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Ten Goals:
1.
Experience a vet
office atmosphere, including but not limited to customer/patient interaction,
office organization, animal handling methods, and interpersonal experiences.
2.
Watch new
surgical methods that I have not previously viewed at Brigham Young University
– Idaho.
3.
Learn through
hand-on processes animal handling techniques, including how to manage a variety
of species.
4.
Aid in the
euthanasia of pets, including its processes and disposal.
5.
Create new
friends and references within the veterinary community.
6.
Expand and deepen
my pharmaceutical knowledge.
7.
Ask the licensed
Veterinarians about graduate school experiences and their opinions on the best
method for approaching veterinary school.
8.
Explore the
different job duties available in a veterinary office.
9.
Learn how to draw
blood from small animals from various veins.
10.
Maintain personal
ethics when handling all animals, and interacting with customers and coworkers.
Goal #1
Experience a vet office atmosphere, including but not
limited to customer/patient interaction, office organization, animal handling
methods, and interpersonal experiences.
During my internship at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital
I had the wonderful opportunity to work with one of St. Charles county’s top
veterinary hospitals and its staff. I was able to observe and participate in
daily interactions with our patients and their owners, humane society workers,
and even veterinarians from other hospitals.
I learned the basic “lay of the land” as to how a
veterinary hospital is run. From our reception area, to our examination rooms,
to the back kennels, pharmacy and doctors’ office, and finally to the surgery
rooms and the storage areas – I became intimately acquainted with how all these
rooms became a working hospital through the combined efforts of the team
inside.
Everyone had respective duties, and worked seamlessly
with each other to keep patients constantly flowing through the hospital and
keeping their owners happy. Once a week, on Mondays, the staff would meet and
discuss how we could improve and discuss business points. It was an excellent
set-up, and I truly enjoyed getting to know everybody and how the hospital
operated!
Goal #2
Watch new surgical methods that I have not previously
viewed at Brigham Young University – Idaho.
I was pleased to have the opportunity to witness various
surgical methods and procedures I had not seen before at Brigham Young
University – Idaho in my animal science classes. I was able to observe a
surgical laser being employed, many spays of cats, gastrointestinal tract
explorations, and other surgeries to just name a few.
When puzzled with a method, approach, or entirely new
procedure I was sure to question the doctors or veterinary technicians so I
would fully understand why what was being done was practical. My experiences
were invaluable, and I learned a large amount about surgical procedures!
Goal #3
Learn through hand-on processes animal handling
techniques, including how to manage a variety of species.
I had the wonderful opportunity to work with a variety of
people and animals during my internship at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital. We
had mostly cats and dogs in to our veterinary office, and even a few rats and
rabbits. Because of my fearless nature, all “problem” animals that were
difficult to handle for the technicians were passed on to me. This included
large dogs that were aggressive, fearful, or energetic and cats that were
vicious. I even was in charge of a sick rat because the girls did not like handling
it!
I learned the proper way to restrain and handle these
animals, and even how to properly lift and place unconscious pets. It was a great
experience that will always be useful to me!
Goal #4
Aid in the euthanasia of pets, including its processes and
disposal.
One of the largest hurdles I had yet to overcome was
being able to aid in the euthanasia of an animal. Because that is a large part
of what veterinarians do, I wanted to make sure I was emotionally capable of
handling the death of these pets and strays. It wasn’t long into the internship
I began helping bagging and freezing the corpses of euthanized pets. It wasn’t
until a geriatric cat, however, that I was able to be there while they intentionally
overdosed the animal on anesthetics to humanely euthanize him. I was surprised
how well I handled the situation. While I was sad to see the cat pass, I knew
it was for the best, and I did not become emotional at all.
There were several instances over the internship that
tugged at my heart strings. One in particular was of a stray dog we
affectionately named “Mama” that we had to euthanize not long after her puppies
were born. Of the four puppies, one still survives, and for that I know the
entire ordeal was worth the emotional strain.
