Being back for about a month now

I can't believe it's been just over a month since I was in Europe. It seems like such a long way back! I don't think I really experienced any reverse culture shock. I was just so excited to get back home to see my son and fiance. I can't begin to explain how awesome Europe was. Everyone I talked to asks if I will go back, and I say yes without skipping a beat. Before I left I was apprehensive about leaving the country, and now I'm so glad I went. Everyone needs to expand horizons just a bit, and if you ever get a chance to go to Europe  I say jump on it! I still haven't gotten around to uploading all my pictures, because there are so many! Every aspect of the trip was unique, especially hearing about all the different veterinary medicine programs. It's amazing to see how things work in my field in other countries. I am so glad I wrote about my stuff weekly so that I can look back and remember it all. I made new friends and got to see how people live halfway around the world! It was interesting to hear and see all the different languages, and everyone was mostly friendly since there were so many tourists. I even picked up on a few foreign words. Sure there were times when I wasn't in the best mood, but overall, the trip was great. I was so used to living at someone else's house that when I got back home and had to do laundry and dishes it was hard for me to do it! Haha. I can now say that I have visited 7 different countries! One day I hope I can add to that list, but for now, I'm super happy I can say I've been to Europe. Being able to go to our own for the weekends was nice as it allowed us to go see even more things! I can't say enough times how glad I am that I went on this trip, and I cannot wait to go back someday!

Weeks 3 and 4

In Berlin,new visited the Leibniz institute for zoo and wildlife they had a 128 tesla CT. They are getting a 256 tesla CT soon.  The images were amazing.  We got to watch a skull of a primate go through the MRI.  We also got to e images of a cerebellum that was pushing out of the foramen magnum of a large cat.  They have done surgeries to open the foramen to have less pressure on the cerebellum and the cats had reversed signs of ataxia.  I thought that it was also really interesting that they are doing comparative CT and Radiograph images on elephants that are known to have lameness.  Since you can not send an elephant through a CT while it is alive.  They take radiographs of an elephant foot and when it is euthanized take the foot and send it through the CT.  They thought before this study that there was no soft tissue damage with arthritis in elephants because radiographs are not the best for viewing soft tissue damage.  Now they know and are pairing the radiographs with the CT images to determine what soft tissue damage is occurring and being able to treat the animal better.  This comparative imaging diagnosis is catching on more in the zoos in Germany and in Europe.  We also got to meet a Dr. That does 3D printing.  He had a 3D image of a tiger fetus.  He has own multiple awards for his research and it was amazing to see where the future of veterinary medicine can be heading.  After the institute, we went to a concentration camp, sachsenhausan that was about 45 minutes outside of Berlin.  The feeling evoked by the images are indescribable.  I could have spent all day there reading the history and walking through the buildings.  It was a large concentration camp, though not the largest.  The way they executed the prisoners there was to act like they were visiting the doctor.  They were looked over and told to open their mouth to look for gold in teeth.  If hugely had gold in their teeth, they had a mark put on them to indicate that after they were shot they needing to go to a separate area to have teeth pulled.  They used a measuring device that had a small hole between the planks of wood.  There would be a man in the room behind them and when they pressed down on the measuring stick it would keep them still enough to shoot.  The ruins of the execution room were preserved and they had a double wall for insulation so the sound would be muffled so the other member of camp could not hear.  It was fairly chilly the day that we were there.  I could not imaging living through the winter with only a thin layer of clothes for protection.  They would make them line up I the front of the camp morning and night for roll call.  If someone was missing, the other members of camp would have to stay there until they were found, dead or alive. As if the barbed wire was not enough, there was strip of land about 10 feet in front of the wall that if you stepped foot on the land you were shot without question.  It was said that a lot of suicides occurred this way.  They were given rotten potatoes and if they tried to clean or cut the rotten parts, they were beat by the guards.

We took a bus Seal center.  The bus was hot and did not have air conditioning.  This center is used in the region for seal pups that are either lost or abandoned from their mother.  There are "seal hunters" that bring them in.  They do not only bring pups, but if a seal is injured will bring it to the facility.  They try to keep the seals at the center for the least amount of time as possible and release them back to the wild.  pups are only nursed for 4-6 weeks by their mother and then are left on their own.  If there are twins, the mother will only nurse one pup.  We got to see feeding time with the seals.  They do target training with them to get them to go to a specific point in the enclosure do they can do daily physical exams on them.  I thought it was interesting that if a seal is born in captivity they are not allowed to return to the wild.  They will have to separate the male and female when they reach maturity.  They also give "anti baby pills" to the males.
Multimar attformum was the aquarium/learning center.  I thought the center was very interactive for young children and that is important.  There are very few aquariums that have interactive learning stations in the states.
Aquatic wildlife center- I got to do a necropsy on a porpoise.  We started by measuring the porpoise's length and girth.  We then cut into the fat layer and measured the layer of blubber.  We also noted any scars or places of discoloration on the skin.  It was thought that they porpoise was about a year old, which is still considered a juvenile.  We had to take out the intestines and cut into them to see if there were parasites.  There were none.  All of the internal organs were of a normal size.  Porpoises have relatively large internal testicles for the size body they have.  We then went into the thoracic cavity,  the lungs had firm nodules, but were emphyzematous.  Cutting the trachea, there was a large amount of foam that came out of it.  There were multiple fish in the stomach and esophagus.  We cut into the trachea and found a fish lodged in the trachea.  This was thought to be how the porpoise died.  They have the ability to beath and swallow at the same time.  There was a would in the nose that looked fresh and it was thought that he might have been caught in a net.  I really enjoyed the lecture that was given on marine life and the conservation efforts that are trying to be out in place in face of the masive amounts of off shore development.
Dinner at Kolles Alter Muschelsaal and lecture by Karl Kolle.   I really liked getting the prospective of the seal hunter.  The food was amazing and the history of the restaurant was incredible.
I liked walking in the Mudflats.  I never knew that there was so much life under the sand.  I wish it would have been a little warmer because my favorite part was making "mud angels".

The Cologne zoo was amazing for the fact that we got behind the scenes tours of the elephants and birds.  I never knew that so much training went into keeping elephants at the zoos.  Feeding the baby elephant was the highlight of the day. I also thought it was interesting the way they trained the elephants to place their heads against the bars to be able to draw blood from an ear.  The zookeeper told us that one of the elephants had a bad experience with the blood draw and it took months for them to be able to draw blood from her again.  I never knew that elephants were so sensitive.  The positive reinforcement training is the same that we use in small animals and it just goes to show that mammals are very similar in their behavior.  The Cologne city tour was one of the best I think on this trip.  The lady was very knowledgeable and funny.  
We also visited the animal shelter in Bonn.  I thought it was a good experience for us to see a shelter in Europe because they seem so different from the shelters in the states.  They are almost never at capacity, do not euthanize because there is no space, and even take animals from other countries that are overpopulated.  I did think that some of the animals there were being kept alive because of some workers emotional attachments to the animals and not looking at it from a medical or ethical perspective.  I thought their cat condos were amazing and wish that shelter in the US could do something like that for their cats for enrichment and adoption purposes.
That afternoon we went to an organic farm.  It made me sad that the community was not in support of the farm and that the. It has put so many regulations on them.  I think it is important to educate our kids as to where our food comes from; wether it be a local organic farm or a farm with 1000s of acres for one or few crops.  We tasted strawberries that were so sweet I almost needed something salty.  I tried a vegetable that I have never even heard of before.  I ate a purple flower.

Next it was off to Utrecht. This was my favorite vet school that we visited.  I really enjoyed the tour of the veterinary hospital.  It is interesting that all they see is referral cases and no primary or preventative care.  I liked how the students really wanted to include us and show us a typical day for them.  I guess it helped that the FIFA World Cup was going on and that the Netherlands was playing.  I did not like how some of the students and professors thought that our "4 years of vet school" was inferior to their 6.  When we tried to explain to them that we actually do 8 years total to their 6, they "jokingly" would ask if we are not as smart and if that is why we needed to go longer.  This happened on more than one occasion to multiple people.  I enjoyed hearing how their 6 years was divided up.  I do not think that I would like taking only 1-2 classes at a time though.  In some ways, I thought the system of them being "self taught" is good.  However, I really do feel that there are some things and lectures that should be presented by a knowledgable person, rather than looking all of the information up in a book.  For example, my host student was reading the big red pharmacology book and taking notes.  She said that the professor could really ask anything they wanted from the book and on any drug.  There is way too much information and nobody could ever feel like they are prepared for a test like that.  In that respect, I would think the way we do things is easier.  Also, it was interesting the way they are getting people to track large animal by letting them in, even if they do not have the best grades if they commit to being large animal.

Overall, my experience in Europe has been amazing and I would love to come back.  I have had so many new experiences and have become friends with people that I never would have thought to have got along with in College Station.  I am really glad I went on the trip and will carry the memories with me for a lifetime.

