Stupid things I've done:

[Dsmoody23]

If you need both hands, and it's just wiggly, (not mean, scared or pissed) using your chin on the top of the head works well. One hand for the front legs, one for under the jaw, and chin (or shoulder as previously mentioned,) for the top of the head. I shy away from the shoulder, because it puts my neck right next to the sharp parts. Personal preference.

Not something you'd want to use on a cat you don't know, or one that might turn 'fractious' under restraint. Also works great on a cat wearing a Dr. Lecter mask.

Again, at your own risk:

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[breenie]

We didn't do a lot of jug sticks on cats at our clinic. Jug sticks work on small dogs with the restraint described by Dsmoody, but the addition of claws just makes it hard. If they have any sort of will to injure you, I find it a less than ideal way to get blood. I dunno-- maybe others have been more successful? I find it really only works with the relatively cooperative demographic of cats. Or the declawed!

 

[squirrelsrule]

We do jug sticks on cats all the time at the emergency clinic where I work. Usually the cats are really sick, though, so not too much fight in them, but sometimes they are quite crazy. We wrap them like a burrito and then do the stretch technique where you hold the head with one hand and front paws stretched down over the table with the other hand. Then stop them from wiggling backwards with your arm and elbow. Works really well, even with the aggressive guys.

 

[breenie]

We do jug sticks on cats all the time at the emergency clinic where I work. Usually the cats are really sick, though, so not too much fight in them, but sometimes they are quite crazy. We wrap them like a burrito and then do the stretch technique where you hold the head with one hand and front paws stretched down over the table with the other hand. Then stop them from wiggling backwards with your arm and elbow. Works really well, even with the aggressive guys.

Huh! We never integrated the burrito technique. That would work well...

 

[Dsmoody23]

 

[breenie]

Omfg that's disturbing

 

[lareinesoleil]

Also, for some reason, I cannot hold cats for a jugular stick. CANNOT. I feel like an idiot every time and someone else has to hold. (Tips/tricks appreciated..)

OMG I'm so bad at this! I feel your pain! I'm really not the best cat holder in any situation but I've either got a really solid hold and the tech can't reach the vein, or I feel like the cat is gonna nail me...

 

[Cautionary Tail]

OMG I'm so bad at this! I feel your pain! I'm really not the best cat holder in any situation but I've either got a really solid hold and the tech can't reach the vein, or I feel like the cat is gonna nail me...

I'm a cat person, but I never feel overly confident about restraining them in clinical settings... and I can't do a competent jugular hold to save myself.

 

[that redhead]

We do jug sticks on cats all the time at the emergency clinic where I work. Usually the cats are really sick, though, so not too much fight in them, but sometimes they are quite crazy. We wrap them like a burrito and then do the stretch technique where you hold the head with one hand and front paws stretched down over the table with the other hand. Then stop them from wiggling backwards with your arm and elbow. Works really well, even with the aggressive guys.

Yep, this is our technique too. I feel like I can get the front legs fine but it's the damn head that gets me. Always feels like my little hands are just barely holding onto the head. May try the shoulder/head technique but so many cats hate restraint. Grr.

 

[Bearby]

I skillfully avoid having to hold cats for jug sticks because I'm the only tech that isn't afraid of being the person who does the sticking.

My biggest mistake was not checking both boards before giving insulin to a patient. One had been marked as the injection having been done but the one I looked at had not been. I was the last tech there, which in the past meant that I would be the one giving the injection. I gave the insulin, marked the one sheet, then went to mark the board. That's when I saw it had already been given. I immediately told my office manager who called the practice manager and the dog ended up being fine. He was put on IVs with dextrose and I apologized for my brain fart to his owners. They continued to come to us for boarding even after this huge mistake, and still trusted me. The good news was that this actually let us know that his glucose was not being regulated on the dosage of insulin he had been on. We wouldn't have known had I not double dosed him. I was torn up about it but the doctors I worked with told me about mistakes they made while teching and even when starting out as doctors. They reminded me that everyone makes mistakes and that you just have to learn from them. I'm sure I've made other stupid mistakes but I don't remember them.

 

[squibby]

Do you guys ever see techs get a cat jug draw with one person? A guy I work with does it all the time. He has big hands and literally can hold the cat's head/neck in position with one hand, and poke with the other. It works well with fractious cats because they calm down when they aren't being restrained as much. I was able to do it once, but it was a chill cat.

