Idiopathic Issues

Pop Quiz: It’s the first day of your internship and you’re presented with a critically ill dog requiring hospitalization and a thorough workup. You haven’t yet figured out what’s wrong with the dog, but you want the techs to start it on maintenance fluids right away as you gather your thoughts and present a plan for the owner.

As a veterinary student, you will likely learn about canine and feline blood types and crossmatching in extensive detail. Sometimes it can be a challenge, however, to distill this extensive knowledge down to the practical knowledge necessary to perform a blood transfusion. 

In general practice, the most important transfusion topics to comprehend are blood types and crossmatching. With an understanding of these topics, you can easily read and follow published step-by-step instructions on infusion volumes, infusion rates, and the other practical details of how to administer a blood transfusion. Without an understanding of blood types and crossmatching, however, even simplified step-by-step instructions may be inadequate to ensure a successful transfusion.

As a vet student, you’re probably familiar with the discussion surrounding spay/neuter timing in canine patients. Every time a study is published, this issue seems to once again become a “hot topic.” A new study was released earlier this year, so it’s time for an update. 

The veterinary profession has historically recommended early spay/neuter, in order to prevent accidental matings and behavior issues that can arise in intact pets. In recent years, however, an increasing amount of attention has been given to potential medical risks that may accompany early spay/neuter.

Researchers are still working to understand the exact risks and benefits of early spay/neuter, in order to allow veterinarians to make the best possible recommendations for their patients.

Many vet schools use shelter pets as a component of student training, although the exact use of these animals may differ between vet schools and even from year to year.

While the use of shelter animals in veterinary education can be a controversial topic, it’s important to carefully consider each individual instance of shelter pet use within the curriculum to determine whether the use of animals is mutually beneficial for both the animals and the veterinary students.