Counting Down Till Spring

  Winter in Ohio sucks for the obvious reasons and some, not so obvious. Last week, our highest temperature barely made it to 20°F and this week looks to be about the same. We also got about 6 inches of snow last week but the way Ohioans drove in it, you would have thought it was 6 feet of snow!  I, myself, love the snow and I’m one of the crazy people that enjoy driving in it. I just wish 95% of the other people on the roads would stay home or at least stay out of my way!  What normally took me 15 minutes to drive, took me over an hour to do. The ride home wasn't much better either and when I finally did make it home, I had to shovel. GrrrrBrrrrr…UGH! Nothing like working up a sweat and then having it immediately freeze on you. And let’s not get started on a nose that can’t decide to drip or freeze!

  But I really shouldn't complain. Not when I have a good running van with a great heater in it, plenty of clean, dry clothes, insulated boots, gloves and a hat to keep me warm. And when I’m not wearing layers of clothes, I can sit in my 68°F house, with my 2 legged and 4 legged kids surrounding me, staying warm and healthy. Not everyone is as lucky and blessed as I am. 

  Ohio winters aren't as harsh as some other states are but, harsh is harsh, no matter where you are. Especially if you’re homeless, old, sick or all the above. Even more so if you’re a defenseless animal that is old, sick and/or homeless.

  I've heard many of my elders talk about how hard winter is on their body and their mind. Same goes for the animals. Whether it’s winter or summer, we often get requests for an appointment because the pet seems painful, that it’s having a hard time getting up and down, and that the quality of life has declined. During the summer months, this can come and go but during the winter months, the quality of life seems to decline more drastically and the pet has a harder time of bouncing back. Maybe it’s our dreary imagination during these cold, grey months but several of my coworkers and I agree, we seem to lose more of our older clients to euthanasia in the winter than in the summer. Just within the past week alone, we've euthanized more senior pets than we would during a whole summer month. Like winter isn't cold enough, losing our best friend during this time of the year, makes winter feel even colder.

  Due to the bitter cold this time of the year, social media is filled with horror stories about rescuing pets that have been left out in the freezing cold.  Stories about pets not having shelter available, water dishes being frozen solid, pets literally frozen to the ground and with such extreme cases of frostbite that they needed to have a limb amputated. We don’t see a lot of the extreme cases but we have certainly seen enough frostbitten ears to make us want to pull the owners ear for more than just a good talking to!

  Luckily though, Ohio winters really aren’t that bad. We didn’t get hit with several FEET of snow like some of the North Eastern states received. And even though we have beaten numerous records for low temps, that just goes to prove that it’s not normally this cold! Plus, two more things; 1) We have less than 30 days till the first day of spring and 2) If you don’t like the weather right now, just wait a moment, we’re in Ohio and it’ll change!

P.S.

I’m sorry for those that might have been saddened by this post. I had stated in my first blog posting that most of the time I would have positive postings but I would keep “Behind the Scenes at an Animal Hospital” realistic. Unfortunately, with this line of work, reality is sometimes sad. But on a brighter note, my next blog will most likely be about all the kittens and puppies that spring brings us!

Let Me Count the Ways

 I never knew when I started this job, (8 years ago on 02-27-15!) that there would be so many learning opportunities. Every day, we get numerous possibilities to have hands on learning. There’s also endless seminars, webinars and meetings to attend. Just last week, I attended a two day seminar for better business writing. The week before that, I attended a webinar that was about setting up promotional campaigns and sending them out through e mails. Later this month, the majority of my coworkers will further their knowledge with the biggest learning opportunity of all, by attending the Ohio Veterinary Medical Association’s (O.V.M.A.) conferences.

 O.V.M.A. runs February 19–22, 2015 and is held downtown at the Greater Columbus Convention Center. And let me tell you, this conference is huge and covers a very wide spectrum of topics regarding the veterinary field. Topics range from animal behavior, holistic medicine and working in an animal shelter to zoonotic diseases, social networking and stress management in the workplace. Some classes are for anyone in the animal industry and some are geared strictly for certain fields, e.g., radiology, anesthesia or dermatology.

 The speakers for these classes come in a wide variety as well. Of course there are plenty of veterinarians, but there is also an architect (in case you’re looking at building a new hospital), a couple of management consultants, college professors, a web designer and a business attorney that represents veterinarians.

 Then there’s the long list of sponsors. Some of the big ones you might know are:

Elanco- maker of Comfortis and Trifexis

Merial- maker of Frontline Plus and Heartgard

Hill’s- maker of Science Diet Prescription pet foods

ASPCA- American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals

The 150+ sponsors get to strut their stuff in the 98,000 square foot Exhibit Hall. They get to show off new products, the services they offer, the latest technology and new scrubs if you need them!

 As I stated earlier, the opportunities to learn are never ending with this job and those opportunities comes in all types of ways with O.V.M.A. conferences being the largest of them all. After the conference is done and gone, Gahanna Animal Hospital will have a two hour staff meeting, to share with one another what we learned, liked, disliked, agreed and disagreed with. I always look forward to this staff meeting more than any other; the learning never stops.