Offsite Electives
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The Aquarium of the Pacific is offering 4 externship/preceptorship programs in the veterinary services department for 3rd and 4th year veterinary students. Each position is a minimum of 3 weeks and a maximum of 6 weeks depending on the students’ availability. Accepted students will train under the supervision of the veterinary and husbandry staff during administration of the facilities preventative animal healthcare program and any current medical cases. Students will be expected to develop and present a case report or review of an applicable topic in aquatic medicine to the aquarium staff. No stipend is provided. Housing and transportation are not provided and are the responsibility of the student.
The Aquarium of the Pacific’s animal collection of approximately 12,500 animals consists of pinnipeds, sea otters, marine birds, psittacine birds, raptors, reptiles, amphibians, marine fish, and invertebrates. The majority of cases presented are fish and birds. The veterinary staff consists of one full time veterinarian, one part time veterinarian, one full time specialty intern, and two veterinary technicians.
Positions are available January –February, March- April, August-September, November-December. Applicants must indicate which time period(s) they are available, highest ranked applicants for each time period will be selected.
The Application deadline is October 31 of the academic year prior to externship (Example October 31, 2017 is the deadline for positions May 2018 –April 2019). Applicants will be notified of acceptance by November 31.
Applicants are required to submit the following:
- Proof of enrollment in a college or school of veterinary medicine with 2 years completed with a GPA of 3.0 or higher (official transcript required)
- Curriculum Vitae
- Letter of intent that details pertinent past experience and training in aquatic animal medicine, reason for pursuing aquatic animal training, future goals, and prioritized available time periods
- Letter of recommendation from a professor or veterinarian supporting the students’ academic professionalism and demonstrated interest in aquatic animal medicine
- AOP veterinary extern application
Please go to our intern page on our website to download the application:
http://www.aquariumofpacific.org/volunteer/info/veterinary_externship_pr...
Submit completed application and all supporting documentation to:
Aquarium of the Pacific
c/o Internship Coordinator
100 Aquarium Way
Long Beach, CA 90802
The student will be working in a 24/7 emergency clinic. We handle small companion animals including dogs, cats, pocket pets, avian and reptile patients. We are up to date and fully equipped to handle a wide variety of emergency and critical care cases.
The student will assist with clinical referral cases.
Community-oriented, predominantly small animal practice with 2% large animal clientele (predominantly small ruminants) in America's Friendliest City along the historic Lincoln Highway. Exposure to all facets of SA general medicine and surgery, as well as working with non-professional staff (personnel relations & management). We emphasize providing the very best care possible by treating our clients and patients professionally and with the utmost compassion.
Students will experience the day to day operations of a small animal hospital. The student will take part in daily appointments,surgeries and business experiences.
This externship is a hands-on program in marine mammal medicine, rehabilitation and pathology. Students will participate in animal husbandry, handling/restraint, anesthesia, medical exams/treatments/procedures, and necropsy. Students are also required to work on and present a project during their 4-week rotation. Externs will participate on a husbandry crew once each week since it is a fundamental part of animal care and an excellent opportunity for hands-on experience with these unique animals. Students can expect to learn valuable skills such as boarding, physical restraint, tube feeding, food preparation, administering medications and fluids, and learning to recognize normal vs. abnormal behavior.
Physical Exams and Records: Students will help conduct admission, recheck and release physical examinations on patients throughout their rotation, which generally include a full or recheck examination and assessment, helping with minor and major procedures and immediate treatment if warranted. Students will become familiar with the electronic record keeping system and help complete daily medical records for active patients.
Anesthesia and Surgery: Many examinations require sedation or anesthesia to facilitate handling, thus the student will be able to assist with anesthesia by learning about different drug combinations, monitoring anesthesia, and assisting with procedures such as radiographs, ultrasound, urine collection via catheter, and surgical procedures.
Necropsy is a critical part of marine mammal medicine and rehabilitation. The opportunity to perform necropsies on clinical cases is an exceptional learning experience and allows them to confirm diagnoses and visualize disease processes. During the rotation the student will be in necropsy one day each week and help perform necropsy including recording data on necropsy forms, taking standard measurements, learning sampling protocols for different species, developing a systematic approach to evaluating every organ system, and accurately describing gross lesions in necropsy reports.
Beach Rescues and Releases: The Rescue Department coordinates the assessment of stranded animals in the field, determines the status of the animal, organizes capture, transport, and release, and interfaces with the public. The student may have the opportunity to become involved in animal beach assessment and/or go out on a release while they are here.
We are a private practice exclusively dedicated to the care of exotic pets. We are a full service veterinary hospital offering both medical and surgical services along with boarding. We opened in October 2015, so we are still a small but fairly busy and growing practice. Because we are small, any veterinary students will receive extensive shadowing experience directly with the veterinarian, along with hands on experience with both the veterinarian and an RVT on staff.
Work alongside four veterinarians who have from 2 to 28 years experience in small animal medicine and surgery. Student will be invited to examine
pets, discuss cases, perform dental prophys and procedures, and assist in surgery. Busy caseload averages 6 surgeries or procedures per day including rabbit spays/neuters. We have over 7000 active clients and work with over a dozen rescue groups.
The candidate will be assigned to one of our clinicians and will shadow their schedule of medical, emergency, and surgical cases. They will be expected to work the schedule of their assigned clinician to include 4.5 working days per week typically 40-50 hours. We will rotate the assigned clinician to allow the candidate exposure to a variety of clinical experiences.
Type of Experience:
- NACSP- 1 week camelid veterinary practice course offerred 1st and 3rd weeks of June each year
- NPP- 2 weeks working in international veterinary medicine in the southern Peruvian Andes with alpaca and llama farmers- offerred in early July and late November each year
Description of Experience:
- NACSP- intensive 1 week camelid practice courses with hands on training and lectures; handling, physical examinations, nutrition, practical reproduction, reproductive problem solving, ultrasound pregnancy diagnosis, semen collection and evaluation, infectious diseases, vaccinations, GI parasite diagnosis and control
- Nunoa Project Peru- 2 weeks working with Dr. Purdy as part of a 7 person international team in the southern Peruvian Andes (10,000 to 15,000 ft.) with Alpaca and llama farmers: performance of ultrasound pregnancy examinations, treatment of skin disease, evaluation of breeding females and males, responding to problems of Peruvian alpaca and llama farmers, field necropsies, GI parasite diagnosis, neonatal examinations. Opportunity for sightseeing before or after the work.