Class of 2021 . . . how ya doin?

Veterinary Science Graduate Certificate from UofI
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
Any suggestions on resources to learn diabetes management
Members don't see this ad.
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: 2 users
Members don't see this ad :)
Getting close to two months on the job now but can still manage to have a dream about failing out of a vet school because I forgot to neuter half a cat and the derm department wasn't very understanding of my error.
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Reactions: 10 users
Involved in my first instance of an angry client household where both spouses left a 1 star review because our hospital has gone downhill in the last 1.5 years and they worked with incompetent new vets. Do I and the other new grad both get a gold star since both spouses left a review,, or do we have to split that one star since it was the same household?

(Note I'm not upset over this; lady was heckin rude and oblivious to the world apparently. I find this situation an issue of entitlement and lacking in grace)
 
  • Haha
  • Care
  • Like
Reactions: 7 users
I wanted to share a positive story today. A super sweet 5yo FS doggo came into the ER for a bleeding mass on her ear because she'd been trying to get into her primary and everywhere is booked out several weeks. I looked at it and it was screaming mast cell tumor. It grew over two weeks to over 3cm. Normally I'd take this with a grain of salt, but they had pictures... wow. In any case I was hesitant to poke the bleeding mass in ER because in case it was a MCT I would just piss it off and then send them home to deal with it. So instead I advised her the best I could. I told her my thoughts, that I was suspicious of MCT but it could realistically be anything. She should see oncology and then surgery (I had spoken with the surgeon over text very unofficially) or see if her primary could fit her in immediately. I also told her that because things are booking out so far and we want to get doggo in immediately, if she was unable to get into any of those places in the next few days, to come back to the ER free of charge and we will hospitalize her for an emergency Onco consult in the morning. (Also gave the option to do that at that time as well.) The poor owner was in hysterics and needed things repeated several times to make sure she got it all. Sent the doggo home in an e-collar and on allergy meds and an H2 blocker just in case.

Ok, here's the awesome part! She calls me the next night and my stomach sinks because I figure she didn't get in anywhere and needs to get the emergency consult now. So I answer the phone and the first works out of her mouth are "I don't need anything" and I'm super confused because then why are you calling me? And she goes on to tell me how much I helped her and she got into her primary when she called them back and we sent them our records and he had the oncologist's number and they were chatting to make sure doggo got everything she needed and how she just wanted to say thanks. She said I was so calm and compassionate about the whole situation it made everything a million times better for her. And I just... sat there and was shocked for like five minutes. I stuttered out a thank you and we said goodbye but my head froze for a good 10 minutes afterwards. It's probably a good thing masks are still required because otherwise I think I would've swallowed a fly my jaw was hanging open for so long. Anyways, it's a long story but I've never felt more appreciated. Sometimes people are kind, and it means everything when they are.
 
Last edited:
  • Love
  • Like
Reactions: 16 users
Do we need my imposter syndrome meme? I look at this all the time:

RDT_20210807_2138583150053984332697856.png


Be a cat. A cat doesn't even care that they spelled imposter wrong. It's impostor now, get with it.✌️
 
  • Like
Reactions: 9 users
Have officially been doing spays for a year as of two days ago. You wouldn't have guessed it by how much I managed to struggle bus a kitten spay that day though 😂 That being said, I am way more confident and competent at spays and it's been great to see how far I've come in just a year (and really more like just a couple of months since I really hadn't spayed anything between last October and this June).
 
  • Like
  • Love
Reactions: 8 users
Hi,
Does anyone have a good pig diarrhea chart they may have made studying for NAVLE that why would be willing to share? I'm trying to find a good one but haven't had any luck yet. Thanks!
 
MixedAnimals77 said:
Hi,
Does anyone have a good pig diarrhea chart they may have made studying for NAVLE that why would be willing to share? I'm trying to find a good one but haven't had any luck yet. Thanks!
Click to expand...
I have this! Idk if it's the type of chart you're looking for
20210822_183600.jpg
 
  • Love
  • Like
Reactions: 10 users
Members don't see this ad :)
Hey all,

What are some questions i should be asking during interviews about the practices themselves? What are things that matter in day to day life/happiness? Questions like Dr/Tech ratios during shifts, if they will be leaving me alone right away, etc? I know that I will get a feel for clinics/personalities better when I visit in person, but I need some good questions for the "pre-inteviews" prior to visiting. Thanks to anyone with ideas!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
JustPaws said:
Hey all,

What are some questions i should be asking during interviews about the practices themselves? What are things that matter in day to day life/happiness? Questions like Dr/Tech ratios during shifts, if they will be leaving me alone right away, etc? I know that I will get a feel for clinics/personalities better when I visit in person, but I need some good questions for the "pre-inteviews" prior to visiting. Thanks to anyone with ideas!
Click to expand...
Depends on what you want in a job. If you know what you want for mentorship, ask questions to make sure they can provide that. How long your appointments would be to start, how many in a day, how many surgeries. Things that were important to me were no declaws, and a euthanasia policy that matched what I was comfortable with. Asking about some of their protocols too for stuff that matters to you (example: testicular blocks), how compliant their clients are.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 4 users
JustPaws said:
Hey all,

