Translate This Blog

Thursday, July 26, 2012

Veterinary Geekiness

Sometimes I can be such a geek about veterinary medicine and get excited about things that would make other people just scratch their head. 

Today I received a rodent dental pack.  Previously we had been using other instruments to file down or trim the teeth of guinea pigs, rabbits, and hamsters because we didn't see enough of them the justify $270 in specialized instruments.  You can get by with other tools, but it's so much easier with mouth gags, cheek spreaders, and rasps specifically designed for small rodents.  Business has been picking up with these cases enough that we made the investment.  When it arrived today it was like Christmas!  I opened it and was going through the instruments with a big grin on my face, telling everyone what each one was for.  I was actually dancing a bit and was quite giddy!  That may seem like something silly to be so happy about, but it's interesting for me and as cool as a new Star Wars toy.  Well, almost.

I remember several years ago when I diagnosed demodex mites on a hamster.  I had never heard of this up to that point and had to run to my text to make sure I had made the right diagnosis.  Sure enough, they could get those mites though it was uncommon.  I was so excited and telling everyone on the staff about it!  Many of us become equally excited about lancing abscesses or other things related to the field.

I'm sure everyone has things like this happen in their own professions.  Maybe a lawyer gets happy about a new legal precedent.  Perhaps a mechanic does a happy dance when a new set of tools arrives.  A computer programmer probably grins when a new type of software comes out and can't wait to dig into it.  When you're interested enough in a subject to pursue it as a career you tend to be easily impressed and amused by things that make other people simply shake their heads.