It is hard to believe my externship is over already. The four weeks just flew by. The most valuable part of my externship was the knowledge I learned when helping during patient cases. I thoroughly enjoy working with clients and their pets to ensure that each animal gets the best care possible.

This was the first time I had ownership over cases and was able to speak with clients as a veterinarian (with supervision of course). I learned a great deal about common conditions in companion animals such as otitis, inflammation of the external ear canal, and allergic skin disease and got to snuggle some adorable puppies and kittens for wellness examinations and vaccines. I was given the chance to improve my diagnostic skills through collecting and running bloodwork, urinalysis, a blood smear, and cytology, the microscopic analysis of cells.

The best part of my externship was the staff at Holliday Veterinary Hospital. It is like one big family; everyone was warm and welcoming. The veterinary technicians took me in as one of their own and helped me fine-tune my technician skills such as taking blood samples or putting in catheters. Dr. Sue Beacock pushed me past my comfort zone to help me excel. She was incredibly supportive and always had topics for me to research and involved me in every aspect of being a veterinarian.

The veterinary world is much different because of COVID-19. It is uplifting to see how a practice can still make pet owners feel welcome and involved in the decisions involving their pets.