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Hi, I'm Laura, and I'm one of the student vet nurses here at Ash Vets. I'm currently studying Veterinary Nursing at Harper Adams University College, which is based in Newport, Shropshire. It's a 3 year course, which includes 60 weeks of placement in a veterinary practice, which I'm undertaking here.
As a student veterinary nurse, I help the rest of the nursing team and the vets within the practice carry out daily activities such as looking after the animals, general cleaning, and helping out on reception. I’m also learning more advanced nursing duties such as preparing intravenous drips and monitoring anaesthetics – all under the watchful eyes of everyone in practice!
I will be starting my second year of the course in September, and we will be doing modules such as anaesthesia and surgery, radiography and wildlife care. I have already learnt the basics of veterinary nursing in my first year, as well as animal body systems and client care.
The best thing about my course is the balance of theoretical learning at university, and the practical time in placement. By having all of my placements here, I am beginning to build relationships with some of the clients and their animals, and I am beginning to understand in a lot more detail what is involved in the daily running of a veterinary practice. I am also getting to know the staff a lot better - everyone’s so nice and willing to help me learn!
Outside of my course, I enjoying spending time with my family, friends and boyfriend, and I am a keen fudge maker, which I think Ash Vets are grateful for - everyone always seems happy when I bring in my latest batch for them to taste!
To anyone thinking of getting into vet nursing through going to university, I would tell them that it’s a lot of hard work, and you have to be very dedicated, but the rewards are amazing, and are worth everything that you put into it and more!
Laura
Two weeks on........
Well the new girls have been at the farm for two whole weeks now, and things are going well. They have come out of the new ‘enriched cage’ system, unlike their battery caged predecessors, and I must say they do seem to be in somewhat better condition. The new enriched cages allow more room for the hens to move and stretch than the tiny old barren cages; they have perches and they do allow small areas to nest and scratch. There are still many restrictions with this system – the chickens are still kept in relatively small cages, without access to the outdoors. Anyone who’s seen a hen take a dust bath, or stretch her wings in the sunshine will tell you just how much they love to be outside. But that is a discussion for another day. This blog is about my girls!
We had an uneventful journey home from Carmarthenshire to the farm on collection day. The occasional cluck from the boot and the rather wiffy smell of the new chickens ensured that I didn’t forget about my new charges on the drive back! Bluebell and Dau, the resident chickens, were rather put out to say the least when we opened the three cat carriers to reveal six new hens!
There was a reasonable amount of squabbling in the early days as the eight worked out the pecking order (I had no appreciation of how that saying came about until I kept my own flock of chickens!!). Things are settling down now in that respect, but the new girls do still get the occasional squawk and peck on the comb if they dare try out a little tit bit I’ve provided before Bluebell can get to it!!
Those of you on Facebook may have noticed that we had one casualty early on. One of the new girls developed a severe limp, which is rather a problem when you only have two legs to start with (and not the best balance if I’m really honest!!). An examination confirmed, as far as possible without an x-ray, that she hadn’t broken a bone, so we set her up in her own little pen to rest and recuperate. We had to separate her from the others, as chickens do have a rather mean tendency to pick on anyone showing weakness – so poor old Cassy (short for ‘Hopalong Cassidy’) had become quite a target overnight.
Anyway, I am very pleased to report that she is doing very well and her limp has almost fully resolved now. We plan to return her to the flock in the next day or two. I’ll let you know how she gets on.
Egg production is going well. We are still getting the reliable two eggs from Bluebell and Dau, with the new girls laying anything from one to four eggs a day (including three from Cassy, bless her) between them. Based on past experience this should continue to increase as they settle in and get back to full health. We’re also looking forward to seeing those feathers start to grow.
The girls are all currently living in the barn, but work is very nearly finished on the new deluxe chicken coop and run. And they are due to all move out into the big outdoors together later this week. We are all very excited about it and can’t wait to see them tuck in to their first meal of insects and bugs. Fingers crossed they get some sunshine to bask in.............
Mel
Today we've given our blog over to one of our local RSPCA inspectors, who does great work locally, helping look after the welfare of animals in the Merthyr Tydfil area. I'll leave it up to Gemma to explain what she wants to talk to you about. I hope you can help her out.
Rachel
My name is Gemma Cooper and I am an RSPCA Inspector, covering Merthyr Tydfil, Aberdare and Mountain Ash. As an RSPCA inspector I am part of the front line team who work to prevent cruelty, promote kindness and alleviate suffering to animals. We have made huge strides in animal welfare over the years but there is still work to do. As part of my role, everyday I witness first hand, acts of neglect, cruelty and violence towards animals. the RSPCA needs to raise more and more money rach year in order to continue responding to animals in need. As such, I am volunterring to take on a a challenege of a life time and climb Mount Kilimanjaro to raise funds for the RSPCA. Mount Kilimanjaro is the highest peak in Africa, standing at a massive 19,341ft. I am hoping to raise £4,000 in order to continue helping to save the lives of animals in our local area. The RSPCA is not funded by the Government. Every penny spent by the RSPCA has been donated by people like you. Last year I attended a house where the Spinger Spaniel had been hit by a car 3 months previous, breaking and dislocating his leg. His owners hadn't taken him to a vet, simply putting it down to, "A bit of a limp". I have no doubt that Fudge would have lived the rest of his life with a broken leg if it hadn't have been for the RSPCA. Fudge's operation to have his leg amputated was paid for by people like you. I have now adopted Fudge and he has been helping me train for the mammoth challenege ahead. If you are in a position to donate a couple of pounds, please visit my just giving page http://www.justgiving.com/gemma-cooper1 Thank you Gemma and Fudge
