From Forging Horseshoes to Knives

In her spare time, Alaine Kringen from Iowa State is taking forging lessons and learning to make some pretty neat stuff.  Below is a sampling of photos from two knives she made and inserted into deer antlers for handles!  Congratulations on your Life as a Vet Student Award!

An Indian Summer

submitted by Mackenzie Wilder, University of Missouri 

I am bumping along, in a minuscule green rickshaw down the dusty roads of Faridabad, India. Our driver manages, without signaling, to cross the crowded road containing unclothed children, wandering cows, and honking motorcycles.  Without taking my eyes from the road I can still view extreme poverty. Flies buzz around a diseased dog’s head, cows lie in the street ruminating on old trash, and monkeys jump violently between roofs to steal food.  Dogs travel in packs along the streets, fighting to survive alongside the locals. Rabies is an ever present fear.  By living one month in India, it became apparent to me that veterinarians are a necessity not only to the health and welfare of the animals, but also to the health of the community.

I lived, breathed, and dreamed India during the summer of 2010 when I volunteered through International Volunteer Headquarters as a medical student. Not surprisingly, everyone assumed that I was a pre-med major. After introductions, the owner and founder of Zenith (human) hospital was shocked when I said that my passion was working with animals in the medical field. “Can you seriously hold animals to the same medical standards as people? Why would you want to do that with your life?” Mr. Sharma exclaimed. At that exact moment I thought of at least ten reasons for my preference and I knew he would never understand a single one.  I realized that although the title veterinarian meant absolute nothing to him it meant everything to me; my past, present, future, everything for which I had worked and studied.  I came to the conclusion that there was no need to forcefully defend myself and prove to Mr. Sharma that veterinarians were comparable to physicians.  With my passion shining through, I simply told him that animals were an important aspect of my life. These creatures have taught me immeasurable lessons, from loyalty, patience, friendship, and love to pain and suffering. They have made me into the person I am today and I will do anything for them in return, whether that be through health procedures or companionship. He smiled.

In India, I was amazed to see the difference in animal culture. The vast majority of dogs lived on the street. They had terrible skin problems, and were inflicted with wounds and tumors no veterinarian would ever treat.  In fact, no animal would ever receive treatment because veterinarians basically do not exist in Faridabad, India. One animal in particular still resonates a strong memory.  My significant other and I were traveling to Agra, the city of the Taj Mahal, and we had decided to stop at a sidewalk food merchant due to the tantalizing smells wafting from across the street. As we are crossing the chaotic street, the food merchant is literally kicking a dog out of his corner of the sidewalk. Not only did the loud Hindi catch my attention, but the appearance of the dog made me double take. This dog (comparable in stature to a Labrador) was at least a body conditioning score of 3/9 and his lobulated, ulcerated testicles were dragging the dusty ground leaving a trail of blood behind him. I wish I could have helped him and many others in his condition; it was that exact moment that led me to become passionate about surgery and preventative care within small animal companion animals.

Through this hands- on experience I have learned many things, but most of all I have learned how to adapt into a different culture and mindset.  Overall, it took me two full weeks to understand how people interacted, ate, traveled, and lived life from day to day. Although exhausting at times, my stay in India also helped me realize the impact that a veterinarian can have on society.

Bowyer

Submitted by Paul Champion from Purdue

I study the craft of primitive archery, where everything from the bowstring to some of the tools I use are made from natural materials.   Four years ago I made my first self-bow out of a single hickory log.  Since then I have completed a number of bows, learned to fletch my own arrows, and created leather equipment such as quivers and finger tabs.  

Starting with a log from a felled tree, I split the log using an axe and wedges until I have a workable plank to make a stave.  Using hand saws and wood scrapers, I work the stave down to a thick, block-like bow structure.  It is at this stage that I determine what type of bow (length, draw strength, style) that I can get out of the stave.  I run calculations based on the properties of the wood in order to get an estimated desired thickness for the limbs at any point along the bow and start tillering to that point.  With a known bow length, I create a bow string out of sinew or milkweed fibers and constantly check the bend of the limbs and overall draw weight of the bow until I reach the goal.  Depending on the style and strength of the wood, I may add a rawhide or snakeskin backing to reinforce the bow.

