Archives for August 2019

This day was so cool and SO MUCH FUN!!! When I started my first position at the reception area, I really enjoyed interacting with the people who were bringing in their pets. I thought that I was going to be sort of shy and nervous but I ended up being really friendly and relaxed…I even used my minimal Spanish-speaking skills a bit to talk to some children. It became a bit more hectic when I moved to the check-up station, but in a fun way. I really liked figuring out the correct dosage for the vitamins and dewormer based on the dogs’ sizes and weights. I really felt the responsibility of it and I enjoyed knowing that I really needed to be cautious and thoughtful about my decisions. I also enjoyed injecting the dogs because most of them were way more relaxed than I had expected. When it was my turn to suture, I was honestly nervous but ended up moving quickly and smoothly. I was worried because the dog that I did surgery on(her name was Sofia!) had visible parametria – when Dr. T removed her fallopian tubes, parts of it were black and solidified to the point where it was breaking apart. I just really hope that we helped her by spaying her. She also was taking a very long time to wake up after surgery and her gums were extremely pale with no capillary refill. She, unfortunately, had to be carried home by her owner and I am just really worried that she did not wake up. This experience with Sofia the dog and the clinic overall really humbled me and showed me how much we, as veterinarians and aspiring veterinarians, can help both animals and people if we try our best to be as thoughtful and accurate as possible with our choices.

Despite the stress, heat, and hecticness of this day, I actually really enjoyed it. When Candice(our TA) had us pick a number 1-50 to choose who would be doing the first castration, I immediately talked myself down mentally and told myself that I would rather sit of the sidelines and watch instead of doing it myself. Therefore, I chose the number 5 because I thought it would be unlikely that she chose anything near that number out of 50 total. Lo and behold, I ended up picking the exact same number that Candice was thinking…the universe really does work in mysterious ways. I really believe that some entity was looking out for me this day because I ended up feeling so amazing after the castration was completed. I could have done a much better job with cutting, though, because I did not go deep enough the first time around and had to make another cut which most likely slowed the healing process for that poor piggy. I can only learn from my mistakes, I guess. After the castration and some stressful vaccinations in the first farm, Candice, Danielle, Racheal, Emeline, and I moved over to the next farm. It was honestly so hectic and stressful but I kind of loved it. I felt like I was really doing a good thing by forcing myself to be brave and properly vaccinate as many screaming pigs as I possibly could.

This was my first day of the trip where I felt genuinely uncomfortable and afraid. The entire atmosphere of the cattle farm and the day just did not feel right to me. It is difficult to explain in words but I really just did not feel right. Despite this, I really tried to be brave and get up on the ledge and vaccinate. I think that the stress of the cows probably had me stressed as well. I hated watching them defecate on each other and squish each other against the wooden enclosure. When I vaccinated my first cow, she was the first one to pull away and kind of freak out. Luckily, I handled the situation as best as I could and let go of the needle. This day sort of showed me that a career in production animal medicine may not be right for me.

Now that I’m back in the US, I definitely look back on my experience in Belize as a memorable one. I am extremely grateful that I was able to go at all due to the help of all the people that donate to Rutgers so they could give me the scholarships that I received. In Belize I was able to do a lot of stuff that I never thought I would be doing. It was the first time I ever sutured an animal, castrated a pig, palpated a cow, and gave injections to a lot of different types of animals. I learned a lot not only from all the things I was doing, but from the many experiences the students in our group talked about. The friends I met made the trip a fun time and much more worthwhile. I definitely made memories on this trip that I will always cherish and never forget!