Some Green Day Song

The last week of the program went by way too quickly! We enjoyed some delicious ice cream and a laidback tour our first afternoon in Bonn. It was a nice to take a break and revel in the nice, warmer weather. The next morning we took a tram to the Cologne Zoo where we were able to take a behind-the-scenes tour of the elephant exhibit and feed a baby elephant! Well, not a baby – he was two years old – but he was so adorable and cute! Two of the keepers took us on a tour of the rest of the zoo, and we saw a very independent baby anteater and quite the climber red panda. After our day at the zoo, we went on a quick tour of Cologne.

Our quick-witted guide definitely distracted us from the heat of the day. We went to an animal shelter on our last day in Bonn. It was interesting to hear about the differences between shelter policies there and back home in the states as well as the stray population conditions. The shelter we visited had never had a problem with running out of space, which always has been a frequent issue at shelters I have volunteered at in Texas. It was nice to hear that they never really had to consider healthy euthanasia to create space. They do not have any veterinarians on staff; the one that comes in during the week is actually contracted out, which is a bit different than what I have experienced. I think that’s a good idea though; being a shelter veterinarian wears you out emotionally, and a reprieve from that daily wear would be helpful in the long run. Later that day we visited an organic farm. I never had toured one before, so it was interesting to compare the way an organic farm ran in comparison to a conventional farm. They allowed us to sample their strawberries while we walked, which were absolutely delicious. After Nils took some of us to the German National Museum of Contemporary History in Bonn. We had the chance to gain insight into the history and growth and development of Germany in recent years. Nils took us around the museum, talking to us about the changes his parents and himself have seen the country go through. It was an amazing experience.

Our last few days of the program were spent at the Utrecht University. We were lucky enough to learn about the history and veterinary program of the university and to tour the companion animal hospital. Something that really impressed me about their hospital was that the ICU ward of the companion animal hospital had video cameras put in each cage so that the owners could observe their animals from home. I’m definitely putting that idea in the memory banks. The host students were welcoming and excited to have us stay with them for the last part of our trip. The Netherlands happened to have a world cup match while we were there. A couple of us dressed up for the occasion with orange hair spray and lays and joined in on the festivities and celebration as we watched them beat Spain 5-1. We spent the morning on a (leisurely) canoe tour on our last day. It felt good to give our legs a rest and force our arms to work a bit. It was something different and definitely something fun. It was difficult saying goodbye to everyone that night. This trip has been amazing, and I’m incredibly grateful that I had the opportunity to participate in it. This is the last post before the back in the states one later this summer. Although I’m not going to miss searching for wifi, I am going to miss all the girls, and even Nils, because once you spend four weeks straight with someone, you can’t even really get them out of your head. Thank you for the great memories. I miss you all already. (I feel like this reads like a Green Day song. Or confused Fall Out Boy lyrics. Sorry about that, guys.)

Miniatur Wunderland

We arrived in Berlin Monday morning and took a city tour that afternoon. Our tour guide was funny and informative, and the amount of history in the city was unbelievable. I learned many things about the background of Berlin, the events of World War II, and that German pride is strong around the World Cup. The next day we visited the IZW Leibniz Institute. They had a number of research and conservation projects they were working on, one of which involved the stargazing syndrome of lions in captivity. It was interesting to compare the CTs of affected and healthy lions. We also were able to watch a CT in real time of an ape skull, my first time watching a CT scan in action. Later that day we traveled to Auschwitz, the first concentration camp I have visited since we started our trip. It was an emotional experience.

We left for Busum Wednesday and visited a seehundstation and Multimar Wattforum, a museum connected to the national park on the North Sea. The seals at the station were absolutely adorable! They had grey and harbor seals playing in an on-site pool. We learned about the mission of the station and the howler seals and the sea hunters. The national park was beautiful, and the models they had depicting the ecosystem under the mud were really cool. The biologist told us about the sealife and explained the challenges of the park with acoustic pollution and overfishing.

We performed necropsies on a seal and a harbor porpoise the following day. It was awesome! After a morning lecture, we cut into a seal that had been shot by a sea hunter and a porpoise that had washed up on shore. The first showed signs of sepsis and the second suffocated on his dinner. The little guy had a crazy amount of fish in his stomach! I loved that we were able to get hands on and be a part of the necropsies. A local sea hunter and chef, Karl-Heinz Kolle, made us dinner at his restaurant. His stories were fascinating, and I loved listening about his choice to become a seal hunter and what he volunteers to do to help the seals. 

W walked on the mudflats on our last day in Busum. There were so many jellyfish that had been left during low ride, and you had to make sure that watched your step. The mud and seawater felt surprisingly warm. We saw tracks and worms and crabs everywhere. I had so much fun on the mud walk; it would definitely be amazing to get the chance to do it again.

The majority if us spent our last free weekend in Hamburg. We walked around town and visited Miniatur Wunderland, the world's largest miniature railroad. It was awesome! We went on our first boat tour, which was nice and relaxing, as was most of our weekend. I cannot believe that this is the last week of the program! I've had a great time and some sleep would be nice, but I'm not ready to go home just yet.

Busum part 2

Then it was the morning of the dissections! We were all so excited at breakfast in our coveralls. Before we went into the lab we had a lecture about the research projects they have going on in the area and on seals and porpoises. They are really concentrating on how noise pollution is affecting these animal species not only with breeding but with turning them toward dangerous areas and ultimately leading to their death- specifically whales. I never realized how big of an issue this was for all marine life. They have shown by catching wild porpoises and testing their hearing ability that they are actually losing their full ability to hear du to the noise pollution. Those that are monitored have also shown that they dive deeper in areas of higher noise. They also believe this pollution is the cause of whales moving into shallower waters and ultimately beaching themselves. Some other things they are looking at is the behavior of the grey seals which have now been seen a few times attacking and eating Harbour seals. More studies need to be done to determine if it is just a few aggresive seals or if this is a normal behavior for grey seals. Overall it was a great lecture and I learned a lot. Then we made our way into the dissection lab! My group dissected a less than 2 year old seal who was shot by the seal hunter because he was not eating and sick on the beach. When opening up the abdomen we found parasites in the stomach, and the small intestine. We pulled every worm we found out of the intestine and into a jar to be examined. The seal also had a severe Granulomatous pneumonia. No other complications were seen. The group with the porpoise found a fish in the larynx which was determined to be the cause of death and parasites were found in the ear. We had so much fun! Later that night we had a delicious dinner with the seal hunter at his restaurant. By far the best food on the trip and it was great getting to hear some of his hunting stories. 

Last day in busum was spent on the mud walk! It was such a fun and relaxing way to end the trip

Berlin and Busum

Berlin was beautiful and rich in history. I wish we had more time there because there just wasn't enough time to see everything while we were there. The city tour was one of the best and a great way to see and learn about the city. Also going to the top of the Reichstagskuppel gave us an amazing view of the city and the view of a beautiful building. While in Berlin we also traveled to a concentration camp which is something I have always wanted to see. It is one thing to learn about everything from a book or lectures but it is a whole other experience to see first hand. It was a very somber experience that I could never truly explain.

Busum is yet another unforgettable experience from this trip. The seal center is a great place and it was awesome to see they are helping these animals and releasing them back when they can. The mudwalk was fun, interesting and educational at the same time. There were several times I was sure I was going to fall on my face in the slippery mud but luckily I managed to stay on my feet. Walking through the soft mud was a very odd feeling and differed depending on how squishy the mud was. At times it was difficult to walk because there were so many shells just beneath the surface until I finally figured out the best way to walk across them. There were also times I didn't realize how soft the mud was and ended up sinking down to my midcalf. There was also a delicious dinner that we had in a local restaurant that not only had great food but also a great atmosphere. The fresh seafood and other meat was one of the best meals I had the entire trip. But by far the best experience of this entire week was the necropsies we had a chance to take part in. There was a yearling seal that ended up being sick from systemic pneumonia that a seal hunter found. During the necropsy I collected stomach worms that would later be studied to determine what exact type they are. Also I removed an earbone and cleaned it out in order to collect all of the parasites in it. This was one of those days we realized that we find very strange things exciting!