A single bow may take over a year to complete to allow the wood to weather and dry to the correct water concentration.  Attempting to tiller and heat treat wood that has not properly dried or is too dry will likely compromise the strength of the bow, often resulting in the wood breaking.  My first bow only lasted a few weeks before the wood cracked, but by learning from my mistakes I can create good quality archery equipment.

 

Grandma Billie

submitted by Ellie Engelen - University of Minnesota

As I reflected on different experiences that shaped my path towards pursuing a DVM, some recent events in my life made it clear that there was one person in particular who had influenced that path the most; my grandma Billie.

 

I grew up in the heart of Minneapolis, in a city neighborhood full of pavement and cars. My mom had grown up on a farm in rural South Dakota raising beef cattle with her family. Every summer during my childhood, we would go stay there with my grandma for weeks at a time. My grandma was one of toughest, yet kindest people I have ever met. She had a no-nonsense type personality, but had a huge soft spot for her grandchildren. She also had a love of animals. Every time I'd go to her house, there would always be little bowls of milk or cat food sitting outside and an accompanying clan of stray cats from the neighborhood were always wandering over. She even tried to adopt a feral cat and brought it into her home. "Daisy" was the meanest cat you could imagine and terrified us kids, but nevertheless my grandma had no fear of her and would go pick her up and carry her around the house like a rag doll. She was a prized possession and my grandma loved her endlessly. 

As the activities director at the local nursing home, she had the idea to install a large bird cage and then bought several different types of birds for the residents to enjoy. You could always find her sitting by the bird cage cooing and singing to those little birds. Now, 30 years later, that bird cage has grown to taking up an entire corner of the activities room and houses several different species of birds.

She was also an avid state fair attendee, and every summer she'd fire up her motor home and take us kids to go camp out at the fair. We'd wake up every morning and go straight to the livestock barns, where we'd spend the rest of the day wandering around the animal pens. Our family dogs also worshiped my grandma. Whenever she was around, they became the loyal and devoted dogs we never thought they could be. They would follow her around and lay at her feet for hours, hoping to get a back scratch. Even into her old age when her memory started to get hazy, she would always remember our dog Pete whenever we brought him to visit and she would even ask for him by name when he wasn't there. 

I remember sitting in her living room listening to my mom and her family talk about riding their horses to school and herding cattle on their ranch. The minute we returned home, I would tirelessly beg my parents to sell our house in the city and move out to the farm so that I could ride horses to school just like my mom did. As I grew older, this romanticism about rural life and animals became a fascination with learning more about animal agriculture, and eventually led to my decision to pursue the mixed animal veterinary track, primarily focusing on food animals.

When I try to think back and reflect on when I first knew I wanted to be a veterinarian, it occurred to me that it had been an obvious career choice all along- I had grown up surrounded by my grandma and her love for animals. It was her lifestyle and her values that I looked up to the most and tried to emulate, even as a young child. She has been an incredible influence on my life and has instilled in me the same passion for animals that she herself always had. As I now sit in her nursing home room and spend what might be my final moments ever with her, I take consolation in the fact that I will be carrying on a little part of her through working with animals as a veterinarian. This legacy is something that will stay with me even after her physical presence is no longer.

Billie Blaseg passed away on August 19th, 2015.

The Art of Building Costumes

Walker Roberts, University of Florida Class of 2018

Life as a Vet Student Category Winner

The Art of Building Costumes

My unique, strange, and down-right crazy hobby is costume making. Not just small character builds or thrift store stops, but full on creature and armor builds. The world of costume making for a hobby didn’t reach popularity until anime and gaming conventions began to arise around the nation from Comic Con in San Diego, California to Dragoncon in Atlanta, Georgia. While many costume makers (also known as cosplayers) build and wear their costumes for the fun of gathering with friends and meeting new ones, I build costumes to compete nationally in costume competitions from Ohio to Florida.

Photo collage of my costumes including (from left to right) Impa from Skyward Sword, the Black Knight from Dark Souls, and an original character. Photography by Cerulean and Iconiq Photography.

