Reviews of textbooks for Veterinary School (updated)

I wanted to up date this section some to also help out current vet students. Textbooks are expensive, so I wanted to put together some reviews of some books I have and recommend.  Please write a comment if you have any specific questions about a book. More reviews to come!

I thought I would write a brief review over some of the more helpful books that I have purchased over the course of veterinary school. These books are particularly helpful if your in vet school, but even if your not in vet school yet they are quite interesting. It's never to early to start studying, and if your working in a veterinary clinic these will help you understand the various treatments, drugs, diseases, or surgical procedures you see. I will add more books as I have the time. Also, all books come with free shipping, and when you order now you can even get a free trial of amazon prime, which is 2-day free shipping!

What is a veterinary consult?
Some books I listed have the option to be purchase with the veterinary consult feature, so I listed the normal book as well as the veterinary consult version. These books come with a CD and a code that lets you search the book on your computer. You can highlight sections, add study notes, and even search multiple books at once. A great tool for books that you reference a lot. They are more expensive, but is worth it for the time it could save you.


Pathologic Basis of Veterinary Disease
This book has just about everything you will ever need to know about veterinary pathology. The pictures and figures are very good, which is very important in pathology since many diagnosis is largely based on what it looks like. I once heard the author or publisher of this book wanted the pictures to look perfect, and even printed to book on special paper to make the photos look their best. Therefore, the book is quite large and heavy. But given all the helpful info inside, it’s worth it.




Medical Physiology
I have an older edition of this book, and it contains a lot of info and good pictures. It’s a helpful and often required book for those first physiology classes vet students have to take. Many student struggle in physiology so it’s good to have a resource you can rely on. Heck if you’re a real go getter, pick one up and start reading to get ready for your eventual vet school days. It’s never too early to start studying.




Dorland's Illustrated Medical Dictionary
This is a huge book, that can really come in handy. The name says it all, it clearly defines all the medical terms you’re bound to come in contact with while in school. It’s relatively cheap, so its worth picking up. Helps to understand other classes’ books or notes if they are written with lots of medical jargon.




Textbook of Veterinary Diagnostic Radiology
I really liked this book. Radiology is not an easy class. This book really helped clarify many confusing topics from class. A Must Buy




Plumb's Veterinary Drug Handbook
This book is a must for any and all vet students and professionals. Tells you dosage, uses, adverse effects of all the veterinary drugs. Great reference you will use for years. A Must Buy







Colour Atlas of Clinical Anatomy of the Dog and Cat - Softcover Version
I recently discovered this book, and wished I knew it existed long ago. Great for 1st year students getting into anatomy class. Has actual photos of the muscles, vessels, and nerves you will need to identify. Many dissection guides just have drawings that really don’t do much good. So, do yourself a favor and pick this up, I can almost guarantee all your classmates will want to borrow it.





Small Animal Internal Medicine
This is an excellent book. It covers the vast majority of medical problems faced by companion animals. It is very easy to read and filled with useful information. Arranged well, easy to find all the info that you’re looking for. A must buy

Textbook of Veterinary Internal Medicine 

This is an excellent book that I highly recommend to all students interested in small animal practice. This book has every detail on etiology, diagnosis, and  treatment for just about every medical problem that one may encounter in small animal medicine. Also, this is the book I see residents and clinicians refer to the most while on clinics.  This book is actually 2 books if that tells you how much information it contains. It is also for this reason I highly recommend getting the expert consult edition so you can get online access. Therefore, you can use it while on clinics or anywhere else you want without having to haul around the books. I probably refer to this book more than to any other during my final 2 years of vet school. Also, will be much used resource after graduation.  A must buy for anyone interested in small animal medicine. 

Differential Diagnosis in Small Animal Medicine

A great book for students in their 4^th year of veterinary school. This book has list of differential diagnosis based on physical exam findings, historical findings,  radiographic signs, biochemical abnormalities, and so forth. It’s the most complete and through differential diagnosis book I have seen and its  simple to use. I highly recommend this book for vet students in their 4th year. 

Choosing the Right Vet Schools to apply to

Where should I apply for vet school?