 

[cowgirla]

Do you guys ever see techs get a cat jug draw with one person? A guy I work with does it all the time. He has big hands and literally can hold the cat's head/neck in position with one hand, and poke with the other. It works well with fractious cats because they calm down when they aren't being restrained as much. I was able to do it once, but it was a chill cat.

I'd be willing to attempt that if the cat was declawed all the way around...

 

[Bearby]

I'd be willing to attempt that if the cat was declawed all the way around...

and detoothed lol

 

[Whyevernot55]

Do you guys ever see techs get a cat jug draw with one person? A guy I work with does it all the time. He has big hands and literally can hold the cat's head/neck in position with one hand, and poke with the other. It works well with fractious cats because they calm down when they aren't being restrained as much. I was able to do it once, but it was a chill cat.

I can't even picture trying this. How do you even...? Who holds off the vein? Does this guy have an extra hand or two coming out of his chest?

Some cats are just NOT good candidates for jug sticks. Just...not. Lol. Give me a back leg any day. Personal fave is jug sticks on dachshunds. Teehee, dachshunds.

I have also managed to leave the lid off when spinning microhematocrit tubes in the centrifuge. Thankfully, the centrifuge was fine. I just had a lot of cleaning to do.

 

[cowgirla]

I used to get stuck holding allllll the cats at my old clinic, for jug sticks or whatever.
I hardly ever used the table-- found it easier to just pin them against my side. Trap the hindquarters between your elbow and your hip, and use that arm to support the cat's weight and hold the front legs as high up as you can. That leaves your other hand free to hold the head-- unless I know the cat, I won't put his head anywhere near my neck or my face. I -think- my thumb is usally on the top of his head between his ears, other fingers under his chin, but that can vary depending on amount of wiggle, how much danger my fingers are in from teeth, and size of the head.
I found just holding them suspended like that makes it harder for them to struggle, because their feet can't really push off of a hard surface. You run some risk from the back legs getting you in the side, but usually they just get tangled up in the scrub top's pocket. This method also works if you wrap the kitty's back legs up in a burrito style. You can try to catch the front legs in the burrito too, but I'd rather just have a good grip on those, so it's not in the vet's field of vision.
Pretty much use the same method for small dogs, and when you need to do a TNT, they're already in a good position so no need to get them all riled up by changing things around.

 

[squibby]

I can't even picture trying this. How do you even...? Who holds off the vein? Does this guy have an extra hand or two coming out of his chest?

Ha ha, no, it's actually not THAT difficult. It goes kinda like this: thumb holding off, index finger on jawline, if you spread your thumb and index finger as far apart as possible it extends their neck upward, giving you access to the vein. Your other fingers kinda just rest on the back of their head or neck for stability.

You would be surprised how cats will just hold still and sit on the counter for this method. It's that whole "sometimes less is more" thing. I was able to do it so it's not as difficult as it sounds.

 

[Dsmoody23]

The head tech at my job does solo catheters, which I think is f***ing amazing.

It's not even restraint, she just sort of... talks them... into putting a paw on her knee and then sitting still. And she's quicker than a team of two, in most cases.

It's honestly mystifying to watch.

I need more rad medical moves.

 

[LetItSnow]

I need more rad medical moves.

More? I'd settle for one right about now. I'm feeling mojo-less.

 

[Dsmoody23]

More? I'd settle for one right about now. I'm feeling mojo-less.

I've got a pretty awesome Jake the Snake restraint hold, and I'm the crowned king of muzzling aggressive dogs.

Otherwise, I'm pretty dry too.

Mostly, I think they just keep me around to lift boxes.

 

[racccjlm]

Mostly, I think they just keep me around to lift boxes.

I can put together elizabethan collars like no one's business

 

[LetItSnow]

Mostly, I think they just keep me around to lift boxes.

As the tallest primate in the clinic (not surprising, I suppose, given my male-ness), I think my most useful function is placing/retrieving supplies from way up on top of the cabinets.