Goal #5
Create new friends and references within the veterinary
community.
All the time I worked for Gentle Doctor, I became good
friends with the staff. The receptionists were kind and helpful when I had
computer or scheduling questions, the technicians guided me in everything I
learned to do, the doctors answered all of my difficult questions and the
manager became dependent on me aiding around the office.
About halfway through my internship it became clear the
doctors trusted and respected me, and even helped push me to expand my
knowledge. The technicians depended on me to handle certain animal cases – and
to keep the back running smoothly and stay clean during busy times. When I
finished my internship the manager let me know how greatly I would be missed,
and offered to be a reference any time I would need. It was a wonderful time
becoming such good friends with the staff, and I still miss them today!
Goal #6
Expand and deepen my pharmaceutical knowledge.
While working at Gentle Doctor I was introduced to the
wide range of pharmaceuticals. I spent a large portion of my time learning
about the pharmaceuticals available in the clinic. We had many of the same
medicines we use at the Livestock Center at Brigham Young University – Idaho for
large animals, and even more medicines I’d never heard of. Medicines such as Dermavet
is used for ears, and Flagyl to cure diarrhea, Prednisone to boost immunity,
Deramaxx to aid with arthritis, and many many more.
Although I wasn’t able to learn about everything, by
the end of my internship I was trusted to package and fill prescriptions for
patients – a privilege, I learned, that was not available to almost all interns
because of its delicacy. I was proud to be trusted with such a fragile task.
Goal #7
Ask the licensed Veterinarians about graduate school
experiences and their opinions on the best method for approaching veterinary
school.
I feel I become good friends with our four doctors
available at Gentle Doctor. They helped push me to expand my knowledge, and in
return I asked them questions that gave their DVM degree’s a run for their
money. I also got the wonderful opportunity to ask them how they got into
veterinary school, what the process was like, and if they could do it over what
they would change.
I received a variety of responses between the four
doctors, but learned some things to keep in mind if I decide to pursue a
Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine. I was glad to have the opportunity to pick
their minds, and their advice will always stay with me no matter what I decide.
Goal #8
Explore the different job duties available in a veterinary
office.
Part of my interests lie in understanding each job
available and the duties it entailed at the veterinary office. We have the
usual staff such as the receptionist, which answers calls, makes appointments
and checks out patients to list a few of their duties. And then there are the
vet techs, which handle most of the owner interactions, fill prescriptions and
do the “dirty work” when it comes to handling the animals. The Doctors answer
owner’s questions, tell them findings, perform surgeries and detailed exams,
and much more! And the manager keeps the entire store running smoothly.
But then there are the behind the scenes workers. While
they do not work at the hospital, we depend on them fully. Our repairman, the
humane society employees, and even the local university that runs our lab
analysis which we do not have the equipment for are all deeply involved in the
work. Everyone plays an important part in making the hospital a fully
operational business!
Goal #9
Learn how to draw blood from small animals from various
veins.
I’ve had limited experience drawing blood from animals,
and because my expertise lied with drawing from livestock I decided I would
learn to be adequate at drawing small animal’s blood as well. And so I met with
Dr. Rachel at the local humane society. She was busy spaying about two hundred
cats seized from a hoarding situation, and after aiding her in surgery for a
while she allowed me to practice drawing blood on the unconscious cats.
I drew from various locations, including the forearm, the
back leg and the jugular. I was able to drawing blood most the time, but
sometimes I would miss. With regular practice I believe I can become very
proficient in drawing a large range of animal’s blood!
Goal #10
Maintain personal ethics when handling all animals, and
interacting with customers and coworkers.
During my experience at Gentle Doctor’s, it became clear
that some of the other employees were not as calm or gentle with the animals as
I was. They would sometimes lose patience and yell at frightened or aggressive
animals to sit still, and were often more rough with some animals than was
necessary. However other techs were like me, and were patient with the animals
and made sure to write down the best handling method for that specific pet in
their chart to minimize the trouble caused. Often we found that with many
animals, “less is more”. Large, frightening dogs would complacently sit by as
you poked them as long as they weren’t being held down.