Copenhagen and Clinics

While Denmark may not have been my favorite stop of the trip, working in clinics was definitely one of the highlights of the whole experience. I was working in the Copenhagen Animal Hospital which is about a 19 doctor clinic that is mainly for secondary opinions and specialty work. I was very nervous going in on the first day and very happy that Brittney was there with me so at least we had each other. As soon as we go there all of the staff was very welcoming and made us feel very comfortable. They immediately let us observe whatever we wanted and even had us help with a lot of procedures. Some of the procedures we were able to see were an enucleation surgery on a small little dog who unfortunately came in contact with an angry barn cat and was scratched in the eye all the way down to the lens. After the surgery was removed they allowed us to dissect the eye in order to see the structures of an eye as it is unpreserved. We also saw many different dental procedures from one of the few dental specialist in Denmark. On dental surgery was a small dog with a cyst that had grown so big several teeth had to be extracted, including careful extraction of a lower canine that could have caused the lower jaw to break since the cyst had eaten away so much bone. The canine was successfully removed without causing any other damage. Also while we were there we had Dannish bread for lunch which was very heavy and had interesting flavor.
Tivoli was a blast. It was so much fun to run around and ride as many rides as possible. We were riding everything we could and I even faced my fear of a ride I have never been on but my friends got me on it and I'm pretty sure they got a good kick out of my screams. Our visit to Tivoli was by far one of my favorite days in Copenhagen.

Berlin/Busum part 1

Berlin- loved the city tour. Learned a lot of interesting history not only about World War II but about the Berlin Wall. Did not realize that only a day after Hitler got married  him and his wife killed themselves. Really interesting hearing all of the stories of people trying to climb over the Berlin wall( hot air balloon). A group of us ate at a great restaraunt with the girls and enjoyed some great German beer. Loved the lectures at the zoo research center in Berlin. If was so much fun learning about all of the projects they have going on and research on animals in the wild vs those in captivity. Malaysia rhino cannot breed in wild or captivity and almost extinct. Due to tumors so trying to conserve the population with artificial insemination and other methods. We got to look at some ct of lions and they have the ability to do 3 dimensional image of animals with movement!  Talked about how in captivity polar bear dies of equine herpes virus due to close contact to hooved animals. Visited the sachsenhausen concentratoin camp. Getting to walk through and read about all the torture and hardships those prisoners had to go trough to just survive another day was very emotional for me. Overall a great stay in Berlin 

On our way to busum! We were all so excited about the seal projects we were going to get to see and get to participate in. Started out at the sanctuary where we were introduced to some grey seals and some Harbour seals. Never realized how different they really were from each other. Not only are they different sizes but their teeth are different, the grey seals have cone shaped teeth while the Harbour seals have sharper teeth.  We ended the day with a tour and lecture about the wildlife in the area. I really enjoyed everything we saw and learned because I do not have a lot of experience with fish and marine mammals. Finished the first day with a delicious dinner of flounder!

Week 4

After arriving in Bonn on Monday, Nils took our group on a tour of his
hometown and bought us all ice cream!! This was no ordinary ice cream; it was
the best chocolate ice cream I have ever tasted. It was a very nice surprise,
especially considering that the weather was pretty warm (upper 70s). I really
enjoyed the tour, especially since Nils knew our group pretty well by this time
and could show us parts of the town that he knew would be particularly
interesting to all of us. I really enjoyed seeing the remains of an ancient Roman
house that showed how such houses were heated under ground and insulated by
building two walls with a small space between. After our tour of Bonn, the group
walked to an outdoor restaurant on the river, called Alter Zoll. We had fun sitting
in picnic tables and chatting while drinking some nice cold drinks and eating some
good food. That night, we ventured home to Hotel Bonnox where Stormie,
Brenna, Bianca, and I shared a room. Since it had been so hot during the day, we
were a little concerned about sleeping with no air conditioning. Luckily, a storm
rolled in and cooled us off just in the nick of time before bed.

Tuesday was one of my favorite days of this entire trip - our visit to the Cologne
Zoo where we were able to feed a baby elephant!!! I have always loved
elephants. I find them fascinating, and I would actually love to work with them.
The only reason I have chosen to track equine veterinary medicine is because I
have grown up with horses and am most comfortable with that species. If I had
grown up with more exotic/zoo exposure, I am sure that I would be leaning really
hard toward becoming a zoo veterinarian. Anyway, this visit to the zoo was like a
dream come true for me just to be so near to an elephant. When they said we
could FEED one, I was so incredibly excited!! I really enjoyed watching the
trainer work with the elephants, and I found the filing of the feet and toe nails to
be very interesting. The soles of the feet and the toe nails looked very similar to
the soles and nail (hoof wall) of a horse's hoof. I even saw the caretaker use a
hoof knife just like the one my dad uses when he cuts away the old sole on our
horses' feet. I wanted to ask to touch the foot to see if it really was that similar
to a horse's, but I didn't want to overstep any boundaries - especially since the
zoo was kind enough to let us see behind the scenes. After the elephants, we
toured the rest of the zoo. I thoroughly enjoyed getting to go behind the scenes
to see how the zoo operates and how the animals are cared for. I wish we had
been able to have this experience at the Leipzig Zoo as well. After spending a
few more hours at the zoo, it was time for our Cologne city tour. I was
exhausted by the time we made it to the city, but our guide was hysterical and
really did a great job keeping our interest despite the fact that we were all
exhausted. We learned about Agrippa and his granddaughter Agrippina, who built
the city of Cologne and was the mother of the Emperor Nero. Apparently,
Agrippina had a couple of her husbands killed because they were interfering with
her agenda, and when her son Nero became Emperor, she "ruled" through him.
Nero grew tired of his mother and tried to kill her twice, failing both times.
Finally, he hired an assassin who got the job done. He only lived for a short time
after his mother's murder. We later saw a building with statues of important
individuals from Cologne's history. The figures were commissioned by a masonry
worker, and therefore had to be sculpted according to a specific design... but the
bottom of the figures were not commissioned, and this is where the masonry
workers let their creativity flow. On the bottom of Agrippina's figure was a
spider, which I associated with a Black Widow (since she used her husbands and
then had them killed to further her own agenda). The bottoms of other figures
were even more creative, and quite comical. After our tour, we were given free
time. Stormie, Brenna, and I traveled back to Bonn to visit the Haribo shop. I am
completely obsessed with gummy candies, so I bought a ludicrous amount of
them to bring back to the U.S. Before heading back to the hotel, we ate supper
at Casa del Gatto and got some ice cream at the same place Nils had
recommended the day before.

Wednesday's activities were lots of fun. Animal shelters in the U.S. make me
really depressed because I feel so bad for the animals who might not ever have
the chance to be loved by a human. I usually can't even walk through a shelter
without tearing up. The Animalshelter Bonn was different, though, because it is a
no-kill shelter with tons of room for lots of dogs, cats, rodents, birds, and reptiles.
The facilities were fantastic, especially for a shelter. The dogs in the kennels had
plenty of room inside, plus runs that went outside but were still covered. There
were outside play areas where lots of dogs could be turned out all together. The
tour guide told me that they have room at the shelter for over 100 dogs, but that
they only have about 50 right now. The cat rooms were perfectly arranged so
that the cats could socialize, play, exercise, or have some seclusion. I thought it
was really cool that the cats had a room inside and an outdoor patio-style area.
One room even had awesome play and lounge areas all over that had been
donated by the designer, but would have cost around 20,000 euro if they had
been purchased. I don't know much about birds or rodents, but the areas for
those species seemed really great, as well. I didn't leave this shelter feeling sad
and depressed because it was obvious that the staff members really cared about
the animals. Each animal had a card on its enclosure that contained thorough
history about the animal and the types of people with whom the animal would be
most compatible. The tour guide said that volunteers come every day to walk
the dogs and play with the other animals and that they sometimes even have
more volunteers than animals! A dog trainer even comes to work with the
shelter dogs and volunteers in a play area. This place was really awesome, and I
wish the U.S. could get more of a handle on the unwanted pet situation so that
we could have shelters like this for the few animals who lose an owner or
somehow fall between the cracks of finding a home and people who love them.
It really breaks my heart that so many innocent animals in the U.S. are mistreated,
left to fend for themselves, and eventually euthanized in kill shelters. I understand
that the euthanasia is necessary because of our surplus of unwanted pets, but
understanding the situation doesn't make it any less heart-breaking. After the
visit to the animal shelter, we toured Gut Ostlar, an organic farm that used to
host lots of educational outings for children in the area. The farm has been at this
location for a very long time. In fact, it was originally a farm amongst other farms;
now it is a farm within a city because the city has been built up to completely
surround it. The Gut Ostlar tour guide was a very interesting person. She had
gone to school in Frankfurt and was a sculptor and painter, but she came to work
at Gut Ostlar because she loved working with children and teaching them about
agriculture. She was very knowledgeable about the farm, and taught us lots of
interesting things about edible plants that you wouldn't even know were edible,
raising organic chickens for their eggs, bees - you name it, she knew it. I found
this visit very enjoyable. I was saddened to hear that the town tried to put the
farm out of business and in the process greatly reduced their ability to host as
many children's educational visits. Young people need to know about and
appreciate agriculture and agricultural products, and I believe that Gut Ostlar
would do a great job if supported by the city. I hope they are able to pull through
these hard times and continue the legacy of the old farm while continuing to
educate children who I'm sure are very grateful for the knowledge they would
gain from such a unique place.

