Veterinary Careers Veterinarian Veterinary Technician Zookeeper
The most well known career that involves working with animals is that of a veterinarian or a doctor for animals. There are many more careers that involve the study of animals and their care that you might consider if you have a real love for animals and want to make sure they are well-treated and cared for. This article will take a brief look at the job descriptions of these veterinary related careers, including that of the veterinarian.
VETERINARIAN
A veterinarian, often simply called vet, is a doctor who diagnoses and treats diseases in animals and also works to prevent diseases by giving the vaccinations they need. They also treat animals that have disorders common to the breed and treat injuries. In order to make this career choice, you should have a love of animals as well as the personality needed to get along well with their owners. You do need to graduate from college with an undergraduate degree as well as graduate from a veterinary college. Once you have these diplomas accomplished, you must take and pass a state examination in order to be licensed to practice in your state.
Most veterinarians have their own private practices and specialize in the care and treatment of small animals, such as dogs, cats, birds, reptiles and other animals that people have as pets. There are also vets that work with farmers and visit farms to check on the large animals, such as pigs, goats, sheep cows, and horses. They use a wide variety of medical instruments as part of their practice, just as regular doctors do, such as stethoscopes, X-ray and ultrasound and laboratory testing.
Some veterinarians work with physicians and scientists in an effort to conduct studies to discover ways of preventing diseases in humans and the transmission of diseases from animals to humans. Others work in food safety at various levels among the food and livestock branch of the government. Still other veterinarians are livestock inspectors who regularly check animals for diseases and advise owners on how they can protect and care for the animals. The slaughtering and processing plants for meats also require the supervision of vets in order to make sure that the practices followed are safe and that the food is free from contamination.
VETERINARY TECHNICIANS AND TECHNOLOGISTS
In order to become a veterinary technician or technologists, you do have to complete either a two or four year diploma program at an accredited college. After completion of this course, you will have to take a pass a state examination.
This job is similar to the role performed by a nurse as an assistant to a doctor. In this role, you will perform routine laboratory procedures and clinical procedures. Both technicians and technologists do basically the same type of work, with the difference in the length of the training. Most are known by the term "technician."
In this type of veterinary related career, you can work in a private practice or in an animal hospital. You can administer medication to the animals under your care and record the animals' vitals on the charts. Some technicians also work in research facilities. There are also job opportunities for those with this training to work in biomedical research, wildlife management and pharmaceutical sales for veterinary pharmacies.
ANIMAL CARE AND SERVICE WORKERS
An example of a veterinary related career in this sector of the field of animal medicine is that of a zookeeper. Most of the jobs involve on-the-job training and very little school based training. Advancement in such a career does depend on taking courses and obtaining certification in different areas of specialty.
Animal caretakers, such as those operating boarding kennels for animals, fit within this type of work. So do animal trainers and dog groomers. As such there is plenty of opportunity for you to set up your own business or you can work with an established business to gain experience. In stables, the caretakers are called grooms and this is another type of veterinary related career. Their job is to saddle and unsaddle the horses, make sure they are combed and fed.
CONCLUSION
Having a love of animals opens the doors to a wide variety of careers. The one you choose depends, to a large extent, on the amount of time you want to study and stay in school.