I decided I wanted to maintain my personal ethics when it
came to animal handling. I never got short with the animal, raised my voice, or
did anything to cause him or her harm. I felt a better and more secure person
when I was able to walk away from my internship knowing I had taught those
girls that sometimes the pet just needs a moment to calm down. I know I had
made a bit of difference in how pets were treated there.
Overall I learned a great deal during my internship. I
meant many wonderful and friendly people, made great friends and references,
and got to experience a large part of the veterinarian world. My experience was
an invaluable one that taught me more than I could have hoped for. It met and
exceeded all of my goals I had set, and that was worth the work by itself.
I felt the workers at Gentle Doctor went above and beyond
their responsibilities when teaching me how work was done at their hospital. It
was the same sort of customer service that kept patients coming and
recommending us to others in the area. It was the atmosphere and dedication to
their work that made Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital one of the leading
veterinary offices in St. Charles, and it was a huge honor to work alongside
the staff.
I know every single person in that office left a positive
impression on me, and I can only hope I brought them as much joy and was able
to exceed their expectations in what an intern was like.
In any case, I know who all my pets will see from now on!
Daily Description:
December 20th: Began work at
Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital. Shelly showed me around the vet office and
introduced me to the veterinarians and vet technicians. The clinic has seven
patient rooms, one of which is reserved purely for euthanasia’s. Each room is
heavily cleaned after each patient to ensure safety for all animals. The clinic
has two microscope, one for normal observations and a second for ear
cytology’s. They have two surgery rooms,
and use a laser for all their operations
- which I am excited to observe. Finally there is an x-ray room, which I
am told animals are not sedated for, which is exciting news for me. I worked
from 2pm to 8pm.
December 21st: Today I mostly followed the
technicians around and learned the methods for all of their processes. I learned
how to set up a fecal matter for observation. Fecalsol and the fecal matter are
mixed and left to set for fifteen minutes with a slip cover set on top on the
tube. The slip is then placed on a slide and searched for signs of parasite
eggs. Aided in animal restraint and mostly kept the clinic clean (for it was
the quickest thing I could learn to do, and it was a busy day for the
hospital). I worked from 2pm to 8pm.
December 24th: It is Christmas Eve, and I was
surprised how many animals had appointments. Mostly vaccinations. I was placed
in charge of two dogs with kennel cough, a disease often found in shelters. We
would do treatments called “NEB”, which involved placing the dogs in separate
confined boxes and filling the chamber with vapor to ease their breathing. They
received three of these treatments each day for fifteen minutes each. I
continued other duties I’d been doing until this day, including walking
animals, cleaning the clinic, setting up and checking fecal matter and
restraining animals. I worked from 7:30am until 2pm (the hospital closed 2
hours early due to the holiday).
Week 1 Hours: 18.5 (short due to holiday hours)
*Set hours for remainder of internship: Monday 2-8,
Wednesday 2-8, and Saturdays 7:30-4
December 26th: This week I was introduced to more
of the staff at Gentle Doctor’s, and continued caring for the puppies with
kennel cough. I brought up concerns with some technicians and my manager about
bringing home any infectious diseases or parasites to my own pets at home. They
instructed me on how to wash my scrubs, and what to shower with to reduce the
likelihood of becoming a carrier for health problems. I was shown how to set up
ear cytology’s. Ear cytology’s are set up by using an ear swab to retrieve matter from
an animal’s ear, and then rubbed on a slide. It is heat fixed and stained.
Finally the slide is viewed under an oil immersion lense.
December 28th: Today was an interesting day. The
appointments are starting to pick up after the Christmas season, and more
animals requiring urgent care have been arriving. One such animal was a dog
that had snagged its toenail on something and had ripped out most of the nail.
