Small Animal Primary Care

Catalog description

This 4 block rotation will allow students the opportunity to have primary responsibility for all aspects of primary care for dogs and cats in the CVM’s Companion Animal Clinic, modeling after high-functioning small animal practices. Students will spend their time seeing patients in well and sick appointments and performing common primary care surgical and general dentistry procedures under the supervision of clinicians. Students will be responsible for primary communication with clients, documenting and maintaining their patient medical records, creating diagnostic and therapeutic plans, prescribing treatments and diets, providing wellness/preventive medicine services, and following up with clients on diagnostic testing with their cases. The rotation also involves a series of dental wet labs, which include models and cadaver work to train students in dental anatomy, oral examination, nerve blocks, extraction techniques and oral surgery expected of a general dentist in practice. The rotation also includes designated time for both large group and small group rounds. When scheduling permits, students may have the opportunity to serve as student coaches in first, second, and third year SIMS communication training.