Hi, everyone! My name is Cassidy Van Den Diepstraten, and I am a first-year student at the Royal Veterinary College (RVC). I completed my undergraduate degree at the University of Guelph, class of 2021. If you have ever considered applying to international veterinary schools, this post is for you!

About Me
I grew up in a small town in Northern Ontario surrounded by wildlife, where I became drawn to animals at a very young age. I gravitated towards documentaries with David Attenborough, as well as fellow Canadian David Suzuki, and wanted to be like them when I grew up and explore the world of animals. My initial passion for conservation and research led to my interest in veterinary medicine. 
While at U of G, I joined the Future Vets Club, which allowed me to attend seminars from international veterinary schools and build connections with their students and staff. Listening to how eager and passionate students were about their respective schools made me want to investigate some of these programs further. While applying to veterinary school for the 2021 application cycle, I decided to apply to several international veterinary schools. I felt that I would regret not applying, and besides, what did I have to lose? Little did I know what an impact that decision would have on my life. Those long hours of reading over applications, prepping for interviews, and studying finally paid off; I was accepted! After spending several long days making pros and cons lists, and researching programs and cities, I finally decided on the best fit for me: RVC. 

By Nina Atanackovic, Student Veterinarian, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Sciences 
 
Hi everyone! My name is Nina and I am a UofG graduate, class of 2021. I have wanted to be a veterinarian ever since I was little, and never had a back-up plan despite being aware of the difficult competition to attend OVC. So, if you have found yourself in a similar position, please continue reading.
 
I applied to OVC in 2020 and unfortunately was rejected. This is when I realized I should start looking into other options, and began researching international schools. I decided to stay an extra year at Guelph to boost my GPA. When I reapplied to OVC for the second time, I received an interview (I guess the extra year worked)! During this time, I also applied to a ton of international schools through VMCAS as my backups. Come June, I was devastated to find out that I had been rejected for a second time even after attaining an interview. I realized that my options were simple: either stay and re-apply for a third time, risking being turned down again, or attend one of the international schools I was accepted by and start my vet journey immediately. This is when I made the best decision for my future career and chose to pursue my veterinary degree at the University of Edinburgh, Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Sciences. ​

By Christina Mozzon, M.Sc., B.Sc., Student Veterinarian, OVC Class of 2024
 
Like any vet student, I loved animals ever since I was a little girl. From helping my grandparents raise their backyard chickens, to begging for a puppy (of course), I was always involved with anything animal-related. Little did I know that this passion of mine would soon become my lifelong career.
 
My journey to veterinary school truly began during my undergraduate degree at Laurentian University, where I studied Biomedical Biology. Throughout this stage of my life, I was trying to gain as much animal experience as possible to enhance my vet school application, which included volunteering at a local small animal veterinary clinic. I assisted with tasks including prepping patients for surgery, anesthesia monitoring, and laboratory work. I remember when I was able to watch my first live surgery and I immediately thought to myself: “wow, now THIS is what I want to do for the rest of my life!”. 

Eventually, I discovered my enthusiasm for animal ecology by working at a local science centre caring for native Ontario wildlife species and educating the public about their biology. After all, who wouldn’t want to walk a porcupine or perform flying squirrel shows for crowds of people? This experience allowed me to understand how crucial these species and their interactions are to the world we live in, and the many efforts we can make as humans to save those that are endangered. ​

By Alison Whitey, Director of Advancement and Communications
 
For the Love of Wildlife
 
With the advent of spring comes a dramatic increase in the number of injured and orphaned animals being brought to Aspen Valley Wildlife Sanctuary.  After all, wildlife is on the move once again.  
 
Aspen Valley has been caring for wildlife for almost 50 years.  It started as the passion of one woman – Audrey Tourney – a high school teacher from Parry Sound, Ontario who was well known for her love of animals.  Since she first took in an orphaned raccoon, Audrey has nursed many more animals back to health as they were brought to her doorstep in increasing numbers over the years. Today, her legacy has been expanded upon by a dedicated group of staff and volunteers.
 
Located on 460 acres of pristine habitat in Rosseau, Ontario, Aspen Valley’s primary goal is to rescue and rehabilitate wildlife. Once rehabilitated, these animals are released back into the wild to give them a second chance.  In 2021, the Sanctuary took in over 1,100 animals – many orphaned and in need of around-the-clock care and feeding.
 
Aspen Valley’s year-round staff consists of three full-time and two part-time employees. It’s a small team with a big responsibility – one that requires a lot of heart, a great deal of support from the community, and a small army of volunteers to boot.  In fact, well over 100 volunteers work alongside the sanctuary’s skeleton staff each year. ​

By Jaiden Gubbels

Despite putting the world on hold, the COVID-19 pandemic provided me with moments to reflect and assess how to achieve my goal of working in the field of veterinary medicine. After volunteering and working at a local general practice veterinary clinic for ten years, the pandemic was the first time I had not been around animals and veterinary medicine regularly. Once adjusted to the discomfort and uncertainty that the COVID-19 pandemic brought to my life, I had the time to reflect on things that had brought me joy which I had taken for granted in my everyday life – involvement in veterinary medicine being one of them. I realised that veterinary medicine was not merely a job, but a passion of mine, and I was eager to find ways to include it in my life as an undergraduate student once again.

