Offsite Electives

We are a General Practice that focuses on wellness.  We utilize scheduled exams with some drop-off opportunities to see clients and patients.  Each doctor has a dedicated day to perform surgeries and perform dental cleanings and oral surgery.  As an AAHA accredited hospital, we utilize RVT's according to the laws of Ohio.  Outside of wellness, we often see cases requiring diagnostics in-house and send-out.  We see many of our patients through chronic illnesses, such as diabetes, Addison's, Cardiomyopathy, and more.

This global engagement opportunity provided the student with structured, hands-on exposure to wildlife veterinary medicine within a real-world conservation and conflict-management context in India. Under the supervision of qualified wildlife veterinarians and rehabilitation professionals, the student participated in clinical assessments, treatment planning, triage support, post-operative care, and rehabilitation protocols across multiple wildlife species. The experience extended well beyond a conventional clinical externship by integrating veterinary decision-making with field realities such as human–wildlife conflict response, inter-agency coordination with the Forest Department, and ethical considerations in wildlife rescue and release.

In addition to the veterinary component, the programme offered deep cultural immersion. The student engaged directly with local communities, field teams, and government authorities, gaining insight into how ecological, social, and cultural factors influence wildlife management in a densely populated, biodiversity-rich region. Exposure to local languages, traditions, rural and urban interfaces, and community-based conservation challenges formed a core part of the learning experience. This integrated approach allowed the student to develop a global perspective on veterinary practice, conservation ethics, and cross-cultural collaboration that cannot be achieved through a standard clinical placement.

We are a small animal, general practice veterinary clinic providing comprehensive medical and surgical care. Our practice regularly performs orthopedic procedures several days each week and offers daily soft tissue surgeries and dental services. We actively collaborate with our local Humane Society and regional rescue organizations, providing medical and surgical support for special and situational cases.

Veterinary Student Rotation Experience at Our Urgent Care Hospital

During your rotation at our busy small-animal urgent care hospital, you will be immersed in a fast-paced clinical environment that treats a wide spectrum of canine and feline medical needs. Our goal is to provide you with hands-on learning, direct mentorship, and exposure to real-world cases that will strengthen your diagnostic, technical, and clinical decision-making skills.

General Wellness & Preventive Care

Although we are primarily an urgent care facility, you will also encounter routine but essential aspects of small-animal practice, including:

• Core and lifestyle-based vaccinations
• Heartworm, flea, and tick prevention counseling
• Routine wellness exams
• Basic dermatology and allergy management
• Ear infections and simple wound management
  These cases offer an excellent foundation for physical exam skills, client communication, and preventive medicine.

Common Urgent Care Cases

Our caseload is varied and unpredictable, giving you exposure to a wide range of non-critical but time-sensitive presentations such as:

• Vomiting and diarrhea workups
• Dehydration and electrolyte abnormalities
• Acute lameness or soft-tissue injuries
• Ear hematomas, and otitis externa
• Urinary tract infections and urinary obstruction evaluations (particularly in male cats)
• Tick borne diseases
• Canine/Feline Parvo
• Minor lacerations, bite wounds, and abscesses
  You’ll help formulate differential lists, develop diagnostic plans, interpret in-house lab work, and observe or assist with treatments such as fluid therapy, antiemetics, pain management, and minor procedures.

Emergency Medicine Exposure

Students will also encounter true emergencies—cases that require rapid triage, stabilization, and often advanced intervention. These may include:

• Hit-by-car/trauma patients (shock management, wound care, radiographic assessment)
• Respiratory distress cases (oxygen therapy, thoracocentesis exposure, stabilization techniques)
• Acute hemorrhage or anemia requiring blood transfusions
• Toxin exposures (induction of emesis, decontamination protocols, antidote administration)
• Acute abdominal crises
  You will observe and sometimes assist with emergency triage, critical monitoring, fluid resuscitation, and rapid diagnostics such as point-of-care ultrasound.

