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Category: Student blogs

Vet school sports

The rivalry between Glasgow and Edinburgh was as fierce as ever.

Vet students have their own little community, not only within their own university but also across the eight vet schools throughout the UK.

We’re all members of the Association of Veterinary Students (AVS) and through this, take part in an annual sports weekend, hosted by a different university each year.

In addition to this, Glasgow and Edinburgh (The Royal Dick School of Veterinary Studies) have their own inter-vet-school sports competition, “Dick Day”.

Both events take place in November.

Over the last few years, AVS Sports Weekend has strayed from actually involving much sport. So when the Glasgow students rocked up in Liverpool this year (dressed as the cast from Michael Jackson’s Thriller), we were all taken aback by the number of matches that had been organised and the variety of sport available… quite a contrast from the mere hint at some hungover rugby last year.

Nevertheless, we at least managed to scrape together a team for the mixed netball. Needless to say, we didn’t fare too well and finished seventh out of the eight vet schools overall.

Unsurprisingly, Liverpool won overall, putting the students from other vet schools to shame, most of whom were too busy ceilidh dancing or getting started on the pub crawl to concentrate on sport.

Dick Day 2013: the equestrian team, men’s football and men’s rugby team pulled through to give us some victory.

Dick Day, however, was another matter; the rivalry between Glasgow and Edinburgh was as fierce as ever and the sport was taken seriously.

We didn’t make a great start, losing the netball, mixed hockey, ladies football, ladies rugby and volleyball. However, it wasn’t all bad news – the equestrian team, men’s football and men’s rugby team pulled through to give us some victory.

Although we lost to Edinburgh overall, spirits were still high by the end of the day, since it was only the second time we’d beaten Edinburgh in the rugby on their home turf in 150 years.

There are few other courses that provide the opportunity to enjoy some competitive sport and social events with students from other universities in the way that we do. At AVS I saw several friends from other schools, and it was great to have a brief catch-up before resuming the inter-vet-school banter with the other Glasgow vets.

These events are just another reason to add to the list of why being a vet student in the UK is so incredible.

December 2, 2013
A vet school storm on the horizon

Following last year’s announcement that the University of Surrey is to open a new veterinary school (taking in the first cohort of students in autumn 2014), it would appear that the University of Ulster (Northern Ireland) is now jumping on the bandwagon.

These proposals have indeed kicked up quite a storm in the veterinary world.

There seems to be little positive attitude towards this news, with many of us panicking about academic standards, graduate prospects and EMS availability.

With neither of these being Russell Group universities, it has to be questioned whether the academic standards will be comparable to the current UK vet schools.

It is notoriously difficult to get into vet school, but will the two new universities have lower entry requirements? If so, this would be providing a back up option for many applicants and, as a result, decrease the currently high standard of veterinary students. If the graduates are indeed less knowledgable, or have less well-developed clinical skills, would this encourage the employment of poorer quality vets in second-rate practices?

Evidently, more veterinary graduates would mean more competition for jobs, hence pushing down the salaries that graduates would be willing for work for.

It has been suggested that the restricted number of graduates being able to go directly into clinical practice would mean that more veterinary students would be encouraged to take a different career route (research or veterinary education, for example). But if the aim is not to produce veterinary professionals, why not instead increase the intake on veterinary biosciences courses for those more interested in research?

I also think it unfair to expect new graduates to begin teaching at vet schools immediately, even if that is what they’re interested in doing. Their credibility and respect from their students would be dramatically reduced if they’ve not actually had any experience in practice and can’t give clinical case examples to the possible vets of the future.

Another concern is the availability for EMS opportunities. With an increased number of students throughout the UK as a whole, it will become increasingly difficult for students to gain clinical EMS placements. To further the competition, Surrey will not be opening its own teaching hospital as such, and it is expected that final year rotations will instead take place in veterinary practices in the surrounding area, reducing their availability for students from other universities to undertake EMS.

Could this be the future employment opportunity for UK veterinary graduates?

Of course, there are a lot of “ifs” and “buts” here, and potentially the two new vet schools could produce better graduates than the rest of the UK – but this would still increase the competition for graduate jobs and EMS placements.