Thursday was the start to our visit of Utrecht! When we arrived at Utrecht
University, we had a lecture on the history of veterinary medicine. I found the
lecture very interesting, especially since we have never had such a lecture or class
at TAMU-CVM. I think it's cool how Europeans are so interested in the history
and culture of everything, and I find it interesting to know how things like
veterinary medicine began and have evolved over the years. After this lecture, we
took a look at the school museum and then headed to the Small Animal Hospital
for a quick introductory lecture and tour. We weren't able to see as much of the
behind-the-scenes aspect of the hospital as I would have liked, but it was still a
nice tour. The hospital was very nice and welcoming for clients, and it had a very
cozy atmosphere. After the tour was our welcome BBQ at the Utrecht
University D.S.K. courtyard/bar/lounge area. The host students cooked us
hamburgers, chicken, and pork, and we all hung out and got to know each other
with beer, wine, and dancing until the early morning hours. During this party, I
met my host, Marjo. She was a little younger than me and has about 3 years of
school left. I was so excited that she lived outside of town on a dairy farm and
that Bianca and I would get to stay there!! It was such a cool place!! The
farmland was beautiful, and her apartment was so cute. There were cows, of
course, a Yellow Labrador named Kim, cats with kittens, and pigs. We even got to
witness the birth of a calf one morning!! Marjo was SO nice and super willing to
do everything she could to help us and to make us feel welcome.

Friday was a day full of lectures, which aren't my absolute favorite, but they were
interesting. We mostly discussed and tried to understand the differences
between European and American vet schools. After our first lecture, we learned
about the lab animal class that is taught at Utrecht University. We were able to
hold and learn how to restrain mice and rats, as well as "draw blood" from a
simulated rat tail. I enjoyed that part of the lectures the most. We grabbed a
quick lunch and then headed back to the university for our final lecture on public
health. The lecturer was quite passionate about this subject, and I learned a great
deal about public health issues in Europe, such as trichinellosis in French people
due to eating raw horse meat, vertical farming (housing pigs in buildings on
different levels), and he talked about animal rights activists and those who believe
we should stop vaccinating food animals because they believe the vaccines make
the meat unsuitable for human consumption. It was a long talk on a wide variety
of subjects that was very interesting. Later that night, we met back at the D.S.K.
for Sportsfest, which was a soccer game between Holland and Spain that the
Dutch take VERY seriously. Marjo bought lots of orange items for us to wear to
support Holland, and we even painted the flag of the Netherlands on our faces.
I'm not a huge fan of sports, but I enjoyed watching the game and experiencing it
with the students who were so passionate about it - and they WON!!! Needless
to say, there was lots of partying that occurred after the game finished.

Saturday was our last day of the trip. We took a city tour by canoe through the
canal system in Utrecht, and Stormie, Brenna, and I were able to share a canoe.
Although my muscles were tired and sore after canoeing for a couple of hours, I
thought it was really fun. I'm not sure that we got the best impression of the
city's history or sites to see from the canoe, but it was definitely cool. Afterward,
we went shopping until supper time, when we met back with the rest of the
group for our final meal together at Florin in Utrecht. Nils thanked us for a great
trip, we discussed our likes and dislikes of the organization and experiences on
the trip, and we completed our program evaluations during a very nice meal. Nils
then treated us to a final ice cream (which was so creamy and delicious), and we
all then ventured to a bar for a final drink together. Marjo joined us, and we just
sat and talked for a couple of hours until people slowly began to say their
goodbyes. It was quite sad, actually. We all had a great time and learned so much
not only about Europe, but also about ourselves and our classmates. I am so
thankful to the people who made it possible for us to be a part of such a unique
program. I will never forget it!

Week 3

Monday's tour of Berlin was awesome! I thought the tour guide was by far the
best that we have had this entire trip. He was very knowledgeable, funny, and had
some very interesting stories to keep our attention. I am not a huge fan of cities
just because I tend to prefer the country life, but I was definitely a fan of Berlin.
It's past is very interesting to me, as I love learning about World War II and the
components involved in it. I really respect that the city embraces its past and has
taken certain measures to prevent problems with Neo-Nazis and still allow the
appropriate commemoration of those who were lost during the conflict. The
New Holocaust Memorial was very touching. I must say that I was disappointed
to see high school aged children running and playing through the memorial. I
found it very disrespectful; they were old enough to know better. Anyhow, I
learned a lot on this tour, and I would definitely recommend it to next year's
group.

Tuesday morning was our tour of the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife
Research with Steven Seet, who lectured about some of the projects with which
the institute is involved, such as an effort to improve the reproduction of
endangered rhinoceros species. I have a M.S. degree in reproductive physiology,
so I found that discussion particularly interesting. We also discussed the backlash
that zoos received after the giraffe in the Copenhagen Zoo was necropsied and
fed to lions. I must admit that I do have difficulty with killing a young giraffe just
because there is not enough room at the zoo. I do not fully understand the zoo
situation in Europe, but I believe that the giraffe could have been relocated to
another zoo in the U.S. that would have been happy to have him. With that said, I
am glad that Marius was able to serve many educational purposes, and I do not
think that sacrificing an animal for the advancement of science is barbaric. The
final part of our tour of the Leibniz Institute involved learning about and seeing a
demonstration of an amazing CT scanner. A gorilla skull was scanned, and the
machine was able to portray the entire skull in a 3-D image that could be rotated
and moved up and down perfectly on the computer screen. It was amazing! I was
surprised to hear that the institute is planning to get a new and even better CT
scanner! Tuesday afternoon was spent at Sachsenhausen Concentration Camp,
which was pretty surreal. I have learned about the Holocaust and concentration
camps since I was a child, but it has never been more real to me than when I was
walking through the place where so many undeserving people lost their lives. The
design of the camp was interesting, but sick at the same time. I do not
understand how someone could design a place that was to contain so many
horrors. Then again, I do not understand how so many people were convinced
that the "Final Solution" was a good idea. Thank goodness places like
Sachsenhausen still exist as proof and as a reminder to today's people never to
let that kind of thing happen again. Nils did a great job showing us around the
camp. This is was a tour that I will never forget, and I am really glad that we took
the time to visit this important historical site. To finish a busy Tuesday, we went
to the Reichstagskuppel. From high atop the huge government building, we could
see almost all of Berlin. We walked to the top of the dome and admired the view
for a while before heading down and finding a place to eat supper and relax after
a great but exhausting day.

Wednesday was marine animal day! We visited Friedrichskoog Seal Center and
had a guided tour that was very educational. I know very little about marine life,
but I absolutely LOVE to learn about it. Our tour guide was very easy to
understand, and she taught us a lot about the differences between Grey and
Harbor Seals. She explained the lives of the resident seals, the rehabilitation
process of seals brought in by Seal Hunters, and the important and necessary role
of the Seal Hunters. After the tour, it was feeding time for the resident seals!
The trainers had the seals perform for the public to get their suppers. It was so
cool! I took probably hundreds of pictures and maybe 20 videos. I cannot wait
to show my family what I got to see! Wednesday afternoon was spent at
Multimar Wattforum, where we learned about birds, crustaceans, fish, whales... I
might be leaving something out - it was a lot of great information! The tour guide
was extremely knowledgeable, and I loved how the museum guided the visitors in
to the habitat of the particular animals it was explaining. For example, the cool,
dark downstairs entrance to the whale exhibit was to signify the cold depths of
the ocean in which they live. The museum was very educational, and the exhibits
were all fantastic. After the guided tour of the museum, we took a bus to Busum,
where we arrived at Hotel Siegfried. Stormie, Brenna, and I were put in the same
room, which appeared to be an attic that had been converted to a suite. We liked
it, except that the ceilings were too low in one of the bedrooms and in be
bathroom. I can't count how many times I hit my head on the ceiling in the
bathroom. Poor Brenna had to sleep in the tiny room with the low ceiling on the
first night. However, after a door opening inexplicably, a light turning off
randomly in the middle of the night, and a terrible nightmare of mine on the first
night, Brenna decided to move to the middle of the king sized bed where Stormie
and I had slept for the remainder of our time there.

