2 answers
Nina
Student
Summerville, South Carolina
2
Questions
Asked
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Is it hard being a veterinary assistant?
I am interested in becoming a veterinary assistant. #veterinary
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2 answers
Aidan Romo
Veterinary Technician
5
Answers
Chula Vista, California
Updated
Aidan’s Answer
Hey Nina,
Small animal Fear Free-certified veterinary assistant here. Job is fairly easy to perform and like any industry most the job is simple communication skills. If you do not have solid animal handling skills they are easy enough to pick up over time and there is a myriad of training resources online. Pretty much, anything you do not already know you will learn if people are willing to teach or train you.
Common difficulties of the work are emotional fatigue, occasional fractious pets, and client conflict resolution. Severity of those issues is entirely dependent on the individual and how they face them.
Most VAs will attend some sort of accredited trade school (i.e. PIMA) to make them significantly more hirable and schooling is required for licensure as an RVT. Many of my friends have completed said programs leaving them in the very small tens of thousands of debt. Industry standard pay is practically minimum wage.
I tell anyone reading this very jaded view of the industry to push you into further exploring the career field. I was able to work as a veterinary assistant by working first as a kennel assistant and my employers trained me to be a VA so you don't NEED to go to school for it but people prefer it. RVTs typically do not make significantly much more than VAs. If you are interested in becoming a veterinarian at all then going to school to become a VA or RVT is completely backwards since you'll almost certainly need a Bachelor's (I am also a vet school applicant and trust me I saved A LOT of time and money not going to VA and RVT school).
If unsure about diving headfirst into any aspect of an animal handling career field, look into volunteer options relevant to your prospective fear. When I was in high school, I volunteered at my local shelter just to make sure I got along with strange animals. Every so often you will meet a professional in the field with horrible animal handling skills and those people don't often last long so get some practice in. I also always advise people to not work with animals they have any fear of. At some point, a dog WILL bite you whether it is your fault or simply bad luck so make sure you can handle the frustrations of the job.
Summary: Common job requirements are easy. Pay is abysmal and anyone telling you otherwise has not seen other career fields. Typically requires trade school education which obviously costs money although being an unlicensed VA is valid and uncommon. If you want to be a vet then going to VA training is backwards since it takes time away from going to college. I have A LOT of fun doing the job but I would never work it long term and would never recommend it as a long term field, although to each their own.
Small animal Fear Free-certified veterinary assistant here. Job is fairly easy to perform and like any industry most the job is simple communication skills. If you do not have solid animal handling skills they are easy enough to pick up over time and there is a myriad of training resources online. Pretty much, anything you do not already know you will learn if people are willing to teach or train you.
Common difficulties of the work are emotional fatigue, occasional fractious pets, and client conflict resolution. Severity of those issues is entirely dependent on the individual and how they face them.
Most VAs will attend some sort of accredited trade school (i.e. PIMA) to make them significantly more hirable and schooling is required for licensure as an RVT. Many of my friends have completed said programs leaving them in the very small tens of thousands of debt. Industry standard pay is practically minimum wage.
I tell anyone reading this very jaded view of the industry to push you into further exploring the career field. I was able to work as a veterinary assistant by working first as a kennel assistant and my employers trained me to be a VA so you don't NEED to go to school for it but people prefer it. RVTs typically do not make significantly much more than VAs. If you are interested in becoming a veterinarian at all then going to school to become a VA or RVT is completely backwards since you'll almost certainly need a Bachelor's (I am also a vet school applicant and trust me I saved A LOT of time and money not going to VA and RVT school).
If unsure about diving headfirst into any aspect of an animal handling career field, look into volunteer options relevant to your prospective fear. When I was in high school, I volunteered at my local shelter just to make sure I got along with strange animals. Every so often you will meet a professional in the field with horrible animal handling skills and those people don't often last long so get some practice in. I also always advise people to not work with animals they have any fear of. At some point, a dog WILL bite you whether it is your fault or simply bad luck so make sure you can handle the frustrations of the job.
Summary: Common job requirements are easy. Pay is abysmal and anyone telling you otherwise has not seen other career fields. Typically requires trade school education which obviously costs money although being an unlicensed VA is valid and uncommon. If you want to be a vet then going to VA training is backwards since it takes time away from going to college. I have A LOT of fun doing the job but I would never work it long term and would never recommend it as a long term field, although to each their own.
