Veterinary Ramblings

Our first ever guest on the show, Graeme Eckford, is back this week! We've come a long way since episode one but join us for a more boozy, relaxed ramblings as we discuss cats stuck in sofas, whiskey auctions and Mikes homemade gin during our gin tasting session. Graeme also does an unusual 60-Second CPD about the benefits of porridge.

Check out our first episode, 'Whisky and COVID with Dr Graeme Eckford' to see more from our man up north.

Join us as we sit down with Laura Higham,  a veterinary consultant in sustainable livestock production at the Food Animal Initiative (FAI) and one of the directors at Vet Sustain. She is also studying for a PhD in antimicrobial use in agriculture at The Global Academy for Agriculture and Food Security at Edinburgh University and holds an MSc in international animal health.

We discuss regenerative agriculture, the difference between consumers and citizens, One Health and how we can all do our bit, both on a personal and professional level, to make our planet better for future generations!

This week we're chatting to Dr Martin Brice about lion dentistry, working in the UK & South Africa, his time on television plus so much more!

'Martin qualified as a Veterinary Surgeon in June 1995 at Onderstepoort University, Pretoria, South Africa. Once qualified, he left South Africa to gain experience working in England and worked in Shropshire as a large/small animal vet.

A year later he returned to South Africa to manage a large small animal practice in Johannesburg where he also helped manage an emergency veterinary clinic. In 1998 he worked in ParaPara Umu, New Zealand in a single man small animal clinic. Here he developed his skills as a single practitioner and decided to specialise in small animal medicine. Since then he returned to the UK where he began his specialisation in Canine and Feline Internal Medicine. He is now continuing to develop that interest and his interest in dentistry, which he is now an RCVS Advanced Practitioner in.'

Veterinary Ramblings is back & this week we’re kicking off the season with Dr Robin Hargreaves, Director & Vet Surgeon at Stanley House Vets. We discuss the history of his practice which has offered out of hours services for over 100 years! We also share lots of anecdotes & life lessons for vets new & old regarding mentorship, euthanasia and learning from mistakes.

 Robin is a past president of the British Veterinary Association, The Lancashire Veterinary Association and a life member of the Veterinary Benevolent Fund (VBF). He has an interest in all aspect of general first opinion practice and loves to dabble with photography in his spare time! 

Lastly, a special mention to a foundation that Robin has helped raise a lot of money for -  https://www.myname5doddie.co.uk/ - a foundation which helps sufferers of Motor Neuron Disease seek ways to further research into this, as yet, incurable disease. For more info please check out their website.

We would love for you to join us for our podcast Veterinary Ramblings. Veterinary Ramblings is an 'after-hours' podcast for veterinary professionals and animal lovers. 

In our show, we interview veterinary & medical professionals who share their funniest, rudest and most inspirational stories. In our later shows, we have a great feature called 60-Second CPD in which our guest shares some expert knowledge in a field of their choice in, you guessed it, 60 seconds! 

So, if this sounds like your cup of tea,  or gin, follow us on your favourite podcast platform or join us over on Facebook and YouTube for the video version of our show. 

Enjoy the show! And may your dog go with you. 

This week we sit down with Dr Will & Dr Tara from Animal Doctors International. Join us as we learn about the trials and tribulations of working life in Vietnam and Laos. They do a lot of fantastic work, both teaching and providing veterinary medicine to their unusual customers including walk-in tigers and pangolins! Don't miss out on this weeks 60-Second CPD called 'Stop That Elephant!' 

www.theanimaldoctors.org 

'Situated in both the heart of Ho Chi Minh City and Vientiane, Animal Doctors International strives to offer the very highest levels of compassionate, competent and professional veterinary medicine and surgery to all pets in Vietnam and Laos.'

We sit down and unmask the mighty organ that is The Raptured Spleen!

