Pros & Cons of Living in Davis, CA

First some context: I am a New York native who lived in Southern California for ~8 years before moving to Davis for vet school and I’ve been here for over 2 years. Pros: Lots of food options. Despite being a small town, there is no shortage of food. Everything from Thai, Chinese, Indian, Nepali, and Read More …

A Proud Moment for the San Francisco SPCA

The San Francisco SPCA has decided to provide free spay and neuter surgery for Pit Bull and Pit Bull mixes indefinitely! Here’s the article. This is excellent news in my opinion. Given that San Francisco is one of those cities that makes sterilization mandatory for these breeds and mixes, the SF/SPCA is doing a service Read More …

Veterinary Experience for VMCAS — Why It’s Important

This is not meant to be a post that will delve into the many, many reasons why veterinary experience is important (and often required) to have before applying to veterinary school. Surely there are obvious reasons; for instance, you will gain a better understanding of the field of veterinary medicine. With even the slightest amount Read More …

My First Vet School Summer: What I Did

To be honest, I didn’t truly have a plan for this summer. During the winter and spring terms I made some plans. I applied for a research fellowship, expecting not to get it and made back up plans which included: An externship at the San Francisco SPCA Summer clinics in Neurology, Dermatology, and Oncology at Read More …

Scrubbing in and Assisting in Surgery as a 1st Year Extern

I admit that I pursued an externship at the San Francisco SPCA for the varied caseload and experiences. I was able to see everything from routine appointments to emergencies and shelter medicine. Given that my background is primarily in shelter medicine, I wanted to gain as much exposure to the other aspects of veterinary medicine Read More …

Scrubbing in and Assisting in Surgery as a 1st Year Extern

I admit that I pursued an externship at the San Francisco SPCA for the varied caseload and experiences. I was able to see everything from routine appointments to emergencies and shelter medicine. Given that my background is primarily in shelter medicine, I wanted to gain as much exposure to the other aspects of veterinary medicine Read More …

Applying Knowledge to Cases

When I first arrived at the San Francisco SPCA, I was definitely assumed to be a 4th year as that is the more common time for students to be doing externships. I was sure to inform doctors that I had just completed my first year so that they knew what level of knowledge (and perhaps Read More …

Applying Knowledge to Cases

When I first arrived at the San Francisco SPCA, I was definitely assumed to be a 4th year as that is the more common time for students to be doing externships. I was sure to inform doctors that I had just completed my first year so that they knew what level of knowledge (and perhaps Read More …

Losing My First Dog

Not that I was the doctor responsible for the case (I was merely shadowing and assisting), but the second day of my externship at the San Francisco SPCA ended rather unfortunately. A shepherd mix presented with signs of lethargy and polycythemia but upon ultrasound and chest radiographs, it was discovered that the dog had pericardial Read More …

Losing My First Dog

Not that I was the doctor responsible for the case (I was merely shadowing and assisting), but the second day of my externship at the San Francisco SPCA ended rather unfortunately. A shepherd mix presented with signs of lethargy and polycythemia but upon ultrasound and chest radiographs, it was discovered that the dog had pericardial Read More …