My Job

Well, the fact that I have been working there since June 11th and am now just getting around to blogging about it should be evidence enough that I've been really, really busy!

So Monday, June 11th, I walked into work uncertain of what was going on and freaking out but overall my first day went well enough. Tuesday, I did appointments solo which is easy enough because I've been doing them solo for just short of two years. I also worked on restocking my truck, which is a work in progress. That night, despite having no clue where anything was in the clinic much less in the practice range, I was on call. Hmm...Unlike FVA, this clinic sees a lot of emergencies and sees the emergencies of neighboring clinics too. This first week, we were also seeing all emergencies all throughout the night. This has now thankfully stopped and we only see small animal emergencies up until 11pm. I have help up until then too which is AWESOME! Anyway, that evening I had a call around 6:30 for a cat that ate a fishhook and had it stuck in its mouth. The owners eventually decided it wasn't an emergency and could wait till the morning. Then I saw a dog that was limping at 10pm. I haven't heard back from them so I'm guessing the dog did well or they went to their own vet. They were pretty happy initally. I showered and then as I got into bed at midnight, someone called me about a kitten to which I gave some suggestions and went to sleep. Then at 2:30 in the morning or so, I got called for a calving and took off through BFE. After getting mildly lost, I found the farm. The cow was down which normally helps me and my short arms but not this time. The calf was breech but the cow had managed to get both hocks of the calf up into her pelvis. But because she was down, there was little room to manipulate the calf's legs back down and then out. I struggled and struggled and finally around daybreak, resorted to using my fetatome and removed both rear legs around the hocks. The calf came sliding out easily once the offending legs were removed. AND it was now 6am. I hurried home for a shower and nap then went into work for my surgery day.
Surgery days go well enough. Lots of getting used to small changes but I think I am making the most of it. I show up early (maybe earlier than the techs would like) and want to get started. I'm a slow surgeon and know this.
So I finished up my week with appointments, going out on some horse calls with a vet that's leaving and just hanging out the clinic in a general panic. Now I've got the routine of most things but am saddened over the somewhat short supply of inventory for the large animal segment. Maybe the other two trucks are better stocked but mine is sadily understocked. And I sadily can't restock it with the imaginary supplies in the basement. (I need to crack some heads about inventory.)
As expected, I've done a fair share of emergencies. Last weekend, was my first weekend on call. Unfortunately, my death toll for the weekend was seven. SEVEN! It all started Friday night with a dog euthanasia that I stayed late for. The dog was a happy mastiff type that was happy to stay on this earth and did not want to leave it. It took a lot for him to peacefully go but he did. Then a horse that was down at midnight. The horse was older and had some issues the weeks before. The owners had been prepared then for euthanasia but it had done well. Now I painted a sad picture for it and then euthanised it. It was actually the best horse euthanasia I have ever done. I developed these nice little kits for it as well so I can be almost entirely prepared.
Saturday, I saw a crazy cat lady that I'm pretty certain I caught licking her cat. (Now every once in a while I mimic this and it sends a particular tech into fits of hysteria.) Then just as I went home, I got called out for a calving with the cutest little old man and the cutest little Hereford heifer. The calf was hip locked though I wasn't positive that I couldn't have some success. I tried and was unsuccessful so I sent the old man (this was after a gate fell on him!) to get the Amish neighbor for help. I decided that I should do a fetotomy and split the calf in half removing the front end. Then I tried to manipulate the pelvis with little result. Ultimately, I split the pelvis and the calf was freed. The cow didn't do great right a way but has seemed to improve. I missed a HBC that I felt awful about but I was up to my armpits in placenta, fetal fluid and calf guts. That night I saw a vomiting dog. This was my death free day!
Sunday, I had to give the EGR client the news that her dog wasn't doing well and quality of life should be considered. She would eventually come in and her dog would die in her arms! I ended up euthanizing a blocked cat that was flat out and a kitten that had been HBC. Another hospitalized dog died in its owners arms and then an owner of a dog with vomiting/bloody diarrhea that I had seen earlier that day called me hysterical because her dog had suddenly died. And to top it all off, I hospitalized a parvo puppy. Boo.
The theme of this week has been parvo. I hate parvo. Currently, there are three parvo dogs hospitalized. They are not responding to treatment. It makes me sad. It makes me really frustrated. Fingers crossed for some weekend miracle where I'm not touching them.
There are some cute big cats boarding currently.
I went out earlier this week to be a vet for the first time in Ohio. I had to vaccinate a small number of cows and check on a bull with pneumonia. They were all caught in headlocks on a small portable feeder. The cows were not pleased and were rocking the whole thing. I got into the feeder and as I vaccinated the cows I let them go, not thinking about the giant bull that was left behind. The bull was gentle as most beef bulls are and I looked him over carefully. And went to give him a long acting antibiotic. He jumped and took off pulling the feeder around his neck across the pasture! I'm still in it and the owner is on it too trying to weigh it down. I wasn't sure how I was going to get the meds into this bull but I mustered my deepest most intimidating voice and yelled at him to behave. And behave he did while I gave him the medicine. I must have scared him!
Today, I sutured a gigantic head laceration on a horse's forehead. She tried to scalp herself. Fingers crossed for that. I also repaired a badly healing wound on a stray dog. She's a sweet, sweet chow mix that I would adopt if I didn't have a dog.
Tonight, ice cream social.