Guest turtle Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 alright, this may be a really ridiculous question (and i really had no idea which forum to put it in) but it's one that's been on my mind for a while... Do any of you current med students out there have pets? particularly dogs (who require more time to feed/walk/play with etc. than do cats/bunnies/hamsters/fish/birds/turtles...i'll stop there) I have a 2 1/2 year old rottweiler-hound cross whom I absolutely love (yes, i'm a proud parent!) and have no intention at all of ever giving up, but i am worried about having time to care for him while in med school (assuming i get in!). not to mention the hassle of finding a place to live where i'll be allowed to keep him and hopefully a roomate happy enough to share the house with a 70 lb rottie who likes to pretend he's a lap-dog. anyway, i suppose i'm not too worried about it as i will find some way to work it all out....but stories about people and their pets could make for a nice happy (procrastination-friendly) forum topic... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest aneliz Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Tmax has a pretty cool turtle named 'Spot'....he even manages to find time to clean out his tank every few weeks....when the water is so sludgy you wonder a) is there even a turtle in there? and is it still alive? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest drews97 Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 There's a farily attractive girl in our class with a dog, and I know there are several others who also have pets. Gives you a good excuse to take study breaks/get out of awkward social situations...."I have to let Rover out". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest turtle Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 aww, poor Spot! as far as getting out of awkward social situations, i don't think i've ever used that one!! (though i'll definitely keep it in mind). it can also work the other way around though too... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest kosmo14 Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Why is there a perception that all med students do is study? There is a lot more to med school than just school and books. We do have lives, and if you don't you are missing out on potentially 7-9years of your life. The key is balance. There is lots of time for fun ec's, friends, family, pets if you use your time wisely. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jmh2005 Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 I totally 2nd Kosmo...medicine is important, but you will still have a life outside of it (if you don't...then worry)...and if you want to make time for a dog, you will!! I have a smooth (red) mini Daschund (aka...wiener dog) who is my pride and joy!! He doesn't require a tonne of walking, but he loves to cuddle, sleep under the covers, sit on my lap (of course when I have to read heavy books, which can make studying difficult) and is so excited to see me after 30 hours of call!! I do have a husband who helps out with my hound, so I don't do it alone...you'll need to have a dog sitter on your on-call nights if you live alone, but I'm more than sure you'd manage, friends who are dog lovers are great for that! Best of luck with invites and interviews Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest turtle Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 i definitely think med students have more to do than study!! i guess the comment was more aimed at the fact that the daily schedule at med school just seems much more full than anything else i've ever done. i'm in grad school right now & therefore have tons of time to come home in the middle of the day to walk my dog, etc. like jmh, my biggest worry would be having him be alone all the time during clerkship, but a dog-walker is a good idea. (as is not being single by then ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Hi there, Nope, they tend not to be as demanding as dogs, but I've a pair of boyz: my two Siamese cats--Stopit and Getoff. Our family had always been dog lovers and I was the first one to introduce felines. In short, they're a fabulous diversion. Often, it's refreshing to take a wee break from the books or computer to throw fake mice and help the dudes expend some energy. In a compu-break, I even taught them both to "shake a paw". They can get just as much out of your study breaks as you and they can often add a welcome degree of randomness to life. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest turtle Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Stopit and Getoff....those are the greatest names I have ever heard!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Kirsteen Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Hey there turtle, I'm glad you enjoy. Believe me, they've lived up to their names. Cheers, Kirsteen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TimmyMax Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Hey, Spot's water wouldn't get so sludgy if a certain collection of roommates wouldn't keep feeding him every two seconds- if there are uneaten food sticks in his tank, that means that he isn't hungry! Those foodsticks foul up his water faster than anything else known to man. Spot has a voracious appetite and is a social butterfly, but even he has his limits! Timmy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest turtle Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 haha....a little defensive there, are you Timmy? :lol I thought that us dog & cat lovers were bad...it's good to see that even turtles get spoiled... turtle (how appropriate) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest drews97 Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 In fact, most of the time it's trying to find time to study that's the challenge since there is so much else that's going on...trust me, unless you want to get top in your class you WILL have free time!! Most weeks we have 2-3 entire afternoons off...even the most dedicated of us don't study all the time!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest JAMIRA Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Hey there Although I'm not (yet) a med student, I just have to say that not only are pets a great way to relieve stress and get some exercise ( I often spend more time trying to get my socks back from my dogs than I do exercising intentionally), but they are also a great study aid. You know how sometimes the best way to learn is to teach someone else? Well, during my undergrad years, my dogs listened attentively as I explained everything from DNA transcription to the principal areas of the cerebral cortex! I'm telling ya, if only they could speak (english, that is) those dogs would be geniuses :rollin I'd say pets are a definite asset to any student! ~Jamira Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TimmyMax Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 Hey, Of course I'm a little defensive about Spot- he kicks ass and he's a great companion for watching TV with in our house. Seeing as how I have time to post here, I may as well clean out his tank and let him out for a bit of a run. Although he does have an annoying habit of heading straight for the stairs whenever I let him out of his tank. He's deceptively fast for a wee turtle... Timmy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest turtle Posted February 11, 2004 Report Share Posted February 11, 2004 aww, how cute.........have fun! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mying Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 If you believe animals give back as much as you give them, you can make anything happen. For my first two years of medical school, I lived alone with my border collie, rat, and zebra finches. Walking that dog along the Thames River every evening was the most important ritual of my day. Now I'm in third year and I'm living with my border collie, zebra finches, quaker parrot, 2 fuzzy grey kittens, and a husband. It's sort of a self-regulating ecosystem. The parrot scolds the dog, the dog herds the kittens, the kittens make sure the finches never leave their cage, I feed and water the finches, and the husband feeds me. It all works out. For now, however, the saddle on our bannister must remain horseless. That would be one animal too many. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest marbledust Posted February 12, 2004 Report Share Posted February 12, 2004 Mying you sound like a kindered spirit My household consists of 2 Maine Coon cats, a bunny who has moved in with us while its human is working in Europe, my partner (he would kill me for putting him after the cats and the bunny) and his enormous Samoyed who eats us out of house and home, plus three tanks full of fish. I couldn't imagine our lives without any of them. Animals are truly good for the soul. We managed to put up and enjoy this mayhem while my partner was in med school and residency. It was a bit of a concern if everybody would get enough attention and exercise once I started school in August. But as others have mentioned, medicine and studying don't need to consume your life and all your time. Besides our pets we also have time (albeit not much) for other interests and activities. I would go crazy if I didn't. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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