3 answers
kaylee
Student
Walton, Kentucky
4
Questions
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what is it like to be a large animal veterinarian?
i am a sophomore in high school, and i want to know more about different careers
#veterinarian #veterinary-medicine #veterinary
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3 answers
Elizabeth F Schilling DVM
Veterinarian/Educator
37
Answers
Redlands, California
Updated
Elizabeth F’s Answer
Hello Kaylee!
Good advice already in the 2 previous answers.
To specifically answer your question about what it's like to be a large animal veterinarian, that completely depends on the area (where you live/work), discipline (show horses, race horses, backyard pleasure horses/pets, dairy or beef, etc) and type of practice (large group practice vs solo, general practice vs limited practice vs specialty, clinic/hospital vs ambulatory (truck/car based) or a combination.
Many general practice large animal veterinarians work solo or in small groups. In dairy practice, they usually start very early (like very early - 4 AM) and much of the time is doing breeding work, also nutrition or herd health consultations, and checking/ensuring milk quality. In beef cattle practice, most of the work happens in the feedlots and again involves nutrition, herd health, and problem-solving. There are some large animal practices that cater to smaller operations like family farms, smaller goat or sheep dairies, and 4-H/FFA operations. They tend to drive to multiple farms to see either individual animals or small herds. Livestock tend to be in rural or remote areas, so the driving time might be extensive. (time in the truck is a good time to think, listen to music or audiobooks, and enjoy the beauty of the area you work in.)
Solo or small group equine practice experiences can vary as well. Every day can be a different experience depending on what type of horses you see, and whether the clients are showing, breeding, or just enjoying them. In general, the smaller the practice, the more out-of hours emergency work you might see. I personally love that part but some people do not. In some areas, there are veterinarians who specifically handle the emergencies, but that is not as common as it is in small animal or human medicine.
Equine vets can be found in rural as well as urban areas. You might have a 30-60 minute country road drive between calls, or you might deal with Los Angeles or New York traffic! Sometimes you would be amazed at the places where people can keep their horses!
Race track veterinarians also start work super early - most racehorses are done with their workouts by 8 or 9 AM, so we need to start work when the barns do. They may work early, then go home for the middle of the day, and come back to check the horses at dinnertime (afternoon). Track vets might work by themselves or they might be part of a larger practice.
Large group or hospital or specialty practices can be a bit different. In general, everyone shares rotating emergency duty, or there is a designated emergency vet or interns. Each person in the practice might have a different specialty or area of interest (internal medicine, surgery, sports medicine, breeding work, dentistry, etc) or everybody might do a little of everything. There are practices that cater just to show horses, and the vets might actually move around during the year to be near the shows - Florida or the Southwest for the winter season, more north for the summer shows, then Texas or Arizona or New York/Pennsylvania/Virginia or wherever the fall Championship shows are.
The great thing about large animal practice is that there are SO many different opportunities! The tough part is that it can be very physical, days can be long, and for some people it can be hard to manage with their personal life. (Not all - some people do that very well, and children of large animal vets can grow up to be vets too so their life experience must be fun!)
As mentioned before, the best way to find out what it's like is to visit. In general, the large hospital practices are the ones that are more likely to offer tours - in small practices, the vets are usually out in their trucks working. If you have horses/livestock, or if you have friends that do, or have access to 4-H or FFA or Pony Club, this can be a great way to get involved - you can get a sense of what happens when the vets visit, and most vets are happy to answer questions. From there you can ask about shadowing opportunities.
Many vet schools will also have preview days or open houses for high school and grade school students. You could even ask local veterinarians to come speak at your school (many do speak to FFA/4H/Pony Club groups). If we can take a break, we love to do it!
for information on different veterinary careers, you can visit https://www.aavmc.org/becoming-a-veterinarian/
visit websites of various vet schools - I think somewhere in the AAVMC site you can find a list of vet schools
visit the actual schools - depending on how easy it is for you to travel. From your area, if it's feasible, you're probably within driving distance of vet schools in Tennessee, Ohio, and Indiana
Right outside of Lexington, you can visit the Kentucky Horse Park https://kyhorsepark.com/ also check out https://kyhorsepark.com/visit/park-info-resources/visit-khp/
Get involved with FFA, 4-H, Pony Club, etc
Good advice already in the 2 previous answers.