My hobby didn’t start until I was at the end of my sophomore year in College. I had not taken an art class since elementary school and I had never sewn before. And yet my first costume, Impa from the video game Skyward Sword, was a raging success at the local convention and it swept through the internet. I was hooked. However, I did not start competing until I made my second costume, Commander Shepard from the video game Mass Effect, and competed in a low key convention local to Morgantown, West Virginia. I won first place, and it gave me confidence to compete in bigger conventions (which meant a bigger draw for more talented costume makers). Until finally, I became who I am today. I have been cosplaying for three years and I average two or three competitions a year. I have placed seven times in competitions of which four of them are first place.

Comparison of my costume to the in-game character, Impa, from the videogame Skyward Sword. Best Sci-Fi costume at Shockacon 2013. Photography is by Cerulean Photography.

In general, the rules of the competition and judging vary based on the convention. For admission rules, some conventions only allow costumes from Asian culture. The main points of judging, however, are mostly always the same. You are judged on craftsmanship, complexity, functionality, and accuracy. Craftsmanship is how well you make your costume. Do you have any glue showing? It is falling apart right at the judge’s table? How clean are the seams? How smooth is the armor? Complexity is how detailed is your costume. Does your costume have lights? Does it have movable wings? Does it make sounds? Functionality refers to how well you can move and wear your costume. If you have stilts, how well can you move? How well can you see? Do you require people to help you move around? Lastly, accuracy refers to how close your costume matches the actual character. Did you spend that extra week weathering and detailing? All of this is judged in a matter of minutes and your overall score competes with the other fifty plus contestants.

Comparison of my Valka Haddock costume to the in-movie character from How To Train Your Dragon 2. First Place in the Western Culture division at Colossalcon 2014. Second Place at Swampcon 2014. First Place at ALTcon 2014. Photography is by Joe Rondone at the Tallahassee Democrat.

Let’s discuss the making of a costume. It took me a couple of years, but I have finally learned that you never know what you are doing or how exactly to make a certain piece of the costume. You learn to have confidence in your skills and your knowledge of the materials. You set out on an adventure every time you make something and every time I learn a new technique or a new approach to an old one.

Photo collage of my Black Knight from the video game Dark Souls. Awards include Judge’s Award at WVpopcon 2013 and Honorable Mention at Tsubasacon 2013. Photography by Iconiq Photography.

The first step to building a costume is to choose the outfit. You need to consider the rules of the competition. Some people choose their costumes based on complexity, connection with the character, or for simplicity in a time crunch. I choose my costumes based off how visual stunning it is. For example, my latest costume is the Songbird from the video game Bioshock Infinite. Its introduction to the main protagonist and the detail work is what made me decide to build the character.

An in-game picture of the character Songbird from Bioshock Infinite.

The next step is to find reference photos to the character in order to ensure exact details. If this is a character from a relatively older show or game, then there is a good chance someone else has already done the work for you. However, if you are building a character from something very recent, then it is time to watch the same trailer or the same cut scenes at least a hundred times and try to capture every angle of the costume. There are also times when there just isn’t enough detail in game/movie that you have to find another method like the Songbird. I needed to purchase the official statue from the company as a reference. Finally, it usually helps to draw out the details so you don’t miss anything.

Picture of the Songbird statue and some of my notes breaking down the costume build.

The third step is actually making the costume. When working with new materials or techniques, this step can be even more frustrating because you need to add more time to your schedule to research how to use them. What I have learned over the years is to forego the tutorials, learn the basics, and just mess with the materials. It is a constant process of building on top of the last layer. You are never truly done since there is always that ONE little additional detail or weathering, but the deadline of the competition stops your work. The Songbird is still a work in progress, but with the stilts, foam base, and leather, it has taken me close to a year to get this far. It is also the most expensive step. It is far cheaper just to buy the costume, but making a character from scratch helps to give me peace of mind and is definitely worth the money, sweat, and tears. 

My skills in costuming have grown a lot in the past three years from Impa to the Songbird. There is still work to be done and techniques to master. This hobby is crazy and stressful both emotionally and physically. Most of the competitions don’t even offer prizes other than certificates or goody bags. However, I have made great friends at these gatherings and the moment you walk out onto stage with hundreds of people cheering, it all becomes worth it. I will continue to make bigger and better costumes until I believe I am ready to compete with the professionals at the largest competitions in the nation.

A photo of what I have completed so far with the Songbird costume. I still need to finish the wings, detail, and weather.

You can see more of my work and tutorials at facebook.com/swiftforge