Thursday was our visit to the Aquatic Wildlife Center in Busum. Professor
Siebert began with a presentation about the aquatic wildlife in the North Sea. As
I said before, I know very little about marine animals and aquatic wildlife, so the
lecture was very interesting to me. The dissection of the harbor seal and
porpoise was even more interesting! I stayed on the harbor seal case for the
majority of the dissection time. The seal was around one year old and had died
by a Seal Hunter's gunshot wound to the head. The hunter had found the young
female seal struggling to breathe with blood tricking from her nostrils. She also
had diarrhea and was very lethargic. He put an end to her misery and brought
her to the Aquatic Wildlife Center to determine the etiologic agent behind her
respiratory disease. During the necropsy, we discovered that she had
pyogranulomatous lesions in her lungs that were probably due to a bacterial
infection of some sort. The porpoise had been found dead, and the other team
worked to find out the cause of death. A fish was found lodged in the porpoise's
oropharynx, which had caused suffocation. Further evidence of suffocation was
discovered in the bronchi of the lungs, which were filled with foamy fluid. These
necropsy cases were SO awesome!! I really enjoyed learning about marine
animals and the necropsies were especially cool because we were actually trying
to determine the causes of death of the animals instead of simply dissecting them
to learn their anatomy. I thought it was a fantastic learning experience. The fun
continued Thursday night at a restaurant called Kolles Alter Muschelsaal with a
buffet prepared specially for us by the owner, Karl-Heinz Kolle, who is also a Seal
Hunter. The food was amazing, and the atmosphere was incredibly unique.
Seashells covered the walls completely, depicting scenes of ships at sea and
flowers, among other ornate designs. A mermaid figure head stood at the center
of the room, which had originally stood outside to bring customers in to the
restaurant. It was now fully restored and preserved within this room as an
historical relic. After the meal, the Seal Hunter presented a short powerpoint to
explain his duties as a Seal Hunter and to answer questions. Of course, we had
many questions about this very unique job title, but I have to say that my favorite
part of the question and answer was when Johanna asked if he was bothered by
having to end the lives of the seals when they are ill or injured. Mr. Kolle
responded that he was especially bothered the first time he had to end a seal's
suffering because they "look at you with their cute little eyes..." but the job is
necessary. I have great respect for Mr. Kolle and the other Seal Hunters as well
as those who work so hard to maintain the seal and marine animal population in
Busum..

Friday was our much-awaited Mudflat and beach day!! We started our tour of
the Mudflat by searching for and learning about many of the sea creatures that
can be found in the North Sea shore. We learned about mussels, oysters, jellyfish,
snails, kelp, birds, and even worms! We walked all the way to the tidal creek,
where we found some tiny shrimp that are very common in that area. Our tour
guide explained that the tide comes in very quickly, so we had to start walking
toward the shore. During this return trip, our guide took us through the really
muddy areas where you can actually find quicksand! I sank in to the mud up to
my mid-shin once, but it wasn't too scary. When we made it back to shore, we
were able to sit out on the grass in the sun. It was awesome. This was definitely
a once-in-a-lifetime experience that I will always remember. During our free
time, Brenna and I even returned to the beach to relax in the sun.

Stormie, Brenna, and I traveled to Frankfurt on Saturday for our final free
weekend. We stayed at Hotel Amadeus, which was a really nice hotel in a town
on the outskirts of the big city. The first night, we walked to a restaurant that is
known for food that is very specific to Frankfurt. I cannot remember the name
of the restaurant or the name of the food that I ate, but it was delicious. We
were very thankful that a fellow customer offered to explain the menu to us in
English so that we knew what we were ordering! On Sunday, we went on a tour
of Heidelberg Castle. The tour guide was a very nice man who was very
knowledgeable about the history of Heidelberg and Frankfurt. The town was
beautiful, and the ruins of the castle were very interesting. After the tour, we ate
at Restaurant Mediterran, which was fantastic. Frankfurt definitely had great food,
and we really enjoyed our relaxing weekend before heading to Bonn for tje final
week of the program.

Week 2

Stormie, Brenna, and I arrived at the Hotel Transit Loft in Berlin on Monday at
1:30 a.m. and awoke the same morning at 4:00 to pack up to head to
Copenhagen. After arriving in Copenhagen, we were able to have some time for
shopping and napping for a few hours before commencing our tour of the
Taastrup Campus and the University Hospital for Large Animals and the tour of
the Frederiksberg Campus and the University Hospital for Companion Animals.
Both facilities were amazing - especially the small animal hospital. I have not had
much personal experience in small animal practices or hospitals, but this one
seemed to be state-of-the-art. I was highly impressed. The joint dinner that night
at Cafe Vaeksthuset (the old greenhouse) was fun. I enjoyed meeting all of the
hosts and the atmosphere of the greenhouse was great, but I was not a huge fan
of the food. This was no fault of the chefs, I just do not like fish or veal; therefore,
I opted for the vegetarian option which I thought would be a salad. Instead, the
chef brought out half of an eggplant, to which I recently discovered I am allergic. I
did not want to cause any more trouble, so I just ate the carrots, potatoes, and
mushrooms that had come with my eggplant. The vegetables and the chocolate
cake (similar to a brownie) were quite delicious. Stormie and I had the same
hosts, Pipaluk and Thorkil, who were so much fun to get to know. After dinner,
they took us on a short driving tour of Copenhagen in their Fiat. When we
arrived at their apartment, we met their two Chihuahuas, Phoebe and Kaylee,
who were definitely the sweetest and most adorable Chihuahuas I have ever met.
I went on a walk with Pipaluk and the dogs around the block that night before
going to bed. We talked about school, her dogs, where she comes from in
Greenland, and even religion; she is a great girl and is very easy to talk to. She
even let Stormie and me try some salted licorice before we went to bed. It was
not too bad!

On Tuesday, Stormie and I caught a ride to Faxe Dyrehospital with a veterinarian
who recently started working there named Malene. We were both exhausted
from the lack of sleep on Sunday and Monday nights, and we both fell asleep on
the one hour and fifteen minute ride to the hospital. It was embarrassing.
Anyhow, once we arrived at the hospital, we were refreshed from our little naps
and went straight to work. This hospital was quite large. It had both small and
large animal facilities that were state-of-the-art, along with an administration
building in which there was an area for all employees to prepare their lunches
and keep their belongings locked in locker rooms. The practice was owned by
three veterinarians, and it employed around 18 veterinarians and 20 nurses total.
The most unique aspect of the practice was that almost all of the veterinarians
working there had a specialty of some kind. In the small animal hospital, we met
three orthopedic specialists, one dental specialist, one imaging specialist, one
internal medicine specialist, and one chiropractor. Stormie and I only spent one
morning in the large animal medicine hospital, but we were able to meet a equine
lameness specialist and an equine internal medicine specialist as well. A bovine
veterinarian had already left for her farm calls by the time we arrived at the
equine hospital, so we were unfortunately not able to experience bovine
medicine there. Stormie and I are both more interested in large animals than
small, but we thoroughly enjoyed our time spent at the small animal hospital in
Faxe. Stormie was able to scrub in on an arthroscopy and a patellar luxation
while I assisted with various other cases. I helped clean the surgical equipment,
sat in on a couple of consultations, helped with a CT scan, and restrained dogs
for radiographs. In the equine hospital, I worked with the lameness specialist
discussing one horse's lameness and limb radiographs. Stormie and I also assisted
the equine internal medicine specialist with a horse that had been coughing. He
let me give the sedation and assist with endoscopy, a trach wash, and a
bronchoalveolar lavage. All of the veterinarians and nurses worked great with the
animals and were more than happy to explain things to us and make us feel
welcome. One of the orthopedists even had Stormie and me over to his house
for a barbecue on Wednesday night. We truly enjoyed our experience at Faxe
Dyrehospital, and we wish we could have spent more time there.

Thursday was our tour of Copenhagen and trip to Tivoli!! Tivoli was definitely
the highlight of the day. We had SO much fun; I just wish we had more time to
ride all of the rides! The tour of Copenhagen was fine, but I wish we had made it
to the harbor where the Little Mermaid sits and the royal family lives. Thankfully,
Pipaluk was nice enough to take Stormie and me on our own personal tour of
Copenhagen. It was awesome! She called herself a "Royalist" and knew lots
about the royal family and about the history of Copenhagen. The dinner at
Madklubben that night tasted great, and we had a wonderful time talking with
both our hosts and our classmates' hosts. Altogether, our stay in Denmark was
fantastic. We learned a great deal and had lots of fun in Faxe Dyrehospital, and
we had a great time with our classmates and our hosts at the social gatherings.

Stormie, Brenna, and I spent our second free weekend in Vienna, Austria. We
stayed in the Art Hotel, which was really nice! We had only booked a room with
a king sized bed, but they gave us a loft that was almost like a condominium. It
had two separate bedrooms (one with a king sized bed and one with a queen), a
living area, a refrigerator, a large bathroom, and a private 7th floor balcony! We
were so happy with the accommodations, we almost did not want to leave the
room! On Saturday, we had booked a tour of the Danube River Valley and a river
cruise. Although it rained on and off, the cruise was nice and relaxing. The river
valley was absolutely gorgeous. After the cruise portion of the tour, we ate lunch
in Melk, where we sat with a couple from Ireland. We told them about our
program, and they thought it sounded great... but they suggested that next year's
group should visit Ireland. After talking to them about the beautiful countryside
and the wonderful opportunities for veterinarians, a trip to Ireland is definitely on
my bucket list. After lunch we toured the Abbey of Melk, the library, the church,
and the gardens. Everything was absolutely gorgeous. Sunday was spent leisurely
wandering around Vienna. We found Cafe Denel, suggested by Dr. Wasser, and
had a nice lunch followed by some souvenir shopping and some relaxing in our
hotel lobby before hopping the night train back to Berlin.