 

[sunshinevet]

I used to get stuck holding allllll the cats at my old clinic, for jug sticks or whatever.
I hardly ever used the table-- found it easier to just pin them against my side. Trap the hindquarters between your elbow and your hip, and use that arm to support the cat's weight and hold the front legs as high up as you can. That leaves your other hand free to hold the head-- unless I know the cat, I won't put his head anywhere near my neck or my face. I -think- my thumb is usally on the top of his head between his ears, other fingers under his chin, but that can vary depending on amount of wiggle, how much danger my fingers are in from teeth, and size of the head.
I found just holding them suspended like that makes it harder for them to struggle, because their feet can't really push off of a hard surface. You run some risk from the back legs getting you in the side, but usually they just get tangled up in the scrub top's pocket. This method also works if you wrap the kitty's back legs up in a burrito style. You can try to catch the front legs in the burrito too, but I'd rather just have a good grip on those, so it's not in the vet's field of vision.
Pretty much use the same method for small dogs, and when you need to do a TNT, they're already in a good position so no need to get them all riled up by changing things around.

I second this method. Pretty much the only way we draw blood from cats is jugular! I do this either on a table or in the air - sometimes on a table you can pin them flat using your body. There's never been a cat yet who's escaped my clutches - I'm the clinics "go to" girl for difficult cats, probably because when it comes to after hours, theres no-one but me to do it, so I've just got to suck it up!

Those people who said they use shoulders/chins etc, I would probably practice at getting comfortable without using your shoulder or your chin. I just think that one day thats going to go wrong spectaclarly, and your face/neck is RIGHT THERE!!!

 

[bbeventer]

Fun thread!

Lets see...
- the second day on the job the main boss doc stopped by the clinic and introduced himself to me... trying to remember his name I proceed to introduce myself as Dr. suchandsuch.

-when trying to change out fluid packs back sure they are inverted because if not fluid goes all over the floor. This is crucial to remember when the bag is hanging under emergency situations lol.

-prednislone and prednisone are not the same thing.

-explaining to a client that their dogs eye popped out while preforming a nail trim makes for an awkward conversation.

 

[withoutane]

Personal fave is jug sticks on dachshunds. Teehee, dachshunds.

THIS. Dachshunds have freaking huge jugular veins for some reason. Must be the deep chest.

My biggest mistake was accidentally dropping a 5-week old kitten one foot to the ground (or as my brother likes to put it...punting her like a football...). It wasn't that far but something happened...she started screaming and went limp. My coworker started performing CPR on her while I ran to get the vet with tears streaming down my face. She was totally fine after we revived her and gave her oxygen (and luckily did not have an owner yet as she was a rescue at the clinic) although she was a little on the special side after that experience. The doctor thinks she either had an odd vagal response, her brain short-circuited, she had a crazy panic attack, or she had an odd heart episode. We never really figured it out. It wasn't your classic straightforward mistake but it sure scared the shizz out of me.

 

[Whyevernot55]

THIS. Dachshunds have freaking huge jugular veins for some reason. Must be the deep chest.

My biggest mistake was accidentally dropping a 5-week old kitten one foot to the ground (or as my brother likes to put it...punting her like a football...). It wasn't that far but something happened...she started screaming and went limp. My coworker started performing CPR on her while I ran to get the vet with tears streaming down my face. She was totally fine after we revived her and gave her oxygen (and luckily did not have an owner yet as she was a rescue at the clinic) although she was a little on the special side after that experience. The doctor thinks she either had an odd vagal response, her brain short-circuited, she had a crazy panic attack, or she had an odd heart episode. We never really figured it out. It wasn't your classic straightforward mistake but it sure scared the shizz out of me.

Oh god you reminded me. I had a cat PASS THE EFF OUT after drawing blood on her once. She was a really, really tough stick, managed to get what I needed, and when my restrainer leg go she just went limp and flopped over. the cat was like 14 years old and the owner was right there in the room with us and I literally nearly had a panic attack and passed out myself. Poor kitty just was overwhelmed by stress, apparently, and ended up being fine, but christ on crackers did that scare the p*ss out of me!

 

[nyanko]

Forgot to check myself too well in the bathroom after necropsy - there were a few spots of blood on my face, and I didn't notice until I got home - AFTER going grocery shopping. I wondered why I got weird looks.

I was on pathology at the VMTH here between when the class of 2011 graduated and the class of 2012 started their clinical year. My first day there, we had our last final of first year in the afternoon and in the morning I had helped with a necropsy on a massive Scottish Deerhound.