In my opinion, the main concern is not the repercussions of opening these two vet schools themselves, but the catastrophic effects that would result from further universities following suit.

With little legislation able to dictate requirements for opening a new vet school, the prospect of having as many veterinary education institutions as medical ones could soon become a reality. Before we know it, we could be inundated with veterinary graduates, some of questionable quality, and the next generation of veterinary professionals will be fighting tooth and nail for a severely underpaid job.

November 15, 2013
“All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy”

All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a dull boy All work and no play makes Jack a…

After a summer of EMS, traveling and very little academic work, the time finally came for me to come back down to earth.

Having been back in Glasgow for about a month now, I think I’ve just about settled into the second-year routine. After a week of scavenging freebies and signing up to every club under the sun at the fresher’s fayres, I managed to just about fit in everything that I want to do this year around vet school.

During the day, we’re back to lectures and practicals on everything from farm animal nutrition to parasitology, respiratory system anatomy to learning where to put ECG electrodes on a dog.

I have to say that, so far, second year has been more interesting than first year was. Whether this is because of the course content, a different outlook on my part, or simply the fact that I now know the drill, I couldn’t say. But I certainly seem to have gained more passion for the subjects we’re studying at the minute.

Glasgow University Guardian

But it’s not all about studying. This year, I’ve taken on a lot more outside of vet school than I did before. Having this time made it on to the university riding team, I have training every week with my teammates at the local stables, and also hope to start doing a bit of polo. I’ve also gotten involved with Glasgow University Guardian, the student newspaper, in order to do some writing and editing, as well as to learn what goes on behind the scenes when producing a publication.

Every Easter, Glasgow vet school hosts a big charity event called the Rodeo, and it is the responsibility of the second years (with some acquired help from the freshers) to organise it. A group of my friends and classmates have formed this year’s committee, with me taking on the role of secretary and helping out with advertising the event. Hopefully it won’t be too stressful and we will work together to pull off the best Rodeo so far!

So it looks like I’m in for a busy year, but it should make being a vet student all the more exciting.

October 14, 2013
Reverse culture shock

As mentioned in a recent post, I spent this summer in South America. This involved a couple of weeks in Peru and six weeks in Bolivia, volunteering for the charity Inti Wara Yassi, which runs three animal sanctuaries.

Jordan and Carlos

During my time there, I was allocated a puma to walk every day, as well as being given other responsibilities looking after the “house animals”. This involved preparing food and cleaning of enclosures for the birds in the aviary, chanchos (pigs), tapirs and tejons (coatimundi).

It was also important to provide different forms of enrichment to each of these animals, tailored to their specific needs. I also participated in some essential construction work, such as building a new puma management cage and contributing to a set of monkey enclosures.

Accepting the extraordinary

To begin with, it was surreal to be living in the jungle and working so closely with such potentially dangerous animals. But before long, sleeping beneath mosquito nets, eating dinner (usually rice) at a candlelit table and having only a deck of cards and each other’s company for entertainment became the norm.

There was no electricity at the animal parks and only cold showers, which were surprising refreshing after the heat and humidity of the day.

Every day was a constant battle against mosquitos and we had to make the compromise between wearing enough layers to minimise being bitten and not overheating in the tropical environment. But we soon got used to the lifestyle.

Caring for Carlos

The daily commute to my puma, Carlos, involved a 15 minute walk through a waist-high swamp. I learned to love the swamp and accepted it as part of my daily routine, in addition to caring for and walking Carlos. Building a bond with him was incredibly rewarding and unlike anything I’d ever done before. I learnt so much from him and the other volunteers who were caring for different cats.

Jordan and the team of volunteers at Inti Wara Yassi.

Although my time with Carlos counted as pre-clinical EMS, there was a vet on site, which allowed me to understand the minimal equipment and sheer lack of resources available to the animals in developing countries such as Bolivia.

Before experiencing it first hand, I would never have understood the problems these animals face and the struggle to resolve them, mainly due to lack of funds.

Life-changing experience

I had mixed feelings about coming home. I loved every minute of my time away – I’d made some great friends and had adjusted to living with utter basics – but it was strange to be suddenly immersed in the media-obsessed world once more.

