Recovery

Spring Break is here! I still haven't really felt that weight-off-the-shoulders feeling that break usually brings, possibly because I am still anxiously waiting for the grades to come in. I found out yesterday that I got a B on my Immunology final, which is awesome. I think I will still end up with a C for the class, but it will be the hardest-earned C I've ever gotten (actually, it will be the first C I've ever gotten, but they say it has to happen sometime in vet school- may as well get it out of the way now!). So, B for Immuno, A for Organology. Still waiting on Physiology and Pharmacology.

Yesterday I got to go to the zoo! One other student and I got to follow the vets on their zoo rounds, which they do every Monday morning. I fed crackers to the giraffes as part of their training program and got to see the two adorable baby tamarins. They're bopping around on their own now- still riding on Mom and Dad, but getting off to explore a little too. I also learned what a mountain chicken is. The zoo is going to enlarge the polar bear habitat to make it eight times larger than it is now, so there are lots of questions flying about the design of the habitat. It sounds like things are pretty well set, but I'm not sure when construction is going to start. Anyway, it was weird going to school during break, but totally worth it!

Next week we have it easy, but the week after is Hell Week 2. This time it's Virology, Genetics, Physiology, and Pharmacology exams. Genetics is thankfully a take-home exam, and it's already in hand, so hopefully I'll finish that this week so I won't have to worry about it. After that, the semester should be all downhill! We go back to one or two exams per week, and we start our Clinical Skills internships in local clinics. The first and second years have an extra three weeks after the normal school year ends at the beginning of May, where we'll take Behavior Core (one solid week of Behavior, wee!), do our internships, and have a few scattered Professional Skills and Animal Populations lectures. Then summer! It's not quite in sight yet, but it's coming...

Winnie is shedding like mad, and she seems happy that the sun is getting warmer. We've been taking her on walks through downtown Northfield to get her used to being a city dog. She doesn't like strangers petting her unless they give her a cookie first, so we're getting used to carrying cookies wherever we go. Her Gentle Leader also helps to keep her calm and focused around lots of people- it's a great tool for an anxious puppy. What will she think of living on University Avenue? Only 49 days away...