Official Rotations Are Finished!

Yesterday was my last day on my official clinical rotations.  This coming week I begin my 6 weeks of professional development which really are more clinical rotations.  I really enjoyed my time on my WEAMS rotation.  Yesterday I had a snake and a cockatoo for patients.  Tuesday and Thursday I was at different zoos so got to see and help with a number of different animals including rabbits, goats, chinchillas, a snake, a degu, a turkey vulture, a wallaroo, a baby otter, a meerkat, zebras, an owl, a tree frog, a cockatoo, and probably a few more that I'm forgetting.  It was really interesting trying to learn about all these different animals that I don't know a ton about.  

This coming week I will be on my first professional development rotation, small animal critical care.  It is a two week rotation so will go until mid-April.  Beginning on Monday, the third years start their clinical rotations so it will be interesting to look in the rearview mirror and see what we looked like when we first started our rotations.  

In honor of our last official day on rotations, us students and doctors on WEAMS all wore bowties, it was fun to see the reactions of the other staff and students at the hospital and of the clients when they would see a bunch of us wearing bowties.  

Dr Watson, Andy, Dr Mitchell, Sarah, Andrew, me.  There was another girl Steph on our rotation but she was off yesterday.

Job

Last Friday, I had one appointment but the owner forgot about it so I ended up with no appointments on Friday.

Saturday morning I accepted a job position at All Pets Veterinary Hospital in Peoria, IL.  There is one full time and one part time vet.  They see small animals and exotics so dogs, cats, hamsters, gerbils, guinea pigs, chinchillas, rabbits, ferrets, birds, mini pigs, and pretty much anything else. 

Today is the first day of my last week on WEAMS.  I had a lovebird that had a lump on its head.  It turned out to just be some debris that had dried up and stuck to the feathers.  Then, this afternoon I had a ferret who has adrenal disease and an insulinoma, a tumor of the pancreas that causes low blood glucose.  We are rechecking the glucose and will adjust medications as we see fit based on the results of the bloodwork.  I have really enjoyed the WEAMS rotation.  I am going to a zoo tomorrow and Thursday so that should be fun.

WEAMS Day 4

Tuesday I ended up only having a blue-fronted Amazon parrot and not the two parakeets as my parrot was pretty involved.  We ended up taking radiographs of the parrot and then putting it under anesthesia to take a liver biopsy.  It was the first surgery on a bird I've ever seen but I did get to intubate it and that was the first time I've ever intubated a bird.  So I can check that off my bucket list.  Yesterday we went to a place near Peoria, IL to look at a bear.  Unfortunately, the bear laughed at all the drugs we tried giving it via darts or in honey and eggs and we ended up leaving without touching the bear as no one wanted to get killed.  While it was disappointing, it was still kind of neat.  Today we've had a macaw, an African grey parrot, and a ferret and we have a cockatiel and a chinchilla (my patient) coming in still this afternoon.  I have to say the wide variety of animals I'm seeing as well as my lack of knowledge regarding most of these animals makes for a very interesting, and informative rotation!

WEAMS

Last week I was on imaging, it was slow and tremendously boring.  That's all I have to say about that.  This past weekend I made it to the Beutel Spring Fling, I had a great time and was able to spend some time with my grandparents as well which was nice.  I was in Tremont church Sunday and then headed back to Champaign Sunday evening. 

This week I started what is my last "official" clinical rotation.  I am on WEAMS (wildlife and exotic animal medicine and surgery) for this week and next week.  The first thing we did yesterday was extract a tooth from a pet rat.  My personal patient yesterday was a Quaker parakeet.  Today I have a parrot and two parakeets coming.  I have to say I'm a little out of my comfort zone in all this but that I'm also learning a decent amount too. 

Catching Up

Time continues to move on.  Last week I was on anesthesia which is not my favorite rotation however I enjoyed last week more than I did the full two week rotation of it.  This week now I am on imaging.  It tends to be sort of a slow, semi-boring rotation so hopefully it will move on by.  This weekend I hope to make it to the Beutel spring fling in Tremont and spend some time with my grandparents.