Amanda Usborne
Business Process Analyst
14
Answers
Raleigh, North Carolina
Updated
Amanda’s Answer
Hey Nina,
Congratulations on narrowing down your career interests!
I'll be upfront about the fact that I personally have never been a Veterinary Assistant, but I was a Pet Groomer for five years and partnered very closely with our in-house veterinary staff and their practice when medical emergencies would arise with my clients (and I groomed for about five years, with one year of salon management).
I think the first thing I'd address is whether the role of a Veterinary Assistant is hard. I think in my experience, every job has aspects that are inherently easier for me than others. There may be things you need to do within that role that you find to be very easy, while your co-worker may find that aspect of the same role to be unpleasant or very difficult. This is the benefit of hiring for a diversified team, and if you join a practice that is mindful of what their team needs, they can find out what you personally enjoy about the job, and what you personally find difficult to make sure that there's always someone in your role that can step in to handle those tasks that others may not be as comfortable with.
In my time as a pet groomer, I can say that the thing that I found most difficult about the role were the parents. People are very emotional about their pets (including me), so delivering bad news was always a really difficult aspect of that role for me (while that wasn't the case for some of my co-workers). Not because I didn't understand the parents for being upset, but I'm an empath so I felt their grief, fear, and frustration very deeply which added an emotional tax to my day-to-day work that I originally didn't expect or prepare for.
Working with animals requires patience too. Even the best-trained animal is going to be afraid, uncomfortable, or irritable in that environment. Especially if something is wrong. They aren't like children or other people where you can reason with them when they're in this state. You'll need to be mindful of their safety, and the safety of your peers, when you're in a confined space with animals that may react in unexpected ways. This will require quick thinking, quick reaction, and leaning heavily on what you've learned about safety and pet behavior.
Working with animals was incredibly rewarding for me, despite the elements of it that I personally found challenging. If you're interested in learning more about what they do before making a final decision on whether it's the right path for you or not, you can always contact local veterinary clinics to see if anyone would be available to walk through some of the day-to-day with you. There are also usually 'a day in the life' videos that you can find online (on YouTube, for example) that might give you the information you're looking for as well.
Amanda
(Former Pet Groomer & Dog Trainer)
Congratulations on narrowing down your career interests!
I'll be upfront about the fact that I personally have never been a Veterinary Assistant, but I was a Pet Groomer for five years and partnered very closely with our in-house veterinary staff and their practice when medical emergencies would arise with my clients (and I groomed for about five years, with one year of salon management).
I think the first thing I'd address is whether the role of a Veterinary Assistant is hard. I think in my experience, every job has aspects that are inherently easier for me than others. There may be things you need to do within that role that you find to be very easy, while your co-worker may find that aspect of the same role to be unpleasant or very difficult. This is the benefit of hiring for a diversified team, and if you join a practice that is mindful of what their team needs, they can find out what you personally enjoy about the job, and what you personally find difficult to make sure that there's always someone in your role that can step in to handle those tasks that others may not be as comfortable with.
In my time as a pet groomer, I can say that the thing that I found most difficult about the role were the parents. People are very emotional about their pets (including me), so delivering bad news was always a really difficult aspect of that role for me (while that wasn't the case for some of my co-workers). Not because I didn't understand the parents for being upset, but I'm an empath so I felt their grief, fear, and frustration very deeply which added an emotional tax to my day-to-day work that I originally didn't expect or prepare for.
Working with animals requires patience too. Even the best-trained animal is going to be afraid, uncomfortable, or irritable in that environment. Especially if something is wrong. They aren't like children or other people where you can reason with them when they're in this state. You'll need to be mindful of their safety, and the safety of your peers, when you're in a confined space with animals that may react in unexpected ways. This will require quick thinking, quick reaction, and leaning heavily on what you've learned about safety and pet behavior.
Working with animals was incredibly rewarding for me, despite the elements of it that I personally found challenging. If you're interested in learning more about what they do before making a final decision on whether it's the right path for you or not, you can always contact local veterinary clinics to see if anyone would be available to walk through some of the day-to-day with you. There are also usually 'a day in the life' videos that you can find online (on YouTube, for example) that might give you the information you're looking for as well.
Amanda
(Former Pet Groomer & Dog Trainer)