title: Teaching veterinary students using shelter animals.
abstract: Veterinary teaching hospitals (VTHs) are experiencing case-load trends that have negatively affected efforts to prepare students for entry-level veterinary practice, particularly in the area of technical skills training. This article examines the clinical training available to veterinary students through a variety of collaborative shelter models. Benefits and potential problems related to initiating a collaborative shelter clinical training program are reviewed. Collaborative efforts between animal shelters and veterinary schools can provide crucial opportunities for outreach teaching initiatives, particularly for teaching medical and surgical skills.
authors.affiliation: James.L.Voss Veterinary Teaching Hospital, Fort Collins, CO 80523, USA. dan.smeak@colostate.edu
authors.forename: Daniel D
authors.initials: DD
authors.lastname: Smeak
mesh_terms: D000827:Animal Welfare; D000818:Animals; D000829:Animals, Domestic; D000830:Animals, Laboratory; D002983:Clinical Competence; D003479:Curriculum; D004520:Education, Veterinary / Q000379:methods*; D006801:Humans; D010067:Ownership; D012582:Schools, Veterinary; D013522:Surgery, Veterinary / Q000193:education*; D013663:Teaching / Q000379:methods*