Adventures and Impact of Volunteering in Rural Areas

We are excited to share Bailey McKenna’s experience below, funded by Charlie’s Angels fund.

I travelled to the Colville Confederated Tribes in Washington state to provide free veterinary care with Rural Area Veterinary Services (RAVS). During my week-long trip, we provided veterinary care to 185 surgical patients and 146 wellness patients.

I learned an extraordinary amount by participating in this high quality high volume spay/neuter clinic. This was the most involved experience I have yet had with surgery. I learned and utilized calculations such as those used for administering trazodone as a part of surgical pre-medication, and fluid rates for maintenance fluid during surgical procedures. I also received hands-on surgery and monitoring experience earlier than is possible with veterinary school curriculum, which will prepare me for when it arrives in my schooling. One of the most inspirational components of my learning journey that I could not have received at OSU was the training and experience I received in field medicine. RAVS practices such high quality medicine in an extremely organized and meticulous fashion – while providing services in parking lots, community center gymnasiums, and whatever environment is available based on the community. I learned through that a highly trained and organized team of professionals can provide exceptional care nearly anywhere, and these lessons can even greatly improve care provided in a traditional clinic or hospital setting.

During my RAVS trip I also interacted with so many people of different cultures who I had never interacted with before. The primary clientele was Indigenous people from the Colville Confederated Tribes reservation, while volunteers came from all across the USA. I was exposed to many different cultures and learned how all sorts of people interact with their pets.

Vaccines were provided to all animals healthy enough to receive them, helping to protect animals and their owners from zoonotic diseases. Spaying and neutering pets also helps contribute to lowering stray populations and eliminating issues such as pyometras and canine transmissible venereal tumors (TVTs).

Through the funds provided by the Global Engagement scholarship, I was able to fly to a rural area of the United States and provide free veterinary care with RAVS to indigenous and in-need populations. This taught me invaluable lessons on field medicine, provided me with exceptional hands-on surgical and wellness experience, and exposed me to a variety of new cultures and peoples. This experience truly changed my life.