First things first, if you complete the curriculum at any accredited veterinary school, you will earn you DVM, you will be a veterinarian. I know it’s easy to get caught up in rankings, but in my opinion those are of little consequence. Having said that, don’t apply to all 28 veterinary schools and just pull a name out of a hat to see which one you will attend. Research and thought is needed when choosing what veterinary schools you should apply for. Here I think are some important factors:

Residency:
If you are a resident in a state that also has a veterinary school, I highly recommend you apply there. Residents are typically allotted more spots in each class and their tuition is less. Therefore, your chances are usually greatly improved and you save several thousand dollars a year in tuition over non-resident students. So, please do yourself a favor and apply to where you have residency.

Connections:
Say you have worked with a veterinarian that graduated and has connections to Cornell’s vet school. Obviously, it can help quite a bit if that veterinarian writes you a letter of recommendation for that school. Also, if you do your undergrad studies at a university that has a veterinary school, apply to it. The more people you know at the university you are applying to, or the more people a mentor of yours knows is a tremendous advantage.

Specialties:
So you’ve dreamed of being an equine veterinarian, then look around at schools that have lots of equine cases and veterinarian specialized in equine medicine. Although at all veterinary schools, you will learn how to treat all species of animals, some do have better facilities and faculty for certain areas of veterinary medicine.

That feeling:
Go visit any perspective veterinary schools. Do you like the staff, faculty, facilities, and current veterinary students? Every veterinary school may have it’s own “personality” pick one that fits yours. You will spend 4 years at this place, working harder than ever before. You want to be in a place you like.


At the end of the day, you just need to research the schools, as well as yourself. Determine what attributes are most important you, and find a school that fits that mold. Talk to alumni, visit the school, read up on their faculties and mission statement. All that being said, remember that a DVM is a DVM. I see a lot of student that are dead set on one school, and if they don’t get in there then the dream is over. While I hope that all of you apply and are accepted to your dream schools, I encourage you to keep an open mind to all options. The truth is every veterinary school is excellent and will train you to be great doctors.

How many schools should I apply for?

I admit that I am probably not qualified to answer this question, but I can give my opinion. I don’t think a student should apply to more than 3 schools. First, you need to research each school so you can impress that school with your knowledge in interviews and application. You want to show that each school is important, and this is the vet school for you because…. You don’t want to appear as someone that is just happy to get in just any place. Veterinary schools want quality students, students that want to be at their particular school. I mean it’s not unlike a guy trying to pick up a girl. If he hits on every girl in the room, he’s unlikely to get any of them. Also, applying to veterinary school can get expensive. Applications are expensive, and no sense spending thousands of dollars applying everywhere when your chances are best at only two or three.

What is Ross University?

Most people are familiar with the veterinary schools found in the US, but there are some options abroad as well. Ross is probably the most well known, that’s why I gave it a separate post. Read it here.

Where do Veterinary student come from?

So, while many readers may be college or high schools, there is a great number of veterinary school applicants that have very different backgrounds. The reason I say this is because many students really feel the need to compete with other prevet students they may be sharing classes with. It’s easy to start comparing grades with others at your college to try and gage your chances of getting into vet school. The truth is you are competing with a vast number of applicants, many of whom are not undergrad college students.

For example, I know of a former science teacher, military veteran, lawyers, medical doctors, veterinary technicians, students just completing their masters, and waitress that all applied and were accepted to veterinary school. Honestly, very few people in my class were students that I have ever met before.

My point here is that the pool of people applying to veterinary is large and diverse. Do not just assume that because your making better grades than most students at your college that your guaranteed a spot in vet school. Likewise, if you are a non-tradition student, a working adult, or whatever your situation you have a chance of getting into vet school.

Applying to Vet School: Letters of Recommendation

Letters of Recommendation

Letters of recommendation are a key component of your application. In my opinion, you will not be accepted to veterinary school without solid letters of recommendation. Although each school varies, many schools require 3 letters of recommendation. Sometimes, the school requires one letter be from a veterinarian, professor, or employer. Outside of the actual letter that is submitted, these people also mark a “grade sheet” of sorts that ranks you in terms of leadership, ability to work with animals, and communication among other things. So now who should you ask to write your letters and what can you do right now to “build” a solid letter of recommendation? I will try in give you these answers below:

Who should you ask?