I was all excited because it was really cool and I went in for the exam and was all OMG PATH IS FUN THAT WAS SO COOL to some of my friends, and one of them noted the HUGE GIGANTIC BLOOD SPOT on the part of my forearm where I couldn't see it unless I was looking for it. Gross. I sure thought I had washed my hands and arms pretty well too!!

 

[Jamr0ckin]

Oh where to start....

1) We used to use Xylazine and Ketamine for all our OHE/castrations for dogs, and so I was pulling up the dosages as usual, but apparently got distracted and pulled up the ketamine dose of xylazine and vice versa. After giving the injections we noticed the dog was acting really oddly, and I quickly figured out what happened. (If you know anything about the dosages of those drugs, mixing them up would be a huge overdose of xylazine and an underdose of ketamine. I think the dog ended up getting 10-15x recommended dose.) Luckily we had some yohimbine to reverse him with, and he seemed to worse for wear.

2) I've probably run 10-15 FIV tests on dogs and 10-15 HW/Lyme tests on cats. Now those are costly mistakes.

3) I can't tell you how many PCV tubes I've shattered...

4) Was helping sedate a HBC dog for x-ray and pulled up dexdomitor and antisedan, but forgot to mark which syringe was which and I realized after giving the first injection IV and nothing happening in 10 minutes I had given the reversal first, and IV at that (it is labeled for IM). So I had to double-up on the dexdomitor and it took us about 30+ minutes to get the dog sedated and films taken because of that mistake.

And my worse one of all time, not funny at all...

5) I killed a dog. On accident of course. We had a boarding yorkie pup that was ADR. After running some bloodwork the vet had me put in an IVC and bolus 100mL of LRS over 30 minutes. Well, I ended up getting distracted with another case and realized 90 minutes later the dog was still on an almost wide-open drip ( all the other pumps were being used so this dog wasn't on a pump). So this poor little 3 lb yorkie got about 800 mLs in 90 minutes. Needless to say she was completely flooded and died later that day. I learned my biggest lesson ever in medicine that day...

 

[Dsmoody23]

Oh where to start....

5) I killed a dog. On accident of course. We had a boarding yorkie pup that was ADR. After running some bloodwork the vet had me put in an IVC and bolus 100mL of LRS over 30 minutes. Well, I ended up getting distracted with another case and realized 90 minutes later the dog was still on an almost wide-open drip ( all the other pumps were being used so this dog wasn't on a pump). So this poor little 3 lb yorkie got about 800 mLs in 90 minutes. Needless to say she was completely flooded and died later that day. I learned my biggest lesson ever in medicine that day...

Lots of respect for telling that story.

That's one of the things that keeps me up at night, and puts me back on cigarettes every few months.

There are so many tiny mistakes we can make that have such huge consequences. Simple things like misreading a decimal point on a drug order or missing an allergy buried in a chart, and something dies that should have been fine.

When I started, I was monitoring a recovery from anesthesia and was too much of a tough guy to admit that I wasn't familiar with the expected resp/heart rates and drug reactions for the animal and procedure. The doc left to take a call and when the animal started crashing, I didn't know enough to recognize it. All in all, it was about three minutes of lag time until I figured something was amiss, but it ended up dying an hour or so later. Turns out it had an uncommon reaction to the medications, and there wasn't much difference that 3 minutes would have made, but who knows?

From then on, I've had an incredibly strict 'no such thing as a stupid question' policy, and I try as hard as I can to never take on more than I'm legitimately able to handle.

 

[Whyevernot55]

Lots of respect for telling that story.

That's one of the things that keeps me up at night, and puts me back on cigarettes every few months.

There are so many tiny mistakes we can make that have such huge consequences. Simple things like misreading a decimal point on a drug order or missing an allergy buried in a chart, and something dies that should have been fine.

When I started, I was monitoring a recovery from anesthesia and was too much of a tough guy to admit that I wasn't familiar with the expected resp/heart rates and drug reactions for the animal and procedure. The doc left to take a call and when the animal started crashing, I didn't know enough to recognize it. All in all, it was about three minutes of lag time until I figured something was amiss, but it ended up dying an hour or so later. Turns out it had an uncommon reaction to the medications, and there wasn't much difference that 3 minutes would have made, but who knows?