Even small things like flushing toilets were a novelty at first. Crossing roads in the UK seemed unnatural when I’d gotten used to everything being the opposite way around. But slowly, I think I’m getting back into the swing of university life again.

Going to South America really was life-changing, in more ways than I could have imagined. It opened my eyes to a different way of life and allowed me to appreciate so much that we take for granted in day to day life.

The experience truly reminded me why I want to be a vet. I hope that one day I can use my skills and knowledge to make a difference, and help people in developing countries care for their animals.

September 30, 2013
Ever walked your own puma?

Over the summer, I spent six weeks volunteering for Inti Wara Yassi in Bolivia. The charity was set up in 1992 and now runs three animal sanctuaries throughout this South American country.

Comunidad Inti Wara Yassi

The park at which I spent most of my time was Ambue Ari, which is home to over 20 large cats, two species of monkey and a few other exotic species such as tapirs, tejons and many different birds. It was an incredible experience and I would definitely urge other vet students or even qualified vets to get involved in projects like this.

A day in the life of a cat volunteer

Wading through a waist high swamp, being mauled by a swarm of mosquitos, I think to myself, “What an earth am I doing here?” But after 15 minutes and a short trek through the jungle, Carlos’ cage comes into view and I remember exactly why. I shout “Hola Carlos” and we meow back and forth to each other until I reach the cage. He brushes up against the metal wire, wanting attention. I stroke him through the cage for a couple of minutes before calling “Vamos!” and making my way to the doors – working with Carlos gives me a chance to practise my (very limited) Spanish.

While I’m making my way around, he races through his cage with excitement before stopping to wait patiently at the door. I unlock the cage and attach a rope to my waistband before entering the second door to get to him. He paces, rubbing up against my legs before sitting and licking my hands. I clip him onto the other end of the rope and open the doors. He tugs at the rope to begin with, leading me along the trail that he wants to do today.

Walking a puma… as you do!

I watch out for his every move, prepared to burst into a sprint when he leaps over a log or to unclip his rope when he ducks under a branch to low for me to follow him. He tries to stalk something in the bushes. I can’t see what it is, so I stop him pouncing – trying to strike a balance between letting him be a puma and keeping him from unseen dangers such as snakes.

As the day heats up, he stops to lie down and sleep a while. This is when my war against the mozzies really starts. Sitting still, I have little choice but to watch their ceaseless assaults on my skin, despite my sweating under numerous layers of clothing.

After a time, Carlos appears to have rested enough and continue on his trail. The rough ground and natural obstacles result in the rope getting caught between his back legs. “Step over your rope,” I call out (apparently pumas are bilingual) and, after a couple of attempts, he’s free to walk normally again. I congratulate him: “Muy bien”.

After a few hours of walking, we return to the cage and he utters a deep purr, craving more attention before I say goodbye. I give him a few minutes of fuss before looping his rope around a nearby tree and entering his cage to clean his feeding platform and sleeping area. Leaving his meat on the platform, I return to him, careful to watch for signs that he might pounce while I unclip his rope from the tree. When I do, he tugs towards the cage and we both go through the first of the double doors. I unclip him from the rope and open the second door. He runs towards the platform, leaps onto it, grabs the meat in his jaws and darts into the bushes to eat in peace.

Turning away, I lock the cage behind me and start the return journey through the swamp, not forgetting to call out “Chao” as I leave.

September 16, 2013
Broaden your horizons with EMS

©iStockphoto.com/mjbs

When I received yet another EMS email that had been sent to the whole vet school, I almost deleted it out of habit, but something stopped me. A word caught my eye: Bolivia.

I had always wanted to go to South America – would this be my chance to tick something off the bucket list as well as get in a few weeks of EMS?

After a few days of mulling it over, I decided to fill out the online application – I could always change my mind, and I might not even get selected anyway – but the next day, I received an email inviting me to take part in a Skype interview. Shortly afterwards, I was offered a place on the project, so I decided to bite the bullet and say yes.

The project I will be volunteering on runs a wildlife sanctuary that houses various types of monkeys and birds as well as jaguars and pumas. Many of the animals are rescued from the fur and pet trades. While re-release back into the wild is difficult (especially for the big cats, due to local laws), the animals are given a much better life in the sanctuary than the alternative.