Veterinarians- Often schools require that one letter be from a veterinarian, but this is a must even if it is not required. You want a veterinarian that has seen you work with animals, communicate with people, and had known you a long length of time. Again, depending on what the application requirements are, using more that one veterinarian is a good idea.

Professors/teachers- I would recommend a teacher that teaches a class involved with science, and a class that you have done well in. Also, you will want a teacher that you have actually worked or talked with outside of class. You want your letter to give the school more that you are a good student, but also attest to your communication, leadership, and integrity. Furthermore, it’s best to choose a college professor over a high school teacher.

Employers- These sources are good to verify your leadership, communication, dedication, integrity, and responsibility. Again, it’s best to use an employer you have worked with for a while and hold you in high regard.

Other- The three above would all make excellent choices for letters of recommendation. In case you need more letter or sources, the rules for choosing someone is fairly simple. You want a person (not family) that can prove you have the key traits to be a veterinarian. Its best to choose people that have known you a long time and can provide concrete details to show who you truly are.


What can you do now?

Start making strong relationships with people that hold the above positions. The longer and more complete these people know you, the better the letter of recommendation they can write. If your letters show that the person writing them has only known you 4 months, this will not carry the weight of a letter from a long time associate.

How I did it was easy and simple:

1) I started working a veterinary hospital in high school and during some college breaks I would return there to work. I built strong relationship with the owner and head veterinarian at the practice. Both of them wrote me letters of recommendation.

2) In college I did a summer internship with my advisor/professor. Not only did I work for her for a summer, but also visited with her outside of class at least once a semester. She wrote my other letter of recommendation.

So there you have it, 3 letters, one form a professor, veterinarian, and employer. Now go out there and meet with these people in your lives, I promise it will give a huge boost to your application.

Be sure to check out the basic attributes veterinary schools look for in their applicants. I’m talking more that just smart and animal-loving, but some other key attributes that schools believe all their students should posses. This can really help you write your personal statement, describe your past jobs and duties, and choose you letters of recommendation so that these attributes are highlighted.

Applying to Vet School: The Tests

I know many people have questions about some of the standardized test that you have to take to apply for veterinary school. So, I thought I would briefly go over each one, and tell you what I can about them. Don’t use this post as the sole source of your information as tests are always changing and my memory could be a bit foggy. Please consult the veterinary school you are applying to in order to determine which ones you have to take.

General GRE:
Really this test assesses all the basic knowledge: reading, writing, and arithmetic. The best way to prepare for the test is to buy some of the “GRE prep books” that are available at multiple book stores. Now, don’t let the size of the prep book or length of the test scare you too much. I really didn’t have time to study too much for it and I did well. Honestly, some for the material you may not have looked at for years, so it’s good to refresh before the test. Hopefully, this will jog your memory and it won’t be hard to pick it up again. That being said, it’s impossible to learn all the material the week before the test, so I hope you have been paying attention in school for the past 12-16 years. For the “essay” portion I highly recommend going to the GRE website and looking at samples and the tips they give you there. I’m not the best writer in the world ( I’m sure you have found multiple problems with spelling and grammar in my posts) , but looking at the site helped me do very well on this portion.




Biology GRE:
I’ll always remember this test because it just seemed to take forever. I remember being halfway through and being so bored I wanted to lay my head down and sleep. Luckily, the last half or so of the test is interpreting lab information which was a little easier. The first portion of the test is felt like they opened a biology textbook, randomly found a sentence, and wrote a question. The questions were pretty random, and some I really don’t ever remember learning in my schooling. It’s a tough test, but don’t be scared. When I took the test it was 200 multiple choice questions, you lost ¼ point for answering wrong, 0 points for not answering, and 1 point for a correct answer. Using that data we determined ( please don’t take the fallowing information as fact, as scoring rules my have changed) if you only get 84 questions correct, and left the rest blank you could score a 600, which was about the average for students accepted to vet school. The moral of the story is don’t worry to much, it’s a tough test and everyone struggles. The best way to prep for this test is again prep books designed for the Biology GRE. These are very helpful books, but remember the best way to be prepared is to play attention in all your science/biology classes you go though in high school and undergrad ( STUDY HARD). If you want a “subject” to really focus on I would recommend botany. Many pre-vet student don’t take much botany, and really struggle with this portion of the Biology GRE ( myself included).