We were forced to remove what remained of the toenail, including its qwik. The
toenail will most likely not grow back. We advised to owner to keep the rest of
the dog’s toe trimmed short to prevent this situation from happening again.
December 31st: It’s the end of
the year and I’m already feeling great about the year to come. Today was rather
slow. I spent my time learning more about the pharmaceuticals available in the
clinic. We have many of the same medicines we use at the Livestock Center for
large animals, and many more medicines I’ve never heard of. Dermavet is used
for ears, Flagyl to cure diarrhea, Prednisone to boost immunity, Deramaxx to
aid with arthritis, and many many more. I also learned how our rabies tags
worked – we have different shapes for different counties and different colors
for fixed verses unfixed animals.
Week 2 Hours: 21.5
January 2nd: Today was rather
exciting for me, my first parasite was found in the fecal matter I’d been
checking. After checking with Dr. Julie, it was confirmed to be tapeworm eggs.
They look like a cluster of bubbles under the microscope. I was thrilled to
have successfully spotted this parasite, as I was worried I might have been
overlooking things in the debris I normally saw in past fecal samples. I was
more assured in what I was looking for when it came to checking the fecal
matter. The rest of the day went fairly typically.
January 4th: Today I aided in an x-ray. I helped
hold the dog in place and learned how our x-ray machine worked, and then was
shown how to develop the film. The dark room reminded me of my days in
photography class during high school. The film is removed from the casing and
placed in the machine to feed through and develop. New, blank film is placed in
the casing. It was quite important to wait for the developing film to be far
into the machine before opening the door to x-ray (and to double check the
blank films were safely covered).
January 7th: I learned more about certain
applications of tools in the hospital. When we trim a dog’s nails too closely
and it bleeds we’d rub the end of what seemed to be a long match stick to the
toe with silver nitrate on the end. I was familiar with this, for my mother
once worked at a veterinary clinic, however I wasn’t sure how the silver
nitrate was stopping the bleeding. I asked a Dr. Amy who informed me it was a
clotting agent. Today the last of the two puppies with kennel cough went home.
Week 3 Hours: 21.5
January 9th: While we’ve had a few euthanasia’s
while I’ve worked here, my first was me standing with a technician as we put
down a cat in the back for the owner did not wish to be with it, today was the
first day I personally had to place the animal in the bag and bring it to the
freezer in the back. We have the humane society pick up the animals to be
disposed of when the freezer is full. Animals in purple bags are normal
disposals, but animals in black bags are ash returns. We have a dedicated room
for euth’s, a softly lit room with a couch, large dog bed and plenty of
tissues. Once the owners have left we collect the body. However this particular
dog was an emergency euth, and was not in our specially set up room. It was
somewhat heart wrenching to have to gather the dog into a bag, but I held it
together while aiding Shelly in placing the body in the freezer.
January 11th: My great
grandmother passed away last weekend, and today was the funeral in Illinois. I
was unable to work at the vet office.
January 14th: Today I found my second parasite in
fecal matter, roundworms. There were more difficult to identify as they tend to
look similar to normal bubbles present in the fecal solution. But the “ring”
around the egg was fairly obvious. Not to mention this particular case was very
infested with the parasite. The rest of the day was spend holding animals for
exams, and at one point I asked a Dr. Melissa to show me what she was seeing on
an x-ray of a dog’s stomach.
Week 4 Hours: 15.5
January 16: Today was very fast-paced and I was
unfortunately only trying to keep up with mostly fecal, and cleaning rooms and
doing the laundry. I’d help hold animals when possible, and take care of the
animals staying with us at the clinic. At the end of the day the technicians
told the doctors and manager how helpful I was – and the only reason we left on
time was because how on top of things I was. I was proud that I could be
helpful during such a busy schedule.