From then on, I've had an incredibly strict 'no such thing as a stupid question' policy, and I try as hard as I can to never take on more than I'm legitimately able to handle.

This is an excellent policy. I remember when I first learned to monitor anesthesia I started having nightmares about the Dr leaving me there with an animal which subsequently crashed and died. That s**t is terrifying. And being able to cope with it is a HUGE part of being able to handle being a vet.

I still have nightmares about the times animals have died unintentionally while I was assisting with their care, even if there were no mistakes made.

 

[Hotfillyky]

Oh where to start....

1) We used to use Xylazine and Ketamine for all our OHE/castrations for dogs, and so I was pulling up the dosages as usual, but apparently got distracted and pulled up the ketamine dose of xylazine and vice versa. After giving the injections we noticed the dog was acting really oddly, and I quickly figured out what happened. (If you know anything about the dosages of those drugs, mixing them up would be a huge overdose of xylazine and an underdose of ketamine. I think the dog ended up getting 10-15x recommended dose.) Luckily we had some yohimbine to reverse him with, and he seemed to worse for wear.


I did something similar. Had a cat at my ER, just needed a steroid injection after everything. Was working with a newbie and the DVM, saw someone running for the locked front door on the monitor and sent the newbie up to let them in. Meanwhile I drew up and gave the cat its injection, less than a minute later, I realized that I gave WAY too much and ran to find the DVM. Told her exactly what happened, told the owners my mistake....long story short, the cat spent 5 days in hospital between the ER and GP but ultimately did fine..THANK GOODNESS!

Believe me, I had nightmares about this cat, was super sweet and easy to handle. I triple check my dosages STILL.

Point is, we are human and make mistakes at times. The important part is owning up to it.

 

[libster06]

Personal fave is jug sticks on dachshunds. Teehee, dachshunds.

You mean "dash hounds"? I have heard more than one person pronounce it that way...

 

[Dsmoody23]

You mean "dash hounds"? I have heard more than one person pronounce it that way...

You gots to git them spayded.

 

[Cautionary Tail]

There are so many tiny mistakes we can make that have such huge consequences. Simple things like misreading a decimal point on a drug order or missing an allergy buried in a chart, and something dies that should have been fine.

This is the stuff I'm terrified of. That and unexpected anesthetic deaths / adverse drug reactions.

We had one unexpected dental death at the last practice I worked for. Relatively young dog... turned out he had a stealthy heart anomaly of some sort that had gone undetected. He belonged to one of the vet's friends, and although the owner was very understanding, she was beside herself (and petrified of putting anything else under) for months.

I dread having to be the one to make those phone calls. Even if the animal's death wasn't technically my (or another staff member's) fault.

 

[lareinesoleil]

Sometimes those anesthetic things happen for no discernible reason, that's the scary thing. Had a young, healthy dog in for a sx the other day. Her owner OK'ed pre-anesthetic bloodwork, which was squeaky clean. She was on fluids and surgical monitoring the entire time - and suddenly she crashed. The vet was able to save her, but it scared the crap out of me - because it was the first time I saw it happen for no reason. (Well, no reason we could have possibly known about beforehand, I guess she was just sensitive to the anesthesia...)

 

[jmo1012]

Sometimes those anesthetic things happen for no discernible reason, that's the scary thing. Had a young, healthy dog in for a sx the other day. Her owner OK'ed pre-anesthetic bloodwork, which was squeaky clean. She was on fluids and surgical monitoring the entire time - and suddenly she crashed. The vet was able to save her, but it scared the crap out of me - because it was the first time I saw it happen for no reason. (Well, no reason we could have possibly known about beforehand, I guess she was just sensitive to the anesthesia...)

we had a down dog come in through ER last summer and transfer to neuro. the neurologist felt like it was a disk issue, spoke with the owners about the likely diagnosis, made a plan. they were going to CT the dog then take her to surgery based on what they saw (basically looking for where to cut). the CT scan came up clean (much to the neurologist's surprise) so he wanted an MRI. the owners then agreed to that (keep in mind that at this point they were probably $3k+ into imaging alone). again, despite contrast studies saw absolutely nothing that would indicate why the dog was down in the hind. they sent the dog to ICU for recovery and about 30 mins later the dog coded and died. we had no idea why. scary stuff.