The Raptured Spleen is a satirical Facebook page loved by veterinary professionals and the Splenic Masses worldwide! Meet the mind behind your favourite spleenos including Practice Wondermum, Boomer Vet and old Mrs Parker. We discuss humour in the workplace, cancel culture and the part played by The Raptured Spleen in sticking up for cheeky students!

https://www.facebook.com/TheRapturedSpleen/

‘If you pop by for a laugh, you accept sometimes you'll be other side of the joke too, and that's OK. Any troubles, send us a message, no virtue signalling. Vet World is funny place, lets laugh together and look out for each other’

 This week our ramblings are not of a veterinary nature as we are sitting down with the awe-inspiring Marny Cringle to hear about her incredible story of surviving and thriving against the odds. We also discuss her success in wheelchair tennis, her love of playing the violin, our experiences with Australian wildlife and much more!

'Marny Cringle was living the dream. At 26 she was travelling the world, making a living as a registered nurse in London and playing the violin for the Fulham Symphony Orchestra. She was fit and active, playing tennis, running and swimming. On the first of December 1996 things changed completely. On a typical Sunday evening in London Marny waited with a friend on an underground station platform, just like thousands of people do every evening. A tube train sped past the platform and in a split second Marny was under the train and being dragged along. Marny’s leg was torn off, her head was smashed like an eggshell, her eyes had popped out of their sockets, five discs in her back were broken, part of her brain was missing (and what was left was partially exposed), and both of her lungs had collapsed and were filled with blood. These are just some of Marny’s injuries. Having been working as a trauma nurse, Marny was now in a trauma ward. Unconscious, and with virtually no chance of survival, today Marny is living a new dream. She is living an independent life, working again as a registered nurse and walking on two legs – albeit one of them is a bionic leg.'
https://www.marnycringle.com.au/about-marny/

This week we sit down with Dr Adrian Ward who is a Veterinary and Professional Regulation Consultant. 

We discuss his work within Veterinary, Accountancy, Nursing & Midwifery committees including how they work and why they are important for both clients and practitioners. As a former trustee of the Bella Moss Foundation, Adrian also explains responsible antimicrobial use and does a great 60-Second CPD with some top tips for general practitioners regarding antimicrobial resistance & flea treatment. Last but not least, it wouldn't be an episode of Veterinary Ramblings if we didn't discuss various alcoholic beverages and the experiences we've had under the influence! 

'Adrian graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 1996 and spent several years working as a small animal vet in the south of England. After leaving general practice in 2011, he worked for a pharmaceutical company as a Veterinary Advisor and developed an interest in the development of antimicrobial resistance and the strategies that can be used to slow this process.

In 2014 Adrian returned to small animal practice as a locum and began work as a Case Examiner for the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons in their professional conduct department, later being appointed as a Chair (Fitness to Practice Panel) for the Nursing and Midwifery Council in 2017. He also works as a Lay Member for the Institute of Chartered Accountants in England and Wales.'

What's better than one fantastic guest? Having two!

Join us this week when we sit down with Dr Neil Smith & Dr Molly Varga-Smith for our first-ever double interview!

We discuss Neil's military career, including his time tackling the Ebola crisis in 2015 as well as working with horses during parades! We also chat about Molly's experience training for the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination (NAVLE) and qualifying as a yoga teacher.

They introduce us to some of their fascinating pets, including Archie the hilarious Parrot and both Neil & Molly do a cracking job of tackling the 60-Second CPD Challenge! This week we were lucky enough to get two, one all about CPD and the other about using transferable skills whilst working with unfamiliar animals!

Neil graduated from the RVC in 1989 and was with the Royal Army Veterinary Corps until he retired from the Corps in October 2019. He has experienced many aspects of the profession including small animal, equine and meat inspection. He has also worked with Central Government Departments, both during FMD 2001 and was part of the UK team tackling Ebola in Sierra Leone in 2015. Currently, he works in Government Veterinary services and has formerly held the post of Queen's Honorary Veterinary Surgeon.

Molly graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 1992. After graduation, she spent the next 4 years working in small animal and exotic medicine in Canada. These varied experiences included working in multicentre urban practice in Toronto and a small exotics practice in rural Ontario. Her caseload included a lot of native wildlife such as raccoons, skunks and red-tailed hawks. After returning to the UK in 1996 she has worked in both London and the North West. Molly gained her Certificate in Zoological Medicine in 2001 and her Diploma in Zoological Medicine (Mammalian) in 2007. Molly now heads the exciting new specialist exotic pets service at Rutland House Referral Hospital in St Helens, Merseyside.