Class of 2021 . . . how ya doin?

[nyanko]

Only 4 days left of my second rotation (excluding patient care if I have one over the weekend). I'm going to miss neuro. Especially since I have to go deal with the large animals next. For 6 weeks.

well of course, neuro is objectively the coolest

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[finnickthedog]

well of course, neuro is objectively the coolest

If I had any intention of specializing, I'd consider neuro

Buuuut cool as it is, still not cool enough to convince me to specialize

 

[Coopah]

So good news, I spoke with the person making the schedules and she said it shouldn't be a problem to have my internal med rotation (or at least one of them) before my externship, so that solidifies my externships! Wooooooo (this is gonna be a crap load of money...)

 

[Coopah]

So good news, I spoke with the person making the schedules and she said it shouldn't be a problem to have my internal med rotation (or at least one of them) before my externship, so that solidifies my externships! Wooooooo (this is gonna be a crap load of money...)

lol hold up, somehow I signed up for a surgery externship and got assigned an "Advanced medicine" rotation instead??? Literally just saw this? So confused! Right after I sent in my conformation that I was going too! Wtf?

Edit: Ok I looked up my application and they made me choose three different serives so they would have options but I literally just said I would go and I really don't want to... ugh what do I do?

 

[that redhead]

@Coopah Wait, I’m confused...your externship site put you into a medicine rotation instead of surgery like requested? Worth an email to double-check with them that they have the right person/schedule.

 

[Coopah]

@Coopah Wait, I’m confused...your externship site put you into a medicine rotation instead of surgery like requested? Worth an email to double-check with them that they have the right person/schedule.

Yeah I had to go back and check, they made me put down multiple rotations even though I only wanted one. F*** me dude, I really wish I read the fine print on that one

 

[mmmdreamerz]

Yeah I had to go back and check, they made me put down multiple rotations even though I only wanted one. F*** me dude, I really wish I read the fine print on that one

See for this type of thing, so still only put one lol

That’s super annoying!

 

[Squeaksmom]

So good news, I spoke with the person making the schedules and she said it shouldn't be a problem to have my internal med rotation (or at least one of them) before my externship, so that solidifies my externships! Wooooooo (this is gonna be a crap load of money...)

Aren't your schedules done yet for crying out loud?? lol We draft next week and I was really hoping Davis would have their act together by then!

 

[Coopah]

See for this type of thing, so still only put one lol

That’s super annoying!

And this is just after my meeting when they were telling us we can't cancel externships willy-nilly! It's not willy-nilly but I doubt the school will see it that way.

 

[Coopah]

Aren't your schedules done yet for crying out loud?? lol We draft next week and I was really hoping Davis would have their act together by then!

Oh god no, they estimated by the end of February now. I'm starting to doubt we'll have them before we start clinics at all

 

[that redhead]

Yeah I had to go back and check, they made me put down multiple rotations even though I only wanted one. F*** me dude, I really wish I read the fine print on that one

Oh bugger. I guess it can't hurt to ask again to "confirm" - is it worth staying there for their med rotation or can you find another surgery externship on short notice?

 

[Coopah]

Oh bugger. I guess it can't hurt to ask again to "confirm" - is it worth staying there for their med rotation or can you find another surgery externship on short notice?

Definitely not worth it, it's already crazy expensive and the timing that these rotations ended up on is just insane. I'll be shifting three time zones on two week intervals for about 16 weeks and I hate it. But that's my forth rotation and if I could just cancel it outright I would. If I could find something nearby it'd be nice but instead I could just take another rotation here would be fine.

 

[that redhead]

Definitely not worth it, it's already crazy expensive and the timing that these rotations ended up on is just insane. I'll be shifting three time zones on two week intervals for about 16 weeks and I hate it. But that's my forth rotation and if I could just cancel it outright I would. If I could find something nearby it'd be nice but instead I could just take another rotation here would be fine.

Sorry it didn't work out the way you thought it would I remember having one of my rotations fall through last minute and it was both frustrating because I had wanted to do that rotation AND stressful to find a replacement. I hope things come together for you soon!

 

[Coopah]

Sorry it didn't work out the way you thought it would I remember having one of my rotations fall through last minute and it was both frustrating because I had wanted to do that rotation AND stressful to find a replacement. I hope things come together for you soon!

Thanks, my roommate (who graduated a few years ago) said to do it anyways because it'd be awesome to get an internship there, but also that a lot of money for something I didn't intend to sign up for.

