Belize Zoo

Lily Thorsen, Ross University

My trip to the Belize Zoo was one of the most informative and exciting trips of my life. I got to apply so much of the information I learned during the previous five semesters of vet schools, but I got to apply the information to zoo animals instead of your typical dog or cat. This made it even more exciting and really drove the message home that the information we learn in school provides us with ability to navigate through most situations, regardless of the type of animal. 

During my internship, I was able to anesthetize a female howler monkey that was in poor condition. She had a luxated lens and several broken teeth due to head trauma, mastitis and a urinary tract infection. I was able to do an ultrasound guided cystocentesis on the anesthetized monkey, which was super exciting. 

We also sedated a jaguar, a four-eyed opossum, three peccaries, and 2 tapirs for routine physical exam, blood draw, fecal collection, parasite treatment, and treatment of any ailments. The blood draws really reinforced a lot of anatomy since we had to remember potential places where we could draw blood on all of these animals based on the domestic species to which they are similar. Sedating these animals required me to remember everything I had learned in pharmacology and anesthesia and required that I do a little research into what drugs are safe to use in each species. Running the blood work made me remember much of what I learned in clinical pathology. One of the peccaries had a red blood cell parasite that has yet to be identified, but it was very cool to see for many of us students.

 

Finally, we worked with crocodiles and birds. I had very limited experience with reptiles and birds prior to this experience, so this was initially very intimidating. One of the crocodiles had a wounded tail that we examined and rebandaged. I learned that crocodiles heal much slower than most mammalian species and that treating a wound on a crocodile is a constant balancing act of providing them with access to water but trying to keep their bandage dry at the same time. The other crocodile simply needed a physical exam and a blood draw, but this was still exciting since we had to draw blood from the basilar artery right above the spinal cord. The birds we cared for included ornate hawk eagles, harpy eagles, and a scarlet macaw, and they needed a blood draw and exam. Performing these tasks required that I remember what I learned during anatomy in second semester about properly restraining birds and where we can draw blood. This experience helped me get over much of my fear of handling bird and reptiles. 

I am very grateful for my experience at the Belize Zoo. It reinforced much of what I had previously learned and taught me much more about veterinary medicine and all of its vast fields. The trip also taught me a lot about the Belize culture, and I firmly believe that exposure to new cultures is always beneficial to becoming a well rounded person.

Spring 2019 EPDC Extracurricular Grant Awardees - Day 3

At Mizzou, we were able to host BOTH the Veterinary Nutrition Club and the Student Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society with the support from this grant!  We started with a lecture from Dr. Jenny Grither about feeding critical care patients, then split into small groups to discuss case examples and practice placing NG tubes in 3D printed models.  Students not only got the opportunity to practice technical skills, but also went home with a packet of information on currently available commercial critical care options and sample cases.  The event was a huge success, thank you!

This November, the Student Veterinary Surgical Society at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine put on a lunch talk and accompanying wet-lab on the topic of 3D printing and modeling in small animal orthopedics. The lunch talk presented by Dr. W. Michael Karlin was attended by over 70 students and covered different scenarios in which he and other orthopedic surgeons have used 3D printing to prepare for surgery or supply prosthetics for patients. In the wet lab, 35 students had the opportunity to practice placing pins and cerclage wire to stabilize fractures using 3D printed models of dog limbs. The majority of the students who attended the lab were in their pre-clinical years, and, therefore, had limited opportunity to learn and practice said techniques otherwise. This grant was tremendously appreciated by all the students that were able to benefit from it and the supplies it provided. Thank you, SAVMA!

SAVMA John Pitts Award

We all know (at least) one veterinary student that exemplifies service and dedication to the veterinary profession in some form. Please nominate them for the SAVMA John Pitts Award for Distinguished Service!

Every year, the national SAVMA President recognizes one veterinary student that has gone above and beyond in service and dedication to the veterinary profession. The award is open to ANY veterinary student who is a SAVMA member in good standing. The awardee will receive round-trip airfare, lodging (up to 3 nights) and registration to SAVMA Symposium 2020 (March 14-16) hosted by Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. The award will be presented to the student during the Monday evening (March 16) closing ceremonies.

Check out this link to nominate someone!

The Rinderpest Challenge Starts TODAY!

The Rinderpest Challenge is back!

On 15 January 2020, the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) will launch the second edition of the OIE Rinderpest Challenge!

Let’s imagine: 2020. Rinderpest virus, the only animal disease eradicated in the world, returns from the past, threatening animal health security globally. You need to take action! Of course, eradicating the disease once more won’t be feasible in one day nor if you play alone! Involve your network in your country to eradicate Rinderpest definitely. You will have 4 weeks to beat last year’s winning score reached by South Africa: 505,210 points.

We count on you to spread the word and recruit as many players as possible for your country’s team. Download, play and share the game with your network of veterinarians, veterinary paraprofessionals, community animal health workers, veterinary students and laboratory staff to make your country the world saviour and win the challenge!

All the players from the winning country will receive a certificate from the OIE to praise their achievements in helping to eradicate the virus and the player from this country who achieves the highest score will win a TRIP TO PARIS for the OIE General Session in May 2020!

Spring 2019 EPDC Extracurricular Grant Awardees - Day 2

The American Society of Laboratory Animal Practitioners (ASLAP) club at Iowa State University held their annual exotics handling wet lab this past spring, giving students the opportunity to gain experience with a variety of laboratory animal species not emphasized in the core curriculum. This wet lab included both a lecture component that emphasized safe and stress-free animal handling as well as a hands-on component which gave students the chance to handle, perform physical exams on, draw blood from, practice injection techniques with, and euthanize laboratory animal species including gerbils, hamsters, guinea pigs, and rabbits. Twelve students participated and were supervised by Laboratory Animal Resources veterinarians as they worked in groups of three to perform the wet lab activities, giving all students ample hands-on experience and mentorship. Participants included members of multiple clubs outside of ASLAP and each academic year was represented, fulfilling this wet lab’s goal of bringing a taste of laboratory animal medicine to a wider audience. Even students without a passion for laboratory animal medicine appreciated the chance to practice physical exams and refine their clinical skills with species they rarely have a chance to handle. 

Pets Are Wonderful Support (PAWS) is a student-run, non-profit organization at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine. PAWS provides free basic veterinary care to pets of Alachua County residents. Our clientele is comprised of terminally ill and disabled residents of our community demonstrating financial need. PAWS hosts monthly clinics at the UF Small Animal Hospital and sees patients outside of the monthly clinic on an as-needed basis. The SAVMA Spring Extracurricular Grant will help support one of our monthly clinics. Our monthly clinics serve on average 10 -12 patients for appointments. At our clinics, first and second year veterinary students serve as technicians and they are paired with third and fourth year students who serve as clinicians. These clinics provide invaluable, hands-on clinical experience to students, and practical application of what we are learning in the classroom. Students are also able to practice diagnostic skills that entail venipuncture, blood smears, urinalysis, and cytology. PAWS also offers dentals, mass removals, and other services to our patients as needed. This is great experience for the students, and all at no cost to the owner.