Tianna Winters

Craig Road Animal Hospital’s very own Marketing Manager Tianna Winters shadowed Dr. Shane Murphy during one of his shifts to get a feel of how the hospital runs and its culture. Below is the final addition of her personal account of what it’s like to be a veterinarian in North West Las Vegas.

You can catch up here for the first article or here for the second!

7:15 p.m. I meet Dr. Murphy in the doctor’s office where he is able to sit down for the first time. He takes one bite of his sandwich before being called to another room. It’s another vaccine exam for a very playful bulldog puppy.

7:45 p.m. – The new bulldog owners are full of questions and Dr. Murphy answers them all. They apologize for keeping him. “You’re already the best kind of puppy parents because you have questions, ask away,” Dr. Murphy says.

8:00 p.m. – Dr. Murphy takes a few more bites of his sandwich (apparently finishing an entire snack is very rare) while researching some possible reasons for the cat’s lethargy. Two of the other doctors huddle around him, sharing their thoughts. Theories range anywhere from anemia to constipation. Dr. Murphy will have to wait until the test results are back to be able to narrow down a potential diagnosis. Another emergency is brought in and Dr. Murphy walks out of the office.

Dr. Murphy having a moment with a new patient!

8:05 p.m. – The emergency is a tiny pup that had been involved in a dogfight. This time it’s a long-haired Chihuahua weighing in at four pounds. He’s shaking, but still manages to kiss anyone he comes in contact with. Dr. Murphy checks everything. His eyes, ears, chest, legs, and stomach. He listens to his heart and lungs. And X-rays are taken.

9:15 p.m. Dr. Murphy discusses the extent of the injuries and care options with the family. One of his eyes is going to have to be removed. The dog has a few punctures around his torso and will have to have a tooth extracted but other than that, it looks like he’ll be okay.

9:50 p.m. The Chihuahua is prepped for surgery and given anesthesia. After the dog goes under, Dr. Murphy scrubs in to perform the eye enucleation (removal). He also cleans and stiches the Chihuahua’s puncture wounds and extracts damaged tooth.

11:15 p.m. Dr. Murphy is done with another successful surgery. He calls the parents and says that they can pick up their pup in the morning and that he is doing well, though he is a little drowsy.

Dr. Murphy sits down for a few minutes and checks his voicemail. He then gets back up to take a walk through the patient ward to see how everyone is doing.

The hospital technically closes at 10 p.m. but the doctors are on-call for emergencies 24 hours, seven days a week, 365 days a year. I didn’t stay past the surgery but I do know that two more emergencies were brought in after midnight.

Following Dr. Murphy was everything I thought it would be and so much more. Yes there were a lot of cute puppies to play with, but there was a lot of science, compassion, and care. From the slides to surgeries to research, no wonder they go to school for so long!