2009 in Review

January
January seems like it was so very long ago! I moved into my house and started the long list of projects needed to "finish" my humble abode. Furniture was delivered, linens washed and put away, bookshelves organized and groceries bought. About half-way through the month school started back up again and my house project list went on hold. My favorite part of my last semester of the CSN Vet Tech program was assisting in surgeries.

February...
...was CRAZY!!! The month started out with a trip to SLC for Esther's bridal shower. It was an awesome weekend with friends that I hadn't seen in quite some time. The Western Veterinary Conference annual conference was also in February. I takes a ton of time and effort to plan one of the largest veterinary conferences in North America. The last day of the conference I took a late flight to Denver for Esther's wedding. She was a beautiful bride and while the trip was short it was fun. I went to Colorado Springs to see Shannon and her new baby Travis while I was in Colorado. I rounded out the end of the month with a trip to St. George to assist Dr. Olsen with a knee surgery on a Yorkie. The trip was a blast and we stopped for our traditional Cafe Rio and Neilson's.

March
Gus (my horse) got really sick half-way through the month. At first we thought that he may have been bitten by a spider. The vet gave me everything I needed to treat him without having to move him to the clinic. Luckily, the weekend he got sick was right before my spring break. I spent my spring break taking four trips a day out to the barn to cold hose Gus's legs and walk him. He had a ton of edema in his legs, chest and abdomen. Keeping him moving was the only was to keep him from getting too swollen to move. After a week it was evident that Gus was not getting better and rather than a spider bite he had purpura hemorrhagica. He spent a week and a half at the vet clinic and another two months recovering fully. Luckily I had been doing my clinical hours for school at the equine clinic and was able to spend as much time as I wanted there with Gus. It is amazing that he even recovered.
April
One word: Piranha. I took on a foster puppy that had a patent ductus arteriosis (a heart condition). She came with the name Samantha and was quickly renamed Pirhana. She was a total spitfire that didn't want to be messed with. Her heart surgery went well and she has since found a wonderful home with an older couple. She rules the roost and has been renamed LuLu.May
Busy, busy, busy. Work was busy. Prepping for finals (and graduation!) was busy. But no matter how busy life was there was always time for a caffeine break with friends and classmates. I did not attend the CSN graduation ceremonies but I did attend our program's pinning ceremony and was extremely glad to be done with school for a little while. I was ready to be out in the world working and not worrying about exams... Then I started studying for the Veterinary Technician National Examination.

June
Gus went lame, probably a complication from his illness earlier in the year. He earned himself a three month vacation in pasture. Then...NEW TRUCK!!! I traded in the Jeep Liberty for a 2009 Ford F-150. I LOVE my truck! Toward the middle of the month I took the Veterinary Technician National Exam. Six weeks later I found out that I passed with an 87. I was really glad to find out that I had passed because I definitely could have studied better. At the end of the month I went on a family vacation to Encinitas, CA. The San Diego county fair was going on. Of course we went and I got to ride an elephant for the second year in a row. The rest of the trip was full of fun, sand, shopping and food.

July
Work, work, work. Not much fun.

August
Work, work, work again. I decided that I needed to find a new job. Many applications and inquiries later, I decided to go back to VCA Hualapai Animal Hospital. While I would like to work with horses, anything was better than working 10-13 days without a day off. My mom and I also bought a horse trailer in order to haul Gus and Jack (my mom's horse). We now go on a trail ride every Monday.
September
I adopted another dog. No more pets for Aubree, the inn is full! When we went to Lied Animal Shelter at the end of August to pick up dogs to spay, I found an unspayed female spaniel mix. She looks like a miniature English Springer Spaniel. For a spaniel, she is unbelievably mellow and even-keeled. As I was walking her to the van to take her back to Western Veterinary Conference, i noticed she was limping on her rear right leg. Turns out she had a non-union femur fracture (her femur had been broken and healed as two separate bones) and infection in both ears. I couldn't send her back to Lied (to be euthanized) so I decided to keep her. I named her Mary Jane and now she and Milly are inseparable. Her leg has been repaired, her ears are clear. Shortly after adopting her, I found out (through a series of small partial seizures) that she has atypical epilepsy. Even with all of her problems she is a GREAT dog. October
I'm pretty sure that October was relatively quiet. Work was good and I had the opportunity to help out with a couple of colic surgeries at Desert Pines Equine Medical and Surgical Center.

November
November was also relatively quiet. Thanksgiving was nice. We had dinner at my grandparents' new home. My cousin and her family came out and it was really nice to spend some time with them and their little girl. After dessert, my uncle and his kids came over. Better late than never I suppose. Overall it was a nice day with family and nice to have a break from work.

December
Christmas...as explained by a previous post. :-)