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ABVP Handbook

Study & Reading Guide

Examination Blueprint

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Feline Practice Study & Reading Guide

In order to help you create an efficient and productive learning experience and prepare for the certification examinations, the following study and reading guide has been prepared. Also, be sure to review the general study recommendations for all ABVP Practice Categories.

Several sources are recommended for thorough studying.

The Cat: Diseases and Clinical Management, Sherding, 2nd edition, (is a good basic reference as it is fairly comprehensive; however, being published in 1994 it does not cover current information in many areas.)

Consultations in Feline Internal Medicine, August, WB Saunders, volumes 3-4

Journals (articles from the past 3 years):

Compendium on Continuing Education

Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association

Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine

Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery

Texts:

Additional texts in specific areas to supplement the information not available in the above or to cover areas in which the applicant may be deficient may also be helpful. Some examples are:

Veterinary Clinics of North America, Small Animal Practice, Saunders (Past 3 years only)

Clinical Behavioral Medicine for Small Animals, Overall, Mosby Year Book, 1997

Small Animal Surgery, Fossum, Mosby Year Book, 1997 (or other surgery text)

Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat, Greene, Saunders

Feline Infectious Diseases, Pederson

Plumbs Veterinary Drug Handbook, or other pharmacology reference, 4th Edition

Fundamentals of Veterinary Ophthalmalogy, Slatter, Saunders

Veterinary Ophthalmology, Gelatt, Veterinary Learning Systems

Feline Oncology, Ogilvie and Moore, VLS 2001

ABVP Feline Practice Category Examination

This information is put together in an attempt to reduce the inevitable stress that comes with exam taking - especially for one of such magnitude! It's always helpful to have a "feel" for what the exam is like and without giving answers to questions, we can give you a bit of information on the process.

You will receive information in the mail prior to the exam. This will include a card with your identification number printed on it. Please make certain to have this card with you - you will need to put this number on all your exams and exam booklets for identification.

The exam consists of two parts - the Specialty and Practical. The exam is given over a two day period. The Specialty Exam consists of 300 multiple choice questions administered in 2 sections of 150 questions each. Each section is over a four hour period. If you have been away from this type of exam question for a while, you should practice reading and answering multiple choice questions prior to the exam. The Compendium for Continuing Education has questions is this format that can be useful for practice.

For the Specialty Exam, you will be in a large room with candidates taking exams for all of the specialty categories (e.g. avian, equine, etc). The exams for each practice category are unique for that category, however all groups have tests made up of 150 multiple choice questions for each section.

During the exams, listen carefully to all instructions and follow them completely. You can write in your exam booklet, which will need to be turned in with your answer sheet (please see sample answer sheet). All answers are marked with a #2 pencil, which is provided. If you erase on your answer sheet, do so completely, so that only one answer is read for each question.

The Specialty Exam tests applied sciences as used in the process of handling cases in daily practice. See the blueprint for a more detailed description.

Examples Questions:

To avoid the major complication of urethral stomal stenosis in perineal urethrostomy, which structures anchoring the urethra must be identified and transected?

1. Ventral ligament and the bilateral ischiocavernosus/ischiourethralis muscles
2. Ventral ligament, dorsal ligament, and bilateral retractor penile muscles
3. Dorsal ligament and the bilateral bulbourethralis muscles

Which one of the following breeds has the highest frequency of type B blood?

1. British Shorthair
2. Tonkinese
3. Himalayan

In the treatment of diabetic ketoacidosis, it is important to monitor for which of the following complications?

1. hypokalemia and hypophosphatemia
2. hypercalcemia and hypophosphatemia
3. hypokalemia and hypercalcemia

Nystagmus may be associated with peripheral vestibular, central vestibular, and occasionally cerebellar lesions. The nystagmus associated with a peripheral vestibular lesion is most likely to:

1. be horizontal or rotary with the quick phase directed away from the side of the lesion
2. be vertical or rotary with the quick phase directed toward the side of the lesion
3. be horizontal or rotary with quick phase directed toward the side of the lesion

Questions on the examinations are of varying difficulty. All questions are referenced and have been reviewed by at least two diplomates.

Every attempt has been made to verify that there is only one right answer for each question and that each question reads clearly. However, if you would like to contest a question, please make note of the question and send your defense in to ABVP within one week of testing.

The Feline Practical Exam will be 50 multiple choice questions with accompanying images. The presentation will be in PowerPoint and will require visual recognition of certain conditions as well as interpretation of laboratory results from the clinical case scenarios. The examination will take approximately 2 hours.

Remember that the exams are part of the learning experience. Enjoy and learn as much as you can in the process of showing what you know.

Questions on the examination may be taken from sources other than this list.