What are some questions i should be asking during interviews about the practices themselves? What are things that matter in day to day life/happiness? Questions like Dr/Tech ratios during shifts, if they will be leaving me alone right away, etc? I know that I will get a feel for clinics/personalities better when I visit in person, but I need some good questions for the "pre-inteviews" prior to visiting. Thanks to anyone with ideas!
Click to expand...
I will second asking directly about what matters to you. My biggies were appt length and support staff to doc ratio. I had a job offer for 20k more and half a day less per week than what I currently have. The hang ups? 15 minute wellness and 30 minute sick appts. The pay cut and increased hours was totally worth it to be able to have 30-40 minute appts cause I like to talk about *everything* with my clients as well as have enough time to do records at the hospital. Both offers were with a corporate.

Ask about whats important to you. It's a buyers market. You probably won't get everything you want, but you could potentially get several of your top priorities.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
JustPaws said:
Hey all,

What are some questions i should be asking during interviews about the practices themselves? What are things that matter in day to day life/happiness? Questions like Dr/Tech ratios during shifts, if they will be leaving me alone right away, etc? I know that I will get a feel for clinics/personalities better when I visit in person, but I need some good questions for the "pre-inteviews" prior to visiting. Thanks to anyone with ideas!
Click to expand...

Whatever you need to know to determine whether the visit is worth it.

Aside from asking about my special interest, I usually asked about salary structure, appt length, how many doctors they have (and how many they plan to have), how much support staff and what kind of mentorship they could offer. I specifically open-ended the mentorship question. Most other questions I saved for during/after the visit.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
JustPaws said:
Hey all,

What are some questions i should be asking during interviews about the practices themselves? What are things that matter in day to day life/happiness? Questions like Dr/Tech ratios during shifts, if they will be leaving me alone right away, etc? I know that I will get a feel for clinics/personalities better when I visit in person, but I need some good questions for the "pre-inteviews" prior to visiting. Thanks to anyone with ideas!
Click to expand...
Oh I thought of another thing. Ask what CE they would recommend for a new grad. My boss had a dental course she recommended to me right away, and she’s been super supportive about professional growth.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
I second the appointment scheduling question, and also questions about how doctor scheduling works (i.e. how soon do they expect you to be working on your own). I'd probably ask when the last appointment of the day is too, which will tell you whether you are seeing patients right up until the end of your shift or if you have scheduled time to work on records. Things like how they schedule holidays and weekends too. Definitely support staff to vet ratio, staff turnover rate. Might be good to ask how client complaints are handled. Depending on how important certain drug protocols are to you, you could ask what they have available (I'd love if my clinic had any full mu opioids, for instance), though that's also something you'd find out in person.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 5 users
I personally would also love to ask if it's possible to speak to other veterinarians on staff. I've found that places that are cagey about it tend to suck. Obviously people are busy and it may be really hard to get in contact with those people quickly, but I've found the willingness to give out the contact info says a lot.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
something to ask that is very telling about a practice is asking about front desk scheduling on top of how the schedule is set (how long are wellness, recheck, and sick visits, etc…)

How many same day sick appts do you save for the day? When can those be scheduled? What happens when the appt slots are filled? Do they get double/triple booked? Who makes that call? And even if not, who decides what additional caseload gets added on? Who has veto power?

I personally will only work when I as the doctor have say. And I typically said yes pre-kiddo to anything that would make us stay late AS LONG AS I had a tech and receptionist who were also game to play. Nobody should be made to stay past their shift for something that was added on last minute unless they want to.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 8 users
If you client has been denied for CareCredit or Scratchpay, the free dating app Plenty of Fish is apparently an option to pay for treatment.
 
  • Haha
  • Hmm
  • Like
Reactions: 7 users
My hospital is closed completely (GP and ER) for the next 2 days due to a COVID outbreak. I've had direct exposure. So a 4 day weekend and COVID PCR test for me.
 
  • Care
Reactions: 10 users
cubsrule4e said:
Are hedgehogs related? Whats that neuro disease they are prone to get with balance and early death? My brother got one, I had to take care of it for a few weeks, and it deterioated and died in just a few days :(
Click to expand...
They are not - in fact, hedgehogs aren't even rodents.

The neuro disease is what it says on the tin: Wobbly Hedgehog Syndrome. Unfortunately very common. I think it's largely suspected to be genetic but I don't know that there's been a ton of investigation into it
 
  • Sad
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
I unexpectedly lost my first patient yesterday. **** hurts. Vet school definitely didn’t prepare me for suddenly dead puppies
 
  • Care
Reactions: 10 users
So I realized I've been a practicing vet for over a quarter of a year now and I have some random thoughts...