Week 1

The first week of our program has come and gone in the blink of an eye! After
spending two days in London and walking for what seemed like 20 miles, Brenna,
Stormie, and I were all exhausted already! We were able to see Big Ben, the
British Parliament, the London Bridge, the Tower Bridge, and we even rode the
London Eye. The only down side was that everything was really expensive.
When we arrived in Basel, Switzerland on Monday, I was astounded by the
beautiful countryside. This was one of the most beautiful cities I have ever seen!
Our first stop in this country was to Novartis, which was awesome! The
veterinarians and researchers there were extremely hospitable and did the
utmost to make us feel welcome and to inform us about the inner workings of
their company. The tours of the different labs were my personal favorites of the
trip - especially the pill press. The staff answered all of our questions thoroughly
and were more than happy to host our group. I know I can speak for the whole
group when I say that we all really enjoyed the trip. The second big part of the
trip was a tour of Basel - which was fantastic! The tour guide was personable
and very knowledgeable about the city's history.

After Switzerland came Leipzig, Germany... hosts (the thought of whom terrified
me), the Leipzig Veterinary School, the Leipzig Zoo, and Bergfest. I was assigned
to be hosted by two girls, Sophia and Johanna, who were not as scary as I had
imagined. They were very hospitable and did everything they could to make me
feel welcome and comfortable. Although I was admittedly nervous initially to live
in a stranger's home for three days, I am honestly happy that I did. I thoroughly
enjoyed talking to my hosts and learning more about their culture, upbringings,
and veterinary school experiences. I might have even talked one of them in to
doing an internship in Bryan, once she is finished! My hosts were genuinely great
girls, and I am very appreciative of their hospitality. We have all exchanged
information and plan to keep in touch. As for Bergfest - mere words cannot
describe the enormity of this party. I have never seen anything like it. It was not
just beer and drunken celebratory dancing, it was traditions and camaraderie to
commemorate the achievement of an important milestone. I LOVED it. Texas
A&M University has many great traditions of which we can all be proud, but the
College of Veterinary Medicine needs a new one...Bergfest! Toward the end of
the week, we were able to experience more of the academic side of the Leipzig
Veterinary School. We were able to brush up on dog and equine limb anatomy
and learn about the extensive anatomy program that the Germans must
complete. Although I am glad to be done with anatomy, I wish we had more
semesters of it as they do. I know I would benefit greatly from another course to
more firmly impress it within my mind. I really liked the beautiful and homey
atmosphere of the vet school campus. The facilities were very nice, and I
especially enjoyed the tour of the equine internal medicine ward where we were
able to see and discuss the hospital's current cases.

Thursday was our visit to the Historical Collection at Leipzig Instituaion for
Veterinary Medicine and the Leipzig Zoo! The historical collection was very
interesting; and I thought it was so cool that the tour guide himself had been
there long enough to know some of the most influential people involved in the
development of the university. I was amazed at how similar some of the old
veterinary instruments were to those used today. This part of the trip was
definitely very interesting. The Leipzig Zoo was one of the most unique zoos I
have ever visited. I really enjoyed the simulated rainforest and the boat ride
through it. The wide variety of animals was awesome, and I loved how the zoo
created each animal's natural habitat so closely. The veterinarian who toured us
through the zoo was very knowledgeable and was more than happy to tell us
anything we might want to know about each animal.

For our first free weekend, Brenna, Stormie, and I traveled to Prague in the Czech
Republic. We stayed in our first hostel ever, Sir Toby's Hostel, and I thought the
accommodations were better than any hotel. We had a three-person private
room with a private bathroom and a little kitchenette area. The only bad part
was that people were literally screaming and singing at all hours of the night and
into the morning. Luckily, I am a heavy sleeper, but my friends did not fare as well
in that regard. On Saturday, we toured the Terezin Concentration Camp, which
was very interesting. In this camp, prisoners were allowed to make drawings,
paintings, music, and plays, which was very unique. We were able to see some of
the works of art of some of those who perished during Hitler's "Final Resolution"
and some who managed to survive. We also walked within the walls of the camp
and saw the small rooms that housed up to 700 people with only one bathroom
(that was out of order), the showers that were too few to bathe the many people
properly, the hill where people executed, the railroad that transported people to
Auschwitz, and the cemetery where many of those who perished at Terezin were
buried. The tour was not a happy one, but it was an important and interesting
one that was very informational. Our excursion for Sunday was much more
cheery. We took a one-day tour of Prague that started on a bus, then
commenced to walking, then took a stop at a very nice restaurant overlooking
the city where we were served a three-course meal, then continued to a boattour
including a beverage and ice cream! We were very impressed with this tour,
as it was the perfect combination of all aspects of tourism all in one. I am looking
forward to the next week of our trip, and hope that it will be as fun and
interesting as the last!

Bonn, Cologne, Utrecht - Week 4

Monday was a holiday so all the shops were closed.  We got on a train that morning to head to Bonn.  When we arrived it was raining and hailing.  When it stopped it left the city hot and humid.  I thought I might have a heat stroke lugging my stuff to our hotel.  Nils met us there and took us on a tour.  It was nice getting a tour from someone I knew and who was so excited to show us around.  We started the tour with ice cream, which is always a great place to start.  We then got to see the cathedral, remnants of a Roman house and AIB.  The next day we traveled to the Cologne zoo where I got to feed a baby elephant!  It made my day!  We were able to go behind the scenes and watch them train the elephants and trim their feet.  I respected the zoo for always using protective contact and not open contact to protect the workers.  The elephants were well behaved and with the poke of a stick they would press their head against the bars or lift their foot.  I wish we had been able to go behind the scenes at the other zoos we visited.  It made it seem more personal and we were not just a typical visitor seeing the animals.  I would highly suggest being able to do that for future classes.  We then got a tour of the Cologne Cathedral, which is the third largest cathedral in the world and where the remains of the three wise men are kept in a gold shrine.  It was amazing seeing that!  We then got a tour of the city by an entertaining guide.  She kept the atmosphere light and showed us some of the unique aspects of the city, including city hall that has a statue of the ruler Aggrippina on the side and a spider underneath her.  She explained to us that she continued to rule even after her reign through her son Nero.  He even had to try 3 times to kill her since the first 2 failed.  I learned about the laidback Cologne way of life with the motto “if not today, then tomorrow.” 

The next day we stayed in Bonn and went to the animal shelter.  All the shelters in Germany are “no kill” so there are animals there that have not been able to find a home for years.  Seeing them made me miss my own dogs.  I cannot wait to get home and play with them and let them know I did not abandon them, although I am sure that is what they think happened.  The shelter tries to be understanding and open to drop offs to minimize the number of animals dumped over the fence with no history.  The cat ward was neat to see.  One of the rooms was very elaborately decorated with hiding places and bridges all over the room.  It is a cat’s paradise.  They shelter kept dogs, cats, rabbits, mice, turtles, and guinea pigs.  There were animals everywhere and the staff worked hard to ensure they got the best treatment during their stay.  That afternoon we visited an organic farm.  It was nice to be able to just pick strawberries off the plants and eat them.  I was shocked to see how many weeds the farm had and how unkept it looked until the lady explained that due to waning support over the years they were not able to have the number of workers they previously had and that aspects of the farm could not continue.  Neighbors complained and, of course, won.  In the past students would come out during the summer to work and learn how much work goes into a farm.  It also allowed these generations to get back to the basics of agriculture.  She said they would come to the farm not knowing that chips came from potatoes or milk from a cow.  I wish that more programs like this existed.  Coming from a farm I cannot imagine people not understanding where their food comes from.  It is also because of these people that we get so much grief for our practices.  I hope that the farm is able to continue its work and get back to educating the public about their roots. 

