It’s Saturday afternoon and I’m hung-over at home after a big wedge outing last night, I remember being told by past 5th years that going out is very difficult in final year, though we’ve now made it into Bristol the past two Fridays, so maybe they over-exaggerated.
The past week has pretty much revolved around farm animal hospital, with the rotation eating up the majority of my time, though I haven’t resented this in anyway as the week has been really productive. On the rotation students are responsible for the care of the in-patients plus they talk through appropriate lines of treatment/carryout workups with the hospital clinician. Cases this week have included:
- Lame cows/sheep.
- Alpacas.
- Hernia operations.
- Goat listeriosis.
To monitor animals checks take place at least 3times per day, plus we’re on call at nights and weekends.
Every Friday after the preventative medicine group give their talk (ours was last week and went well) the hospital students present the current in-patients to the rest of the FAS students and all the clinicians. I was given two hernia ops and a lame cow to present, and all went fine plus I was able to answer most questions. However one clinician didn’t appreciate my slight bit of chat-back after a slightly daft question and proceeded to interrogate me on antibiotics. Though I think it all worked in my advantage as I answered a few difficult questions and the guy was made to look a bully. I also had three clinicians separately congratulate me and apologise for the guy’s behaviour…so basically one enemy/many friends made.

Over this weekend I’ve little planned, today has mainly involved recovery from Em’s and Steve’s birthday celebrations from last night, plus I’ve had to go into the hospital twice to do checks and administer drugs. Tonight I’m off to the cinema with the Bell House to see Xmen3, and am very much looking forward to seeing it. Tomorrow I’ve got lots to organise/sort out, and I’d also like to get a bit of bovine reproduction revised for next week when I’ve got an interherd fertility report to write on a local farm.

As far as other interests are concerned, band is on hold until we can find some time to practice, the aim at the moment is to start getting some ideas together for next term’s Soriee. Also on the panto front I’ve yet had time to organise a meeting, hopefully next week we’ll get one sorted.
On the sport front football has now commenced every Thursday between the year and clinicians. Unfortunately I couldn’t make this week, but will start next.

At long last I’ve finally found the time to catch up on my blogs. I think it’s probably been a good 5/6weeks since the last entry and though you might think that I’d therefore have a vast quantity to say I unfortunately haven’t. The reason for this being the shockingly time consuming task that is revision, however these were the last written exams I may ever have to sit (depending on passes/post-grad potential qualifications). Other than exams it’s all about the commencing of clerking rotations, and maybe an idea of general social events recently gone/upcoming now that I can actually have a social life again after 6wks of solitary CAS/FAS revision confinement…

Exams this time were the super giants of CAS and FAS (companion animal science and farm animal science), which between the two basically cover the whole of veterinary science, for a brief over view for anyone who might be interested the general gist is…
CAS1:
Small Animal Medicine (cardiology, renal, liver, endocrine, toxicology, infectious disease etc.).
Small Animal Orthopaedics and ENT (ear nose throat).
Small Animal Nutrition.
Dermatology.
Behaviour.
CAS2:
Horsees (orthopaedics, medicine, surgery, ENT, reproduction).
Opthamology.
Anaesthesia.
FAS1:
Cows plus some small ruminants.
FAS2: The dregs of the course i.e. housing, pigs, birds, growth etc.
…I’ve no doubt missed some areas out but least that’s a basic overview of exam content. To get through all the material was an absolute nightmare, 6wks of 10-12hrs work a day then a week of non-stop mega revision over the exams. Thankfully this will hopefully be the last time I have to cram for exams and hopefully I might have a fair idea before starting to revise for final vivas next year.
The exams all went fine, there were no major successes or problem papers, and so fingers crossed for all round passes some time next week when the results are posted. Failure will mean resists Aug to be allowed into final year (scary scary stuff!).
Here’s a general idea of how each exam went…
CAS1: As I had 3extra days of revision for this, plus knowledge from vet legend Keiran’s tutorials, this exam went pretty good. Had a couple of difficult questions on spinal neurology and orthopaedics, but other than these the rest of the 12 I feel I answered pretty good, including questions on Hypothyroidism, Atrial Fibrillation, Chemotherapeutic agents etc.
CAS2: Went ok, unfortunately due to a slight muddle up by myself I sat this exam after only knowing from midday the day before that it was to take place (I thought like a muppet that we had CAS1 fist…logically?!).
FAS1: Went well, even though I class cows as my weaker area. The paper was fairer than CAS and required much more application of knowledge than simple regurgitation.
FAS2: Went really well (though I feel like a bit of a grade A looser for stating this).

That’s a basic overview I feel of the forth year final written exams, these beauties came to a closure Friday just gone and the day was spent barbequing in our garden, drinking much beer, playing much guitar and then heading off to the annual barn dance. Can’t say that much antics particularly took place, though the majority of the year was in a fair state, and though I thought I was fairly sober (due to no memory blanks) the entire weekend hangover said otherwise.

Right now the year is a stress fuelled clerking frenzy. We started our appropriate rotation today, mine being FAS, other options include Mat on Anaesthesia, Laura on Surgery, Paul on dog medicine, Jim on FAS etc. each rotation lasts 3wks and we must achieve at least a pass in 6 out of the 7 rotations in order to take final year vivas.
The year was incredibly stressed on Sunday, and there was a definite all round feeling of being plunged in at the deep end after only finishing exams on Friday.

My first week is on preventative medicine. Today my little group of four went off to a Sheep farm to inspect a flock for lameness problems. We’re expected to produce a report by Friday to present to the other two FAS rotations and all the clinicians (little bit daunting, but I’m sure it’ll be ok, sheep lameness is a fairly easy topic to research).

Over the upcoming week as far as social concerns the calendar is bleak, the only think potentially on the list is a bbq over the weekend if the weather’s nice, if not I’m off home for much essential relaxation and home comforts.

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As I closing note I think it is necessary to sum-up what I feel is the importance of final year commencing…
The feeling when I woke up today was one I haven’t felt since starting primary school/secondary school/uni i.e. that of embarking on something completely alien. It was weird that I lost far more sleep stressing about beginning clerking that sitting any of my recent exams, though this is probably because I’m so used to exams by now.
The significance of the year ahead promises to be that dissimilar to all education previously undertaken, and therefore marks the next step in the long ladder of veterinary qualification. It’s daunting to think that lectures are completely a thing of the past and that future learning carries considerable responsibility, with a major emphasis on maturity and professionalism.
However on a more upbeat tone, I feel I’ve now finally properly got my leg in the door of the veterinary profession, and it’s onwards and upwards to qualification and life in the real world… crazy!