After applying and securing an animal care attendant position at a 24-hour veterinary emergency hospital, my eyes were opened to the field of veterinary emergency medicine. The environment was much more fast-paced than what I had experienced in general practice, and I was given more responsibility for completing individual tasks in my role, such as walking and feeding all the patients in the hospital. In contrast to my work in general practice, such seemingly simple tasks are often complicated by the acute degree of the patients' needs, as well as the volume of patients in this regional facility. I quickly learned that success in this environment requires good communication, organization, and observation skills.
The hospital works on a triage basis; patients who are deemed stable at the initial triage are sent to wait with their owners until a doctor becomes available to assess and treat the animal. In addition to walking, feeding, and general patient care, my role involves assisting with any restraint that happens during triage or procedures, recording and reporting unusual behaviour to technicians and veterinarians, and ensuring animal housing is clean and comfortable. I also perform customer services as needed, carry out general hospital maintenance and restocking, and assist the veterinary team with various tasks and treatments.

Moreover, working in veterinary medicine during the COVID-19 pandemic has been a very interesting experience. The hospital must constantly balance the safety of its employees and clients while effectively communicating with patients’ families to ensure the best care. Most interactions now happen over the phone, including getting background history on the patient, the doctor's communications with the clients, and any discharge information that needs to be given. At the beginning of the pandemic, clients were not allowed to come into the hospital for any reason, but as months passed and winter came, this became unreasonable. The cold weather meant that owners were no longer willing to sit in their cars for hours waiting for a veterinarian to become available to treat their pets. Furthermore, euthanasia became an extremely difficult procedure to perform while still safely following COVID-19 protocols, since owners were often distressed and found it difficult to always stay six feet away from the veterinarian and patient. With more time to adapt to the new norms of a COVID-19-marred society, the hospital has been able to better meet the needs of patients during this procedure by having a private room that is regularly cleaned for clients to enter the building.
The valuable experiences I have been afforded by watching a large staff of RVTs and DVMs work in a high-stakes fast-paced environment while combining compassion, respect, and care for their patients and their families has been key for my development as a pre-veterinary student. While working 12-hour night shifts alongside my first-year studies in Bio-Medical Science during the pandemic, my colleagues have inspired and bolstered me with the same compassion, respect, and care that they show their clients. The shifts that I enjoy the most, despite the traumas we may encounter, are the ones where the staff demonstrate proficiency and expertise balanced with high regard for each other’s efforts. As a new employee, I made mistakes and had gaps in my knowledge, but the RVTs and DVMs who considered those to be teachable moments allowed me to move forward with new knowledge and feel like a valuable member of our team.​

Hey everyone!
​My name is Natalie Pridham and I am a 3rd year undergraduate student studying Animal Biology at the University of Guelph. Similar to many people in my program, I have had a lifelong dream of becoming a veterinarian.


My love for animals has been very strong for as long as I can remember. I grew up with cats in the house, always played with my neighbors’ dogs, and eventually got into horseback riding when I was 8 years old. Now, at 21 years of age, that love remains strong and passionate – which is what drives me to pursue a career in veterinary medicine. Animals have had a very positive impact on my life, and I would love to give back to them as much as possible.
This past summer, I was fortunate enough to work as a Veterinary Assistant at an incredible veterinary hospital. Working alongside some pretty awesome veterinarians solidified my decision to continue on the path to vet school. Every day, there was something new which always kept me on my toes, and I never stopped learning. Some days there would be a big litter of puppies in for their first vaccinations, some days there were multiple back-to-back surgeries, and some days were unfortunately on the tougher side. The months I got to spend there provided me with such valuable experience, and I will be forever grateful for that opportunity. The endless amounts of puppy kisses and kitten cuddles were OK too, I guess.

Due to COVID turning life completely upside down, there were certain safety protocols that had to be followed. This included curbside veterinary appointments – meaning only animals were allowed inside the clinic, while their owners waited in the parking lot. I was the one doing most of the patient intakes, which involved talking with the owners and getting a brief history on their pet. This is where I learned the importance of building a relationship with clients and gaining their trust. People started to recognize “oh hey, this is the same blonde girl as last time!”, and they took comfort in knowing that I was a familiar face to their animal (with a mask on, of course). It was really nice to build these relationships with the owners, and was one of my favorite aspects of this job.


I know there is this strange predisposed idea that you won’t have to deal with humans if you are in the veterinary field… but that is far from the truth. People LOVE their animals – they are like family. So, when it comes to veterinary medicine – where the patients can’t speak for themselves – their humans do the talking for them.

It is very scary to think that this time next year, I will be submitting my application to the Ontario Veterinary College. Before coming to university, everyone told me that the years would absolutely fly by – and they were 100% right. It feels like just yesterday that I failed one of my first-year finals. If you’re in first year and you’re reading this, just know that it will get easier!!! First year (and second year too, honestly) were fairly tough – I am not afraid to admit that I struggled, and it made me lose a bit of confidence in my ability to get the grades I need for vet school. But I don’t give up that easy… and neither should you. If vet school is something that you’re serious about and you want it bad enough, anything can be accomplished if you put your mind to it.
Thanks for reading, and best of luck with everything in the future!

Natalie Pridham
3rd Year Animal Biology Major
University of Guelph