Quick Update

Hey guys! The internet situation here is rough. I can't get my own computer online, thus the lack of posts. Our broadband card stopped working last Wednesday. We're trying to get two replacements, but India shuts down on Sundays, and attempts to resuscitate the old card in previous days have been unsuccessful.

We are taking a train to Namakkal in an hour, and it is a more rural area, so I may not have internet access for a while. No worries though, we are still alive and doing well, despite what some of you may think!

I will try to post again ASAP!

A Day in Pondicherry

Sunday was a very fun and eventful day! It started out with Janah, Jenny, and myself moving into the third bedroom where the rest of our group has been for about the past week. Our room itself is a bit smaller, but we now have a common room, a kitchen, and a bathroom with a REAL shower! Taking an actual shower last night  (actually, early this morning since we got in so late) felt wonderful. 


After we moved in (at 6:30am), we started the journey to Puducherry (Pondicherry), a former French colony in India. On the way we stopped by a sustainable village. We were thrust of the van into a sea of humanity and animals, and quickly learned that it was a free clinic for animal care where cattle, goats, and other animals were being dewormed, vaccinated, and pregnancy checked for free. We all felt awkward there in our tourist clothes and open-toed shoes. After the shock wore of though, we jumped in and helped the process along! It was an unexpected trip, but it did feel good that in a surprise moment of "Here, get off the bus and go do vet med!!," I was capable of helping out and feeling pretty comfortable about it with very little instruction. 

After our surprise clinic duty, we went to Pondicherry. On the border (Pondicherry is its own state, and crossing the borders here does require special permits), we saw a man with a machete and a pile of coconuts. I can now cross drinking from a coconut off my list of things to do before I die! It wasn't exactly what I had expected though. Coconuts aren't actually full of coconut milk in the center like I thought. The middle is full of coconut water. Coconut milk comes from a process of pressing the flesh of the coconut. So, the liquid that you see inside is clear, and not like the stuff you buy in the store. And you can't just take a bite from the flesh. It tastes terrible!! But, it was another experience to add to the list! Once finally in Pondicherry, we ate lunch at a French inspired place with continental cuisine (non-Indian :) ), where I had a chicken burger and a milkshake. Then we visited an Ashram (a sort of meditation sanctuary with no real religious affiliation), walked along the beach (one of the filthiest I have ever seen), and then saw a monument to Gandhi that was HUGE!

Next we went to a temple, which I never made it inside, because out front was an ELEPHANT!!!!!! A REAL ONE!!!!!! It's the first real elephant I have seen since we've been here! He was trained to accept branches or money (and he could tell the difference in what was edible and what was money), and then he would put is trunk on the donator's head, which is considered a blessing. I, OF COURSE, donated a coin just to get a chance to touch the elephant. SO COOL! Absolutely the highlight of my day. 

Afterwards we did a little bit of shopping at a bazaar (I got something cool for my mom, and Ree, and Brad's mom). Dinner was kind of a let down, because service was terrible and my order never made it to the table, but there was plenty of food to go around, which was pretty tasty. The ride home took about three hourse, putting us home at 12am. 


This morning we attended the Stem Cell conference at MVC (the vet school where we have been doing our rotations for the past 2 weeks). Dr. Huckle, one of our professors from first year at VMRCVM, is also here, which surprised us all! I guess it's a small world! 

This afternoon we finally got the chance to go to a movie theater! It's definitely a different experience than in the US. It was very fancy with leather seats, restaurants, a room with a big TV and an xbox, arcade, etc etc. The movie was Delhi Belly, which was mostly in English. It's essentially the Indian version of The Hangover, and it was really funny. I think it's something I would like to watch again with friends at home! 

At dinner, we said goodbye to the Michigan kids, who are flying home today, and gave Dr. Nathan a gift from all of us. He is headed home in 2 days. He's been a lot of fun on this trip, and I think we will all miss him! We got him a Nike polo, because he kind of made "Just Do It" our slogan for the trip to help us adjust to the flexible scheduling and all that has been expected of us this far. 

Final Day at MVC!

We finished up our time in the vet school here today! My little goat buddy with the blocked urethra came back in, and I think he might be getting better. They have confirmed that the blockage is farther up, and took radiographs to figure out what is going on. Hopefully he will receive the care he needs and recover fully! I sure was glad to see him today.

Little blocked goat buddy

She was in for a hoof trim. Very sweet!

And check out the wattles! (Little dangly bits whose purpose I have yet to discover, present in some goats)

I think it's time for someone to be weaned!

Buffaloes are sort of ugly creatures (though I think they are also adorable), but this one takes the cake!!

A basset mom and pups!

Would you believe this is a SHEEP? It's not a goat, but a local breed of sheep!