Veterinary College Admission Test (VCAT):
I have never taken this test, and I think it is fairly rare for vet schools to require this test, but it could become more common. Therefore, I can only tell you basic information on it. It is 300 multiple-choice questions: 50 Biology, 50 Chemistry, 40 Reading, 40 Math, and 50 verbal questions.



My next post will cover a very important aspect of your application. This is again something anyone can work on, your letters of recommendation. Don’t forget about these, they can make or break your chances of being accepted to veterinary school.

Applying to Vet School: Key Attributes all Vet Students Need

So, now you have experience, the grades, gone through your undergrad classes, and are ready to start applying to Vet School. I think a good place to start the process is to think of how all these past work has shaped you and to point out all the skills, attributes, and talents you have gained.

I think these are key attributes that vet schools are looking for in future students, as well as eventual doctors. Now, don’t just flood your personal statement and application with these attributes falsely, but if a past experience warrants it, put down the skills and attributes you learned or acquired. Also, in your personal statement and interview mention ways in which you have shown these attributes. Also, if you’re currently looking for job, and want one that will help on your application, look for jobs that may allow you to grow in these areas. I put some commentary next to some, but I think you know why they are important.

Key attributes

Communication- You will hear time and time again that veterinarians (all doctors really) lack good communication skills. For veterinarians this is particularly important so you can describe illnesses and treatments to owners. Therefore, vet schools are really trying to teach and recruit good communicators to their schools

Leadership- You will be doctor, an expert in your field, and more than likely in charge of your clinic at some point. You need to have proven leadership abilities.

Intelligence- Pretty self explanatory. The academic load is heavy and they want students that will be successful students and veterinarians.

Good with animals- Again, pretty self explanatory.

Integrity- Schools don’t want cheaters or people that take short cuts. As veterinarians you will one day be in charge of controlled substances, animals lives, and the costs of treatments. Integrity is a must.

Responsibility- When in veterinary school you are responsible for yourself: keeping out of trouble and maintaining your grades. Not to mention the responsibilities you will have as a doctor.

Hard worker- you cannot “coast” your way through vet school. Lazy students are always the first ones out. Also, life as a veterinarian can be very physically demanding.

Understanding- Vet schools don’t just want animal loves. They want students that have seen, worked, and understand in real life veterinary medicine. They don’t want students that discover after their fist semester in vet school that they don’t really want to be veterinarians.

Experience- I know I've harped on this in past posts, but schools want ot know you have worked and seen real life veterinary medicine. As well as the valuable medical skills you have acquired.

Inquisitive- right now the world is looking for veterinarians that are interested in research and developing new drugs, prevent bioterrorism, and improve production. If you are interested in research and developing new ideas in veterinary medicine be sure to mention it in your application.

Patience- So animals do not always do what you want them to do. Clients don’t always show up on time. Mistakes are made. Are you able to handle all of this? Can you keep calm and level headed in stressful situations? A good veterinarian can.

Organized – A must for an eventual doctor. Medical records allow you to treat animals safely and effectively. Also, these records will be helpful if you are ever brought to court. Without organization of records, instruments, and staff your practice (and your vet school experience) will run twice as slowly with double the effort.

This is it for now, if I think of anymore I will post it.

Preparing for Vet school: Picking a major

First, I want to apologize for the lack of posts recently. I just finished a huge block of tests, and my computer has been broken. The good news is, both of theese problems have been resolved. I promise to try and keep thi blog updated. Thanks for reading!

What should I major in to get into Veterinary school?

Another common question that many pre-vet students have while in college. There are so many choices: biology, chemistry, animal science, zoology, biochemistry, and so on. This is simple question with a fairly simple answer: whatever major you like the most. I’m sure your screaming at you computer screen now, but let me explain this answer further before you decide that I am no help at all on this particular subject.

Should I major in biology? Zoology? Chemistry?

These are all perfectly good choices, but they are also not the only ones. A key fact to remember about preparing to vet school, is that no undergrad degree is required in order to apply and be accepted to vet school. All that is required of you is that you complete all the prerequisite classes in undergrad. Therefore, you could just remain an undecided major all though college and just take all the classes that your particular vet school requires. Of course, this is not typical, or recommended. This is important for students that want to major in something ‘non-science” such as art, recreation, sociology, or anything else you can think of. You can do this, the only catch is that many of your vet school prerequisites will not count toward those degrees. Thus making it harder and taking longer to earn your degree. I know of music, photography, and psychology majors just to name a few that were accepted to veterinary school.