©iStockphoto.com/BeauDamonRichardsGallery

As well as handling and work with the animals, the students on the project will help construct new animal enclosures. The project itself lasts for six weeks, but I will be then going on to Peru for a two-week expedition afterwards.

Before going abroad, I’ve had to organise vaccinations against hepatitis, typhoid, yellow fever and rabies. I’ve also had to obtain malaria tablets to take while I’m out there. As for equipment, I haven’t had to buy too many “specialist” things as such – just a big rucksack, old clothes and the odd thing like water purification tablets and rehydration sachets.

With less than a week to go, I’m starting to get excited but still in shock that it’s actually happening. And I really need to start packing!

I’ll let you know how it was when I return to the UK in two months!

July 31, 2013
One year as a vet student

Jordan

Having received my results for the professional exams, I can finally say that I’ve finished my first year at vet school!

Being brutally honest, the first term was a bit of a culture shock. I had focused so much on getting into vet school and being a vet that I didn’t really think about what it would be like when I actually got there.

Coming from a town on the edge of the countryside in the heart of England and moving to Glasgow was quite a change. Although the vet school is on the edge of the city in a fairly green area, it wasn’t the same as being able to cycle 10 miles on quiet country roads to the farm where my horses are kept.

I think what I found the hardest was not being able to ride. I had gone from riding my horse every day to having a lesson with the uni riding club once a week. Owning a horse is a lifestyle, and not something I wanted to give up.

While the first term was largely spent getting used to the mountainous workload, I managed to squeeze other things into my time. Many of my friends from home went to uni a year earlier than me and have told me that Fresher’s Week is the craziest uni experience. But none of them are vets, and they don’t know what AVS Sports weekend is (an annual event hosted by the Association of Veterinary Students). This year, it was held in Glasgow, so we didn’t do any traveling, but certainly experienced the madness of meeting people from every other vet school, who came in all shapes and sizes – penguins, mimes, power rangers and more.

Another annual inter-vet-school event for us is Dick Day, where Glasgow competes against Edinburgh – The Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies – in various team sports. Again, this year, it was held in Glasgow. Unlike AVS, the sport on Dick Day is serious and there was a strong sense of rivalry between the schools. I was part of the vet hockey team, but unfortunately we did not defeat the Dick vets in our match.

After battling through a long term of learning at a hundred times the rate we were used to and facing the stress of the class exams, I started the second term knowing better what to expect. I threw myself into getting fit for Easter by swimming, cycling and gyming. I also took up a weekly creative writing class that was put on by the Glasgow uni English department, to rekindle my love of writing.

At Easter, I had my first taste of EMS in the form of my first time lambing. The placement was great – we got loads of hands-on experience and got involved in all aspects of lambing time. We learnt loads, and everything from those seemingly endless sheep lectures started to sink in. Although tiring, we enjoyed every bit of it.

I also spent a week in Norway doing a charity dog sledding challenge to raise money for the Warwickshire and Northamptonshire Air Ambulance, who saved my life when I had a serious riding accident two years previously. My family and I had spent a year raising money by doing bucket collections, making Christmas decorations, selling Valentines Day cupcakes, and selling bedding plants. The challenge was fantastic – I loved working with the dogs and getting to see the beautiful Arctic landscape.

However, the day after I landed back in the UK, I was driving back to Glasgow to face revision and the end of year professional exams. I especially began to feel the pressure, because I had arranged to be abroad during the summer when resits would be scheduled (not a wise move, and not something I’d recommend).

We had exams in five subjects: anatomy, physiology, biomolecular sciences, animal husbandry and veterinary professional and clinical skills (VPCS). While I felt most of them went OK, I was almost certain I’d mucked up VPCS after the first day of practicals, having gotten flustered and putting sharps in the wrong bin (we make such idiots out of ourselves when we’re nervous).

During the first month of the summer holidays (while avoiding thinking about the inevitable doom that results would bring), I did some dairy EMS. I’d never been on a dairy farm before and found the experience extremely useful in improving handling skills and my understanding of the dairy industry. I was pleasantly surprised by how much I’d retained from the two cattle lectures we’d had so far.