 

[Cautionary Tail]

Very scary stuff.

A number of years ago, one of my cats went into congestive heart failure 36 hours after receiving a low dose of an injectable steroid. (Surprise, HCM!) He'd never given us any reason to suspect there was an underlying cardiac issue.

I think that's when it really hit me (at that point, I hadn't encountered any unpleasant surprises at work yet)... no matter how diligent you may be, there are some things you just can't predict.

And that's what freaks me out. I'm not as nervous about the sorts of mistakes I could potentially prevent... what really scares me are all the things I can't.

 

[Whyevernot55]

And that's what freaks me out. I'm not as nervous about the sorts of mistakes I could potentially prevent... what really scares me are all the things I can't.

This. One of my cats had an adverse reaction to a sedative when he was neutered and his face blew up like a balloon while he was recovering in his cage after the procedure. Fortunately I am neurotic and was standing there recovering one of his littermates from her spay in the next cage over and caught it immediately.

Let me just tell you how much fun it was when we had to do an ex lap on him, and then sedate AGAIN 3 days later when he started vomiting black horror. The added prospect of him having a MUCH worse reaction to sedatives, even with diphenhydramine on board, scares the bejeezus out of me.

Don't get me started on the time we tried to neuter my VSD kitten, whose heart murmur you could hear from across the room, using valium because it's all "easy on the heart" and s**t. Of course he's one of the ones that flips out on valium.

 

[KittyPaws]

This is a great thread! I haven't had enough experience to make any major screw-ups yet but this post has helped me come to the realization that:

1. I will.

2. Everyone else has been there.

3. It is how you handle the mistake and what you take away from it that matters most.

Two mistakes I have had the opportunity to make:

My cat (Pikachu, pictured in avatar) has HCM and went into CHF in 2008, one of the medications he takes for this is a small tablet of enalapril. Once my ex was giving Pika the pill and Pika bit into it! We didn't know what happened at first but it was obvious that something was wrong. Pika started running around, clearly freaked out with drool and foam coming out of his mouth! I called the hospital in a panic but he had calmed down by the time the tech explained that he probably just bit the tablet. Not technically my mistake but I certainly learned from it!

The other was potentially more serious. I worked at a boarding facility and as the senior night shift employee it was my job to give out any meds to dogs that needed them. So one night I did the meds but forgot to sign off that I gave them. Luckily the am girl called me to check and see if I gave them or whatever but it was easy to see how something like that might not get followed up on in a bigger, busier place.

 

[pooter]

-I put a little PCV/TS tube into the centrifuge with the clay facing towards the *inside* and then was confused when all the blood ran out of the tube.

-I tried to run a heartworm "snap" test without adding the conjugate.

-I got an alarm on an IV pump and spent ten minutes checking for kinks in the line before realizing I'd clamped the catheter to walk the dog a few minutes before.

-I was so bad about contaminating surgical fields that one vet insisted I step back and stuff my hands in my pockets.

-This one's a little scary. While treating a potassium deficiency, I got caught with a syringe of KCl in one hand and an IV port (6" above the catheter) in the other. Fortunately, the e-vet techs were still supervising every injection I gave at that point . . . and after that, that policy wasn't changing any time soon!

 

[pooter]

Oh where to start....

And my worse one of all time, not funny at all...

5) I killed a dog. On accident of course. We had a boarding yorkie pup that was ADR. After running some bloodwork the vet had me put in an IVC and bolus 100mL of LRS over 30 minutes. Well, I ended up getting distracted with another case and realized 90 minutes later the dog was still on an almost wide-open drip ( all the other pumps were being used so this dog wasn't on a pump). So this poor little 3 lb yorkie got about 800 mLs in 90 minutes. Needless to say she was completely flooded and died later that day. I learned my biggest lesson ever in medicine that day...

Very scary stuff. I saw an eerily similar case (same breed and everything). Our pup was on an IV pump, but we forgot to program it to shut off the bolus and then didn't realize until she started acting neurological. The patient wasn't technically mine to monitor, but I beat myself up over it all the same. Fortunately, the head tech caught it in time and she pulled through.

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

You gots to git them spayded.

Yup. Those Boarder Collies, Chiwahwahs, and German Shephards too

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

Sometimes it's even scarier on the other end (in necropsy)

We had two dogs, different owners, same day, both drop dead completely acutely. Totally healthy, and just collapsed and died. Out of the blue.

