On Monday I started back on my rotation schedule with Anesthesia. I am in it for the long haul now, but the 3 week rotations seem to go fast. I think of all the rotations I was most "unsure" (for lack of a better word) about starting Anesthesia. There are just so many combinations of chemicals that can be used depending on the animal, the age, the disposition, the health problems, the surgical procedure...etc, etc. But even though I have now been though Jr. Surgery and my Animal Shelter rotation where I was responsible for performing anesthesia, I still feel unconfident. I am hoping this will change at the next couple of weeks go on.
Today, was a great treat, as we had a rescued young lion from a local safari sancuary come in to get spayed. I got to be the student anesthesiologist. Even though she was still fairly young and still had most of her kitten we had to take lots of safety precausions. But she was beautiful and still had most of her spots! I never knew that African lions don't lose their spots until they are a couple of years old. The owner (and director of the park) was telling us that many people are trying to breed these lions in captivity (and with poor genetics) , which he didn't agree with, so hence the surgery. He mentioned that some people (not his facility) also gets their exotic cats declawed. I was really suprised at this, since these animals are still considered wild and thus dangerous. Removing their claws is not going to change fact or make them more "tame". Are these people worried about their big cats scratching the furniture? Anyway it was quite an experience and there are pictures on our photo website if you are interested.
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