Surgery lab practice.
Lab animal : pig

7.30 AM : briefed lab procedure and prepared for everything
8.30 AM : pigs arrived
10 AM. : successfully anesthetized the piglet.
10 AM : I was the surgeon/assistant. Gastrotomy was performed.
11 AM : I pulled the stomach too hard, and stimulated Vagus nerve, causing the heart to slow. The pig was going into shock, but was successfully resuscitated by our professor, Atropine was used. He came back to life.
1.30 PM : Finished gastrotomy. I had lunch, while another group continues to perform intestinal anastomosis.
2 PM : I came back and be the nurse.
4 PM : change group, I became the anesthetist. Start performing cystotomy.
4.30 PM : Cystotomy isn't finished yet, but It's time to put the pig to sleep. anesthetic gas was set to maximum.
5.30 PM : The pig was still alive. Oxygen flow rate was set to maximum to improve the gas flow.
6 PM : Ran out of gas, but the pig was still alive. 10 cc. Propofol was given IV. (a kind of anesthetic drug)
6.30 PM : .....still alive. 10 cc. more of Propofol was given.
7 PM : successfully euthanized the pig with 10 cc. more of Propofol.
7.30 PM : the carcass was taken care of. The surgery site was taken care of, I headed home.


He was a fighter. I pleaded on his pale sleeping body so many times that please...just go already. staying alive will only bring more torture to himself and to us all. Some students won't touch anything when we were trying to put him to sleep, saying that he/she won't have anything to do with killing the animal.

I was the one who prepared the propofol for him.

Killing is forbidden in Buddhist teachings, but this is our responsibility. Not doing the unpleasant parts of the procedure is just disrespectful to the animal. The animal that we all consider our "teacher" as well. All of us students did stroked the blade on him, we all did learn from him. we should be respectful to the very end.