From Equine to Wildlife

Check out Emily Tuttle's experience at the Cornell Wildlife Hospital! She is a third year at Cornell University.

"As an equine-focused vet student working as a technician with the Cornell Wildlife Hospital, I have had more incredible experiences than I can count in the last two years. I didn't even know the species of half my patients before I started working here, much less how to treat them. That being said, my favorite experience so far has been working with snapping turtles (which, in case you didn't know, are basically dinosaurs, in my opinion!) Unfortunately many snapping turtles are killed by cars each summer, and some are brought in to our clinic by good Samaritans. Some of the turtles brought in this summer happened to be gravid, and we were able to rescue, incubate, and eventually hatch their eggs. Due to the cold Ithaca winters, the decision was made to raise some of the hatchlings until the following spring, when they would be bigger and better able to survive in the wild.

I've adopted three (Littlefoot, Petrie, and Spike), and they've been a constant source of entertainment and learning opportunities ever since. In the six months I've had them, I've seen their individual personalities come out while watching them practice swimming in deep water, play in dirt, and learn how to catch and eat worms. Littlefoot even decided to climb to the top of a fake tree in their tank (after many failed attempts) [pics included]. They've all doubled in size, and I know that they will be well-suited to life in the wild when they are released in a couple months. I am proud of the work I've done with them, but I am also grateful for the experience. I have been inspired to research a lot about turtle physiology and life in the wild in order to provide them with the best head start that I can. It has also allowed me to appreciate a wider perspective on veterinary medicine, which I believe will be beneficial to me in my future experiences."

Line Drawing

Created by Emmy Hirsch from Cornell University

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SAVMA Chapter Award

A big congratulations is in order to Cornell University... they have been the winners of the SAVMA Chapter Award for the last two issues of the Vet Gazette! WAY TO GO! For those of you who are not familiar, the SAVMA Chapter Award is awarded to the school's chapter with the most submissions to an issue of the Vet Gazette (EXCLUDING TRIVIA). They receive a check for $300 to be used towards SAVMA events all throughout the year, and your school could be next! Make sure you promote the submission window for Volume 55 Issue 4 so YOUR school can be the next winner!

2020 Diversity and Inclusion Webinar Series

Help us kick-off our 4-part 2020 Diversity and Inclusion webinar series beginning TOMORROW, June 26th at 6:30pm CST! Hosted in partnership with Hill's Pet Nutrition and SAVMA, we will be doing webinars addressing multiple aspects of diversity to help promote a more inclusive environment in veterinary medicine.

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VIN COVID-19 Survey Results

VIN recently teamed up with the VBMA to put out a survey to see how COVID-19 has impacted the class of 2020 and 2021 in terms of their careers, mental wellbeing and education. The survey had almost 1000 responses, and the information can be found here!