Surgical Experience
Our hospital performs a variety of urgent and emergency surgical procedures. Depending on case flow, you may observe or assist with:

• Foreign-body removals
• Emergency C-sections
• Pyometra surgery
• Splenectomy or mass removals
• Limb amputations for severe trauma or cancer
• Wound repairs, abscess drains, and laceration closures
  Students will see pre-operative stabilization, anesthesia protocols, surgical decision-making, postoperative care, and pain management.

Hands-On Opportunities
Based on comfort level and supervision, students may practice:

• Physical exams and history taking
• Venipuncture and catheter placement
• Basic suturing on noncritical cases
• Running in-house diagnostics (CBC, chemistry, urinalysis, cytology)
• Client communication during discharge or treatment discussions
  We emphasize confidence building, safe handling, and developing good clinical habits.

We schedule 1 student per service at a time so they can maximize the interaction with the clinician(s) they are assigned to.  Students should go into exam rooms with our clinicians to observe and are welcome to interact with clients as appropriate.  They are encouraged to listen to communications that are live and via phone for learning opportunities.  Students should practice physical examinations on patients. They should be prepared to generate problem lists for patients, recommend and analyze diagnostic tests and/ or procedures, and generate treatment plans.  Procedures will be observational or interactive for students, depending on what is being done, patient status, and student preparedness.  We encourage students to interact with and learn from all of our health care team.

Chippawa Animal Hospital is a companion animal hospital that is nestled in a small community of Niagara Falls, Ontario, Canada. We welcome students to immerse in a 1-week long rotation to learn all about general practice. We pride ourselves on high quality medicine, and compassionate patient care in a very friendly and supportive clinic environment. 

Our four-doctor small animal practice treats dogs, cats, and the occasional guinea pig or chicken. The student will shadow our veterinarians, engage in case discussions, and assist with treatments. With doctors from diverse schools and generations, the student will have the opportunity to experience a variety of techniques and approaches to veterinary care.

Experience with small animal, dog and cat, routine appointments, spay/neuters, imagine, dentistry with digital radiographs, emergency as they come in, blood collections, lab equipment tests, client communications and anything else that comes in that week. 

The student will spend one week immersed in a busy small-animal general practice, gaining exposure to the full spectrum of primary care medicine. As a non-specialty hospital, our caseload provides a strong foundation in practical, real-world veterinary practice. The extern will have the opportunity to observe and participate in:

Clinical Experience

• Outpatient appointments: Wellness care, vaccinations, preventive medicine, client education, dermatology, otitis, gastrointestinal and urinary concerns, senior pet care, and common acute presentations.
• Medical workups: Exposure to diagnostic reasoning, development of problem lists and differentials, interpretation of laboratory data, radiographs, cytology, and other in-house diagnostics.
• Surgical and dental procedures: Observation of routine surgeries (spay/neuter, mass removals, etc.), dental cleanings, extractions, anesthesia protocols, and perioperative patient management.

Technical Skills

Under appropriate supervision and as comfort level allows, the student may practice:

• History-taking and physical examinations
• Venipuncture and sample collection
• Basic cytology preparation and interpretation
• Catheter placement
• Anesthetic monitoring
• Client communication

Practice Operations

The extern will also gain insight into:

• Daily hospital workflow and case management
• Electronic medical record keeping
• Communication within the veterinary team
• Time management in general practice
• The role of technicians, assistants, and support staff in patient care

Learning Approach

The experience will be observational with hands-on participation encouraged based on the student’s skill level, interest, and school requirements. The student is welcome to ask questions, discuss cases, and participate in medical decision-making conversations throughout the week.

We are an exotic and small mammal hospital for general practice. We offer routine surgeries and can also perform certain emergency surgeries if needed. We do see same day urgency appointments but we don't hospitalize any patients overnight as we don't have any staff here to check on patients overnight.