We could find NO reason. Every organ was fine, both grossly and histologically. All the tox screens were negative, no infectious agents, no neoplasia, no nothing. To this day, I have no idea what killed those dogs. I felt awful for the internal med people having to relay our results to the owners. We path people are always supposed to have the last say, but sometimes even we can't figure it out.

 

[Ahechle]

We had an ADR goat come in. Another technician and I were putting in the catheter and the goat begins to turn blue. We pull out the oxygen and the crash cart and page for the vet, she walks in, looks at us, and says it's just fainting.....

We had no idea it was a fainting goat...

 

[EveyG]

I have a PCV tube story...I have been volunteering in the Critical Care Unit of the VTH for several years now. When the 1st years start, the SVECCS coordinator gives me her 1st year SVECCS volunteers to show around and teach basic stuff to (ie. operating pumps, taking blood from catheters, measuring out dosages of medications, etc...) One time I had a student and I had shown her how to pull blood for a PCV and then took her over to the centrifuge. I put the tubes in correctly, shut the lid, and started it. It was only after I started it and I heard the tubes cracking that I realized I hadn't put the internal lid on. I opened the lid BEFORE it was done spinning entirely, and the effing glass comes shooting out and HITS HER IN THE EYE. Thankfully she was fine, but I will never do that again.

Other story that I didn't personally do but heard about...A student reconstituted antibiotics in KCl instead of bacteriostatic water. When the medications were deliverd it was basically an instant euthanasia The nurses are VERY anal about keeping the KCl and bacteriostatic water on completely different sides of the room now.

 

[EveyG]

We had an ADR goat come in. Another technician and I were putting in the catheter and the goat begins to turn blue. We pull out the oxygen and the crash cart and page for the vet, she walks in, looks at us, and says it's just fainting.....

We had no idea it was a fainting goat...

This one made my day

 

[Dsmoody23]

Totally shaved the wrong animal today.

Enjoy your abdominal summer cut, boarding dog.

 

[LyraGardenia]

Bumping this thread, because I've been feeling like a royal screw-up lately at work, and I could use some reassurance that I'm only human. I've only made one serious mistake that could have potentially killed a patient, but I've made way too many minor mistakes to count. One of my co-workers in particular has a knack for making me feel about as smart and competent as a bag of rocks sometimes.

 

[StartingoverVet]

Bumping this thread, because I've been feeling like a royal screw-up lately at work, and I could use some reassurance that I'm only human. I've only made one serious mistake that could have potentially killed a patient, but I've made way too many minor mistakes to count. One of my co-workers in particular has a knack for making me feel about as smart and competent as a bag of rocks sometimes.

Famous Japanese proverb
"even monkeys fall from trees".

 

[WildZoo]

I haven't read the rest of the thread, but I'm assuming this is where we talk about stupid things we've done. I did two stupid things while I was working last summer, and to my knowledge they were really the only notable mistake I made, and then I did another thing that almost led to another tech doing a stupid thing.
1) I filled a prescription for prednisolone for a cat with prednisone instead. Luckily the owner realized the pills looked different and brought them back, so no harm done. Office manager talked to me about it, explained why prednisolone is given to cats, so it was a learning experience. I was super embarrassed though.
2) I can't remember what the med was now (nothing harmful though), but at one point we had a dog and cat boarding at the same time with the same name. The med was for the dog, but it was left where we usually kept the cat meds instead of back in the kennel, so I assumed it was for the cat. Poor thing had to go through the stress of my multiple attempts to pill him before I realized my error.
3) I tried to take the initiative with a patient since the other techs were busy (and the patient had originally been mine anyway) and gave him his meds at the scheduled time. There was a chart on the whiteboard for us to check off and initial when he got his meds. So I went to wash my hands and then do that. In the time between, one of the other techs walked back to the cage where he was. Thankfully I saw her going back there and stopped her before she gave him the medicine again. She then gave me **** about not checking it off on the board of course.

 

[Country_roads]

For the last half of my internship, I fell asleep pretty much every day. The owner of the entire company even caught me a couple times. I had just met my (now) fiancee and was staying up all night and then trying to go to work in the AM.

I almost got fired.