- School did me a (relatively minor) disservice by always giving me an assistant during surgeries--learning how to hold stuff without another person scrubbed in is interesting and I have dropped more instruments out of my field than I am proud of
- I have a love-hate relationship with antibiotics
- C-sections are the best surgery ever
- Bernadoodles are a more common doodle than I thought
- Mid-sized dog spays are the sweet spot for spays IMO. Tiny uteruses sucks but giant dogs also suck.
- Scrotal ablations are not a good time
- Liking the people you work with makes your days better
- Porcupines aren't playing around

How is everyone else doing?
 
  • Like
  • Care
Reactions: 9 users
I've been low key considering leaving GP for a few weeks now. I find myself looking at positions with Caring Pathways, the government, or in academia again. I've been sticking it out because I'm not sure if 4 months is long enough to know if I feel comfortable or not in my specific GP practice.
 
  • Care
  • Like
Reactions: 11 users
battie said:
I've been low key considering leaving GP for a few weeks now. I find myself looking at positions with Caring Pathways, the government, or in academia again. I've been sticking it out because I'm not sure if 4 months is long enough to know if I feel comfortable or not in my specific GP practice.
Click to expand...
4 months is plenty of time to know if you’re happy with a job. The big question is whether it’s GP in general that’s the issue, or practice-specific problems.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 5 users
genny said:
The big question is whether it’s GP in general that’s the issue, or practice-specific problems.
Click to expand...
I think its more GP specific than the practice itself (secondary facility where we do GP, sick appts, and 24/7/365 ER; lots of resources and support tbh). I just don't really want to manage the long term diabetics/cushings/etc. Euthanasias don't bother me (at this point). I'm a people person, and I've had few clients that have actually really bothered me.

I am connecting with a behavior-inclined GP who used to work here to focus more on behavior cases. As that gets rolling, I'm more inclined to do moreso behavior in my metro area because there aren't a lot of resources in the area. If a rotating internship wasn't required for getting boarded, I would strongly consider it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
battie said:
I think its more GP specific than the practice itself (secondary facility where we do GP, sick appts, and 24/7/365 ER; lots of resources and support tbh). I just don't really want to manage the long term diabetics/cushings/etc. Euthanasias don't bother me (at this point). I'm a people person, and I've had few clients that have actually really bothered me.

I am connecting with a behavior-inclined GP who used to work here to focus more on behavior cases. As that gets rolling, I'm more inclined to do moreso behavior in my metro area because there aren't a lot of resources in the area. If a rotating internship wasn't required for getting boarded, I would strongly consider it.
Click to expand...
I didn’t think a rotating was required? I have a good friend who is really interested in being boarded in behavior and they opted for a year in practice instead.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
mmmdreamerz said:
I didn’t think a rotating was required? I have a good friend who is really interested in being boarded in behavior and they opted for a year in practice instead.
Click to expand...
The website says a rotating internship or equivalent. So if a year in practice would count, then I would be far more inclined
 
battie said:
The website says a rotating internship or equivalent. So if a year in practice would count, then I would be far more inclined
Click to expand...
Yeah, I think that they usually count a couple of years in practice as equivalent to a rotating, I think like 3 years? But also, does behavior have a practitioner track? Some specialties do, especially if they are more rare, and I think behavior has very few residencies in general just because it's a rarer specialty. Might be worth cold emailing a couple of specialists and picking their brains
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
battie said:
The website says a rotating internship or equivalent. So if a year in practice would count, then I would be far more inclined
Click to expand...
I'd definitely reach out. I can't even with how useless a standard year rotating internship would be compared to a year in GP when discussing behaviour...
 
  • Like
Reactions: 4 users
vetmedhead said:
But also, does behavior have a practitioner track?
Click to expand...
They do to a certain extent. You mentor under a boarded behaviorist for x number of cases. Still publish papers and sit the exam.
Trilt said:
I'd definitely reach out. I can't even with how useless a standard year rotating internship would be compared to a year in GP when discussing behaviour...
Click to expand...
So simply email the board group to ask?
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

IvyMoose
Class of 2027... how you doin'?
2 3
Replies
102
Views
10K
SkiOtter
SkiOtter
K
Class of 2026... how you doin'?
2 3 4 5 6
Replies
291
Views
28K
katiemcat
katiemcat
PhiloslothicalStudent
Class of 2025... How you doin’?
5 6 7 8 9
Replies
441
Views
67K
supershorty
supershorty
mammalade
Class of 2024... how you doin?
15 16 17 18 19
Replies
929
Views
114K
TrashCat
TrashCat
CoffeeQuestionMark
Class of 2023... how you doin?!
16 17 18 19 20
Replies
984
Views
115K
CoffeeQuestionMark
CoffeeQuestionMark
Top