And check out this unnecessarily loud goat! He wasn't hurt, just didn't like being away from his owner. He quit whenever she came around!

This afternoon we went shopping, and I got some REALLY cool stuff, including something awesome for Brad. I think he is going to LOVE it!! Most of what I got came from the Victoria Technical Institute, where there are a lot of hand carved and handmade items. Some of the stuff there was incredible, and makes me want to come back with a lot more money in a few years, just for the shopping! (sorry for the terrible picture quality.)

Sorry, Brad. This isn't what I got you. It was too big to fit in my suitcase :)

Dr. Nathan, being a good sport.

Shopping for saree fabrics (I still didn't buy any)

Tomorrow we are spending the day in Ponticherry. Will keep you all posted!

Student Case Presentation, Et. Al.

Yesterday morning started the student case competition, and despite how nervous we all felt about talking in front of a crowd, in a foreign country, in a language that not everyone in the room understands, on a case that we first saw a week ago, the presentations went REALLY well. I think we are all proud of our accomplishments, and are very glad to have it behind us. I had the joy of going first of the six of us, but it felt good to have it over. Sorry I don't have a better picture. I think Dr. Subbiah was really proud of us, too. Last year's group was to nervous to participate. And even though we mainly did it because we are terrible at saying "no," we still did it!

Presenting my case

In the afternoon, Ruby (Dr. Subbiah's wife) took us shopping for material for sarees and other traditional Indian clothes. There are some BEAUTIFUL sarees here, and if I thought for a  minute I would ever wear one once at home, I'd buy one. But alas, I just went along for the ride and enjoyed looking at the pretty sets. After dinner, a tailor came to our room and the girls that bought material were measured to have their clothes hand crafted!

Check out all the pots on the ceiling!

Chennai (part of it) at night.

This morning was spent in the large animal barns again. I have enjoyed my time in the clinics there and have learned a lot about large animal management in India. I feel like I have enough of a background now to know what a case is and how it is being treated, and can even make some decisions about how I would personally treat a few of the cases, and what I may do differently.

Someone put on his fancy pants today!

We popped in on the conference for a minute today to see the Michigan kids present (they all did large animal cases, the topic for today), and when we came back we were greeted by two brand-new-to-the-world faces!!! A doe had just given birth to two ram lambs, and they were so fresh that they were still damp! We spent about an hour just watching them, trying to stand and trying to figure out this whole nursing thing. It was absolutely the highlight of my day!

AND THEN!!!.........We had PIZZA for lunch! Dr. Nathan has been promising it to us for the last two days, and every time we think it's on it's way, we get the horrible news that it isn't coming. So we were very excited to have pizza for lunch, and devoured it like a pack of hyenas.

This afternoon we went back to the conference for the closing address and awards. We wanted to be there, even though we were not eligible to win any prizes. After the awards were given out (and before the closing was done), the professor from Michigan (a graduate from the vet school here, like Dr. Subbiah) came over and told us not to be offended that we didn't win because we were in a different pool. We totally weren't at all, but he did ask us to write down our names to give us certificates of appreciation for participating.

So, knowing we would receive those, we were expecting to hear our names called at the end.

What I was NOT expecting though, was to hear the title of MY presentation get called up for the "Best Student Clinical Case Presentation Award for Companion Animal." Dr. Subbiah was so proud that he hugged me. Totally unexpected, and I feel a little guilty that we just got here, and some of the students have worked a long time on those presentations.

This evening I bought peanut butter at Spencer's, something I didn't even realize I missed. But diving in head first with a spoon was delicious!

Tomorrow is our last day in clinics here, and then we will be working on day trips. So, that's all for now!

I like the shell. 

Yet another interesting mode of transporting animals!

Zebus, and Buffalo, and Horses, Oh My!

Another day in the large animal barn! The day (mostly) was a lot of fun. It started out with me trying to get near a zebu steer, and almost losing a body part in the process. But I had to get a picture with him! We don’t have these kinds of awesome cattle at home.

Cue wild west music

We saw a few horse cases. The first was of a bay stallion with an abscess on his neck from an injection that was pretty impressive. The second was a stallion with colic. He was the sweetest horse, and he kept wiggling his lips across the metal bar of his stanchion to keep himself entertained. We also saw a mare with pretty significant saddle sores that was pretty upsetting (due to how extensive the sores are).

Injection site abscess

Saddle sores

Sleepy colic kid

Our favorite buffalo came in again, along with her not-so-cooperative friend. She let us scratch her head and take videos of her. I found out she is in because of some mastitis problems (meaning she has an udder infection and isn’t milking well).

Jenny with our buffalo friend

Cathryn

We saw many other cases today, including the following:

Theileria case (a blood parasite)

Resting her chin :)

Waiting in line!

He had seasonal allergies, and a good face :)