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. 

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!