Easter Placement

I'm back home in the UK for Easter and have been seeing practice with my local Small Animal hospital for just over a week.

I love going back there as I know the vets and get on really well with the team of nurses. 

I've felt a lot more useful this time around as I can help prep surgery kits and leave consults to collect drugs for the vet; I'm trying to learn Pharmacology of commonly used drugs so kept my Formulary close by.

Vets have asked a few questions in front of clients in consults but nothing too taxing so I survived... anything I didn't know, I made sure I knew next time and I won't forget!

Chris, one of the new grad vets I went to school with, has recently left and moved down South so they've had two locums in. It was great to ask questions and learn how things are done differently in other practices.

Now that I've been a few times it was nice to recognise a few patients and follow up on the cases. Particularly cats with Hyperthyroid and Diabetes which are in fairly regularly so I've seen them a few times. The owners recognised me and have been asking home I'm getting on - though lots of people forgot which country I study in! Usually get Hungary, Slovenia and even America!

On Thursday, just before the Bank Holiday weekend, we had a Border Terrier in for a Caesarian section. She had two big healthy boys and we speyed get at the same time as she'd had a c-section previously so the breeder took the decision to neuter her.

I'm flying back to uni today so I took in a few boxes of cakes to say thanks for having me!

Small Animal Practice

I've spent a week seeming practice with a local Small Animal Hospital.

It's a practice I've been to before so I know the vets and nurses who are all really nice and also means I can be a bit more useful as I'm learning where things are kept and how each vet works.

I watched surgeries for the first couple days and then was able to learn and have a go myself.

Chris one of the vets, who was in the year above me at school, got me to scrub in and he explained how he does a cat castrate so I had a go at that. The following day I was able to do all the local cat charity castrate operations which went really well.

Two of them were little brothers which were much more fiddly, Chris was there to explain and jump in if I needed help but luckily they were fine!

They have a new vet who studied in Portugal who I was with in consults and theatre, she was saying when she started she had no surgical experience but seemed really confident now and her consults were great. Was encouraging to hear a graduate who also studied abroad was getting on well and settled into the job nicely.

It was really nice to get back into the vets and feel more useful for a bit of motivation before the next month of exams!

Last day seeing practice before Vet School!

Today was my last day at Pype Hayes and my last day in a vets before I head off to Uni.

It's been really beneficial to see practice before going to vet school and has given me more confidence about going and about the job.

I mentioned before that I loved spending a week at Willows Referral centre but the work they do is so specialist it's taken the vets years of experience to get where they are.

The vets and nurses have really involved me this week even little things like drawing up booster vaccinations for vets while they talk to clients.

We've had lots of rabbits in this week and had two rabbit speys in today as well as a rabbit dental.

This is the new Docsinmovent v-gel intubation tube they use for the rabbits which sits just over larynx and rests on the epiglottis.

The thinking is that is doesn't touch the trachea so doesn't reduce the airway and doesn't cause any trauma.

They come with a water based lubricant and enzymatic cleaner which they soak in for 15 minutes and then sit in a cradle for autoclave.

There were also a few feral cat speys and the vets got me to draw up and give intramuscular Antisedan to reverse the sedative and wake them up.

They have said I'm welcome to go back so hopefully I'll fit a week in over Christmas or Easter!

Puppies and Poultry!

Crazy busy day at Pype Hayes today!

Chris was operating today so I watched a couple of dog castrates and a dental then at 11am a French bulldog came in for a caesarean. Everyone was ready to help the puppies and it was Chris' first caesarean so Stacey one of the other vets was there to guide him through it, meaning there were 8 people in theatre.

It was getting a bit too busy so we came out for 2 minutes to wait for the vets to hand over puppies for us to rub and get then breathing.

They came our one by one and we vigorously rubbed them in towels to stimulate their breathing, a bit like we do with lambs - a couple had drops put under their tongues and had an oxygen mask ready to support them.

She had 7 puppies, 5 girls and 2 boys, of which 6 were healthy but one was born with it's eyes open and developmental problems who didn't get breathing.

6 healthy puppies is great though! 

Her uterus looked like it was about to rupture so the owner was rang and as it was her second caesarean the decision was made to spay her at the same time.

This afternoon I was in consults with Stacey one of the Locum vets - she was really nice and explained what she was doing as she went. 

Two Ayredale puppies came in with colitis so she checked them all over, weighed them to see if they'd grown since they were last in 2 weeks ago. They seemed ok so have been put on a low fat diet to see how they go and sent home with a faeces sample pot should they get any worse.

We had a cat in with suspected flea allergy or lice so I helped Stacey do a skin scrape and hair pluck to have a look at under the microscope.

Last thing we had someone bring in a limping duck with a bubbly eye. It didn't look like Mycoplasma and no other respiratory problems so not sure what the eye was about but the leg was warm and inflamed and because it had been a few days they took the decision to have her PTS.

It was quite nice talking to the owner about her other chickens and ducks, that they could live together happily and I told her how to sex her ducks. Apparently they get chickens in but rarely see ducks, especially domestics and not wild mallards so was nice to see that!

