Suggestions on items to prepare for first year?

Veterinary Science Graduate Certificate from UofI
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
@jenjen2020 we’ve definitely discussed shoes in this thread and in one of the class threads too. Scrubs- I like my Cherokee brand scrubs, but they aren’t as fancy as the other popular brands like Figs, etc.
Members don't see this ad.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
that redhead said:
@jenjen2020 we’ve definitely discussed shoes in this thread and in one of the class threads too. Scrubs- I like my Cherokee brand scrubs, but they aren’t as fancy as the other popular brands like Figs, etc.
Click to expand...
I'll be sure to look back through threads as well! Thanks for your input :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
I'd also recommend finding some dress/professional clothes you like that you'd feel comfortable bending and kneeling in, as we have several rotations here that won't allow us to wear scrubs. I'm sure other schools have similar but I'd check around to be sure.

Oncology, internal med, derm, community practice etc definitely want us to wear dress clothes unless it's a service surgery/procedure day of some sort
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
Members don't see this ad :)
vetmedhead said:
I'd also recommend finding some dress/professional clothes you like that you'd feel comfortable bending and kneeling in, as we have several rotations here that won't allow us to wear scrubs. I'm sure other schools have similar but I'd check around to be sure.

Oncology, internal med, derm, community practice etc definitely want us to wear dress clothes unless it's a service surgery/procedure day of some sort
Click to expand...
Thank you! I will definitely be looking for some more professional clothes :)
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
I didn't actually wear scrubs for anatomy very often - just wore an old long lab coat over my clothes. Sometimes would change into scrub pants if I was wearing pants I really liked or something. Old tennis shoes or rubber boots for sure. Coveralls and rubber boots or work boots for large animal labs.

I love my Grey's Anatomy scrubs more than anything, and they honestly haven't gotten gross throughout school. Maybe I'm just lucky? The worst they got was a few bleach stains, but that was from my research lab, not school.

Similar to what meats said, we have a few rotations where we are expected to be business casual, particularly on appointment days, and then change into scrubs for procedures.

Khakis for large animal, field service, or zoo rotations are a good idea...might not need those until later on though so I'd probably hold off on buying them right now if you don't already have them. I didn't even start to expand my business casual wardrobe until clinics started, didn't need it as much pre-clinical. We're casual business casual in the classroom, so jeans and such were fine.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
WildZoo said:
I didn't actually wear scrubs for anatomy very often - just wore an old long lab coat over my clothes. Sometimes would change into scrub pants if I was wearing pants I really liked or something. Old tennis shoes or rubber boots for sure. Coveralls and rubber boots or work boots for large animal labs.

I love my Grey's Anatomy scrubs more than anything, and they honestly haven't gotten gross throughout school. Maybe I'm just lucky? The worst they got was a few bleach stains, but that was from my research lab, not school.

Similar to what meats said, we have a few rotations where we are expected to be business casual, particularly on appointment days, and then change into scrubs for procedures.

Khakis for large animal, field service, or zoo rotations are a good idea...might not need those until later on though so I'd probably hold off on buying them right now if you don't already have them. I didn't even start to expand my business casual wardrobe until clinics started, didn't need it as much pre-clinical. We're casual business casual in the classroom, so jeans and such were fine.
Click to expand...
Great! Thank you :)
 
I wore old scrubs for anatomy and they slightly smell light formalin now. I only saved them so I can wear them 4th year on diagnostics and not care if they bleach them :laugh:
I wore old rubber boots every day for anatomy (both large and small) so I didn’t have to worry about my feet getting splashed or wet and gross and sad and I could just rinse them off at the end of each lab.
 
  • Haha
Reactions: 1 user
SkiOtter said:
I wore old scrubs for anatomy and they slightly smell light formalin now. I only saved them so I can wear them 4th year on diagnostics and not care if they bleach them :laugh:
I wore old rubber boots every day for anatomy (both large and small) so I didn’t have to worry about my feet getting splashed or wet and gross and sad and I could just rinse them off at the end of each lab.
Click to expand...
Okay that's a mood :laugh: I'll make sure to have rubber boots
 
jenjen2020 said:
Okay that's a mood :laugh: I'll make sure to have rubber boots
Click to expand...

