Nothing much has changed at the Clinic except for the fact that I am there way more often and am now getting paid!
A few weeks ago I heard they were looking for a new Kennel Assistant that would be able to come in Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday every week and then one Saturday a month. By the time I had found out about it, they had already filled the position but they told me I could fill out an application the next time I come in to shadow for the future. When I came in a few days later they informed me that the girl didn't work out and I was hired. I didn't even need to fill out an application or have an interview. It worked out very well!
My job is basically cleaning up at the end of the day which isn't glamorous but it pays well and is fairly easy. Plus, I still get to watch all the interesting things that happen there everyday. Saturdays are probably the coolest because there is only one vet tech working so my job becomes helping her with whatever she needs like holding the animal and things like that which is a lot more hands on than cleaning. I'm really excited to be working at a place that I love and even with all the extra hours there, I'm still excited about the idea of becoming a Veterinarian!
Sunday, November 25, 2012
Tuesday, November 6, 2012
All Creatures Great and Small
The book I am reading in called All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot. I picked it because, for one, it was one of the first books I found when I typed in Veterinary Medicine and also because it actually sounds very interesting. The book goes through all of the happy and sad moments Veterinarian James Herriot experienced during his first few years as a county vet. I am excited to read about things that I will, hopefully, experience myself one day.
Wednesday, October 24, 2012
Always Something New
Last Friday, I went into the clinic at my usual time and expected to go through the usual routine of back-to-back appointments. I have come to learn that the best thing about this career is that even though your day consists of the same schedule, the things you handle are always different.
In my 2 hour shift I got the chance to witness and "help" draw a urine sample, look for kidney stones, and actually see ear mites.
I have heard Dr. D ask the Vet Techs to get urine samples from different patients quite a few times and I always wondered how they did that. Well, on Friday I got to see! Basically, they lift up the patient (in this case it was a dog) onto a table and flip it on its back. They then use an ultrasound to locate the bladder and then they draw out the urine using a needle. It is much harder than it sounds.. Especially when the dog we had to do this on was a dog that had been rescued from being a Mama at a puppy mill.. so she had some trust issues. But she trusted us more than her son did and he was the one we were checking for kidney stones. Looking for kidney stones had the same routine as getting a urine sample, minus the needle. So all we did was flip him on his back, and look at the ultrasound to see if we spotted any stones. Luckily, we didn't find any. But, he did empty his anal gland during the process.For those of you who don't know what that is.. It is the thing dogs use to "mark their territory" and identify other dogs. It is common for the dog to empty it during super stressful times leaving you with a very stinky dog. But, you get used to it.
The next thing I got to see was actual, live ear mites.. under a microscope. It was very detailed and and moving and kinda gross but it was really cool to see.
In my 2 hour shift I got the chance to witness and "help" draw a urine sample, look for kidney stones, and actually see ear mites.
I have heard Dr. D ask the Vet Techs to get urine samples from different patients quite a few times and I always wondered how they did that. Well, on Friday I got to see! Basically, they lift up the patient (in this case it was a dog) onto a table and flip it on its back. They then use an ultrasound to locate the bladder and then they draw out the urine using a needle. It is much harder than it sounds.. Especially when the dog we had to do this on was a dog that had been rescued from being a Mama at a puppy mill.. so she had some trust issues. But she trusted us more than her son did and he was the one we were checking for kidney stones. Looking for kidney stones had the same routine as getting a urine sample, minus the needle. So all we did was flip him on his back, and look at the ultrasound to see if we spotted any stones. Luckily, we didn't find any. But, he did empty his anal gland during the process.For those of you who don't know what that is.. It is the thing dogs use to "mark their territory" and identify other dogs. It is common for the dog to empty it during super stressful times leaving you with a very stinky dog. But, you get used to it.
The next thing I got to see was actual, live ear mites.. under a microscope. It was very detailed and and moving and kinda gross but it was really cool to see.
Tuesday, October 16, 2012
My Goal for this Week
Going into iQuest, I knew my main and overall goal was to learn as much as I could about veterinary medicine and the day to day life of a veterinarian. I believe going in once a week to work with and shadow Dr. Dowd is achievable and very helpful when it comes to being able to meet my goal.
This week, I plan on getting better at remembering where things are so I can start helping out more with appointments. I also hope to get another chance at preparing vaccines so I can really learn how to do it by myself.
