
can make you very sad
The tangle of the vessel s and the nerves can get quite bad
But finding the aorta sure will help you stay on track
And if you find this structure you will surely get the knack!
Oh, Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Found near major arteries and other things that vex us.
You’d better know just where its found
Cuz’ likely they will test us,
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
Um diddle diddle diddle um diddle ay
So when you’re taking the exam
And you get all confused
Remember all the very weird mnemonics that you used.
Don’t breathe the formaldehyde and try to find the answer,
And don’t forget to wash your hands or else you might get cancer!
Celiacomesenteric ganglion and plexus!
Saturday, September 6, 2008
AAFP Panther Declaw
This Friday evening to Saturday evening I went to San Antonio with the American Association of Feline Practitioners to watch a panther declaw then do some practice visual-only medical exams at a wildlife sanctuary.
After a relatively long drive, we went out to dinner together as a group!
Saturday morning, we went to the clinic and posed for a photo-op before doing surgery!
We then weighed him, drew some blood, did a bunch of xrays then did 2 declaws to remove ingrown toenails that were causing him significant pain. This is a picture of me and the black leopard after his surgery.
Then we did some practice medical exams and got to see a lot of animals at the wildlife sanctuary. It was really interesting. Though, it got really hot, and because of some scheduling trouble, we ended up skipping lunch. So, by 3:45 I was hot, hungry, a little dizzy and totally ready to leave.
After a relatively long drive, we went out to dinner together as a group!
Saturday morning, we went to the clinic and posed for a photo-op before doing surgery!
We then weighed him, drew some blood, did a bunch of xrays then did 2 declaws to remove ingrown toenails that were causing him significant pain. This is a picture of me and the black leopard after his surgery.
Then we did some practice medical exams and got to see a lot of animals at the wildlife sanctuary. It was really interesting. Though, it got really hot, and because of some scheduling trouble, we ended up skipping lunch. So, by 3:45 I was hot, hungry, a little dizzy and totally ready to leave.
Monday, August 18, 2008
Bone Box!
I keep getting some of the coolest tools... especially for anatomy.
I have a giant necropsy knife for large animal anatomy next semester (oooo, exciting!)
Then, today in lab, we were issued a bone box! And it's exactly what it sounds like. It's a red toolbox full of small animal bones. I have a (broken) skull, a scapula, 2 mandibles, a full vertebral column, some ribs, a humerus, radius and ulna, a femur, tibia and fibula, a front paw and a back paw. It's really neat!
I have a giant necropsy knife for large animal anatomy next semester (oooo, exciting!)
Then, today in lab, we were issued a bone box! And it's exactly what it sounds like. It's a red toolbox full of small animal bones. I have a (broken) skull, a scapula, 2 mandibles, a full vertebral column, some ribs, a humerus, radius and ulna, a femur, tibia and fibula, a front paw and a back paw. It's really neat!
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