India Travels

By: Carrie Wang

Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, Class of 2012

Here are some photos from Carrie's trip with classmates to India for a 6 week Infectious Disease Externship. What better way to subsidize your travel than by making it a study experience?

Little-ones need love too

Happy Thanksgiving!

By: Alicia Agnew

Class of 2013, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine

Max and Alex were two hamsters who came into the clinic.  When I first came into the room I saw a pleasant woman with two children fussing over a video game.  Alex was rolling around in a little hamster ball.  When setting him out on the blue towel on the examining table I could see that his arms were filled with pus.  His illness was put in the shade when Max was revealed.  Max was rolled out of a small carrying cage.  Rolls of fat hit the ground.  A huge puffy face waddled across the table.  Never in my life have I seen an animal so disproportionally fat.  My first impression was that a genetic defect had his legs stuck inside his body.  Q-tips revealed that the rolls of fat had fallen around his paws so he was unable to touch the ground, instead moving against his skin giving the appearance that he had no legs.  His cheeks were solid masses that extended beyond his width.  My diagnosis of a tumor was incorrect, as the vet was able to push out a rotten mass of half-chewed foods.  Stinky smelling sunflower seeds scattered on the table’s surface.  Max went home on a diet while Alex received some antibiotics.  They came back a week later for a recheck where both were doing much better.   Even little guys need love and care too!

Hermit Crab Papers

By: Alicia Agnew

Class of 2013, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine

Working at a small animal clinic, a client came in with an unusual request; “May I have international health papers for my hermit crab?”  The attending veterinarian then went through a checklist, “Have you seen any sneezing?  Any coughing?  Any signs of infectious disease?......”

Veterinary Science in Tamil Nadu, India

By: Jennifer Eberly

Class of 2012, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine

I am a third year food animal veterinary student at Virginia Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine, and this summer I had the opportunity to spend 6 weeks in India on an infectious diseases externship. It was a wonderful, eye-opening  (and sweltering!) experience, and I could not begin to detail all of my experiences in one short entry. I would just like to describe two of my experiences however, one negative and one positive, because I feel they typify the best and worst of my experience with veterinary science in India.

Click to read more ...

A Lesson Learned too late

By: Alicia Agnew

Class of 2013, Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine

Summer is supposed to be a time to relax, go to the beach, hang out with friends.  Unfortunately, I have an inability to balance my life which I need to work on before getting out into the “real world”.  Summer had several objectives for me: 1) earn enough money for school, 2) get more clinical experience, and 3) get my goats under control, a yearly struggle.

Click to read more ...