This week, I plan on getting better at remembering where things are so I can start helping out more with appointments. I also hope to get another chance at preparing vaccines so I can really learn how to do it by myself.
Monday, October 15, 2012
Meet Molly!
I believe I've mentioned before that as a hobby I foster puppies and dogs for ARF. Even though it isn't exactly a part of my iQuest experience, it does relate to my love for animals so I thought I'd share my current foster pup, Molly, who I get to take care of for the next 5 weeks!
Tuesday, October 9, 2012
6 Hour Shift
I now have a set schedule to go to the clinic every Friday and last Friday we didn't have school. This gave me a great oppurtunity to go in and be able to observe a surgery since the clinic only does it from 11-2. I checked with Dr. Dowd and there was a "lump removal" surgery scheduled for that Friday at 10:30 am.
When I got there, everything was a bit chaotic being as everyone was running behind. So instead of having the surgery at 10:30, I didn't end up watching it until about 12:30. But I was still kept busy.
I shadowed appointments for the first hour or so and then watched prep for the surgery. The dog was already under so they had time to give it a nice teeth cleaning, then shaved where the surgery was to be done, and then moved him into the surgery room.
They gave me a mask and hair net and I put that on as I watched Dr. Dowd prepare herself for surgery. I was pretty proud of myself for not passing out or getting disgusted by my mentor pulling and cutting out a lump which was basically a big ball of fat. Once that was done the techs cleaned up and Dr. D and I weighed the lump which came to be about 11 1/2 ounces.
After that was done, we went on more appointments and I ended up learning how to prepare vaccines. On the last appointment which was with a adorable puppy, Dr. D asked me to go get and prepare a puppy parvo vaccine for the puppy. I however had no idea how to do that so I went on got help from a vet tech that I had been working with all day. She showed me how to do it so I was prepared to accomplish it by myself next time.
I ended up being at the clinic for just about 6 hours but I had a lot of fun and ended up leaning a whole lot.
When I got there, everything was a bit chaotic being as everyone was running behind. So instead of having the surgery at 10:30, I didn't end up watching it until about 12:30. But I was still kept busy.
I shadowed appointments for the first hour or so and then watched prep for the surgery. The dog was already under so they had time to give it a nice teeth cleaning, then shaved where the surgery was to be done, and then moved him into the surgery room.
They gave me a mask and hair net and I put that on as I watched Dr. Dowd prepare herself for surgery. I was pretty proud of myself for not passing out or getting disgusted by my mentor pulling and cutting out a lump which was basically a big ball of fat. Once that was done the techs cleaned up and Dr. D and I weighed the lump which came to be about 11 1/2 ounces.
After that was done, we went on more appointments and I ended up learning how to prepare vaccines. On the last appointment which was with a adorable puppy, Dr. D asked me to go get and prepare a puppy parvo vaccine for the puppy. I however had no idea how to do that so I went on got help from a vet tech that I had been working with all day. She showed me how to do it so I was prepared to accomplish it by myself next time.
I ended up being at the clinic for just about 6 hours but I had a lot of fun and ended up leaning a whole lot.
Wednesday, September 26, 2012
Fast-Paced First Day
The bell rang signaling fifth period was over. As everyone ran to get to class on time, I ran to my car to make sure I wasn't late on my first day at my internship. I ran home and changed into my new, pink scrubs then went straight to the Tassajara Veterinary Clinic.
I got there early, but decided to go in anyway. I was told to go on ahead into the back and wait for Dr. Dowd to get out of the appointment she was currently in. I didn't mind waiting because I got to explore the clinic a little. I read all of the notes that were posted about what types of medicines were scarce and articles on recent veterinary medicince discoveries and cases. I also checked out all of the dogs and cats that were in holding, waiting to go home. After 10 minutes Dr. Dowd came out and we were on the move.
We went straight to her next appointment which, to my excitment, was with a shih tzu puppy. It was a quick check up that was soon over and then we went on the the next appointment and then the next appointment and so on. Each appointment was with a brand new breed and a brand new problem.
About an hour into my shift I experienced the one thing that has stopped me from locking down on the idea of becoming a vet. Euthanization.
I have never seen an animal get put to sleep, neither did I ever really want to.. Though I knew I would have to witness it someday if I wanted to become a vet, I didn't think it would be on the first of my internship. Nonetheless, it was something I had to experience and the other vet techs were very nice and explained the process to me the whole time while reminding me that the animal doesn't feel a thing and it was the last thing they could do to take away the pain.