Ooo also another pro tip: get another laundry basket for your anatomy clothes - I personally don’t like to mix my lab clothes with my other clothes because the formalin smell starts to seep over to my nicer things. You can get a cheap laundry hamper from Walmart or target for $1-3!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
iguessisaidthat said:
Ooo also another pro tip: get another laundry basket for your anatomy clothes - I personally don’t like to mix my lab clothes with my other clothes because the formalin smell starts to seep over to my nicer things. You can get a cheap laundry hamper from Walmart or target for $1-3!
Click to expand...
Great suggestion!!! <3 thank you
 
iguessisaidthat said:
Ooo also another pro tip: get another laundry basket for your anatomy clothes - I personally don’t like to mix my lab clothes with my other clothes because the formalin smell starts to seep over to my nicer things. You can get a cheap laundry hamper from Walmart or target for $1-3!
Click to expand...
I just straight up stripped when I got home and they never left my laundry room floor until it was time to wash them :laugh:
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: 3 users
iguessisaidthat said:
I really like passion planner! They have the academic year one and it’s pretty great! My biggest thing was finding one that does hourly blocks from 6am-10pm so it works well for me, and there’s spaces around the pages for me to write random notes to myself to get done too. It also has self reflection pages after each month but I don’t really do them. They have print outs online for free you can use to cover the reflection pages with stuff that’s more relevant for you (I.e track fitness, meal prep, etc)
Click to expand...
Same, love my Passion Planner!
 
  • Love
Reactions: 1 users
Members don't see this ad :)
I absolutely ADORE my Figs. The material is so comfortable and breathable. Their joggers are my favorite! I am personally a little nervous to wear them for anatomy labs though because of everything people have said about them smelling like formalin and Figs aren't cheap even with the 20% off.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
We're not allowed to wear scrubs for anatomy here - I just wore my normal clothes and normal shoes and never ended up with anything damaged, covered in gross stuff, or permanently smelly. What were you all doing in anatomy lab? Wash your scrubs and lab coats more often, people! :laugh:
 
  • Haha
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
britzen said:
We're not allowed to wear scrubs for anatomy here - I just wore my normal clothes and normal shoes and never ended up with anything damaged, covered in gross stuff, or permanently smelly. What were you all doing in anatomy lab? Wash your scrubs and lab coats more often, people! :laugh:
Click to expand...
My rubber boots smelled bad after, and my lab coat smelled suspiciously like formaldehyde, but I washed it enough that it wasn’t a problem.

on days I had anatomy lab, we had class all morning and then lab in the afternoon. so I would wear scrubs all day and then just changed out of them after I got back home and showered
 
DaisysMom said:
I absolutely ADORE my Figs. The material is so comfortable and breathable. Their joggers are my favorite! I am personally a little nervous to wear them for anatomy labs though because of everything people have said about them smelling like formalin and Figs aren't cheap even with the 20% off.
Click to expand...
Do notttttttttt. Find some cheap scrubs that you are willing to throw away after. If your school has a free and for sale page there may be some people selling scrubs for cheap you can snag for anatomy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
britzen said:
We're not allowed to wear scrubs for anatomy here - I just wore my normal clothes and normal shoes and never ended up with anything damaged, covered in gross stuff, or permanently smelly. What were you all doing in anatomy lab? Wash your scrubs and lab coats more often, people! :laugh:
Click to expand...
Yo my scrubs got washed after every lab with hot water and color safe bleach. And yet they still got a smell.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
britzen said:
We're not allowed to wear scrubs for anatomy here - I just wore my normal clothes and normal shoes and never ended up with anything damaged, covered in gross stuff, or permanently smelly. What were you all doing in anatomy lab? Wash your scrubs and lab coats more often, people! :laugh:
Click to expand...
We HAVE to wear scrubs, with a lab coat over them (although many people ditched the lab coats by the end of the year). I thought it was an OSHA thing?

In any case, our dog was a large boxer-type dog who was super fat, so just from standing next to the table while dissecting, my coat would end up getting completely drenched during lab. Had a couple times while moving the cadavers where we got soaked with fluids, too. I was also one of the people who dissected one of the ponies, and in order to get underneath and clean off the ventral areas, I had to get underneath the cadaver. So I also started wearing a hat and occasionally goggles.