Puppy Party

It's been a busy week of operations as they have a £99 Dental Offer on at the moment so they've had lots of cats and dogs booked in.

There were two 4-month old rabbits in for castrate earlier which were really cute and well behaved.

The nurses used a local anaesthetic on their ears (the rabbits ears!) 10 minutes before sedating them intravenously so the boys didn't feel anything and they they have a special intubation tube which sits over the larynx for anaesthesia.

Charlotte operated on a cat with Entropion which is where the bottom eyelid was rolled in against the cornea of the eye.

I've seen it done in Sharpei and a British Bulldog before but apparently it can happen in older cats as they lose weight and the fat pad behind the eye reduces, causing the eye to sink in a little and the eyelid rolls inward. The cat had a ulcer forming on the cornea so Charlotte simply cut an elliptical piece of tissue under the eye and sutured it together pulling the eyelid down and away from the cornea.

The Vicryl suture material was soo tiny it was about as thin as a hair and only just visible, the needle must have only been about 4mm in length.

We used to get entropion quite a lot in the lambs so would often have to inject a couple mls of thick antibiotic (penicillin of engemycin) subcutaneously into the eyelids to pull them eyelashes away from the cornea.

Later on I popped outside to help a client bring her pets in - a group of Irish Setter puppies in for their first vaccinations at 8 weeks old! The bitch had 8 puppies, 4 boys and 4 girls.

They do actually do Puppy Parties at the practice to socialise young dogs with other dogs, owners and get them used to various situations so I'll have to see if I can go to the next one!

This week has been wildlife heavy with 4 wood pigeons and a squirrel being bought in with various ailments and broken bones.

First week at Pype Hayes

I've had a great week seeing practice at Pype Hayes.

After a week at Willows the referral centre I was amazed at all the work they did, the fantastic modern facilities they had and the costs involved with all the work but it was also really daunting to think that it would be me doing some of that work in 4 years time.
This week has been really good to see a some more 'normal' small animal surgery rather than specialist Osteo and Neuro operations. The vets and nurses have all explained what they've been doing and answered loads of questions.

Someone bought a Seagull in with a broken wing and as the nurses knew I'm into birds they pulled me out of a consult to have a look and hold it whole Stephen had a look. It had to be PTS as he's broken a wing and lost lots of blood but was interesting to see either way.

I think because I'm 22 and not a 16 year old school student on work experience people take me more seriously but also assume I know more, which sometimes isn't the case... I've never had a dog or a cat so while I'm fine with them, one of the nurses showed me how properly restrain a cat while the vet placed a cannula.
I've started learning where things are kept in the practice so could be a bit more useful towards the end of the week, grabbing things as and when needed rather than just standing around feeling like I'm getting in the way. They've had brand new IDEXX blood machines this week so they've all been learning how to run samples through them - I'll never need to know how but they still took the time to show me how to run the tests, explain what the machine does and what results we can get from them.
They usually do pre-general anaesthetic bloods, especially on older animals, so they can keep a closer eye on them and put them on fluids during surgery if necessary.

Chris the newly qualified vet started this week so its also good to see how well he did in his first week and how Uni does prepare you, not just throw you in the deep end!

I made brownies to say thanks and Stephen the Practice Partner came in to theatre to say were the nicest brownies he'd ever had and that I'd be welcome back! haha
I have a month before I head off to vet school so I've booked another week with them mid-August and really looking forward to it!

Dozens of Dentals

Lots of cats and dentals in today.

They have a dental offer on for £99 throughout the month of August so lots of people have been taking advantage of that, meaning lots of dentals for me to see!

We had this cat in for castrate - not sure what he was but he had major attitude and really did not like the nurses!

To make up for it we had this cat brought in with 3 kittens, all who had been abandoned so they're staying in for a while to check they're all doing well and until someone can take them on.

Not the best photo but was trying not to disturb her.

Pype Hayes Veterinary Centre

I've been seeing practice at Pype Hayes Veterinary Centre this week and having a really good time.
I emailed the practice manager and dropped a letter in, back in June and arranged to go this week after I'd finished work.

Chris who was in the year above me at school graduated from RVC a few weeks ago and started work at the practice today which is pretty cool.
It's mad to think if I'd gone in straight from A-Levels I could be going in to my final year but as it stands I'm only just starting out!

I've mainly been watching surgery and sitting in consults. I've washed a few surgery kits ready for the autoclave, got a few prescriptions ready (counting tablets out and finding stuff on the shelves) and cleaned a few kennels out.

We had a Spur Thighed Tortoise come in today for X-Rays to see if she was egg bound as she was behaving oddly. The x-rays didn't show anything so we think it was just a hormonal thing as she'd been with a male.

A lady dropped off two kittens which had been abandoned and were only a day old. They were covered in maggots so we cleaned them all up and they've been bottle fed and snuggled into a heat pad.

I also expressed my first anal glands of a dog too ...sure there will be plenty more over the next few years!