Experiences: 1st Place

Semester at the Museum by Lauren Bynum, Texas A&M University

There is nothing more amazing to think about than all the living things that have called Earth home, and to me, nowhere captures the breadth of that quite as well as natural history museums. To see the fossils of creatures that existed before trees did, to be able to stare up through the bones of a dinosaur knowing that it was walking around just a hundred million years earlier—there is nothing like it. One of my favorite parts of attending Boston College for my undergraduate degree was the fact that we received free entry into the Harvard Museum of Natural History, and I took advantage of this free entry many times throughout my four years at BC. During my senior year, I received a dream opportunity – I heard through my animal behavior professor that the Harvard Museum of Natural Science was looking for a new mammalogy intern. I emailed the mammalogy department head right away, and my working interview that next week turned into my first day on the job. 

The mammalogy department was not what I expected. I had anticipated that I would be helping with the upkeep of the specimens displayed to the public in the museum’s Hall of Mammals, but I was led to what seemed like an entire different world that I never knew existed. Separate from the museum is a temperature-regulated library, shelves filled not with books but bones and pelts and horns. The full mammalogy collection is so much more than what is on display in the museum, and researchers visit from all over the world to examine the specimens. One of my favorite frequent visitors of the mammalogy collection was a scientist who was studying the healing of pelvic limb fractures. Every time we ran into each other I was greeted with a smile, a wave of the tibia, fibula, or femur of the day, and an explanation of the type of fracture he had most recently located. Most other visitors were graduate students or researchers studying the evolution of one specific creature, their research made easier by Harvard’s football field sized collection all housed in one giant building. 

My main duty consisted of preparing, labelling, and reorganizing the bovid section, which was rapidly outgrowing the shelf space available to it. Shelving the horns and skulls in particular was a rather difficult game of fossilized Tetris, sometimes due to the weight of the skulls, sometimes their size, and sometimes both. Shocking to no one, it turns out that antelope horns have evolved to be many things, but to be easily shelvable was not one of them. My favorite species of the bovids section was the bison, and I lived for the days where I tracked down the bison bones that needed labelling – the scientific name for the American Bison is Bison bison (and if it’s a Plains Bison, you chuck a third “bison” on the end for the best scientific name of all time: Bison bison bison). Another fun fact – I learned that the scientific name for the black rat is Rattus rattus. I’m a sucker for some repetition. 

I worried a little about whether or not it was wise to take this internship. I love natural history specimens, but it seemed like it may be better for my veterinary school application and my resume to work with animals that were still alive. Ultimately, though, I thought back to the reason why I like natural history museums to begin with: they offer so much understanding about the creatures who walked the Earth before us, along with plenty about the creatures walking the Earth now. With that in mind, it seemed like any chance to learn about animals past or present would lend itself to expanding my knowledge in the veterinary field. And it was true! While I can’t say I memorized anywhere near all the names of the bones in a cow skeleton, I certainly did gain a familiarity with bovine species in general, and also a serious interest in bones which has carried over to my love of veterinary radiology. And on top of that, I got to see all the secrets hiding in the archives—or, as us interns call it, the Harvard Museum of Natural History: Extended Edition.

Foot In Mouth: 1st Place

By: Laci Taylor, Cornell University

VIN ROUNDS: Review of Bovine Diseases

Are you missing out on clinical rotations because of COVID-19? The VIN Student Team has you covered with Tuesday Topic Rounds.  During the month of January, join the VIN Student Team for 30 minute, case-based sessions every Tuesday at 12pm ET. Everyone and all levels of experience are welcome. There will be time for Q&A and discussion following. The next session is Review of Important Bovine Diseases – Omphalitis, Meningitis, Navel ill, Septicemia on January 11, 2021 at 12 ET.

In this rounds: 

• The common findings in history, physical diagnosis and diagnostic signs of Bovine Omphalitis, Meningitis, Navel ill & Septicemia
• Complicating environmental and infectious agent factors
• Methods to make a diagnosis, treatment
• Tips for prevention

TO JOIN THE SESSION, LOG INTO THE VIN STUDENT CENTER AND CLICK THE GREEN BUTTON IN THE TOP RIGHT

The Veterinary Information Network (VIN) is here to help you as a vet student – especially during this worldwide pandemic. Membership is always free as a student!

VIN Rounds: Identifying Signs of Animal Abuse (Part 2)

 

Are you missing out on clinical rotations because of COVID-19? The VIN Student Team has you covered with Tuesday Topic Rounds.  During the month of December, join the VIN Student Team for 30 minute, case-based sessions every Tuesday at 12pm ET. Everyone and all levels of experience are welcome. There will be time for Q&A and discussion following. The next session is Identifying Signs of Animal Abuse: Part 2 on December 21, 2021 at 12 ET. You do not need to have attended Part 1 to join!

In this rounds: 

• Continuing to discuss signs consistent with animal abuse
• Are there any mimics of animal abuse?

TO JOIN THE SESSION, LOG INTO THE VIN STUDENT CENTER AND CLICK THE GREEN BUTTON IN THE TOP RIGHT

The Veterinary Information Network (VIN) is here to help you as a vet student – especially during this worldwide pandemic. Membership is always free as a student!

Vet Candy: Interview with Dr. Charles McMillan

Up close and personal with Dr. Charles McMillan 

When Dr. Charles McMillan first set foot in a vet’s office for a volunteer position, he found a passion for an industry that never left. At 14 years old, his volunteer time with a vet’s office quickly turned into a paid position, his first ever job, and a sign of what was to come.

Since then, Dr. McMillan has become a skilled veterinarian, graduating from the prestigious Tuskegee University College of Veterinary Medicine. He is currently a small animal practitioner, and has shared his knowledge through presentations on the national level as well as sitting on an editorial and scientific advisory board.

An avid reader, Dr. McMillan’s favorite books include The Mismeasure of Man by Stephen Jay Gould and The Dog’s Mind by Bruce Fogle. One of his favorite areas of his home is the part of it filled with books. 

One of the biggest problems he sees in the veterinary industry is the lack of representation of different races in the field. White men and women make up the vast majority of veterinarians. If you aspire to become a veterinarian and never see someone like yourself working the job you want to have, it can put up a barrier to achieving your dreams before you even get there.

He’s also concerned about how difficult it is to find proper staff to keep a veterinary office running smoothly. He worries this is a sign of a growing problem, and that change needs to happen in order to stop this from occurring.

Care needs to be taken with everyone from the receptionist all the way up to the Veterinarian to make sure they can do their jobs safely, comfortably, and well. This means finding ways to reduce stress, but also getting the proper equipment for them so they have the tools needed to do their job.

Dr. McMillan also believes there is greater work to be done culturally as well. He hopes the country can eventually become a true meritocracy, and that the world can move forward into something truly multicultural.

This can be done through creating a culture of understanding. The more empathy we have for each other, the better the world has the potential to become. When we’re more empathetic to those around us, we’ll be in a better position to reach out a helping hand to lift them up. 

Dr. McMillan admires the human ability to work together in large groups, and our ability to adapt. He believes that is possible to reach a true meritocracy, and hopes to be a part of that evolution. Today, Dr. McMillan has a keen interest in human behavior, and discussing race in the veterinary industry through social media, blogs, and magazines.

His life goal is to better the lives of his children, and to keep both his family and his legacy in mind when making important decisions. As a rising star in the field of veterinary medicine, he is well on his way to reaching those goals for his life.