Life and Death

This rotation (Equine Emergency) has been a crazy one. It started off slow the beginning of last week and then over Friday and Saturday I was at the hospital for over 24 hours with only 3.5 hours of sleep. That was a rough couple of days. I got to see lots of colic surgeries, which was something I had really been wanting to see. Some ended happily; others did not. There was a mini with an deadly intussusception, a Canadian horse with an epiploic foramen entrapment, a mare with deadly diarrhea, a mini with hairballs in his intestines (naughty boy!), a foal with a myopathy and pneumonia, a pregnant mare with a deadly colitis, a paint who had enteritis...and then today we watched a horse bleed out and die on the trailer. Life and Death. It's abundant in emergency work. I've gotten to see a lot of things and I've learned a lot along the way. The life of an equine ER vet isn't a glamorous one. As you can see from the above brief list, 50/50 odds aren't too far off when cases come in. I didn't mean for this to be a depressing post, but this afternoon was a sad one. In happier news, I get to go home this weekend and see my family before my next rotation starts! :)

Wisco

So I've spent the past week and a half with my friend Megan at Northwoods Veterinary Service in Wisconsin. Last week was fairly slow but this week has been busier and I'm glad. I've gotten to palpate lots of cows, see several surgeries, help with some difficult calvings, and, last but not least, spay a pregnant cat. Today we also went to a farm where 6 Holsteins were struck by lightning last night. It was a very eerie scene. I can't imagine watching it happen--six cows just dropping dead right in front of you. At least it wasn't a human! Time here has sped by and I'm sure I'll be back in Ohio before I know it, but I have really enjoyed being here!