OSU’s Carlson College of Veterinary Medicine: Zoo, Wildlife, & Exotics club

Each year we partner with OSU’s Zoo, Wildlife, & Exotics Club to offer veterinary students a chance at experiencing hands-on vet skills based in wildlife medicine.

ZWE’s mission is to provide opportunities for veterinary students interested in zoo and/or wildlife medicine to gain knowledge and experience in this unique field outside of the veterinary curriculum. By scheduling speakers representing the diverse areas of zoo, aquarium and wildlife veterinary medicine and arranging field trips to local facilities dealing with these exotic animal species, the club members can pursue interests not fully explored in a traditional veterinary education.

We typically offer annual workshops for these students, however our event was cancelled in 2020 due to the pandemic.

This year, we were able to safely offer small group (<10 students per group) workshops on-site by hosting them outdoors. Our staff veterinarian, Dr. Claire Peterson (also an alumni of OSU’s vet school!) led the workshops that included avian wing wraps, subcutaneous fluid injections, and gavage therapy using deceased wildlife cadavers.