Aussie Update 2 – Where Becky lands back on earth with a bump

So I am now a week and a half into proper work, and it is going really well. What has brought me back down to earth is being on duty and I am back to being on a one in two rota (fun fun fun). Work wise my job entails going round the various studs picking up work such as dripping foals with plasma, x-raying foals, stomach tubing foals, treating anything and seeing emergiencies and stuff like that. I will also be building up my repro scanning gradually and scanning foals chests, looking for Rhodococcus equi abscesses (sorry non-vets). So it is all interesting stuff and I am learning loads. I also spend one morning a week with one of the partners on the road which is really interesting. The practice is a real breath of fresh air, the emphasis is on learning and doing things the best possible way. Out of hours I am assistant surgeon (!) and also second on call for ambulatory emergiencies, so busy busy.

All my day work is going pretty smoothly. Funnily enough trainers over here can also be complete a*******s, so clients are the same pretty much the world over. On my nights on duty when I finish my ambulatory work I move over to the surgery side. Now I have no aspiration what-so-ever to be a surgeon, and when I was originally told I would cover the rota as assistant surgeon I did find it quite funny. However, I am trying my hardest to take an interest and at least all I will do will be emergency surgeries which will be quite cool. The first surgery that I scrubbed in on was a joint flush of a foal. Which was great as it was low pressure. Also I was working with a very understanding (Canadian) surgeon who fortunately had a sense of humour. Especially as I was in need of reminding how to scrub up, gown and had closed gloving dyslexia, where I just looked puzzled at my second hand until James (the surgeon) stopped laughing at me and enlightened me. So we flushed foaly’s stifle, at which point my Englishness flourished:

James: This foal’s joint is f***ed

Becky: Yes it does look a little bit rubbish

James: Yes, some would say that, others would say it’s f***ed

Becky: I don’t think I have worked here long enough to swear

James: (just laughs at my Englishness and refusal to say the F word)

Anyway in typical vet style my life has been totally hectic (or involved getting mildly trollied in the limited selection of pubs – so totally vet like then…) Liz who I share my rosta with (who was also coincidentially in the year below me at vet school) and who is the surgical intern is mad about surgery, making us polar opposites! She is upset when she doesn’t have a major surgery come in when she is on duty and her worst nightmare (nice accidental pun, hee hee) is going out to see an emergency on a farm, meanwhile, as I am sure you can guess, I am more than happy to potter off in my car to emergencies, which generally come in at a reasonable time. However, I am quite partial to a good nights sleep. Sods law being sods law I keep being called in for caesars at 4am, while Liz’s nights are surgically quiet! There has been a laparotomy practically every time I have been on duty, which everyone is finding quite funny. Kat (one of the other assistant vets) who does anaesthesia on duty and I are an especially bad combo for emergency surgeries, especially as we 2/3 of our surgeries are dead! We’re not hopfeul for the future!

Highlights of my week were one, seeing an echinda! Driving along at dusk, I spotted something bumbling along on the verge, thought it was a hedgehog, then realised it couldn’t be and took a second look, how fab! The weather has really hotted up this week, we’ve had days where it has been mid to late thirties, which apparently is unusual as it normally only gets that hot in December. Coinciding with this the outdoor public pool has opened for the summer. I first went at 20 to 6 one not especially hot evening and the pool is not heated, actually it was knock the breath out of you cold. I have persevered and it is getting less agonising as the weather has warmed. In fact I have been swimming 4 times this week and spent most of my weekend there sunbathing and swimming, lovely, my tan is coming along nicely.

Anyway, will sign off for now and finally get this posted.

xxx