STUDENT EXPERIENCE: INDIA

Submitted by Ethan Elazegui, University of Wisconsin-Madison

"In January 2023, I traveled to India for a two-week One Health field experience as a part of my Global Health Certification. The experience was supervised by the Global Health Certificate director and consisted of seven students across the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s graduate schools including Veterinary, Pharmacy, Medicine and Public Health, and Engineering. My goal was to better understand the interface of human, animal, and environmental health.

During the first week, I resided in Hyderabad, India and stayed at GVK EMRI, the largest ambulatory care service in the world that provides emergency services to both humans and veterinary species across multiple Indian States (estimated 800 million population). While there, I was introduced to the public and private Indian health care system; engaged in a participatory rural appraisal of a remote village to limit zoonotic disease risk; and shadowed a veterinary mobile ambulance during point of care visits to farms around the state.

Following Hyderabad, I stayed at the Sariska Palace for two days. During this time, I toured the Sariska Tiger Reserve and discussed their tiger conservation efforts. I learned extensively about the reserve’s native flora and fauna, the people-wildlife interface and potential issues, tiger monitoring, and radio-telemetry studies. I also had the opportunity to speak with a local community within the reserve and learn about their interactions with wildlife and how it has impacted their livelihoods.

Finally, for the remainder of my experience, I stayed at the Wildlife Institute of India (WII) for the remainder of my field experience. The WII’s mission is towards wildlife science and conservation. WII faculty lead training courses at many levels and a large number biodiversity, conservation, water quality, endangered species restoration, and animal forensics programs throughout India, especially the Ganges River Basin and North Indian States. While here, I met with many WII faculty to discuss their academic and research programs as well as Indian biodiversity conservation issues. Additionally, I toured their wildlife forensic laboratory; this was a unique opportunity as I learned about illegal animal parts trafficking, wildlife forensics and biological/ecological aspects of crime scenes.

Of course, time was allocated to exploring Indian and Tibetan culture and society. I visited iconic landmarks and points of cultural significance such as Golconda Fort, Charminar, the Buddha Statue of Hyderabad, the World Peace Stupa, and the Tibetan Children's Hospital. I absolutely loved visiting the Tibetan Children’s Hospital in particular as I got to socialize with the kids and get to know a little bit about their hopes and aspirations. We ended up singing Ed Sheeran songs and playing basketball (they swept us).

Through my previous academic, research, and veterinary experiences, I have developed keen research interests on the intersection of zoonotic disease origins, pathogenesis, One Health, epidemiology, and public health education. My One Health experience in India solidified these interests and, as such, my primary employment goals are to pursue international veterinary medicine, epidemiology, public health, and zoonoses research."

STUDENT EXPERIENCE

Submitted by Katherine Ramirez Lopez, Western University of Health Sciences

A Zoo-tastic Summer

In the summer of 2023, I had the opportunity to travel across the country to participate in a research externship at the Maryland Zoo in Baltimore. I was so excited when I was accepted to this externship because there aren’t many zoo medicine opportunities available for vet students prior to their clinical year let alone ones dealing with zoo related research. As someone who is committed to pursuing the zoo medicine field and eventually becoming board certified, I knew experiences like these didn’t come around often and should be taken advantage of. To top it off, this was my first time traveling for a veterinary opportunity outside of my sunny state of  California and I was both nervous and thrilled for how the next 8 weeks in a new city would look like. 

My first week at my externship was incredible as I started to become familiar with all the zoo animals and the friendly and welcoming staff. As someone who is very family and friends oriented I was nervous that I would feel lonely in a big and strange city. But the zoo hospital staff knew how to make someone feel comfortable and part of the team! For the first couple of weeks I worked closely with the head and associate zoo vets discussing the layout of the research project which involved conducting a retrospective analysis of African Penguin chick  mortality in populations under human care. This meant collecting and analyzing  medical records of African penguin chicks who passed away in the last 12 years across various AZA accredited zoos and aquariums. Not only did I get first hand experience in seeing what a cross institutional study looked like but I learned alot about ex situ conservation and the integral role it plays in preserving species across the world. With much mentorship from the vets, I was able to conduct a research project from start to finish by presenting the preliminary data to the Maryland Zoo African Penguin Care team and hospital staff during my last week. With the project bringing to light essential base knowledge about African penguin chick mortality, publication of  the research is currently in progress. 

