Career Advice on Becoming A Veterinary Technologist and Technician
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Veterinary Technologist- General Career Information
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| Those who have an interest in and love of animals may very well be drawn to veterinary careers, and specifically veterinary technologist and technician. While it is true that veterinary technologists do work with animals all day long, it should be noted that often these animals are very sick. As a result, those interested in veterinary careers, should be aware that while veterinary technologist jobs do afford the opportunity to help sick animals and their caregivers, it could come with a degree of heartbreak as well. Definitely factor this detail into your veterinary technologist career planning. |
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Veterinary Careers- Facts:
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Veterinary technologists and technicians work hand in hand, in veterinarian careers on a daily basis with veterinarians to perform a wide-range of tasks. One of the main functions that veterinary technologist and technicians perform is to run medical test as well as diagnose and even treat a variety of medical conditions. All of this veterinary career work is done under the supervision of the veterinarians.
The work performed by veterinary technologist and technicians can range from interacting with pets and their caregivers, to performing such medical oriented tasks as taking blood or giving animals x-rays. Additionally, veterinary technologists and technicians perform such task as taking an animal’s weight and checking on the overall condition of the animal. All typical in veterinarian careers.
A great deal of a veterinary technologist and technicians time will be spent interacting with doctors, animal caregivers and of course, animals. As a result, a veterinary technologist and technician needs to have good personal communication skills and a love of animals.
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Veterinary Career Opportunities Job Outlook- Excellent:
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| So what would your potential job search look like? The job prospects for a veterinary technologist and technician is extremely good, as the overall growth rate for veterinary careers between 2006 and 2016 is expected to be an impressive forty-one percent. In 2006, there were about 71,000 veterinary technologists and technicians employed in the United States. But this number is expected to leap dramatically to 100,000 by 2016. |
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A Day in The Life:
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| Much of the day for one in a veterinary technologist job will be spent interacting with doctors and animal caregivers. To a large extent, the veterinary technologist and technician acts as a helper for veterinarians and a liaison between veterinarians and animal caregivers. Since veterinarians see such a wide-array of different animals, an average day in a veterinary technologist career can vary considerably. His or her day will vary based upon the kind of animals that are being seen and what kind of problems they may have. In general, however, veterinary technologists and technicians help with taking animal weight, running tests and evaluating overall animal health. |
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Veterinary Careers- Average Salary:
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| The average hourly salary for veterinary technologist and technician jobs is about $13 per hour, with the top ten percent working veterinary careers earning about $18.60 per hour. |
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Veterinarian Career Training and Qualifications:
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| It is common for veterinary technologists and technicians, working in sustained veterinary careers to hold two-year associate degrees from community colleges that are working in conjunction with the American Veterinary Medical Association. There are also four-year bachelor’s degrees in veterinary technology as well. |
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