Student Experiences

Hope Darnell with her dog Hazel after completing the Relief Rover 5K for NOMV

My name is Hope Darnell and I’m going into my second year of veterinary school at Texas A&M University. I hold the  Innovation Ambassador position for A&M’s chapter of the Veterinary Business Management Association (VBMA) and this  position has led me to participate in some unique opportunities in the areas of entrepreneurship and innovation.  This summer, I was in the Veterinary Entrepreneurship Academy (VEA) where I attended classes and guest lectures from  leaders in the veterinary industry. We covered the different segments of the Business Model Canvas (BMC) over the 10-week  course, but our guest lecture discussions expanded much further than the canvas. We discussed the issues facing the  veterinary industry and how we will be able to make an impact. 

Additionally, I was matched with VetGuardian, a veterinary-related startup company, to enhance the application of my course  learning. VetGuardian is a zero-touch vital signs monitor for animal patients which works to reduce patient stress and increase  efficiency and safety in the animal hospital. It does all of this while creating peace of mind for veterinarians, their staff, and pet  owners waiting anxiously at home. This is the value proposition for VetGuardian which is the central component of the BMC. I  spent many weeks of the program perfecting this statement as it shows the value rather than the features of this device.  With VetGuardian, I worked on a range of projects including user experience and interface, revenue formulas, and university  and zoo research projects. Through these projects I was able to apply my course content and educate the team about how my  course learnings can apply to the company. My longest standing project was managing social media accounts on Facebook  and LinkedIn as channels used to communicate with customers. I was able to grow the accounts exponentially over the  summer and was able to develop my skills in this unique area of marketing which has an ever-growing impact on businesses in  the veterinary space.  

One of the projects I worked on, which was very impactful personally, was the Relief Rover 5K for Not One More Vet (NOMV).  This 5K was created by Dr. Cindy Trice, a guest lecturer in our course, through partnerships with NOMV and multiple sponsors.  I learned about the Relief Rover 5k through social media channels and brought the event to the attention of my team at  VetGuardian. Our team already had a relationship with Dr. Trice and we had also identified this pain point of the high suicide  rates in our customer segment. Members of our team participated in the event, and we did this not only because of the  relationship we had with Dr. Trice but more importantly to support our customer segment and to build our company brand. Our  value proposition includes making the jobs of veterinarians and their staff just a little bit easier. It is through our support and  others in the industry that we can raise awareness for this pain point and that is exactly what this event did. Pictured above is  my dog Hazel and myself as we participated in the 5K this summer.  

For the closing event of the VEA program, we traveled to New York where my fellow interns and I presented about our  experiences and the different startup companies we interned with. It was an opportunity for us to discuss our learnings as well  as network with representatives from our sponsors and with each other, as we had been attending the course remotely all  summer. This event and the entire program pushed me outside of my comfort zone in many ways, allowing for both personal  and professional growth.  

Although I cannot verbalize every impact this experience has had on my life, one of the biggest impacts I saw was in my  clinical practice. During this program, I volunteered at a small animal practice in College Station, TX, and realized over this  summer how my thinking had changed as I went through the course. Now I am thinking more about the BMC and not only  how each segment relates to the business, but also how my role affects the business and what I can do to make the practice  more successful. Moving forward, I will be continuing to work with VetGuardian on their social media, a research project I’ve  started on Humboldt penguins at the Akron Zoo, and other various projects. You can check out my work on their Facebook  and LinkedIn pages by searching “VetGuardian.” Reach out to me with any questions about my experience with the VEA  program, or about VetGuardian as they are changing the way we think about monitoring in the industry. 

Creative Corner

Anatomy Watercolor

Submitted by Kaeli O'connor, Virginia Maryland CVM

Foot in Mouth Disease

Submitted by Winston Weigand, Washington State University

How a Stick of Butter Saved My Dog-Sitting Career

By Winston Weigand

In the summer of 2019, I was tasked with dog-sitting a couple of American Eskimos owned by some friends of my father’s. The owners were going to be in Hawaii for a week, so the little seal pups needed my close attention and care. On the first night of my duty, around 11 PM, I headed to the house. I was not given a house key, but was instead supposed to use the 4 digit garage door code to get in. Easy enough, right? Wrong.