Without warning, our results started to trickle in, one subject at a time… and so began the momentary relief after receiving one and then the rising anticipation for the next one. Finally, the last one came in, and by some miracle (or so it felt), I had passed all of them! All that worrying about being away for resits was extinguished, and now I could get on with preparing for the next set of EMS I had planned… six weeks in Bolivia in a wildlife sanctuary.

And so I have passed first year. It’s been hard work and no doubt second year will be harder, but vet school hasn’t defeated me yet!

July 10, 2013
Robotic milking: the future of dairy farming?

Robots mean that dairy farmers’ working hours are much better – no early morning or late night milking.

When I organised to do some dairy EMS, the farmer told me he doesn’t work at “ridiculously early hours” because he has milking robots. It sounded incredibly sci-fi and I didn’t really know what to expect, but when he first showed me around the farm and explained how they work, I was extremely impressed.

The robot recognises each individual by an electronic tag, which is strapped around one leg and also acts as a pedometer. Everything is completely automated – there isn’t even any need for manual attachment of the cows teats; the robots not only have built in lasers which are used to locate them, but also remember the rough position of them for each cow. The robots are programmed to milk the desired amount for each cow. The cows are free to come to the robots for milking whenever they want, but if they return too soon to be milked again, the robot will allow them to pass through without being milked.

The robots dramatically reduce the incidence of mastitis, since the clusters are much more hygienic for the cows than those in a parlour. They’re automatically washed in between each cow, in addition to the teats themselves being cleaned both before and after milking. The number of foot problems is reduced since there is no queueing to get into a parlour. There is less strain on the udder because the cows are not limited to specific times for milking. Milking is also much more efficient, since each quarter of the udder is treated individually, so no teat is under or over-milked.

When a cow calves, the robot is programmed to begin milking her, in small amounts to start with. For the first couple of milkings, the robot sends the milk to a separate tank, so the colostrum can be given to the newborn calf.

Lots of data is provided by the robot. The pedometer gives a minute-by-minute recording of activity level, which can be used to see when the cow is bulling, and so indicates when to AI the cow. The robot itself also conducts a basic analysis of the milk produced by each cow, which gives an immediate indication of quality and can provide an early warning for conditions such as mastitis, even before clinical signs appear.

Will there be a major shift towards robotic milking in the future?

There’s also obvious advantages for the farmer. Working hours are much better – no early morning or late night milking. Such a decrease in the labour needs means that there’s much money to be saved that would be spent employing staff.

However, all of this comes at a cost. The big question is whether the huge initial cost for a robot outweighs the time and money they save the farmer. The robots are computerised so a steep learning curve would need to be undertaken to get used to the technology, which isn’t something that all farmers would be prepared to do.

Of course, the sceptics will also be asking “what if it goes wrong?” After all, computers aren’t flawless.

The farmer I’ve been working with has two robots, and says that they do have occasional faults, but he always has the second one as a back up to be used while the other is being repaired. The technicians are on call 24/7, so the robots usually get fixed quickly. He said that, only once, both robots went down due to a fault with the computer system. It was brief, but while the repair was going on, the old milking parlour was used.

The milking robot is certainly a very clever piece of kit. Robots have slowly become more popular over the last few years as the machinery has become more reliable. But will there be a major shift towards robotic milking in the future? Will the younger generations of farmers be more inclined to use robots in order to maintain a lifestyle with better working hours? I think that robots are the next step in the evolution of dairy farming, but it’s impossible to tell how long it’ll take for them to be used by the vast majority.

June 19, 2013
Tax doesn’t have to be taxing

Is calculating tax returns your idea of hell?
Image: Darren Shaw.

As students, we need all the extra cash we can get, and often a part time job will help considerably with rent, bills etc. But what about self employment?

It may seem like a scary proposal: how would I be able to run my own business while studying? What do I need to get started? What would I do? Will I have time? Are students even allowed to do that?

The answer is yes, you can be self employed while studying!

I recently registered as self employed for freelance writing. It’s something that I enjoy doing, which means it doesn’t even feel like I’m working. I also feel that it would be almost impossible to fit in a “real” part-time job around university, particularly because the veterinary course has so much contact time, and it would be very difficult to find fixed working hours that would accommodate that. The freedom and flexibility are definitely major positives of being self-employed.

