Experiences

Submitted by Kristen Tan, Ross University

My name is Kristen Tan and since working with a holistic veterinarian back home for over

3 years, I have been interested in acupuncture and integrative medicine. I have seen firsthand

how rewarding the effects of acupuncture can be and wanted to be able to provide this modality

for my future patients well. When I got into Ross University, I already knew that I wanted to enroll

in the program that Chi University offered to Rossies. It is a year-long course that combines online

learning with a few in-person wet labs, split up into 5 sessions total. After completing the

prerequisites of Gross Anatomy I and II, I enrolled and also became the Ross Acupuncture

Ambassador for Chi University in 2025. Most of the wet labs were done on Ross’ campus itself,

but the Session 5 wet labs were specifically done at Chi University’s campus because it included

the acupoint exam as well. I spent 3.5 days there going over all the acupuncture points and

TCVM theories we’ve learned throughout the year while meeting other CVA students from other

vet schools. Below is a break down of what I did each day:

December 16, 2025 (Day 1)

After registering with the Chi staff, we spent the morning reviewing everything we learned

from Sessions 1-4 with Dr. Terri Rosado. It helped reinforce everything we needed to know for the

written exam. During the lunch hour, we ate then got a tour of their small animal hospital. The

design of the hospital incorporated so many fear-free things and even had a zen garden for

clients. There was a whole physical therapy ward that included a water treadmill, obstacles, and

other modalities. Their large animal hospital had several stalls and included a whole arena for

trotting and dressage. In the afternoon, we reviewed acupoints for 4.5 hours with Dr. Shu Dai and

Dr. Suzy Brannan. We worked on clients’ dogs and practiced doing our TCVM exam. This includes

a tongue assessment, feeling their femoral pulses in 6 different areas, assessing mentation (Shen

in TCVM), and palpating acupoints and assessing for any reactions. Afterwards, we had a class

dinner with the founder, Dr. Xie, and everyone got to know each other a little bit more.

December 17, 2025 (Day 2)

This entire day was going over all the acupoints from head to tail with snack breaks in

between. There are a total of 361 points in the small animal, but we are only responsible for 185

of them. It includes both transpositional and classical points.

December 18, 2025 (Day 3)

In the morning, we went over 2 cases with live dogs. It included taking a history with the

client, performing a TCVM exam, and treating the patient after making a TCVM diagnosis. In the

afternoon, we went over the acupoints with our instructors once more.

December 19, 2025 (Exam Day)

Everyone was assigned a time to come in to take their acupoint exam. I was given 20

random points to identify on a live dog in under 10 minutes. I passed and celebrated with

everyone. Chi provided cake and tea.

Abstracts

Submitted by Rhea Amatya, Colorado State University

Incidental abdominal masses and nodules in older dogs – results of long-term follow-up in 190 dogs

Splenic, hepatic and/or adrenal nodules are commonly reported during ultrasound examination of the

abdomen in older dogs. While cytologic sampling or recheck ultrasound examinations to assess change

are commonly recommended, criteria for determining the level of concern for eventual progression of

these nodules have not been established. We sought to describe the long-term outcome in a group of

dogs in which abdominal visceral masses/nodules were identified during cancer screening. Dogs were

enrolled in a prospective study evaluating a novel cancer vaccine that followed clinically healthy,

middle-age to older dogs at average or higher risk for cancer development for up to five years. To meet eligibility criteria, dogs were deemed free of cancer and other systemic illnesses through physical exam, imaging, and clinicopathological tests. Using an automated keyword search, we identified 190 screening abdominal ultrasound reports that contained the words “mass” or “nodule.” We noted the location of the mass or nodule identified. We further categorized the cases as having no further investigation done (35), follow-up ultrasound done (59) and/or cytology done (73) and tracked whether the mass or nodule resulted in a cancer diagnosis. Of the 61 cases (37%) that were eventually diagnosed with cancer, 10 dogs (16%) were diagnosed with a cancer that had some likelihood of being associated with the mass or nodule found during the first ultrasound. 0 were deemed high likelihood, 3 were deemed medium likelihood, and 7 were deemed low likelihood. Overall, when a mass or nodule is found via ultrasound in the abdomen, either benign cytology or lack of progression on follow-up ultrasound 6 weeks later suggests a low risk of malignancy.

Foot In Mouth Disease

Submitted by Hannah King, North Caroline State University

Photography

Submitted by Caroline O'Rourke, University of Pennsylvania

Cutest Pet

Submitted by Varun Seth, University of Illinois