Upon approaching the garage door, I realized that my phone was not turning on. The phone that had the text containing the code I needed. The phone that I could use to call the owners to get the code. It’s not that it was uncharged, it was just literally not working. I started to panic. The dogs needed me and I needed the dog-sitting money. I went around back to see if any of the doors were left unlocked, but they weren’t. And I knew the alarm system was armed. It was in this moment that I saw my saving grace: The dog door. Being a tactically compact human being, I figured I could fit through it, so I tried. I was so incredibly close to making it through, but just barely couldn’t make it. My solution? A pale yellow substance made by churning cream.

After a quick drive back to my house to grab a stick of butter without awaking my dad, I returned and removed most of my clothing. I slathered butter liberally onto my shoulders and flank. And I slipped seamlessly through the dog door as if it were a Winston door. The pups were happy to see me, the owners never found out, and my arms were only sore for a few days. And that’s how a stick of butter saved my dog-sitting career.

Student Experiences

Submitted by Hery Ríos-Guzmán, Cornell University

AQUAVET: Summer Camp for Fish (and Other Species) Nerds

My name is Hery Ríos-Guzmán and I want to be an aquatic veterinarian when I grow up. Now, I may be just a tiny bit biased, but aquatic veterinarians are amazing. I mean, think about it for a second. There are 35,000 identified species of fish as of today… And that’s just fish! From corals and axolotls to sea turtles and humpback whales, aquatic veterinarians are expected to work with an even greater number of species than terrestrial veterinarians. In light of this immense species diversity, it’s not hard to imagine that training opportunities are scarce. People like me must look into external resources in order to acquire any type of preparation regarding aquatic and marine species. When was the last time you did a surgical procedure on a fish? Heck, when was the last time you had a lecture related to anything aquatic? Luckily, the need for specialized training opportunities geared towards veterinary students interested in aquatics has not gone unnoticed. AQUAVET®, a crash course into all things aquatic was born to fulfill this demand. And it’s amazing! 

 
AQUAVET® was founded by University of Pennsylvania and Cornell University in 1977 with the goal of increasing aquatic animal health competence in veterinary professionals. It is subdivided into 3 courses: AQUAVET® I, AQUAVET® II, and AQUAVET® III. The latter is focused exclusively on marine mammal medicine and conservation. AQUAVET® II, on the other hand, is a histology and histopathology-based course. And AQUAVET® I, with which I am most familiar, is a general course that takes vet students on an educational journey from invertebrates, such as shellfish, all the way to marine mammal macrofauna. All of this is done within an intense, one-month period, with regular 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. days full of lectures, labs, and/or fieldtrips. It’s a lot, but it’s totally worth it! During my time in AQUAVET®, I was able to learn about different species of aquatic animals, their anatomy, physiology, and the clinical aspects that are most important for each. I was also exposed to the different fields that an aquatic veterinarian could work in, such as aquarium medicine, aquaculture, ambulatory services for pet fish, and conservation work. In addition to the amazing lectures, I learned a myriad of new clinical techniques. There was a bit of everything: blood draws on stingrays, gill clips, bacterial cultures, sea turtle necropsies, and so much more! The highlight of AQUAVET® I was definitely the last lab: fish surgery. With help from a licensed veterinarian, I was able to sedate, monitor anesthesia, perform a splenectomy, and suture a striped bass (who was appropriately euthanized after the procedure).

 

In addition to academic and clinical content, one of the best things that AQUAVET® I provides is an opportunity to network. The sheer number of professors teaching the course – which far outnumber the students that participate – has been termed the “Parade of Stars.” The many lunches and dinners that I shared with some of these professionals was a great way to get an inside view of the field (and to get to know them as real people and not just vets). Moreover, AQUAVET® I is a great way to meet individuals from different cultural and ethnic origins; students from all over the world apply and participate. Going through and completing the program with these people, especially when they all had similar interests to mine, was a surefire way of creating meaningful connections that will remain for years to come. In fact, I was able to apply and successfully receive a scholarship because of the connections I made through the program! 

 

AQUAVET® I is a must for anyone interested in aquatic animal medicine. I was able to meet new people, obtain new resources, and learn so much during my time in Rhode Island. All of this newfound knowledge has made me way more confident in my skills as a veterinary student and has reinforced my desire to pursue a career within the aquatics field. Further, I was able to get a sense of the opportunities that I should apply to before and during my clinical year, and some of the different ways I can prepare for a career in aquatic veterinary medicine after graduating (i.e. internships vs. residency vs. experience). Without a doubt, AQUAVET® I has been the best summer-camp-for-fish-nerds experience that has brought me even closer to achieving my goal.

Cutest Pet

Submitted by Cimmeron Madrid, Washington State University