Blogs from the Field
A healthy future for wildlife, people, and planet.
December 12, 2024
This past summer, I had the opportunity to travel to Jekyll Island, Georgia, where I served as a veterinary student extern at the Georgia Sea Turtle Center (GSTC). As part of the Jekyll Island Authority, GSTC provides rehabilitation, education, and research programs focused on conserving local wildlife and their habitats....
August 23, 2024
I grab a pair of gloves from the hospital and walk out into the tank area. I am not sure why I put gloves on - 90% of the time they get soaked anyway. As I approach the tank, the other veterinary extern heads into the storage area to grab a net. Turns out there is no need....
February 09, 2024
This summer, I embarked on an unforgettable journey into the heart of aquatic veterinary medicine with Dr. Tim Miller-Morgan at the Hatfield Marine Science Center (HMSC) in Newport, Oregon. The center is Oregon State University’s coastal campus, also serving as a marine science laboratory and an oceanographic research base for six state and federal agencies....
November 08, 2023
For my last summer before clinical rotations, I wanted to gain experience with marine animals. I was accepted as an intern with the International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) Marine Mammal Rescue & Research (MMRR) program in Cape Cod, Massachusetts, a unique geographical area where tides and coastlines can suddenly trap a dolphin or whale in inches of water....
October 25, 2023
I started veterinary school with the goal of working with stingrays, dolphins, and fish. Now, four years later, I can say I have worked at some of the top aquariums and other aquatic facilities in the country and connected with colleagues who are leading this field.
October 11, 2023
We strap on our snorkel gear and jump into the blue. It only takes a few butterfly kicks to reach a citadel bustling with life. Within seconds, we are greeted by branching, massive, and laminar structures formed by hundreds of genetically identical individuals....
September 08, 2020
by
Rodman Getchell
Mostly stuck at home like the rest of you, I cannot get the constant talk about testing and tracing out of my head during this COVID-19 pandemic. New York Governor Andrew Cuomo’s voice is ever present, and I welcome his daily, even-tempered and pragmatic broadcasts about how to keep us safe. Given my line of work, I easily saw some analogies, and I said to my work-at-home spouse on one of our daily walks, “Fish farmers have to deal with epidemics, too.”
March 19, 2018
by
Rodman Getchell
I don’t usually think of myself as a detective. I tell folks that we at the Aquatic Animal Health Program investigate fish kills for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation (DEC)....