I cannot imagine wearing normal clothes into an anatomy lab even if I washed those clothes 3x a day.

Edit: except for our head exam. Those were mostly pro-sectioned, or plastinated, or we were working with skulls. Then I wore junky regular clothes. But still never anything I cared about, because yuck lol
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
PippyPony said:
We HAVE to wear scrubs, with a lab coat over them (although many people ditched the lab coats by the end of the year). I thought it was an OSHA thing?

In any case, our dog was a large boxer-type dog who was super fat, so just from standing next to the table while dissecting, my coat would end up getting completely drenched during lab. Had a couple times while moving the cadavers where we got soaked with fluids, too. I was also one of the people who dissected one of the ponies, and in order to get underneath and clean off the ventral areas, I had to get underneath the cadaver. So I also started wearing a hat and occasionally goggles.

I cannot imagine wearing normal clothes into an anatomy lab even if I washed those clothes 3x a day.

Edit: except for our head exam. Those were mostly pro-sectioned, or plastinated, or we were working with skulls. Then I wore junky regular clothes. But still never anything I cared about, because yuck lol
Click to expand...

I can see how a pony would make a mess! I'm imagining you having a full Tauntaun moment, Empire strikes back style under there. :laugh:

We just had beagles and/or cats, so they were pretty small and easy to avoid leaning on. They were also small enough to easily carry in bags without spilling fluids and small enough to fit easily onto table trays to collect any fluids. My lab coat sleeves definitely got gross from the elbows down every day, but the table trays + small animal size probably saved the rest of me from getting soaked. I can definitely see how your scrubs would be extra gross if you weren't in a lab coat the whole time.

We are forbidden from wearing scrubs anywhere at the vet school unless we are working in the hospital or have surgery lab, so I guess it's not an OSHA thing? I thought being in a lab coat 100% of the time was an OSHA thing though? It was very much enforced during our anatomy labs. I usually just wore a t-shirt with sweats or jeans I didn't care much about and chucked it all in the laundry room when I got home. I'm sure my clothes occasionally got fluids on them through the lab coat from leaning on stuff, but not enough that I felt drenched at any point. It probably helps that our anatomy is spread over two years too - our specimens were definitely dried out this year compared to last year.

Anyway, sorry to derail the thread. Back to the original question: definitely agree for incoming students that clothes you care about shouldn't be worn to anatomy lab just in case disaster strikes. (One of my classmates definitely got hit in the face with a calf last week and got poo ON HIS FACE:sick:). Goodwill and similar is a great place to pick up old scrubs. Walmart or similar is a great place to pick up super cheap sweats and t-shirts if your school doesn't allow scrubs (which might just be VMCVM).
 
  • Like
Reactions: 4 users
I loaded up on some cheapo Walmart scrubs for anatomy and had no regrets. Kept a couple pairs around for path rotation, too. I also got a like $5 sweatshirt from Walmart specifically for anatomy lab, as our lab was quite chilly most days.

I don't think my scrubs retained a formalin smell, but I washed mine on the reg relatively speaking. Also, my nose is not the best. :laugh:

I got a pair of very decent rubber-ish boots from Tractor Supply for like 15 bucks. I didn't always wear them for small animal anatomy, but you bet your rumen juice I wore them every lab for large animal anatomy.
 
  • Like
  • Haha
Reactions: 8 users
Way back in the day when I was a first year, we changed into scrubs at lunch for afternoon dissections 3 days a week. Wore a lab coat on top. One of my group mates had a junky washing machine in her garage and she graciously offered to take our coats and scrubs home with her and washed them for our entire group every weekend. I think we have her like $20 for her time and effort. I highly recommend a laundry fairy, lol.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
JaynaAli said:
Way back in the day when I was a first year, we changed into scrubs at lunch for afternoon dissections 3 days a week. Wore a lab coat on top. One of my group mates had a junky washing machine in her garage and she graciously offered to take our coats and scrubs home with her and washed them for our entire group every weekend. I think we have her like $20 for her time and effort. I highly recommend a laundry fairy, lol.
Click to expand...

Our entire class first year needed a laundry fairy :laugh: The first years at VMCVM have a lounge with space to hang up their lab coats and a good portion of the class washed theirs like, once a semester? By the end of the year, the funk in that room is something special.
 