We had to say goodbye to Germany and head to Utrecht the next morning.  Kellen and I were able to drop off our bags at our host’s house before going to the university for lectures.  During our time at the university we received a total of 5 lectures.  It seemed like 3 of them were the same lecture over again:  the history of veterinary medicine and the university.  I wish we could have taken this time and toured the large animal hospital and talked over cases like we did in Leipzig.  That was my favorite part of being at the universities and we were not able to do much of that after Leipzig.  We were able to tour the small animal hospital and see their setup.  It was like most university hospitals, although they have primary care, medium care, and ICU.  Cameras are also in every ICU cage so owners can keep an eye on their pets without bothering the clinicians.  It has gotten good feedback from clients and clinicians alike.  That night the hosts had a BBQ at the DSK student bar to welcome us to their university.  I really enjoyed the food and being able to get to know the students better.  The next day included more lectures and a lab animal hands-on experience.  I personally hate rodents so I did not hold an animal but enjoyed hearing them talk about handling and medicine.  Students have a practical on restraint, which I think would be really good for those interested in lab animal medicine.  That night we grabbed supper with some of our hosts before heading to DSK to watch the world cup game against Spain.  The Netherlands killed them 5-1 and it was fun to cheer them to victory.  I even got a souvenir jersey and foam finger.  The next morning we were able to take a tour of the city via canoe.  I have never been canoeing and I cannot swim so it was definitely an experience.  I had a great time and it was a unique way to get to see the city, despite my arms being on fire afterward!  One boat of girls lost their balance and turned over in the water.  Nobody drowned and being cold was the worst problems they had to endure.  It was a success.  I do wish we had learned more about the city as we canoed but I still had a blast and would suggest it to anyone going in the future.  Our hosts then took us into the city center for some shopping and we tried a Dutch favorite, a croket.  It is hard to describe but I enjoyed the fried food.  We then met for our farewell supper.  Nils also treated us to our last ice cream feast.

I cannot believe the program is over and I am heading back to the United States in the morning.  This has been the best experience and I am sad to see it end.  I made some wonderful friends in the classmates I did not really know as well as the Auburn girls and my hosts.  Nils has been the best coordinator, and I hope that having to deal with 13 girls did not wear on him too badly.  Thanks to Dr. Wasser, Dr. Pine and the AIB staff for putting together such an amazing program.  I would not have been able to come if it had not been for the study abroad program.  But now I would like to come back to Europe in the future.   There is so much to see and do and we barely scratched the surface.  This experience has also made me thankful for everything I have.  Although the places we visited were amazing I could never live here.  I miss the luxury of getting in my truck and going where I need to, when I need to.  Checking train and bus schedules seems like a hassle and I would hate to have to do that on a daily basis.  I look forward to seeing my family, friends, and animals when I return.  Until next time Europe!

Berlin, Hamburg, Busum - Week 3

We arrive in Berlin and immediately have a tour of the city.  Our guide did a fantastic job and really explained the history of the city.  I loved the tour!  The four hours just flew by.  WWII has always interested me and to see it in person was amazing.  I loved seeing the Memorial of the Murdered Jews, where Hitler committed suicide, the house of the man who singlehandedly brought down the Berlin Wall and Brandenburg Gate.   There is so much history here I wish I was able to see more.  Our guide took us by a chocolate shop that I would have liked to go inside but we did not have time.  It had replicas of historic buildings, including a church that had its roof destroyed in the war.  We ended the tour outside Reichstag.  We did not go in because that is on the agenda for tomorrow.  The next morning we were given a lecture by the Leibniz Institute for Zoo and Wildlife Research and were able to watch a CT  being taken of a skull.  Afterwards we had dinner and got to see the result of a 3D printer.  It was so cool! 

We left the institute and ran to the train headed for Sachsenhausen.  I was so thankful to Nils for taking us out there as a group.  He has been there numerous times and was able to show us around and explain the buildings to us.  It was a humbling experience being there.  Because we had gone to Terezin before, I was able to see the differences in a transit camp and a labor camp.  The entrance read “Arbeit Macht Frei” meaning labor shall set you free, a lie Hitler had told its prisoners.  Seeing the “death trenches” and remnants of the gas chambers and furnaces was indescribable.  Knowing that thousands of people died here.  It makes me thankful for everything I have, especially my family, and I know that it can all be taken away in the blink of an eye.  It was also horrifying to learn of the medical experiments they performed on the occupants.  I am glad that I was able to see in person everything I have read about.  I hope that the world never has to endure such evil again.

After leaving the concentration camp, we had an appointment at Reichstag.  My father had told me about it before I left so I was excited to see it.  We took an overly crowded elevator to the roof where Nils pointed out the buildings we had seen the day before during our tour.  He then explained that the four tours on each corner represented the four political parties:  the Christian Democratic Union, the Social Democratic Party, the Left Party and the Greens.  I really like how they conduct business in public.  After the tour of the Reichstag we did not have much time for free time.  We were leaving the next morning to go to Hamburg.  I wish that we were able to spend more time in Berlin:  I would have much rather gone here during a free weekend than Prague.

In Hamburg we toured a Seal Station and learned that they are rehabilitation center and that any seals born in captivity cannot be released into the wild so they try to prevent breeding.  We got a tour of the facilities and were able to watch the feeding at 2.  It was neat to see how well behaved the seals are and expertly trained.  We left the station to go to Multimar Wattforum and learn about the different ecosystems.  We learned everything from the creatures in the mud to the aquatic wildlife and birds. 

We then took a bus to the Hotel Seigfreid in Busum.  After checking in we went to a local seafood restaurant.  It was great being able to eat such fresh seafood.  The next morning I was so excited to go to the Aquatic Wildlife Center and learn about their research and then dissect a porpoise and a seal!  We initially thought our porpoise had died in a net due to the hemorrhage around the nose and his belly full of fresh fish, but it was concluded that he had strangulated.  One of the fish he was eating had barbs on that got caught in his larynx.  It was interesting to learn that lung worms and intestinal worms are normal for these animals.  It sure seemed like there was a lot!  Our porpoise did not have any GI worms, which was surprising but his lungs were full.  My colleagues’ seal had been euthanized by a seal hunter because he was suffering from respiratory distress and the hunter felt it was in the best interest of the animal to put it out of its misery.  I have a high respect for seal hunters and what they do.  They take time out of their day to save these creatures.  The only compensation they get is for gas money, which is not enough.  We were able to meet a seal hunter that night at supper.  He owns a restaurant and is a chef.  They prepared a seafood buffet for us that was delicious!  I ate way too much, but it was so good!  He gave a presentation after supper that explained what he does and why he decided to take on this responsibility.  It is hard for him to run a business in addition to going on calls, but he makes it work.  As someone who likes wildlife I really enjoyed hearing his stories and the similarities and differences in getting licensed.  The next day we met with the seal biologist from the day before and toured the mudflats.  It was weird at first stepping on all the shells, and I was terrified on getting stuck by a jellyfish.  But I had a great time.  As I was trying to avoid all the jellyfish that had gotten stuck in the mud, I fell up to my knees in mud.  Jeannette then did the same thing and we could not stop laughing.  Our guide told us how dangerous it is to be out on the flats unsupervised and if a fog comes in you have no way to get back to the shore.  We then closed our eyes and tried to go in a straight line toward some trees he had pointed out.  It was hilarious to see where everybody ended up.  It also made me laugh to hear that we had to pay a “cure tax” just for being in the town:  the air is good for you and the mud is spa quality.  Who would have thought! 

We left the next morning on a train bound for Frankfurt.  Frankfurt is where my father was born so I could not wait to see it.  We settled into our hotel and went to a typical Frankfurt restaurant.  The food was amazing!  It was definitely the best I have had in Europe.  The next day we went to Heidelberg and had a tour of the castle.  It was huge!  Each ruler did not want to live in the same castle as the man before him so he built his own castle and the buildings were later joined together to form the castle we see today.  Later we went souvenir shopping and sat on the Main River and watched the boats go by.  My favorite was a paddleboat that had only one person paddling so they kept going in circles.  

Copenhagen - Week 2

After we landed in Copenhagen we were able to enjoy refreshments before touring the large animal hospital.  I could not believe that they treat cattle for free, but after they explained why it made perfect sense.  If they did not treat them for free, producers would not bring them in and students would not have anything to practice on.  This is quite different from my upbringing as my family would bring a cow in long before they would bring a pet in.  The small animal hospital is quite nice as they recently redid it.  I also found it interesting that students focus on only one subject at a time.  For example, they would only have introductory radiology for a day or two before receiving cases.  They then worked on these cases for two or three weeks and did not have any other subjects to study.  It was also mindboggling that they do not have the diseases that we do, such as Rabies.  While we suspect rabies with every neurologic case, veterinarians do not even receive vaccinations against the virus.  They have also banned several canine breeds.  It is illegal to breed two animals if you can prove that their offspring will have health problems, although I do not know how one can prove that.  That night we met our hosts for a supper at a student-run restaurant.  It was my first experience with veal and I enjoyed it.  I was unsure about how good the quality would be as the animal has not been fed out to a market weight and marbling is nonexistent.  I am staying with Jeannette and our host is Pipaluk and her boyfriend, Thorkil.  They are extremely nice and even own a car, which is a nice change of pace.  They drive us around the town before taking us home.  Their apartment is cozy, but I found it strange that they have to squeegee the bathroom after taking a shower, because it is so small the shower is the bathroom.  It makes me thankful to have a bathtub and not have to worry about mold buildup after each shower. 