January 18: I was taught how to set up a urine analysis
today. We collect the urine from the animal in a plastic dish, draw some up in
a syringe and check the balance. We then place a drop of urine on a stick that
analyzes the pH, glucose, white blood cells count, and more. Finally we spin
the urine in the centrifuge and place a drop on a slide, place a drop of dye in
the urine and another drop of the urine/dye mixture on another slide. The
doctor then checks the urine for any cells.
January 21: Today I
brought my own dog, Bodi, in to the vet clinic. I wanted to confirm his arthritis
– but because of his age my normal vet refused x-rays as he normally sedated
animals for it. Our clinic did not typically sedate their animals for x-rays,
and was generous enough to let me bring in my dog for some x-rays at a
discounted rate. Bodi has advanced arthritis in his hips, and we put him on
Deramaxx to aid with the pain.
Week 5 Hours: 21.5
January 23: One of our technicians
brought in her dogs to have some bite wounds checked after a dog fight they’d
gotten in the night before. It was discovered on both of them they had small
lumps. The Dr. Julie took a syringe and drew some cells from one and found it
was only a fatty deposit. However on the second dog the lump raised concerns
and Tara (the technician) was asked to bring her dog back to remove the small
lump. The rest of the day I continued all the duties I have learned to this
point.
January 25: Tonight was my first
emergency I was fully involved in! We had a foreign body emergency surgery to
remove a pacifier a dog had ingested. It was found to be lodged just before the
duodenum in the dog’s intestines. The binky had stretched the dog’s G.I. to its
maximum. After removing the foreign body we found the sucker portion further
down the tract. Dr. Melissa then searched the entirety of the tract to check
the dog had not eaten anything else, and then we sewed him up. I was the
assisting vet during the procedure, and was aided by another technician when I
needed help.
January 28: Today was another busy day full of anal gland
suppressing, toe nail trimming, vaccinations and fecal checks. I brought Bodi
in once more to check his blood and determine if his liver was handling the new
medication well. Because our blood machine was brand new our manager discounted
the analysis as training, which I thanked her for profusely. Bodi was found to
be in normal ranch of everything – which put my mind at ease. I picked up more
Deramaxx – the last bit I could before we were out. The manufacturer had shut
down the factory due to complications with the FDA.
Week 6 Hours: 22.5
January 30: It’s the end of another month, and I feel I’m
really getting the hang of things at the vet clinic. I do all I can, but avoid
the computers and the clients for legal reasons. Each Monday we have a staff
meeting about how the hospital is doing, and raise any concerns we may have.
I’ve been learning about how we operate and what sorts of issues are tackled
during these meetings. Anything from procedures, updates on the pharmacy,
coupons, to things needing to be repaired in the building. Employees are also
rewarded if they are mentioned in a positive way on the surveys our clients
receive after they visit. I’ve also learned through these meeting that Gentle
Doctor is one of the best veterinary hospitals in St. Charles counties.
February 1: Today I learned more about how our x-ray machine
works. We measure the animal’s torso as if they were a box then set the major
and minor settings according to a chart on the wall. Depending on the type of
x-rays we generally take pictures of the animal on its side and back. Other
than that the day has been fairly uneventful, with me continuing my duties I’ve
learned thus far.
February 4: Today we had an extremely emaciated pit bull/hound
mix brought to us by the humane society. Her mammary glands were swollen, and
everyone kept asking if they found any puppies with her (there were not). After
the clinic calmed down from appointments we took her to be x-rayed. She was
pregnant with four puppies and was due within a week. All the puppies appeared
healthy and developed on the x-ray, much to our surprise. We dubbed the dog
“Mama”. I ended up being placed in charge of her. It took a lot of effort but I
force fed her, and we gave her lots of medicine to calm the diarrhea and rid
her of the internal parasites she had.
Week 7 Hours: 21.5
February 6: Today another humane society
dog joined us. This was an American Bulldog that had been dragged behind a
vehicle. His entire underside was scraped and torn – every single one of his
toenails was completely gone and his paw pads were raw. The worst damage
however was to his back left knee, which had a hole almost to the bone. He was
emaciated and lethargic, but very friendly with people. I took on caring for
this big boy, which we affectionately called “Hoss”, alongside my duties with
Mama.
