Diary of a Vet Student

Hello nice ladies and gentlemen

I have got my timetable to hand for this blog, because without it I'm sorry to say that i wouldn't have a scooby dooby about what I've done this week. According to the time table I attended a herd fertility and reproductive examination lecture on Monday morning and yes I can vaguely remember being taught how to examine testicles etc (still talking about cattle here). We also had lots of lectures this week on "the reproductive cycle of the cow and how to manipulate it". I can remember these lectures mainly because they were so painful. I had a cold at the time and for unfortunately "the reproductive cycle of the cow and how to manipulate it" doesn't really soothe your sinuses . Also had some nice equine lameness lectures and a bit of "animal welfare in the slaughter house" .

I had two farm practicals this week one on history taking and the other on clinical examinations of cows. Managed to destroy me wellies in the first one, by offering foot to an inquisiive piggy with big mouth and no mercy.

The rest of the week's was nice and steady . Got rid of wild "live it large" sister on monday morning and mourned her departure all day long (she's ma wee sis after all). Went to capoeira on Monday, but traded my Wednesday night yoga session for curry and a cinema session with an old friend who was getting even older that day. On Thursday long lost boyfriend arrived from Bristol and so I've been wining and dining him ever since . It's a hard old life so it is.

Byese bye

Hello

Another week in bonny Glasgee is all over and done with. Not entirely sure what I’ve done with it to be honest. Lecture wise we’ve been looking at orthopaedic problems in horses. Things like angular limb deformities and fractures. Farm animal stuff is a total blank for me. I really can’t remember what on earth we’ve covered this week. We did do a post mortem practical, which was based on veterinary public health and meat inspection. We spent the afternoon in the post mortem room looking at lungs hearts and livers from the local abattoir. It really is glamour city. Anyway we spent a good two hours “getting to know” the feel and look of various revolting lesions that make offal unfit for human consumption.

We’re doing a collaborative learning assignment (CLA) this term, which involves working in groups on a mini research project. Ours is to investigate the incidence of side effects of phenylbutazone in horses at the equine hospital. As part of the project we’re analysing some of the routine blood sample that are usually taken for horses on bute and I took one of them on Ruesday. So that was very fulfilling.

Unfortunately the work front hasn’t really been in existence since Thursday night, when we had the “welcome back celidh” (still can’t spell that word). This was a sweat bath involving three hours of innocent Scottish jigging and it was awesome fun. It was so much fun that when the dancing ended at 11 I decided to max out 70p vodkas and continue the party in the Hive club at the union. With the benefit of hindsight I can now say that this was not a well thought-out move. Little sister arrived on Friday morning expecting to “large it” all weekend and therefore time has been passing in a blurry haze since then. Hoping that a bag of chips and a night in with a cuppa and a good film will go some way towards getting me back to normal before Monday morning.
Tarah. x

Hello nice blog readers. This is what i've been up to this week.

Lectures this week have been Ok actually. In farm animal we're starting reproduction so we've done a load of suff to do with bovine obstetrics which is really good James Herriot kind of stuff: calving, caesarians and hot bockets of soapy water. So i like those lectures. Unfortunately to counterbalance this new found happiness, small animal is all about discussing orthopaedic problems in dogs. So we're looking at things like elbow displasia and osteosarcomas (bone cancer). I think I'd find this all very interesting but unfortunately in lecture format it's in the same league as the shipping forecast. Sorry if you like listening to the shipping forecast.

So anyway. That's lecture. practicals have been nice. I've had one on neurological reflexes, demonstrated on an extremely nervous wee grey hound who yelped everytime we touched her. Also wnet to grand rounds on friday, which is when the fifth year demonstrate a few of the interesting cases they've seen in the small animal hospital. And as if that wasn't enough excitement, we had a post mortem demonstration on Monday. This is when the clinicians and the pathology department take us through a case from start t finnish (ie dead).

Socialness has also been fun this week. Joined the veterinary zoological society on Tuesday, because all my mates were and they were offering a free buffet ad the pub. They also have talks every Tuesday with free pizza and beer afterwards so six squid seems like a good investment. Went to capoeira on Wednesday night and sweated alot. Friday night was the freshers disco, which in true glasgow style, was utter carnage. the theme was A and E. Flatmate and I didn't have any appropriate "services" clothing and so considered going as pregnant ladies and drunkards, but finally decided on injured rgby players. this worked well as it meant we didn't have to have showers.

So Saturday was all about "Friends", Morrisons and home made soup. Also did a bit of work (oh yes I did). Toda I'm working and cooking tea nd going over to a lovely mate's for a bit of a quiet DVD fest.

ta da.

Hello

What have I been up to this week? Lectures are a never ending cycle of calf diarhoea (still not overly confident about spelling that word) and anaesthesia. Can be a bit long winded- 1 hour 45 minutes is the max so far, but they're Ok as I think the information will be useful! We've also had lectures on transport and welfare, premeds, anaesthesia breathing machines (wahoo) and "muscle to meat". The latter thrilled me to bits and really took the biscuit yesterday afternoon.

I went to capoeira on Monday nights. It's a martial art, but you're not really supposed to hit your oponent, it's all about dance. They do it in one of the BBC adverts. Anyway I've been in absoulte agony ever since as my muscle's just aren't use to that sor of activity. Really struggled to have a late midnight pee last night as after two hours of sleep every mucsle had turned to wood. Will have to go for a jog this afternoon to ease myself up again.

The weekend was pretty good. Went for a "few drinks" on Friday night and managed to get back in at 4 am on saturday. Subsequently saturday was a bit of a lonesome write-off infront of the telly. Shopped all day Sunday and ate a big feast of haggis neeps and tatties on sunday night with very patriotic flatmate.

Obviously not feeling the fear yet with regards to work, although beginning to get a bit more excited today as we've started our CLA projects, which are research projects which we do in groups of 6. they're 3500 words each. ours is on side effects of phenylbutazone (bute) use in horses at the school's clinic.

Ok better go.