The next morning we meet a doctor of Faxe Dyrehospital who drives us to the clinic.  The clinic is a referral clinic so they see primary cases along with cases other veterinarians cannot solve.  There are eighteen veterinarians and around 40 employees.  They told me it was small compared to the U.S. but I could was shocked at the size.  I do not know of any private clinics in the U.S. that are so big.  Each doctor has a specialty, so if the primary doctor does not know what to do they are able to call in a colleague.  The working environment is positive and they are so willing to teach.  The first morning I was able to scrub in and assist with an arthroscopic procedure on a lab’s elbows.  I was so excited!  I had never seen arthroscopy before, much less held the camera!  Next I was able to scrub in for a luxating patella surgery on a Yorkie.  I was going to suture him closed, but another surgery was scheduled after this and there was not enough time.  The doctors were constantly quizzing me and making me recall information I learned a while back and was forgetting.  I was intrigued to find out that it is illegal to mark up pharmaceuticals and that they are only able to make a profit on exams and procedures.  I also found it interesting that students do not have to pay for their education, unlike we who will graduate thousands in debt.  I quickly realize that it is not as great as it seems when they tell me their income tax is around 50%.  I feel that the education system back home needs a makeover but I am definitely not ready to be parting with half my money.  After dinner I was able to help with radiographs on a dog.  When he needed to go potty, I found worms in his stool.  I told his doctor that he was round worms and she then informed me that he suffered from chronic diarrhea.  I am hoping that after a couple doses of dewormer his diarrhea will cease.  I also learned a Danish word in the process, which sounded like “dirty” and means good.  That night Jeannette and I stay at a local hostel and are on call in case emergencies come in.  We did not get called in, however, and were able to enjoy a good night’s sleep.  We proceed to walk to the clinic the next morning after breakfast.  The owner who dropped us off the night before told us to turn left when the road turned.  We went too far however and had to go down the main highway back to the clinic.  The owner saw us walking and picked us up in her car and drove us the rest of the way.  I am sure she got a good laugh out of our situation.  We followed her into rounds.  They spoke in English just so that we could follow along.  The night before a dog died during CT, so they discussed how this could be prevented in the future.  After that we met the chiropractor, who enjoyed quizzes up over anatomy.  He also taught us the basics of chiropractics and why he believes it works.  I enjoyed hearing how he was unable to take us out for cases because he lost his driver’s license for speeding and his mother was having to drive him around.  He then took Jeannette and I over to the large animal hospital.  I was assigned the case of a horse with an upper respiratory problem.  The horse was fat and exercise intolerant.  The doctor eliminated roaring by lunging the mare for 20 minutes and scoping her airway.  He then took a bronchial wash to eliminate infection.  After that case we ate dinner and returned to the small animal clinic.  I was able to see chiropractics in action on a lab and pony.  Our last night in Faxe one of the doctors and owners of the clinic had a BBQ.  He grilled pigeon and deer that he had personally hunted.  There was so much food that night!  I thought I was going to explode.  The employees of Faxe were extremely hospitable and I hope they continue accepting students to their practice.  In the future more than two students could be sent there with plenty to do.  Two could go to the large animal hospital and two could go to the small animal hospital.  I am so thankful for this experience.  I learned so much and had a blast! 

The next morning we had a tour of the town of Copenhagen.  The guide was nice but I was disappointed with the tour itself.  I would have rather gone to see the Little Mermaid and where the Queen lives rather than learn about the different types of bricks and never-ending fires.  The afternoon in Tivoli, however, was so much fun!  I have never been to a huge theme park like Six Flags and I cannot remember the last time I went to the local amusement park.  I wish that we had more time there and that we had not gone on a holiday.  The lines were extremely long and we were only able to ride 5 rides in 4 hours.  My favorite ride was “The Tower.”  It takes you straight up and then drops you.  I was terrified on the way up but the drop was not as bad as I had anticipated.  It was so fun!  We then had a farewell supper with our hosts at a restaurant on the Tivoli grounds.  Despite the confusion with our reservations my meal was good and I enjoyed spending time with my host.  I had not been able to much that week because we were in Faxe most of the time.  After supper, Pipaluk was appalled to hear how much of the city we did not see that morning so she walked us to the Little Mermaid statue and the palace where the royal family lives.  Jeannette and I even took a picture with a guard.  It is hilarious because we had to stand so far away from him that we are on one side of the picture and he is the feet away on the other side.  I was extremely thankful for Pipaluk taking us even though I know her feet were killing her in her shoes. 

The next morning we are caught a flight back to Berlin where we are catching a train to Vienna.  It is an eleven hour ride but I cannot wait to see what it has in store for us.  We took a Danube River Valley tour and I fell in love with the country.  It is one of the most beautiful places I have ever been.  I loved it much more than I did Prague.  We took a boat ride and then toured the Abbey.  The next day our train departed at midnight so we toured the city and ate at the Café Demel.  It was my first experience eating sweet breads.  I did not think it tasted weird at all, and I would be willing to eat it again.  We then catch our train to Berlin to start another adventure.  

Basel, Leipzig - Week 1

What an amazing week this has been!  If this is any indication of the rest of our time in Europe, it is going to be a blast.  On Sunday, we met with the rest of the group at Hotel Alfa in Basel, Switzerland at 5 o’clock in the afternoon.  Most of the participants are in my class, but I am just getting to meet the 2 Auburn girls for the first time.  After our initial meeting we head to a local restaurant for food and conversation.  It is apparent that the group gets along well by the volume and length of the conversation.  The waitress and fellow diners quickly realized we were Americans and enjoyed getting a glance in.  The next day we headed to Novartis.  After taking two semesters with Dr. Fajt, it was great to be able to see pharmacology in action.  My favorite part came when we were able to go and talk with the employees and see what they do every day.  I have opened hundreds of blister packages but never known how they are made.  It was also really cool to see how a pill is made.  An extremely simple concept:  smash powder between two levers.  It was disappointing to hear that they were selling their animal production line of the company, but nonetheless the team was excited to have us there and could not be more willing to answer our questions.  We continued the day with a city tour of Basel.  I loved the tour and the guide was extremely knowledgeable and fun.  I was able to take plenty of pictures.  I just hope I remember what they are of!  We ended our stay with a tour of a pharmacy museum.  It was neat to see how medicine has evolved over the years.

We then traveled to Leipzig, Germany, and it was my first experience on a train.  Nils reserved our seats, which allowed us to get to know each other better during the 6 hour ride.  Once we arrived, we met with our hosts.  My host, Katharina, was amazing!  She really went out of her way to make me feel comfortable in her home.  I had to ride a bike to get around and I have not ridden since I was a child.  This could be scary!  That night we attended the opening night of “Bergfest.”  I only crashed my bike once on our way there.  I am sure Katharina was laughing at the sight.   Bergfest was a huge party where the entire school comes together to celebrate the class who has reached their halfway point in school.  This year’s mascot was the deer.  Lots of food, drinks, and dancing was to be had that night.  The next day we joined a class for an anatomy lesson.  It was fun to see the differences in how they teach the subject.  They are able to study each body system on the different species at the same time, versus learning a complete species at a time and then comparing.  The lesson definitely made me realize I have forgotten quite a bit since first year.  We then went to the marmoset research facility, which allowed me to see veterinary medicine in a species I am not familiar with.  The next day we visited a veterinary collection and got to see tools from the past and present.  The guides really enjoyed showing us around.  The Leipzig zoo was my first zoo experience in my life so I could not wait to see what they had.  It was great getting to see the different kinds of animals, many of which I didn’t even know existed.  In the rainforest part, we were able to ride a boat that explained how the Earth began and how the animals got to where they are today.  I had a great time at the zoo, but at the end of the tour I was worn out.  My body is not used to standing and walking for so long.  My favorite tour of Leipzig was the internal medicine department.  They talked us through each case in the hospital:  why they came in and how they were treating them.  I hope that we are able to do this at the other schools we visit.  It is so interesting to compare how they handle cases and how we are taught, although they are quite similar.  Before we caught our train to Prague we watched the Bergfest games, where faculty dress up and compete in games for the ultimate victory.  My week in Leipzig has been great!  I loved it here and could not have asked for a better host.  I lived in her attic:  it was interesting getting my suitcase up the tiny ladder to my room.  I am just glad it is the first week and it is not too heavy with souvenirs yet.  Katharina has told me she wants to visit TAMU sometime, and I hope she does. 

During our weekend trip to Prgaue, Jeannette, Brenna and I toured the concentration camp Terezin.  We were able to see the housing conditions and the paintings the children created, which is unique to this camp.  It was a transit camp and was used as a model camp for the Red Cross to convince them that the conditions were acceptable.  It makes me sad for the people who came through this camp and angry at the people who did that to them.  If you have to cover up what really goes on, then you clearly know what you are doing is wrong.  We also toured the city of Prague, and our guide was really enthusiastic.  She enjoyed her job and wanted everybody to get the best experience while in Prague.  Now we are headed to Berlin to fly to Copenhagen in the morning.