BERLIN

Berlin! What a difference form Cologne! Berlin is a city full of students, art, and music. We spent our first day at the zoo, which is a favorite among all of my fellow traveling veterinary students. We had a guided tour with one of the zoo veterinarians which was really interesting. It was so cool to hear about the issues with wild versus domestic animal care. For example, we learned that after treating a monkey in the clinic, the veterinarian must be very careful to return the monkey as quickly as possible so that the other monkeys do not forget him and attack him as a stranger!

The following day we went to the Freie Universitaet of Berlin. We had a tour of the horse and small animal facilities. We also got the opportunity to meet several of the 10th semester veterinary students. I was really impressed by how much the veterinarians loved their job and the animals. It seems that some things are not really all that different between cultures. My favorite part was the blood donor cats. These cats get to retire at five years old, and then they live out their entire lives in the clinic.