What major would look best on a veterinary school application?

Honestly, I don’t know for sure, but heres my educated opinion. As I noted before, vet schools give credit to students who take challenging classes and heavy work loads. Therefore, it makes sense that a student majoring in “cell molecular biology” would be more attractive than a student majoring in “underwater basket weaving”. Again, I don’t think they look to closely on the little degree or major line on the application, but will put far more weight in the classes you have taken and grades earned on your transcript. Schools want students that proven they can excel in a challenging academic schedule.

So, should I just pick the hardest science related major?

No, no, no. Pick a major that you like. I have several reasons for this. First, you will do better and get better grades if you are involved with subjects you really enjoy and find interesting. Furthermore, although you may not want to hear this, not everyone goes to vet school. I’m not saying that you won’t get in due to academics, but I know many students that chose not to attend vet school after planning on it for years. You may decide you don’t want to study for 4 more years and be hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt. So, just in case this happens you need to have a degree that you can use and like.

Can I earn my undergrad degree in vet school? What are major with “pre-vet” options”?

I know that some schools offer a majors such as animal science with a pre vet option, this could mean different things depending on what school you attend so ask your advisor. That being said, its common that these majors with pre vet options are more geared to students interested in veterinary medicine and have you pre requisite classes built into the classes you need to earn that degree, and may offer special pre vet ordination classes to students with this major.

Also, yes some students can earn their undergraduate degree in vet school; this is typically easier when the student had a pre vet option in undergrad. Basically, let’s say after 3 years of undergrad you have taken all the classes necessary to apply to vet school, but still need 20 hours of upper division science classes to earn your undergraduate degree in biology. Then, if you are accepted to vet school the next year, your first 20 hours of classes in the vet school curriculum will count towards your undergrad degree as well. Therefore you will earn your undergrad degree after you first year of vet school. It can be a complicated process, so talk to your advisor at your school if you are interested.


What’s the bottom line?

Choose the major that you like. Now that’s easier said than done, but don’t pick it solely based on what one looks best on a vet school application. Personally, I can’t stand chemistry, so I stayed clear of majors that focused on that subject. I eventually found a major I really loved and it was great. At the end of the day there are far more important factors on your application outside of what your major was, so don’t sweat it too much.

Preparing for vet school: Where should I go to College?

Where should I go to college?

So this is an interesting question that many high school students have if they are considering going to veterinary school. There is not simple question, and there is really no simple answer. Personally, I believe that students should simply choose a college that they feel most comfortable with. How far do you want to live from home? Do you like the campus? How is their science department? Really prevet students should choose their college based on the same criteria as most other “non pre-vet students”.

Should I go to a college that also has a veterinary school?

Well, that would certainly seem to make sense. This is what I personally did, and I was accepted to the same veterinary school at which I did my undergrad work. It made the transition very easy and I got to visit and work at the vet school during my undergrad days, so the facilities weren’t completely foreign to me my first day of vet school.

However, I’m not convinced there is a real “advantage” as far as your chances of being accepted to veterinary school if you go this route. There are several reasons I say this. First, there are so many other, more important factors in your application other than where you did your undergrad studies such as grades, experience, personal statement, and classes taken. Secondly, when my class was introduced I was amazed on how many students went to college at other universities. I would guess that most students in my vet school class did their undergrad at universities other than the one where the vet school is.

It’s easy to think that your competing with mainly other pre-vet students at you university, but your not. I will go into further detail later on who you are actually competing with in a later post.

That being said there is defiantly no disadvantage to going to college the same place you want to go to vet school. Typically, it will be easier for you to get involved in pre-vet club and the veterinary school if your already near by. I just don’t want student thinking that they NEED to go to college at certain schools to get into vet school because this is certainly not the case.

So, now what?

Simply pick a quality university that you think you will love for the next four years. There are endless factors, but don’t let whether or not they have a vet school sway your decision to much. Just look for a college that has a strong science departments and the rest will fall into place. I’m sorry this is not the specific answer that many of you may like, but I think its the truth. College should be the best years of your life, enjoy them!