 

[mmmdreamerz]

Thanks, my roommate (who graduated a few years ago) said to do it anyways because it's be awesome to get an internship there, but also that a lot of money for something I didn't intend to sign up for.

I’m sure you’ll rock it!

 

[Coopah]

I’m sure you’ll rock it!

Ok so my past self is either not an idiot or is very lucky (I'm thinking more the later). This rotation looks wicked complex but very interesting and apparently there's no ICU duties so I'm sure that'll greatly cut down on the workload so it's not so daunting.

 

[PippyPony]

omg...they changed one of our core rotations to an elective/vacation week, and in the process of figuring out how that will work, I discovered over the next 18 months, we're only allotted 1/3 of the vacation time I thought we had. The rest of the time is compulsory electives, not the wishy-washy "do whatever you want" schedule I thought it was.

Ackkkkkkk fine print

 

[Coopah]

omg...they changed one of our core rotations to an elective/vacation week, and in the process of figuring out how that will work, I discovered over the next 18 months, we're only allotted 1/3 of the vacation time I thought we had. The rest of the time is compulsory electives, not the wishy-washy "do whatever you want" schedule I thought it was.

Ackkkkkkk fine print

Oof fine print will get you every time

 

[Squeaksmom]

Oh god no, they estimated by the end of February now. I'm starting to doubt we'll have them before we start clinics at all

Well that sounds fun....

Though maybe I shouldn't talk. One of my classmates from last year had one of her rotations changed, by the school, two days AFTER it started.

 

[Coopah]

Well that sounds fun....

Though maybe I shouldn't talk. One of my classmates from last year had one of her rotations changed, by the school, two days AFTER it started.

New level! Challenge accepted

 

[ResoluteMike]

omg...they changed one of our core rotations to an elective/vacation week, and in the process of figuring out how that will work, I discovered over the next 18 months, we're only allotted 1/3 of the vacation time I thought we had. The rest of the time is compulsory electives, not the wishy-washy "do whatever you want" schedule I thought it was.

Ackkkkkkk fine print

How much time do you get?

 

[jaboo]

If I had any intention of specializing, I'd consider neuro

Buuuut cool as it is, still not cool enough to convince me to specialize

I’m in the same boat. Current plan is SA GP or shelter med, but in my dream world, I’d do Neuro. Problem is my GPA is currently nowhere near competitive for a Neuro residency.

 

[PippyPony]

How much time do you get?

Not enough lol

(4 weeks. I know, I know...that is still a decent amount of time. And I had been planning on using most of my elective weeks for electives anyways...but I also thought I had the option to take a full month off at Christmas/NAVLE season.)

 

[nyanko]

I’m in the same boat. Current plan is SA GP or shelter med, but in my dream world, I’d do Neuro. Problem is my GPA is currently nowhere near competitive for a Neuro residency.

I'm not going to lie to you and say that it was easy, but I got there with a very middling class rank, so it can be done. But it is perfectly sane and reasonable and probably a much better life decision to forego the type of things that I had to do to get here.

 

[cdo96]

it is perfectly sane and reasonable and probably a much better life decision to forego the type of things that I had to do to get here.

 

[kaydubs]

I start official rotations with equine medicine, and as a horse person who has worked in the hospital for a couple of years, I'm already anticipating being called upon to work like heck haha

On the plus side, I'm starting off on a service where I theoretically will have a leg up, so I'm grateful for that

Nah, I made sure everyone split the work. I had worked in LA for three years. Time to let others do something

although the techs and residents were always happy to have me help

 

[kaydubs]

If I had any intention of specializing, I'd consider neuro

Buuuut cool as it is, still not cool enough to convince me to specialize

Sameeeee. Closest I ever came to specializing

 

[that redhead]

So many neuro people! Neuro is the last specialty I would ever want to do

"Uh, yes, I see your dog is walking funny. Probably something in the nervous system somewhere..."
"Yes doc, that's why we're here to see you."
"Very strange case indeed. Let me hit your dog with this little rubber hammer here, and then make it do weird motions, then submit tests for like five thousand weird diseases it could be, then I'll let someone else stab it in the spinal column and suction out some CSF, then I'll anesthetize it and let someone else run the fancy imaging machine and then I'll send it to a radiologist to tell me what's wrong and then...steroids? Yes, steroids!"

