Questions about pre-vet tips

[mmak]

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I have some general questions..

I am trying to learn as much as I can about vet med. I work in a clinic, but find I need more knowledge than what I have. I was thinking of buying some books that might help me learn anatomy better and general veterinary things. I looked at amazon and read reviews. I don't want a Vet Med vet student book yet, but something that will help me provide some of the basics. I feel like I really don't know much, even though I have farm (swine, beef) and small animal (mostly dogs) experience.

I was going to take a veterinary anatomy course taught by a vet school professor at my university but after a week in the course, I felt overwhelmed by information I didn't know. Histology seemed difficult in that course. I am going to take the course but want to prepare for it over the summer. Is there a way to learn histology? I have a book, but is there any other books or websites that are helpful? I need to learn the anatomy in a basic way before full fledged vet school way taught by this professor. Any suggestions?

What courses are helpful besides those required for vet school? The vet school I am applying to doesn't require Microbiology, but I thought this might be a helpful courses, as well as a parasitology course, immunology, and anatomy/physiology courses (required by my major anyway). Are there any other helpful courses?

I will be applying in the Fall and haven't taken the GRE yet. Are there any helpful books you guys recommend for studying?

Thanks for the help!!!

 

[Moonpaw]

To be honest, you seem to be wanting to do things that you will be doing in vet school. Don't worry so much about learning veterinary medicine just yet; just try to pick up what you can from the vets that you shadow. Although I have heard that anatomy is very useful--I took comparative vertebrate anatomy, which was probably a really good choice because it's pretty close to what we'll be doing in vet school (although FAR less in depth), plus I got some great practice with dissections.

Maybe the kinds of courses you might want to consider are things that they won't necessarily teach you in vet school, like some sort of business management or finance. It seems like you'll pretty much cover the basics anyways, if your major requires anatomy and physiology. And don't forget that plenty of schools require biochemistry!

 

[Steelmagghia]

Oh man, I think you just asked about every question possible.

Have you already taken your anatomy/physiology course? If not, I would start with that. It should be enough to get your feet wet and feel pretty confident. Mammals are fairly similar (now, no comment on the other types of animals, but mammals are all good).

I found physiology of reproduction to be a really useful subject. Also, you may consider a couple of ag courses, possibly a nutrition course. Microbiology is definitely good to have (it's great for working on your microscope technique).

As far as books go, I'm not really very good for that one. I will tell you that the Merck veterinary manual is online (google it, you'll find it) and that has been really useful for me. It gives a lot of info without going to terribly in depth.

Also, entemology has been good for me just in use with other biology classes. Zoology might be good if your school has a fairly in depth class. It helps a little with some anatomy for non mammals (like say, reptiles have a 3 chambered heart).

Hope that helps.

For GRE stuff, do a search for GRE, and it should give you plenty of info.

 

[Steelmagghia]

Oh and the finance and stuff moonpaw suggested is a GREAT choice.

Finance has helped me in SO MANY WAYS.

Also, try to get some non vet experience, too. Do something interesting! 🙂

 

[InfiniVet]

"I was going to take a veterinary anatomy course taught by a vet school professor at my university but after a week in the course, I felt overwhelmed by information I didn't know. Histology seemed difficult in that course. I am going to take the course but want to prepare for it over the summer. Is there a way to learn histology? I have a book, but is there any other books or websites that are helpful? I need to learn the anatomy in a basic way before full fledged vet school way taught by this professor. Any suggestions? "

This had me rolling in the floor with laughter because I felt the same way - and to just to break your heart I'm gonna tell you: Its hard. Its all hard. Being overwhelmed is just standard operating procedure I'm afraid. I really truly relate to what youre saying, and you have 2 options.
1. You can go into as much detail as youre comfortable with on your own (which is what I did). ANY subject relating to animals will help: basic feeding - what do dairy cows get fed? beef cattle?, knowing breeds of domestic species, basic info on reproduction eg., How long is the horse's gestation length? How about in dogs?, common diseases of dogs/cats/horses/pigs/cows, which vaccinations do dogs get every year? cats?...ANYthing that holds your interest. Get your veterinarian to teach you how to draw blood, or calculate drug dosages. All these things will help you not only later on in life, but even in your first semester.

2. You can wait til you take a course, in which case you will be overwhelmed, but thats totally normal, and doable, because its structured.

