Veterinary Quiz

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Aldo and Carson were due once again for their annual veterinary exams at The Raptor Center clinic. While Dr. Annette worked on the anesthetized birds, she quizzed a vet student observing the procedures. 

"If Aldo is healthy and weighs 104 grams, how much blood can I safely take for bloodwork?"

The student thought for a bit. "You can take 1% of body weight, right?" Dr. Annette nodded. "So that would be about 1 milliliter."

Dr. Annette prepped a needle and found a blood vessel in Aldo's neck. She pulled back on the syringe but his blood didn't flow as easily as she expected. He was likely a little dehydrated, which made sense because he hadn't eaten all day in preparation for this exam. We arrived home a few hours later and he got a tasty mouse. I'm sure that made him feel better about the stresses of the long day!

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