Internship - Rotating in small animal studies
Aim
The Internship programme provides an opportunity for qualified veterinarians to obtain high-quality, post-graduate training in a large range of small animal disciplines. The objectives of the Programme are to enhance participants’ clinical, diagnostic, problem-solving, communication, and technical skills, and to prepare the interns to advance to a Senior Clinical Training Programme and subsequent specialism should you wish or to head back into general practice with increased confidence to practice to a high standard of care.
Programme duration
12.5 months, subject to satisfactory completion of the initial 3-month monitoring period
Summary of programme
The programme will start with a short induction period to explain details of the clinical working practices in the Queen’s Veterinary School Hospital. Standard operating procedures, clinical responsibilities, and policy regarding when to seek assistance and from whom during each rotation will be covered during this period.
During the period of the Scholarship, the Interns will receive training in each of the specialist areas they rotate through; soft tissue surgery, orthopaedics, cardiology, internal medicine, neurology, oncology, diagnostic imaging, anaesthesia and clinical pathology. Interns will also be an integral part of the out-of-hours care of animals within the hospital especially within the intensive care unit and provide support for the Senior Clinical Training Scholars (SCTSs) and senior clinical members of staff. The Interns will have primary case responsibility for first opinion cases presented to the hospital from the RSCPA clinic and as emergencies. Responsibility for referral cases will be shared with SCTSs or senior clinical members of staff. As far as possible intern case responsibility (under supervision of the appropriate clinician) will extend from first consultation at the Hospital through all diagnostic procedures and treatments until the patient is discharged.
The Interns will be expected to actively participate in twice daily ward rounds, to take part in journal clubs and seminars associated with the rotation they are on, and to attend seminars, presentations and lectures that occur regularly in the hospital and wider department.
Each Intern is encouraged to take up a small research project during their scholarship, with the aim of preparing a manuscript for publication in a refereed journal. The manuscript will not be a requirement for completion of the programme, but it is considered to be of value and is thus encouraged. At the end of the scholarship, each intern will give a presentation to the staff of the Department on their research or on a case, case series that has attracted their special interest. Please see below a list of intern-produced publications from the last 5 years.
A certificate is awarded upon successful completion of the programme.
LIST OF RECENT INTERN PUBLICATIONS (intern in bold). Please note that this list is not exhaustive.
1.Preston A, Guy B, Casey NE, Freeman P, Dudley R. Appearance of subungual keratoacanthoma on computed tomography. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2025;e70094. https://doi.org/10.1002/vrc2.70094
2. Lord A, Russell O, McGregor O, Dudley R, Hare C, Skelly B. Brucella canis in two juvenile labrador retriever littermates with no known travel history. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2025; 13:e70001.
3. Peters HJ, Nix C, Owen L, Riggs J. Complete excision of the basihyoid bone in two dogs during surgical treatment of ectopic thyroid carcinoma. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2025; 13:e1106.
4. Cox SE, Wakeling J, Hall T, Williams TL. Survival of radioiodine treated hyperthyroid cats that are euthyroid and hypothyroid after treatment, and effect of levothyroxine supplementation on survival time of cats with iatrogenic hypothyroidism. J Vet Intern Med. 2025 Jan-Feb;39(1):e17295. doi: 10.1111/jvim.17295. PMID: 39831449; PMCID: PMC11744366
5. Phillips, K. and Freeman, P. (2025), Exercise Restriction Does Not Change Outcome in Dogs After Diagnosis of Acute Non-Compressive Nucleus Pulposus Extrusion, Fibrocartilaginous Embolism, or Hydrated Nucleus Pulposus Extrusion. J Vet Intern Med, 39: e70135. https://doi.org/10.1111/jvim.70135
6. Wynter ZR, Ruane E, Kortum AJ, Hare CHZ. Artifactually increased serum bicarbonate in a cat with rhabdomyolysis. Vet Clin Pathol. 2024 Sep;53(3):315-320. doi: 10.1111/vcp.13371. Epub 2024 Jun 14. PMID: 38872478.
7. Brady EC, Owen L, Wong H, Kortum A, Herrtage ME. Oesophageal adenocarcinoma presenting as a foreign body induced intrathoracic abscess in a dog. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2024; 12:e959. https://doi.org/10.1002/vrc2.959
8. Jones L, Lara AS, Peschard L, McGregor O, Skelly BJ. Polyarthritis associated with clinical Hepatozoon felis infection in a domestic cat. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2024; 12:e914. https://doi.org/10.1002/vrc2.914
9. Dos Santos, R.X., Waelkens, J., Crawford, A.H., Khan, S., Sami, S., Gomes, S.A., Van Ham, A., Van Soens, I., Cornelis, I., Canning, J., Fenn, J., Waters, P., Bhatti, S.F.M. and Vanhaesebrouck, A.E. (2025), Case Series of Canine Myasthenia Gravis: A Classification Approach With Consideration of Seronegative Dogs. J Vet Intern Med, 39: e70113. https://doi.org/10.1111/jvim.70113
10. Kingsbury E, Odatzoglou P, Peschard AL, Wong H, Elders R. Intracranial invasion of a mast cell tumour in a dog: A case report and review of the literature. Vet Med Sci. 2024 Mar;10(2):e1402. doi: 10.1002/vms3.1402. PMID: 38450948; PMCID: PMC10918976.
11. Russell, O.L., Johnson, D., Allan, F., Prior, C., O'Connell, E., Henry, P., Thompson, D., Fawsitt, J., Morales, C.G., Neale, V., Molina, I.S.G., Hall, H., Gostelow, R. and Kortum, A. (2025), Fungal Rhinosinusitis in Cats in the United Kingdom: 34 Cases (2013–2022). J Vet Intern Med, 39: e70076. https://doi.org/10.1111/jvim.70076
12. Fawsitt J, Russell O, Alexander A, Peschard AL, Wong H, Kortum A. Clinical remission of feline sino-nasal aspergillosis despite evidence of persistent infection. JFMS Open Rep. 2023 Oct 3;9(2):20551169231201605. doi: 10.1177/20551169231201605. PMID: 37799297; PMCID: PMC10548797.
12. Coelho M, Peschard A-L, Owen L. Imaging characteristics of multiple unusual urogenital abnormalities in an incontinent dog. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2023; 11:e696. https://doi.org/10.1002/vrc2.696
13. Economu L, McGregor O, Constantino-Casas F, Owen L. Urinary incontinence in a male dog with an ectopic ureterocoele remnant associated with ipsilateral renal agenesis and cryptorchidism. Vet Rec Case Rep. 2024; 12:e856. https://doi.org/10.1002/vrc2.856
14. Prodger A, Khan S, Harris G. Prevalence of structural and idiopathic epilepsy in brachycephalic and non-brachycephalic dogs in the context of the International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force guidelines. J Small Anim Pract. 2025 Mar 25. doi: 10.1111/jsap.13857. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 40133051.
15. Broadbridge C, Williams TL. Evaluation of haem dipstick pad, urine protein, urine pH and urine protein:creatinine ratio results as a marker of bacteriuria in dogs and cats with inactive urine sediment. J Small Anim Pract. 2023 Aug;64(8):493-498. doi: 10.1111/jsap.13618. Epub 2023 Apr 30. PMID: 37122145.
16. Mahon EK, Williams TL, Alves L. Serum C-reactive protein concentrations in dogs with structural and idiopathic epilepsy. Vet Rec. 2023 Dec 16;193(12):e3211. doi: 10.1002/vetr.3211. Epub 2023 Jul 28. PMID: 37503700.