 

[PippyPony]

I always feel bad watching the hemostat pinches for assessing deep pain. I know it's necessary so we can help the patient... I just wish we could explain it to them

 

[Coopah]

So I got my list of rotations (no dates yet) sent to me with my updated externship dates and holy cow fourth year is going to be AWESOME! Twelve weeks of surgical rotations, eight weeks of externships, and five weeks of vacation. I'm on cloud nine!

 

[nyanko]

I always feel bad watching the hemostat pinches for assessing deep pain. I know it's necessary so we can help the patient... I just wish we could explain it to them

yeah, hate doing it too. that's why we only do it when necessary. sometimes i'll hear someone tell me they tested for deep pain in a dog that has motor function. and i say well that's just mean to check! literally if you take nothing else from your neuro rotation please take "only test for deep pain in a dog that has no motor and does not have superficial pain" like if you're doing a pelvic limb withdrawal reflex and the patient turns around or yelps or otherwise shows you they feel that little finger-pinch, you don't need to break out the hemostats and risk breaking its toe!

plegic patients only, and if they have it once, they only need to be tested until they start showing me motor (post-op or post-non compressive myelopathy dogs). MOST of the patients who are getting this tested frequently can't feel it anyway (which is why it's being assessed so often).

 

[that redhead]

@nyanko I’m just teasing I am have the utmost respect for neurologists. I would only not want to do it because I found it tough to grasp in school and because out in practice I feel like there are a lot of sad cases. But I am SO glad there are people who can work up those cases and enjoy doing it

 

[battie]

Neuro is my very first rotation. Not sure if it's a good thing or bad thing.

 

[Coopah]

Neuro is my very first rotation. Not sure if it's a good thing or bad thing.

Absolutely a good thing, get the difficult stuff out of the way, more energy and brain power in the beginning. Also you're gonna rock it!

 

[battie]

Absolutely a good thing, get the difficult stuff out of the way, more energy and brain power in the beginning. Also you're gonna rock it!

Good point! I didn't even think about that!

 

[WildZoo]

I love neuro as a subject and have enjoyed getting to work neuro-adjacent while on radiology and anesthesia but holy hell that rotation is a **** show here and I would not touch it with a 50 foot pole. Way, way too busy for a rotation that often only has 2 students.

 

[cdo96]

yeah, hate doing it too. that's why we only do it when necessary. sometimes i'll hear someone tell me they tested for deep pain in a dog that has motor function. and i say well that's just mean to check! literally if you take nothing else from your neuro rotation please take "only test for deep pain in a dog that has no motor and does not have superficial pain" like if you're doing a pelvic limb withdrawal reflex and the patient turns around or yelps or otherwise shows you they feel that little finger-pinch, you don't need to break out the hemostats and risk breaking its toe!

plegic patients only, and if they have it once, they only need to be tested until they start showing me motor (post-op or post-non compressive myelopathy dogs). MOST of the patients who are getting this tested frequently can't feel it anyway (which is why it's being assessed so often).

We don't have a neuro rotation. but one of the neurologists I worked with this summer, said that at her vet school, during neuro rotation, if you tested deep pain and they had motor, then it was an automatic fail of the rotation.

 

[Coopah]

I love neuro as a subject and have enjoyed getting to work neuro-adjacent while on radiology and anesthesia but holy hell that rotation is a **** show here and I would not touch it with a 50 foot pole. Way, way too busy for a rotation that often only has 2 students.

Wait neuro isn't... required at all schools???

We don't have a neuro rotation. but one of the neurologists I worked with this summer, said that at her vet school, during neuro rotation, if you tested deep pain and they had motor, then it was an automatic fail of the rotation.

Holy crap

 

[PippyPony]

Neuro rotation is mandatory here and pretty well-staffed and very busy.

I'm low key terrified for it because I did not do well in neuro as a course (and much of our neuroanatomy in 1st year was "teach yourself" and/or treated as bonus questions on our anatomy head exam, which is not the best model for learning the most complex and esoteric organ in the body. I mean... maybe some people can learn it like that, but I cannot.)

...But I'm also excited because it's obviously incredibly important. Plus, I have a neurologic cat, so. Gotta learn the deep dark secrets of why the little fuzzball be like that.

And who knows, maybe I'll finally confirm @Caiter92 's suspicions about him and diagnose the first case of chronic rabies ever documented in the medical literature.

(He's a very strange cat, and I'm no stranger to strange cats. Lol)

 

[battie]

Wait neuro isn't... required at all schools???

