So apparently...

... you don’t end up with more free time after graduating.

Is it just me...

or do things come in runs. Last few weeks have been eye problems and now every second animal has a cough.

During our reproduction unit last year we spent and afternoon down at the farm to learn how to assess bull fertility. This is an important part of the job for cattle vets. As part of a working and profitable farm it’s ideal to have all bulls tested yearly before breeding season to make sure they are all in tip top condition to get the best results possible. Not all of the university bulls are used for breeding and some of them are not what you would want in a breeding bull either but they were all very friendly and great to learn on.

Second day of sole charge...

...(Nurse) Well it can’t be going too badly we haven’t burnt the clinic down.

This year from September to November I spent time traveling all over the state and the country working with a variety of Cattle and Mixed practice clinics as the conclusion to my veterinary  education. It has been an absolute blast with old friends, new friends and friends that I don’t get to see often. Things I have learned: - You have finally acclimatised to cold weather when you think it’s probably just a bit cold this morning and then look to see it’s only 2DegC. - If you think about things logically you probably do know the answer. - Never go anywhere with a vet without food or water... there will be another call, that quick trip around the corner at 8 in the morning will result in you not eating for 14hrs even though you were meant to be back for lunch. - Everyone has different ways of doing things and lots of them will be right. - Stay safe; don’t put your hand through the hydraulic crush, drive slowly on gravel roads, make sure the kick gate is in properly and and extra 50kg will not help against a 600kg animal. - Be mindful of other people and make sure everyone gets a fair go, you may not be the only one who has never done this before. - Some times things don’t work no matter how hard you try to get the calf out or suture the eyelid. - Even after thirty years of practice you will still see things that will completely stump you. - That lecture you didn’t think you would use for at least a few years comes in handy much sooner than you had hoped. - Always have spare overalls, even if you don’t need them the vet might. - Students can teach you things, they appreciate when you listen. - It’s been said a million times because it really is true make friends with the nurses, you want them on your side. - House sitting jobs make traveling 100% more affordable, just ask around. - Chihuahuas and not always pure evil...just most of the time. - Make time to do fun things, you might be there to work so work hard, but the time off you do have should be spent at the beach. - Give everything a go, and if you are not sure ask how to do it. - Make the most of these opportunity and network, it might one day get you a job.

When given an opportunity to do something, take it because going to work with African wildlife for a month is going to be the best thing you have ever done. We spent a day moving a rhino to stop her being poached, helped relocate animals from heavily populated areas to prevent overgrazing and moved elephants that had broken into the neighbors orange farm.

Heading into the experience I thought I would learn a little and have a great time and I was mostly right, It was a great time and I learned much more than I had ever hoped. Skills such as packing you vet car to be prepared for any job, How to deal with situations when you don’t have the right equipment. If you need to treat and ostrich look it up, if you are left to PM one you will be thankful for the basic principles you have already been taught. From lab skills to people skills to hard work and everything in between we all came back from the trip with some great stories and some new found confidence in our skills as vets. Even the fun stuff can contribute a lot to your education.

On November 28th our class once again sat down in a lecture theater to scribble furiously on an exam booklet, and so began the last exam period of our university degree. Over the next six days we sat three written examinations and one three hour long practical examination consisting of multiple 6minute task stations ranging from explaining a disease in a consult, suturing an abdominal wall to bandaging bird wings. This was probably the shortest and most intense group of exams we had ever sat but after the last six years of dedicated study and twelve months of practical work we were all well prepared...even if not a single one of us felt it. The following week we struggled to relax until we received our marks, with majority of people passing everything. For those who didn’t it just meant one more exam before graduation, but ultimately we were all going to graduate we all know our stuff. That Friday we had our graduation ceremony followed by a dinner with family and friends. There were many speeches and much celebration as we were all welcomed into the Veterinary profession. You may now refer to us all as Dr! Our year has been incredibly lucky...Or maybe we are just fantastically talented, with most of us having found jobs for the coming year. Six years has gone by faster than I could have ever imagined and it’s been incredible fun, and hard work. My next adventure will begin in the new year as I pack up the last six years of my life to fly to the other side of the country. I’m off to start my new job in a mixed practice in a small country town, it’s going to be an interesting year.

Haven’t had time to post in a while...

...but I sat my last vet school exam today! Providing the last week went well I will be a Dr in just over a week.

In the middle of this year I returned to South Africa for a month to work with a wildlife vet group. It was a trip of a life time and an amazing experience. If you ever have the chance to go on safari in Kruger park it is a magical place.

Quite a nice place to be on placement for three weeks :)

Last day of rotations. 12 more weeks of placement 2 of exams and we are officially Dr’s!

As part of the team running the companion exotics group we organised a night of interactive talks for students as part of the groups exotics practice weekend. I specifically organised the reptile talk for which the presenter brought along some pretty chilled scaly critters.

The Mongol Derby is on and if you are not excited then you probably don’t know what it is.