One additional bonus to this externship was that I had the opportunity to shadow several clinical procedures and conservation programs that the Maryland Zoo Hospital oversaw. I got to experience several first from seeing my first primate exam to helping track eastern box turtles across the forest terrain of the zoo. One of the highlights was watching an  African elephant mobility exam and seeing the interaction between the giant gentle creature and its supportive zookeeper via behavioral husbandry. Behavioral husbandry is a component of daily animal care focused on how animals interact with their physical and social environment. As a result, we see beneficial behaviors such as an animal voluntarily participating in a blood draw which facilitates veterinary care and lessens stress on the animal. Getting to see so many different procedures and listen to the vets collaborate on cases definitely reaffirmed my passion for zoo med!

This trip couldn’t be complete without some sight seeing and I was so fortunate to not only explore the vibrant city of Baltimore but New York as well. Getting to walk around the inner harbor of Baltimore was scenic and I even had the opportunity to check out the National Aquarium! While in New York I had to stop and some iconic places such as the Grand Central Station, Central Park, and Times Square! Never had I imagined that I would be able to see these amazing places.

Overall, this experience was definitely one for the books and I can’t wait to partake in more zoo related opportunities and explore more cities.  

EXTERNS ON THE HILL

Submitted by John La Bonte, University of Arizona

Inside the PAC: Advocacy at All Levels 

With one ousted Speaker of the House, three Speaker hopefuls, and now a newly elected Speaker, navigating the legislative channels of Washington is difficult.  However, after two weeks as an extern at the American Veterinary Medical Association’s (AVMA) Government Relations Division (GRD) in Washington D.C. and meeting with members of Congress on Capitol Hill, I’ve witnessed firsthand that lawmakers are pushing to advance legislation that betters all aspects of our wide-ranging profession.  

During the first half of my externship here, I have attended two day-long meetings with the AVMA Political Action Committee (PAC) Board and a joint meeting between the American Association of Bovine Practitioners (AABP) and American Association of Swine Veterinarians (AASV). While the goals of these meetings were different, they both had the same objective - to advocate on behalf of the veterinary profession.

While working with the AVMA PAC board, I met with both Democrats and Republicans and saw how valuable it is to make personal connections with the elected officials supporting the AVMA’s legislative agenda. These members of Congress are supporters of AVMA-endorsed bills and on congressional committees that deal with legislation related to veterinary medicine. The conversations we had with the lawmakers attending included casual conversation to get to know them personally, the most pressing issues facing the profession such as the Combating Illicit Xylazine Act, and talking about their animals and pets. The great thing about advocating for our profession is that pets are nonpartisan, and everyone always wants to show pictures of their pets – a casual segway to how lawmakers can help veterinarians treat their patients.

I won’t lie, it can be a bit surreal to meet these people in real life that I have read about and watched on TV for so long now. Walking into an elevator and unexpectedly having Senator Bernie Sanders say, “hello” to me while I stare and struggle to find any words to respond with has made this externship a memorable experience, to say the least. 

However, you don’t have to be in Washington or an AVMA GRD extern (although you should apply) to advocate for bills that strengthen our profession. The advocacy team has recently launched a new points-based program through the AVMA’s Congressional Advocacy Network (CAN) where you can easily earn points and qualify to win prizes by “taking action.” “Taking action” through the AVMA CAN includes sending a letter to your members of Congress or signing up for the AVMA Advocate newsletter to learn about current legislation and events veterinarians are doing with lawmakers in their district. 

