Veterinary Assistant: Veterinarian’s Very Own Personal
Nurse
 For people who loves animals and enjoys taking care of them, one of the
careers the can choose is becoming a veterinary assistant. Generally
speaking, becoming a veterinary assistant does not require a lot of things –
usually only a high school diploma and some technical office know-how.
Nowadays, with the help of science and technology, the role of veterinary
assistants in taking care of animals has now become broader in scope and can
also be said the same for its employment opportunities. Based on the reports
made by the Bureau of Labor Statistics, this field has already created more
than 73,000 jobs.
For many people, becoming a veterinary assistant is a very straightforward
career to take, especially after graduating from high school. There is no
formal education needed here – they actually just receive on-the-job
training in order to acquire the necessary skills and knowledge in helping
vets take care of animals. Their job is much less complex than what
veterinary technicians do and can include simpler tasks such as feeding
animals, cleaning and disinfecting animal shelters, administering of
medication, sterilization of surgical and laboratory tools and providing
post-operative care.
The usual path you can take in becoming a veterinary assistant is to first
find a veterinary clinic where you can apply for a job as a helper. Here you
will learn the proper way of feeding, grooming and caring for many different
animals. You may also be assigned with office work as well. While in this
stage, it is important that you are learning as you are working. Keep in
mind that as you gain knowledge and experience, you will be able to do more
complex work, and your job opportunities will more likely be better,
including the financial rewards as well.
Once you become very proficient as a veterinary assistant, you might also
want to consider going to school in order to become a full-pledged
veterinary technician. There are more than 150 accredited programs to choose
from in the US which can grant you an Associate’s degree. It only just takes
two years to complete and will open up more financially rewarding career
opportunities for you. And if that’s not enough, you can even take a
four-year Bachelor’s degree program that will help you qualify for almost
any position as a veterinary assistant.
The average salary for veterinary assistants last 2009 is at $27,000.
Numerous factors can affect these salary figures such as the geographical
location of the animal clinic or health care center. Typically, veterinary
assistants working in the metropolis and large cities are entitled to higher
salary thresholds as compared to those working in a rural environment. Aside
from basic salary, they may also be entitled to some employee benefits such
as vacation pays and health insurance. You can expect employment
opportunities to grow in this field as the number of pet owners increase
each year. Keep in mind that this career, simple as it may seem, can have
its fair share of challenges, particularly the physical and emotional ones.
If you truly love animals, all these things would be much easier to handle.
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