Onwards and westward! Following my time in Indiana, I ventured to West Point, Nebraska, for my next three-week rotation at Nebraska Vet Services (NVS). Although West Point is a small town of fewer than 3,500 people, its home county, Cuming, is home to over one million cows! 

NVS is a unique practice because it is the home of 12 veterinarians and three locations, with the main practice in West Point. They have a vast clientele base and, therefore, lots of different species to be seen! This practice mentors many interns to help them strengthen their veterinary skills, and it was an absolute pleasure working with all of them!

I began my internship observing embryo transfer in cows and goats while simultaneously observing laparoscopic embryo collection. These are intensive, specialized reproductive processes, and it was extremely cool that they occurred in the same building at the same time. 

Both processes require synchronization protocols that prep the reproductive organs to support a baby. The distinct difference is in how they are performed. During a transfer, cows receive an epidural while standing, and the embryo is transferred with a really small rod that enters the “natural way.” Goats, however, are significantly smaller with very lengthy cervixes, so they are placed under anesthesia before a veterinarian uses a laparoscope to isolate the reproductive tract through their bellies.

I really enjoyed observing and assisting in both reproductive procedures with each species. I even snapped some pictures of the goat embryos. 

As my week progressed, I helped the veterinarians with their dairy herd health checks. I palpated more than 100 cows, checking for pregnancies. I highly recommend adding this to your gym routine because your arm will in fact turn into Jell-O. 

I was excited to observe one dairy farm’s cow of choice: a three-breed hybrid with one being the Swedish Red. I had never seen this breed, and the ladies were lovely and very sociable. Between palpating and interacting with the cows, I got to ask dairy managers questions as well as brush up on my Spanish with the workers (though I am not nearly as fluent as my fellow From the Field correspondent Kate Bessette). 

I did not grow up in agriculture, so understanding the scope of operations in the dairy industry is really important to me. There are so many moving parts to consider when treating an individual animal in production, which is part of the reason I love the large animal industry so much. You must consider every piece of the puzzle before putting it all together! 

Although this is a cow-focused internship, I was presented with the opportunity to see some pigs — and I willingly obliged. One practitioner is researching whether a feed additive boosts the immunity of weaned piglets to a nasty virus that plagues the swine industry. It was really interesting to observe the project’s set-up, protocols and management and, of course, to hold the piglets as I helped vaccinate 2,100 of them! 

I also helped with the unfortunate case of a pet potbelly pig that suffered a rectal prolapse one week shy of her scheduled spay. She was the most cooperative patient (especially after a touch of isoflurane for anesthesia) as she got all stitched up to go home.   

Throughout my three weeks in Nebraska, I observed many beef feedlots and performed a few necropsies — animal autopsies — on cows. Isolating the animal’s cause of death through gross pathology or even sending off tissues to a diagnostic lab for further evaluation allows the veterinarian to devise a plan to shield other cows from the same fate, whether that’s adding a vaccine or recommending an antibiotic. 

The necropsies were fascinating because we had just learned pathology this past semester, and I also participated in NC State’s necropsy selective (shoutout to Dr. Liz Rose). 

A fun fact I learned from the beef world: Cows love water sprinklers, and it is a beautiful thing to watch their enjoyment. 

Next, I began my next trek to Deerfield in southwestern Kansas, where I was able to get to know fellow interns Lauren Erickson and Riley Thill from Iowa State College of Veterinary Medicine and Lauren St. Andrews from The Ohio State College of Veterinary Medicine. We stayed up every night exchanging stories about our experiences and our  regions, and during working hours, we participated in a research project with Kansas State graduate students focused on improving animal welfare practices when dehorning calves. I have loved the people I have met throughout this internship, but this week was especially great! 

Next stop, Wisconsin!! 

Dispatch 1: June 25, 2026

Similar to the great author James Herriot, I am working this summer with all creatures, great and small!

I fittingly began my jam-packed summer at Emerywood Veterinary Hospital, my hometown small-animal practice where I worked during high school and where my passion for animals was fostered by both the solo veterinarian and the wonderful staff. Frequently throughout college and vet school, I have returned to the High Point, North Carolina, hospital to help relieve workload and catch up with old friends (people and animals alike). 

The opportunity allowed me to apply my school knowledge to real-world small animals and to observe a spectrum of care. Oftentimes, financial limitations put gold standard veterinary medicine out of reach for some clients, and I have great respect for Dr. J. Michael Beck for assuring many that euthanasia was not their only alternative. I plan to practice rural medicine, so I was eager to learn about cost-reducing medical practices that provide animals with a good quality of life without depleting financial resources. 

Although I may not practice post-grad with dogs and cats, I enjoyed brushing up on clinical skills such as drawing blood, giving injections, safely restraining pets, assisting the doctor during surgeries and tweaking my baby voice to ensure the utmost positive experience for all patients. 

Next, after a 14-hour drive that exhausted all of my Spotify playlists, I arrived at the Kurtz Veterinary Clinic in lovely Hagerstown, Indiana, as part of my internship with Heritage Vet Partners. The group functions as a partner to rural veterinary clinics across 28 states, and I will be hopping around the Midwest working a few weeks at a time at several practices, with the ultimate goal of learning how to work better with cows!

The Kurtz Veterinary Clinic tends to a lot of clients with show animals, which could be chickens, cows, sheep, goats or pigs. The idea is to introduce youths to agriculture by having them groom and care for animals they plan to show at fairs or major shows across the country. Each animal has its own standards and regulations to make the experience unique. 

Certain breeds of each species are popular to show, and in Hagerstown, Indiana, that would be the shorthorn cow. A lot of my first day involved checking cows (hopefully) pregnant with shorthorn calves, observing embryo transfer from valuable shorthorn cows into recipient cows and observing the medical process that clears show calves to attend their shows. The community was very welcoming, and the veterinarians were eager to answer my questions about the show-animal industry.

The following day, I accompanied Dr. Kyle Becker, a dual veterinarian and businessman in Indiana, as he rode in style via feed truck to his appointments — while simultaneously dropping off feed to his hungry, hungry Holsteins! 

Later in the week, I commuted to Ohio to work with Cornerstone Veterinary Services, where I was introduced to another industry: calf raising. Many calves spend their earliest months in specialized facilities so producers can prioritize keeping them healthy and warm during one of the most vulnerable stages of their lives. A large number of producers are Amish, and thanks to working closely with their settlements, I got to try Amish cinnamon rolls. I highly recommend them.

At Cornerstone, I worked with Dr. Bruce Frederick to delve further into the complex world of cattle reproduction. In one day, I observed him place over 20 embryos into recipient cows on multiple farms! The ultimate highlight was being able to assist in pregnancy checking — a job performed via rectal palpation with an ultrasound or with a skilled, *gloved* hand! A main goal of mine this summer is to greatly improve my palpation skills!  

During the second week, I ventured farther north in Indiana to work with Calf Care and started with a research project in the “boots on the ground” department. Our goal was to pull calves in an aseptic manner, minimizing their exposure to as many germs as possible. In two days, our team of three delivered and cleaned 20 calves on dairy farms for the research trial, and I was able to learn a lot from Calf Care’s newly graduated veterinarian on employing proper techniques and using leverage to my advantage. 

Now, I have rotated through riding along with Calf Care’s veterinarians, observing herd health evaluations at many calf-raising operations! Luckily for me, one calf needed an umbilical hernia repair, and I was able to practice my suturing skills while closing the corrected hernia. 

All in all, it has been a great start to the summer, and I am looking forward to being licked by more cows!