We have to wear scrubs, lab coats, then this yellow smock-like thing booties and hair nets. Add to that sleeve covers and all my scrubs were still in perfect condition. Our PPE is intense.
 
  • Wow
Reactions: 1 user
Meanwhile I was lazy and after the first month or so of anatomy lab I (and a lot of other people) stopped changing into scrubs, and none of my clothes got a permanent stink. I think I changed a bit more often for large animal anatomy, but both semesters I spent a lot of time sitting back reading the book aloud while other people dissected, so that definitely helped. I didn't even buy a lab coat first year, lol, although I'm pretty sure they've since cracked down on making people wear lab coats.
 
Coopah said:
We have to wear scrubs, lab coats, then this yellow smock-like thing booties and hair nets. Add to that sleeve covers and all my scrubs were still in perfect condition. Our PPE is intense.
Click to expand...
It's because formalin causes cancer in California ;)
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
Hi everyone, just curious about what apps are useful during school? I’ve been out of the classroom for a bit and want to get familiar with some of the technology. Thank you in advance!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 users
^Does anyone have any suggestions for this? I have more free time given the current situation and would like to try to be productive with it!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
Pomodroido or Forest if you like doing the Pomodoro technique. I used Anki back when I had more mental energy and focus to make notecards. I don't think there are any other apps that I use for school specifically.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
I used Quizlet for flashcards sometimes first year. 4th year I've used VetPrep, Plumb's, and Merck Veterinary Manual, but those wouldn't be very useful at this point unless you feel like reading about random topics on Merck, lol. I use their website more often than the app.

Not an app, but CSU's Virtual Canine Anatomy is great for anatomy studying. You have to pay for it now, but I'd say it's worth it. Ordinarily I don't recommend studying ahead of time for vet school, but given the circumstances if you're REALLY bored that's something. But definitely focus on doing well in your current classes if applicable, and there's no shame in lots of naps and Netflix!
 
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
WildZoo said:
I didn't actually wear scrubs for anatomy very often - just wore an old long lab coat over my clothes. Sometimes would change into scrub pants if I was wearing pants I really liked or something. Old tennis shoes or rubber boots for sure. Coveralls and rubber boots or work boots for large animal labs.

I love my Grey's Anatomy scrubs more than anything, and they honestly haven't gotten gross throughout school. Maybe I'm just lucky? The worst they got was a few bleach stains, but that was from my research lab, not school.

Similar to what meats said, we have a few rotations where we are expected to be business casual, particularly on appointment days, and then change into scrubs for procedures.

Khakis for large animal, field service, or zoo rotations are a good idea...might not need those until later on though so I'd probably hold off on buying them right now if you don't already have them. I didn't even start to expand my business casual wardrobe until clinics started, didn't need it as much pre-clinical. We're casual business casual in the classroom, so jeans and such were fine.
Click to expand...
britzen said:
We're not allowed to wear scrubs for anatomy here - I just wore my normal clothes and normal shoes and never ended up with anything damaged, covered in gross stuff, or permanently smelly. What were you all doing in anatomy lab? Wash your scrubs and lab coats more often, people! :laugh:
Click to expand...
Yeah literally no one wears scrubs for anatomy at Oregon state. I think our gross anatomy lab is one of the newer ones in the country so it has a fancy ventilation system lol. Everyone wears white coats and goggles or glasses
WildZoo said:
It's because formalin causes cancer in California ;)
Click to expand...
Doesn’t it cause cancer everywhere? Lol

(And yes, I get the joke)
 
Last edited:
I emailed them to ask about more copies and got this response:
"Thanks for your email. We are trying to get more copies of this version available but I'm not sure about the time frame. We will be transitioning to a purely online version which is currently available through select universities which have licensed them."
 
  • Like
Reactions: 2 users
tl;dr Subject: This post is about using a cheap $25 WiFi security camera as a USB webcam! In case you're reading this in the future, this post is due to the webcam shortage secondary to the COVID19 pandemic.

591172-wyze-cam-v2.jpg

Wasn't sure whether to post in the COVID19 thread or this one, but welp.

For those of you who need a webcam for school meetings or online proctored exam taking, and either your device doesn't have a built-in webcam or your school/proctor requires an external webcam, here's what I did.