For us, its considered a "directed elective", of which we have 5 blocks (ten weeks). The "directed elective" blocks were built so that students could have specific electives through the school (small animal specialties like neuro, onco, cardio, dentistry, etc), or off campus (equine, production med, lab animal only). You could also request neuro (or any of the directed elective rotations) as a "free elective", but only if you had it as a directed elective first. This allows the peeps who want to focus on non-small animal stuff (production med, theriogenology, lab animal, zoo med, etc) the ability to get extra electives off campus, but keep students doing small animal in the teaching hospital, but getting more intense rotations.

 

[Coopah]

For us, its considered a "directed elective", of which we have 5 blocks (ten weeks). The "directed elective" blocks were built so that students could have specific electives through the school (small animal specialties like neuro, onco, cardio, dentistry, etc), or off campus (equine, production med, lab animal only). You could also request neuro (or any of the directed elective rotations) as a "free elective", but only if you had it as a directed elective first. This allows the peeps who want to focus on non-small animal stuff (production med, theriogenology, lab animal, zoo med, etc) the ability to get extra electives off campus, but keep students doing small animal in the teaching hospital, but getting more intense rotations.

Wow, I'm not sure I understand at all

 

[vetmedhead]

Neuro rotation is mandatory here and pretty well-staffed and very busy.

I'm low key terrified for it because I did not do well in neuro as a course (and much of our neuroanatomy in 1st year was "teach yourself" and/or treated as bonus questions on our anatomy head exam, which is not the best model for learning the most complex and esoteric organ in the body. I mean... maybe some people can learn it like that, but I cannot.)

...But I'm also excited because it's obviously incredibly important. Plus, I have a neurologic cat, so. Gotta learn the deep dark secrets of why the little fuzzball be like that.

And who knows, maybe I'll finally confirm @Caiter92 's suspicions about him and diagnose the first case of chronic rabies ever documented in the medical literature.

(He's a very strange cat, and I'm no stranger to strange cats. Lol)

If you ever need help shoot me a PM, we had excellent neuro professors and I really like neuro overall

Our neuro rotation is also mandatory for SA trackers here and fairly busy from my understanding

 

[battie]

Wow, I'm not sure I understand at all

It's honestly questionable if we do. Lol

 

[Coopah]

If you ever need help shoot me a PM, we had excellent neuro professors and I really like neuro overall

Our neuro rotation is also mandatory for SA trackers here and fairly busy from my understanding

Hey if you have advice for neuro feel free to include me. I have no idea what I'm doing.

 

[TheGirlWithTheFernTattoo]

Neuro isn't mandatory here and we don't even have a neuro service this year since the neurologist left in the summer. I think there is at least 1 neuro external rotation you can do though, and then externships (though I think* we are restricted to only 2 externships total).

 

[battie]

Neuro isn't mandatory for us probably cause we have 0 tracking. You just model your elective and off blocks to what you want to do.

 

[Coopah]

Neuro isn't mandatory for us probably cause we have 0 tracking. You just model your elective and off blocks to what you want to do.

You know now that I think about it, I don't know what's required for the LA students... I know they require some SA stuff but what particularly I have zero idea.

 

[nyanko]

yo if people need neuro help i'm always happy to answer stuff. for real. sometimes too eager?

 

[PippyPony]

I just called CN VIII "CN XIII" in communication, so either I really need neuro help... or I'm about to make a sales pitch to rename a nerve to "the hypo hypoglossal"... or I'm playing too much final fantasy X III ... or all of the above.

 

[cdo96]

Neuro rotation is mandatory here and pretty well-staffed and very busy.

I'm low key terrified for it because I did not do well in neuro as a course (and much of our neuroanatomy in 1st year was "teach yourself" and/or treated as bonus questions on our anatomy head exam, which is not the best model for learning the most complex and esoteric organ in the body. I mean... maybe some people can learn it like that, but I cannot.)

...But I'm also excited because it's obviously incredibly important. Plus, I have a neurologic cat, so. Gotta learn the deep dark secrets of why the little fuzzball be like that.

And who knows, maybe I'll finally confirm @Caiter92 's suspicions about him and diagnose the first case of chronic rabies ever documented in the medical literature.

(He's a very strange cat, and I'm no stranger to strange cats. Lol)

I worked with someone at your school who is a first year neurology resident, this summer! She was really nice, so don’t fear!