But writing isn’t the only option; there are lots of things that you could do and make a bit of spare cash from. There are a few self-employed students out there, you just might not be aware of it.

Could baking be your way of earning a few extra pounds? Image (and chocolate button cake) by Rebecca Hubbard.

I know of people at Glasgow and other universities who earn money from a variety of sources. One of my high-school friends makes teddies from different fabrics by hand and sells them via her Facebook page. Another student makes very high quality professional-looking cakes for occasions in her spare time.

As an employee, you get paid every month and generally won’t get taxed because a part-time job would mean you don’t come anywhere near the earnings threshold. If you did get taxed accidentally, filling out a simple form (or having a word with your employer) would ensure a tax rebate. So getting your hands on your hard-earned cash and keeping hold of it is fairly straightforward.

Self employment, on the other hand, involves a much more proactive process. Over the last couple of weeks, I’ve been learning the jargon, trying to get my head around National Insurance contributions and making a start on my tax return. It’s all very new and while it seems like a headache at the minute, once I get into the swing of things, I’m sure I’ll get the paperwork done in no time.

All in all, the extra paperwork is completely worth being able to do what I love, when I want, while getting paid for it.

June 5, 2013
To cull or not to cull?

For some time now, the badger cull debate has been ongoing, and finally, despite continuing setbacks from the RSPCA and other supporters of “Team Badger”, such as iconic Brian May, things seem to be moving.

Brian May filming for the BBC’s The One Show for an anti-badger culling campaign. By Norbie (Own work) [CC-BY-SA-3.0], via Wikimedia Commons
With a well-loved famous figure heading the “against” argument for the cull, the public are easily led to believe that this argument must be the right one. Unfortunately, however, the naivety of these “townies” obscures their view of the bigger picture.

Since the proposal of the cull, badgers have become something of a national mascot, with the public claiming that they are an irreplaceable element of the British countryside; part of the wildlife we simply cannot afford to lose. This is all very well, but before the proposal of the cull, were they seen as anything more than roadkill that could easily write off your car? And I wonder that if it were found that rats or pigeons were carrying a disease such as TB, would there be equal public outcry?

The RSPCA claims that culling is not the solution to the problem of TB in cattle. Again, it’s difficult for the sheltered public to consider the possibility that the most well known animal charity in the country could have gotten it wrong. The truth is, the cull would never have been suggested if there were no need for it. We are not a nation of bloodthirsty, mindless killers, but we are a nation that believes in doing what’s right for our animals.

Defra claims there is scientific evidence for an increased incidence of bovine TB in areas where the badger population is high. In areas where, 10 years ago, TB was unheard of, since an increase in badger numbers, the disease is now rife among cattle. This effects both the beef and the dairy industry considerably, and cannot be allowed to continue to do so. It essential that we halt the increasing incidence of bovine TB, and currently, our key method of control would be to, indeed, pursue the badger cull.

Thanks to increased publicity, such as this ‘anti-cull’ poster from the RSPCA, badgers have become something of a national mascot.

For many farmers, badgers are seen as pests in a similar way to foxes. In addition to carrying TB, they destroy land and have been known to steal stock, such as chickens. I doubt there are many farmers that are opposed to the cull.

One of the most significant arguments against the cull is that vaccination could be used as an alternative. However, vaccination would be considerably more expensive and time consuming, not mention less effective than the cull. While possible, this alternative is simply not plausible.

There is a proposed public march in London on June 1 to protest the badger cull. It would be interesting to see what proportion of people turn out to wave their banners. Will there be many people that see the TB problem on a day-to-day basis, such as vets and farmers, or will the protesters predominantly comprise those who like to think of badgers as cute and cuddly, but have an involvement in the dairy industry that extends only as far as buying milk from the local supermarket?

As a vet student, I believe it is important to have an opinion and take a moral standing on issues such as this. On more than one occasion, I have found myself quizzed about my view on the cull, based on my course of study. We need to be prepared and be able to respond to public interrogation with calmly reasoned arguments. After all, we will be the face of the veterinary profession before we know it.

May 7, 2013