(Reason I'm making this post: There is insane price gouging going on for normal webcams. Even webcams that cost $20 are now over $100. And popular models like the Logitech C920S that are $69.99 (or sometimes like $35 on sale) can be $200, $300, $400. It's stupid.)

Credit to Lon.TV on YouTube for this idea:
How to Turn a Wyze Security Camera into a Webcam!
(He's not a big name tech reviewer, but he's one I've subscribed to the past few years because of his personality/style/honesty.)

Anyways, there's a company called Wyze that makes and sells IP security cameras for $20-25. 1080p. Definitely cheaper quality and definitely sketchy privacy concerns if used as a security camera; i.e. "Is there a backdoor to China? Why the weird traffic?" It's not something I would buy and use as a 24/7 security camera at all.

BUT

Apparently in about 5 minutes -- and easy for beginners and tech noobies -- you can download an alternate firmware from their website (if this link is broken in the future, PM me) that turns it from a security camera that connects using WiFi to a USB webcam that connects over USB (and turns off WiFi). The Field of View (FOV) is 110° which does give a "fish bowl" look since it's designed primarily as a crappy security camera. BUT for my purposes, this might be beneficial when used for online proctored exams (Pearson OnVUE, ProctorU, Examity, etc.) since it gives the proctor a wider view of my face, desk, surroundings, etc. and hopefully (in my mind) makes them less likely to pause the exam due to a cheating concern.

It has a built-in crappy microphone and buit-in crappy speaker, which is perfect for online testing since I don't particularly care or want the proctor to hear perfect sound (e.g. neighborhood dogs barking, people outside the room talking) and have a concern for cheating (i.e. they normally flag you if they hear any voices...so my reasoning is a crappier microphone will pick up less). If the audio is that terrible, I have other microphone and speakers I could potentially use for online testing. I guess for those who want GOOD quality microphone if you use this for videoconferencing for school or work or friends/family, then definitely recommend getting a better quality microphone. (Or use the one built-in to your 2-in-1 or laptop, which, although crappy, is better than this.)

Anyways, here's Amazon links to the order I just made. I'll update this post over the next month when everything arrives, I test it with my home testing setup, and I plan on taking at least 1 online proctored exam in June 2020.

Camera itself (I hope Amazon doesn't send me an opened or returned product...that's been an issue for me):


USB cable with Type A connector on both ends (not common...if you don't have this you'll have to buy one). I went with 15' model to give me more options to move the webcam around my desk area. FWIW I've bought cables with Rankie brand in the past and they've been good quality so hope this cable is too:


Cheap AmazonBasics tripod. I can't endorse this product...spent an hour reading reviews on this and other tripods (including the Joby Gorillapod series) and all of the cheap tripods have some 1-star reviews saying that the plastic stuff breaks randomly...so I hope this tripod doesn't crap out? :xf:


Anyways, from YouTube reviews of the Wyze security camera's video quality, don't expect amazing quality. It seems "meh" but for my purposes? I'll happily spend $25 on this just to have something vs. having nothing or submitting to the price gouging going on now. My Amazon order was like $75 for all of this vs. spending $150-200 buying used/new price gouged webcams... (Eff you COVID19)

Anyways, hope this helps anyone who needs or wants a USB webcam right now but might not want to break the bank.
 
Last edited:
  • Like
Reactions: 3 users
Stroganoff said:
Interdasting. Do you have them at your place? Has huzzban noticed any traffic phoning home to all sorts of rando places?
Click to expand...

Nothing weird, but we have them on an isolated network with reduced permissions - along with the poop robot and the roomba and the thermostats.

We use them here and there when we want indoor cameras.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 1 user
You must log in or register to reply here.
Next unread thread

Similar threads

F
If you didn't get in on your first try, what did you do?
Replies
9
Views
2K
Kodiak-Bear
Kodiak-Bear
R
If you don't get in your first try, where to next?
Replies
3
Views
838
lis1127
lis1127
h0tpink
Accept OOS first cycle or try again for IS to get the cheaper school?
Replies
33
Views
3K
travelingdogtor25
T
D
First year must haves!
Replies
1
Views
2K
WonderingStudent
WonderingStudent
Y
Suggestions for schools to attend in PA to complete prerequisite courses for vet application
Replies
9
Views
807
catdoctor77
C
Top