I left that day feeling a mixture of things. But I survived.
I drove home with a little more faith in the idea of me becoming a veterinarian and I can't wait to experience even more.
I got there early, but decided to go in anyway. I was told to go on ahead into the back and wait for Dr. Dowd to get out of the appointment she was currently in. I didn't mind waiting because I got to explore the clinic a little. I read all of the notes that were posted about what types of medicines were scarce and articles on recent veterinary medicince discoveries and cases. I also checked out all of the dogs and cats that were in holding, waiting to go home. After 10 minutes Dr. Dowd came out and we were on the move.
We went straight to her next appointment which, to my excitment, was with a shih tzu puppy. It was a quick check up that was soon over and then we went on the the next appointment and then the next appointment and so on. Each appointment was with a brand new breed and a brand new problem.
About an hour into my shift I experienced the one thing that has stopped me from locking down on the idea of becoming a vet. Euthanization.
I have never seen an animal get put to sleep, neither did I ever really want to.. Though I knew I would have to witness it someday if I wanted to become a vet, I didn't think it would be on the first of my internship. Nonetheless, it was something I had to experience and the other vet techs were very nice and explained the process to me the whole time while reminding me that the animal doesn't feel a thing and it was the last thing they could do to take away the pain.
I left that day feeling a mixture of things. But I survived.
I drove home with a little more faith in the idea of me becoming a veterinarian and I can't wait to experience even more.
Thursday, September 13, 2012
Love at First Meet
On Monday, I finally got the oppurtunity to meet my mentor that will help me make sure becoming a veterinarian is really what I was meant to do.
My mentor, Dr. Dowd, was able to see me right when I arrived and seemed as excited to help me with my journey as I was. We talked about my past experience with animals and even discussed my two dogs at home. We then talked about my intentions and goals and she informed me that I would not only get to watch the day-to-day life as a vet but I would also get to experience it as she was planning on teaching me things as we go along. This got me really excited.
After all the talking she took me on a short tour. The clinic is quite small compared to the one I take my dogs to, but I thought this might be good because there was a smaller chance of me getting lost. When we got back to the reception area I met with the rest of the staff. They were all very nice and easy going which was yet another plus.
Before I left, Dr. D told me that I should probably go get scrubs so I don't have to worry about a dress code. I happily agreed and we shook hand and she said "See you Friday!"
I was so happy when I walked out. I never thought I would get an oppurtunity like this especially being under 18 with no vet med experience. The one and only downfall to the whole meeting was probably Dr. D telling me how every person she has mentored ended up not wanting to be a vet after they were done interning with her.. This would be discouraging for some, but for me it is great motivation.
For I want to be her first intern to graduate vet school.
My mentor, Dr. Dowd, was able to see me right when I arrived and seemed as excited to help me with my journey as I was. We talked about my past experience with animals and even discussed my two dogs at home. We then talked about my intentions and goals and she informed me that I would not only get to watch the day-to-day life as a vet but I would also get to experience it as she was planning on teaching me things as we go along. This got me really excited.
After all the talking she took me on a short tour. The clinic is quite small compared to the one I take my dogs to, but I thought this might be good because there was a smaller chance of me getting lost. When we got back to the reception area I met with the rest of the staff. They were all very nice and easy going which was yet another plus.
Before I left, Dr. D told me that I should probably go get scrubs so I don't have to worry about a dress code. I happily agreed and we shook hand and she said "See you Friday!"
I was so happy when I walked out. I never thought I would get an oppurtunity like this especially being under 18 with no vet med experience. The one and only downfall to the whole meeting was probably Dr. D telling me how every person she has mentored ended up not wanting to be a vet after they were done interning with her.. This would be discouraging for some, but for me it is great motivation.
For I want to be her first intern to graduate vet school.
Friday, September 7, 2012
My Intentions
There is nothing I love more than taking care of animals and to make that passion into a career has always been my dream. Having worked with shelter animals these past four years, I have yet to experience working in a vet clinic where I know all the animals I meet have loving homes to go back to.
My main intentions for this internship is to experience the day to day life of a veterinarian and to make sure I enjoy this career as much as I enjoy the idea of it.
My main intentions for this internship is to experience the day to day life of a veterinarian and to make sure I enjoy this career as much as I enjoy the idea of it.
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