February 8: Mama had her puppies Monday
night! Three of the four survived, and are looking well. We still are having
troubles feeding Mama, and I fear she may not be medically able to eat. Hoss is looking better, and we found he has no
broken bones. He lays in his kennel each day, but has many admirers already
fawning over him. I’ve started giving on of our in-house cats, Ichabod,
Benadryl each time he gets into any food he’s allergic to (which is often). All
other duties have continued.
February 11: Today I continued caring for Mama and Hoss.
Hoss is becoming more energetic, and the puppies are getting to be much larger.
We had another dog with a tendon injury in, which required extensive surgery. I
also filmed Dr. Bob, the owner, performing a declaw on a cat. We have a laser
to perform the surgery with, which I am a big fan of. The recovery time is
longer, but the damage is less. I’ve continued checking fecal, cleaning, caring
for other animals in the hospital and watching our doctors and techs to learn
all I can from them!
Week 8 Hours: 21.5
February 13: Today I came in to discover
Mama was no longer at the clinic. When I asked, they confirmed that she had to
be euthanized. Her intestines were dangerously inflamed, and one of the puppies
had already passed away. The remaining two went to a foster home.
February 15: I continued caring for Hoss and completing all
my other daily duties. We’ve had many interesting cases in these weeks I’ve
worked, and everything is becoming easier to understand. Today we had another
foreign body emergency in, however this time it was a cat. Instead of
performing surgery however, we used a scope with a small claw on the end to
fish out the nine hair ties the cat had ingested. Dr. Melissa allowed me to
take a look in the scope. It was difficult to discern what I was seeing until
the scope moved and I could distinguish the walls of the intestines. The cat
went home a few hours after the procedure.
February 18: We had two different emergencies today. One had
a fever that peaked at 108 F. We pulled that dog out onto the cold tiles,
packed icepacks around her, and placed a box fan pointing at her. I took her
temperature periodically, and watched it drop down to 104.6 F before she was
picked up by her owner to be rushed to the emergency clinic. The other
emergency was a heart failure dog. The owner wished to prolong the dog’s life
until her husband came home. We kept the dog on oxygen all day, and used
diuretics to reduce the fluid in the lungs. However halfway through the day the
dog had a seizure, with her limbs completely locking. The owner came in and
made the final call to euthanize her. After the owner left one of the techs picked
up the dog’s body and fluid ran freely from her mouth and nose. This was the
fluid that had been filling her lungs.
Week 9 Hours: 21.5
February 20: Today I came in to work to
find Tiffany, one of the technicians, was setting up a dog to have a dental
done. I asked to observe, and one of the other technicians suggested I do the
dental myself. Tiffany instructed me on how to use the scaler to knock loose
plaque on both the inside and outsides of all the teeth. If any teeth are loose
a doctor is called in to make the call on whether an extraction is required or
not. After that all the teeth are polished. All the while vitals are monitored
and ISO is changed according to the dog’s needs.
February 22: I met Dr. Rachel at the local humane society
today and aided her in spaying a large number of cats that were rescued from a
hoarding situation. We had to euthanize only one that had very advanced cancer.
While there I spoke to a volunteer at the shelter about the puppies of Mama’s.
Only one has survived, and one of our technicians at the veterinary hospital
wants to adopt him. I hope the young puppy will pull through, as I know that
tech will be an excellent owner for him!
February 25: Hoss was picked up Friday. I
was glad he was finally able to be cared for outside of our veterinary office,
but everyone is sad to see him go. I enjoyed seeing his progress in our care,
and how much he’s improved. He went from a lethargic torn up mess to an
energetic, happy and steadily weight-gaining dog. Only the hole in his leg was
cause for caution, but the rest of his wounds were finally just minor scrapes
and bruises. Hoss had some behavioral problems with other animals, and I hope
he can one day find another home
Week 10 Hours: 21.5
February 27: Today was fairly uneventful
compared to last week and the many different things I was able to do. We had
inspections today so I cleaned the entire hospital, which took most the day.