If you are absolutely keen on Histology, I recommend pictures pictures pictures pictures. Pictures! And not of comparing the liver to the kidney (hard!), but learning like the back of your hand what all the different kinds of epithelium look like. And what macrophages & neutrophils look like. If you do that, you will only then be able to tell the differences between the liver and the kidney.
Websites:
http://cal.vet.upenn.edu/projects/histo/Index.htm
http://education.vetmed.vt.edu/Curriculum/VM8054/Hp/LECLIST.HTM
http://www.vetmed.auburn.edu/distance/clinpath/morphol1/

To learn anatomy? This is slightly tougher because its kinda an all or nothing deal. My best suggestion is to just learn all the names of the dog bones until its second nature. Compare it to your own body. Even studying human anatomy will help you out, because roughly we are all the same. Everything else is basically in the deep end of the pool and you don't get to use floaties 😀

We are all overwhelmed by the information we don't know. Constantly. But we aren't here to make fruit salad, right? We are here to fix critters.

 

[Hobiecat1642]

Well, I certainly hope no one expects me to make fruit salad when I get there!!

 

[twelvetigers]

Vertebrate morphology is a good course option. I'd consider that. Try not to overdo it though! Don't wear yourself out just yet, there's time for that later. Otherwise, maybe look at a "Home Veterinary Handbook"... these books give general ideas of conditions and situations you might see, and familiarize you with some terminology. They aren't great, but they're only $15 apiece used or older edition.

As for the GRE, any of the books seem helpful - just flip through a few at a local bookstore and pick one that seems like it would help you the most. Also remember, you get a disk when you register that helps you out a bit too.

The business finance thing *is* a good idea, as well.

 

[aretoo]

The clinic I worked at last summer had a really good vet tech textbook that I brought home every night and read cover to cover (wow, that sounds nerdy!) But it was really interesting, and it provided an amazing overview of everything I did in my day-to-day, from surgical prep and assistance to radiology to routine wellness care. If you can get your hands on a tech school textbook, I would highly recommend that!

 

[Tsuky2008]

I'm an undergrad and I'm taking a histology course this semester. The book we're using is, in my opinion, well structured and easy to understand. It's called "Basic Histology: Text & Atlas"; the author's last names are Junoqueira and Carneiro.

It sounds like you're definitely on the right track, you're interested and curious and eager to learn--those qualities alone will help you succeed in veterinary school, whether you've seen the information before or not! 🙂

 

[CurrySpice]

Can you audit that class you found really hard? Then you can absorb some of the material without the stress of grades and having to worry about it affecting your GPA.

 

[HopefulAg]

The clinic I worked at last summer had a really good vet tech textbook that I brought home every night and read cover to cover (wow, that sounds nerdy!) But it was really interesting, and it provided an amazing overview of everything I did in my day-to-day, from surgical prep and assistance to radiology to routine wellness care. If you can get your hands on a tech school textbook, I would highly recommend that!

Do you know the name of said book?

Only thing I can really add is Microbiology: take it. It helped me out so much with diseases and pathogens. Very good course.

 

[vetmed]

Hey, I used Princeton Review books as well as kaplan. I also went online and type in "most commonly used GRE words." You can find short lists which are a little less overwhelming then those entire dictionaries of GRE words. The flashcards they sell are also helpful. And when you do opractice tests, especially for math, time yourself and pretend you are actually doing a real test. It's good that you are starting now because you can only take one test a month and there is a really good chance you'll have to take it for once.

As for your wanting to study so much now...you're just like me! I am a technician also and have a few helpful books but, my favorite is my Merck Veterinary Manual. You'll need a normal medical dictionary to read it but, it's so interesting and you learn so much, and there is everything about everything in there!

I also have a blog about prevet stuff that I am just starting. Please check it out and let me know if you have any critiques!

 

[banditalfi]

i sat down in a bookstore for the GREs and looked through all the books and tried to figure out which one would help me the best. there is no sense in getting the "best" book if it doesn't work for you or if it is written in a way you can't understand. also, i am pretty strong in math, so i was looking for a book that could teach me strategies for verbal as well as a brief refresher for math/quick tricks to get through that one easily. i ended up with the kaplan book (i made sure i got something that had a computer component) and i bought a thing of 750 flashcards, which was fantastic. i think the flashcards helped me the most for verbal and so i definitely reccomend going out and getting some if you struggle with vocab.