From what I have seen firsthand and have learned from the staff here, is that while policy can move slowly, it can also move very quickly in Congress, and we need veterinary advocates at all levels to help educate elected officials about what is best for our profession so there are no unintended consequences passed into law. We, as students and soon-to-be veterinarians, are preparing to educate our clients daily about how to help their animal or herd. We would never walk out of a new puppy exam room and not bring up pet insurance because we know that the unexpected will happen, and we want to be able to do everything we can to help. And just like our puppies, we need to ensure that our voices are heard on the federal and state levels by “taking action” and giving a strong voice to what we need legislatively as veterinarians. 

STUDENT EXPERIENCE: PERU

Submitted by Alex Marsh, Virginia-Maryland CVM

When I started undergrad, I knew I wanted to be a veterinarian. However, I quickly learned that I was extremely interested in research as well. Summer 2018, I attended a study abroad to Peru. During the trip I conducted a three-day mini research project in the Amazon on reptiles and amphibians. This small project created an opportunity for  spending 72 days during summer 2019 conducting research on the same project. I went twice more as an undergraduate, continuing the study and helping new students with their own projects like camera trap and fish biodiversity studies. After starting vet school in fall 2022, I thought my Peru research expeditions were over. However, an unexpected conversation with Virginia Tech’s parasitologist, Dr. Roger Ramirez-Barrios changed my mind. He told me that he wanted to send me to Peru again, but this time investigating ticks, mites, and hematoparasites in snakes. 

Dr. Ramirez-Barrios sent me and another veterinary student to conduct research during the summer of 2023.  This project will impact how we understand snakes as parasite reservoirs of domestic animals and humas in the Peruvian Amazon. The topic of parasitology and the skills needed to perform blood draws on snakes make veterinary students like myself perfectly suited for this research. As more people continue to expand into the rainforest our research will become vital in understanding wildlife-domestic animal parasite interactions as well as learning novel information about snake and parasite interactions.

My combined experiences during undergraduate and veterinary school made me realize the potential for research as a veterinarian. I always thought that the research I was interested in and the veterinary career I dreamed of pursuing would be separate parts of my life, but I now know they can coexist together. Having this newfound knowledge about combining research and veterinary medicine, I think my already unique path to becoming a veterinarian has changed. I am currently planning more trips back to the Amazon to conduct follow up research for the project and I cannot see a future where I am not involved in the current study we are doing. I plan on expanding this project to include other facets of wildlife parasitology and eventually will include domestic animal parasites from animals in pastures adjacent to our research stations.

STUDENT EXPERIENCE: NICARAGUA

Submitted by Kathleen Kuhl, Long Island University (IVEC scholarship recipient)

"I recently returned from volunteering for Aprovet, a non-profit veterinary medicine organization located in Granada, Nicaragua, and I cannot say enough about how incredible my experience was. As an incoming second year veterinary student, I was eager to join a trip where I could gain more opportunities to practice my clinical skills in the veterinary field, and my experience with Aprovet exceeded my expectations. Our week-long trip included three surgery days at the Aprovet clinic and a community outreach day, where we traveled to a local neighborhood and provided wellness care for people’s pets. Not only was I able to perform surgeries myself, as well as monitor and provide care for patients, I gained a unique perspective on the veterinary needs of other communities outside of the United States. I learned to be extremely grateful for the resources we have in the United States to care for animals, whereas other countries are not as fortunate. However, despite lack of resources, Aprovet’s Dr. Lester and his staff demonstrated such compassion and kindness to all of the animals we treated during the trip and provided us with advice and new treatment techniques to add to our veterinary repertoire for the future. This trip made me realize the need for veterinary care around the world and how these kinds of trips are something I want to be a part of throughout my future career.

I also had the opportunity to meet some amazing people in the veterinary field from other areas of the United States and Nicaragua itself. I am incredibly grateful for the encouragement and positivity I received from the people around me during this trip because it made learning exciting and a lot less stressful. Additionally, my friend and I rescued two puppies from Nicaragua, who we brought back to the United States to give them a chance at a new lifestyle! We got both of the puppies new homes, which was an extremely rewarding feeling after seeing the lifestyle of so many of the dogs on the streets of Nicaragua. Overall, I had the best time in Nicaragua, and I cannot wait to go back and continue to provide veterinary care to all the animals in need!"