Large Animal Experience

During this half-term holiday I have been working on a dairy farm helping out in the mu liking and daily work for over 100 cows. 

Monday morning was spent with the farm vet to check for pregnancies in eight cows. Next on the "job list" was to feed the yearling cattle as well as the younger calves. By 5:00pm it was time to milk the heard. This takes roughly an hour and thirty minutes due to the fact that only nine cows can be milked at a time. 

Over the next two days the routine jobs were completed as well as helping out with a calving.

The three days I spent have been very useful to me as they have allowed me to spend time with large animals that I have never worked with before previously.

6/12/15

Today I helped with the examination of a dog with the use of anaesthetic. Due to the dog being very reluctant to allow us to even touch it we had to use a sedative to check why it wasn't putting anterior on  one of its forelegs. Soon enough it was suitably unaware of what was going on and the examination began. The issue seemed to be in the joint on the lower leg and it will have to come in next week to be fully checked up and X-rayed. The early conclusion is that surgery will be required.

28/11/15

Today I helped out with the sterilisation of surgical instruments for the first time today. Oddly I felt a certain amount of pressure with this; if I made a mistake with this what could be spread between animals due to my error?!

As well as the sterilisation I helped out the the hydrotherapy of a number of animals and also observed some consultations. What I saw in the consultations ranged from mundane boosters to the us of UV light to check for fungal growth in an open wound on a gerbil.

My Work Experience

Over the past nine weeks I have been working at Severn Veterinary as some voluntary work experience. 

The first week was by far the most full on, consultations taking up the whole morning including the draining of an abscess the size of a golf ball on a cat! This was then soon followed by multiple blood tests.

The past seven weeks following have been more relaxed and I have been able to watch and help with hydrotherapy for dogs as well as other procedures.

This particular week was the first time I have seen the use of ultrasound to help reduce swelling and irritation of muscle tissue.