Most of the technicians have switched from drawing blood from veins in the leg,
to doing a “jug stick” in the vein in animals’ necks. I practiced all types of
blood draws on the animals in the humane society we were spaying (they were all
female cats), but at the veterinary hospital – because the animals are owned –
I normally hold for the technicians and they draw the blood. Then I check a
drop for heartworms, and place the marble top in a centrifuge for the blood to
be later reviewed at another location (we store the spun blood in the
refrigerator).
February 29: Today we had a dog in that
had been in and out of the clinic for the past month. The dog had been chewing
his back left foot obsessively, and had eaten through most of the flesh.
Despite deterrents, and us ruling out all possible medical conditions, we could
not cure this dog of his foot chewing. So today we amputated the dog’s entire
leg (which is less painful and easier on the dog to learn how to walk). Even
with his leg gone however, that dog was still energetic and moved quite fast! I
even had to chase him down when he got loose inside the building.
March 3: The humane society dropped off an emergency for us.
Apparently Thursday we had a second amputation that had been picked up the day
of the surgery by an irresponsible humane society worker. Today, after 2-3 days
with no antibiotics nor fluids, the Jack Russell Terrier (which we later dubbed
“JRT”) was crashing and stank of dying flesh and infection. The technicians
were enraged the humane society would let something of this magnitude to occur
without questioning it, even when one of our tech’s had pushed when JRT was
picked up “Don’t we keep amputees for 24 hours?” and the H.S. worker brushed it
off. JRT was completely limp in my arms as I carried him to and from our
surgery room to insert a catheter and be examined by various doctors at the
clinic. We aren’t sure if he’ll survive the night.
Week 11 Hours: 21.5
March 5: Today we had a bloodhound in
with an infected uterus – an unfortunate risk of not spaying a dog. The dog’s
uterine horns were inflamed to the size of my forearm, and a complete
hysterectomy was required. She was placed in my care. JRT almost passed away
Saturday night, but somehow survived through today. He is awake, but quite
unaware of his surroundings. He’s on plenty of fluids and antibiotics however,
and I have a small bit of hope he’ll pull through this alright. Today we were
met with a representative of some tick, flea and heartworm preventative
medicines – which hasn’t been distributing or making the medicine for some
weeks now due to a discrepancy with the FDA and the human side of their drug
production. Luckily we had gotten out hands on another vet clinic’s Sentinnel
that they had decided not to carry anymore and we were able to provide for our
patients.
March 7: Today was rather slow, with a lot of cleaning and
restocking in the hospital and fairly routine appointments. I spent the better
part of the day caring for JRT, who is looking much better today. He’s making
eye contact with us, and will stand when set of his feet. The flesh around his
amputation site is sloughing off, and smells quite awful. There’s talk they may
remove the dying and dead flesh soon. JRT is also willing to eat his dry food,
which is very positive for his outcome.
March 10: This is my last Saturday, and it was quite the
day! We were nonstop with work. We had a Dachshund that required a dew claw
toenail to be removed (a doctor simply used a hemostat to rip it off like a
bandaid). We had a stray dog that was hit by a car come in. He had a fractured
fibula, but was very sweet and patient with all the people flitting around him.
He let me carry him to and from his kennel quite a few times (which was no easy
task, he was a forty or fifty pound dog!). I helped hold some dogs for anal
glands (with the exception of a pit bull that was too strong and was too scared
to sit still). We also x-rayed a possible foreign body dog, but were unable to
find what exactly was causing the dog’s distress. There were other, smaller
events that kept me on my feet all day long as well. All in all it was great
surmise and test of just about everything I’ve learned while working at this
vet clinic.
Week 12 Hours: 21.5
Total Hours: 250
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