To specifically answer your question about what it's like to be a large animal veterinarian, that completely depends on the area (where you live/work), discipline (show horses, race horses, backyard pleasure horses/pets, dairy or beef, etc) and type of practice (large group practice vs solo, general practice vs limited practice vs specialty, clinic/hospital vs ambulatory (truck/car based) or a combination.
Many general practice large animal veterinarians work solo or in small groups. In dairy practice, they usually start very early (like very early - 4 AM) and much of the time is doing breeding work, also nutrition or herd health consultations, and checking/ensuring milk quality. In beef cattle practice, most of the work happens in the feedlots and again involves nutrition, herd health, and problem-solving. There are some large animal practices that cater to smaller operations like family farms, smaller goat or sheep dairies, and 4-H/FFA operations. They tend to drive to multiple farms to see either individual animals or small herds. Livestock tend to be in rural or remote areas, so the driving time might be extensive. (time in the truck is a good time to think, listen to music or audiobooks, and enjoy the beauty of the area you work in.)
Solo or small group equine practice experiences can vary as well. Every day can be a different experience depending on what type of horses you see, and whether the clients are showing, breeding, or just enjoying them. In general, the smaller the practice, the more out-of hours emergency work you might see. I personally love that part but some people do not. In some areas, there are veterinarians who specifically handle the emergencies, but that is not as common as it is in small animal or human medicine.
Equine vets can be found in rural as well as urban areas. You might have a 30-60 minute country road drive between calls, or you might deal with Los Angeles or New York traffic! Sometimes you would be amazed at the places where people can keep their horses!
Race track veterinarians also start work super early - most racehorses are done with their workouts by 8 or 9 AM, so we need to start work when the barns do. They may work early, then go home for the middle of the day, and come back to check the horses at dinnertime (afternoon). Track vets might work by themselves or they might be part of a larger practice.
Large group or hospital or specialty practices can be a bit different. In general, everyone shares rotating emergency duty, or there is a designated emergency vet or interns. Each person in the practice might have a different specialty or area of interest (internal medicine, surgery, sports medicine, breeding work, dentistry, etc) or everybody might do a little of everything. There are practices that cater just to show horses, and the vets might actually move around during the year to be near the shows - Florida or the Southwest for the winter season, more north for the summer shows, then Texas or Arizona or New York/Pennsylvania/Virginia or wherever the fall Championship shows are.
The great thing about large animal practice is that there are SO many different opportunities! The tough part is that it can be very physical, days can be long, and for some people it can be hard to manage with their personal life. (Not all - some people do that very well, and children of large animal vets can grow up to be vets too so their life experience must be fun!)
As mentioned before, the best way to find out what it's like is to visit. In general, the large hospital practices are the ones that are more likely to offer tours - in small practices, the vets are usually out in their trucks working. If you have horses/livestock, or if you have friends that do, or have access to 4-H or FFA or Pony Club, this can be a great way to get involved - you can get a sense of what happens when the vets visit, and most vets are happy to answer questions. From there you can ask about shadowing opportunities.
Many vet schools will also have preview days or open houses for high school and grade school students. You could even ask local veterinarians to come speak at your school (many do speak to FFA/4H/Pony Club groups). If we can take a break, we love to do it!
Elizabeth F recommends the following next steps:
is there a specific kind of practice to look for that would give me enough time to spend with my future family as well. i really love animals and especially horses so i’ve always wanted to have this job, but i dont want it to take over all of my time. is there a way to do this? thank you for answering my previous question also!!
kaylee
I think the best is to talk talk talk to people all along your journey, and watch to see who does it well. It can be done. You can find the right people to work with to make it happen. Enjoy the journey!
Elizabeth F Schilling DVM
Todd Phillips
Retired veterinarian
42
Answers
San Antonio, Texas
Updated
Todd’s Answer
Hi Kaylee, I would second Eleanor's advice to reach out to local large animal vets to see what it is like on the ground. Here is a link that may be of help, don't be afraid to "cold call" them and ask about tours or shadowing the vets in order to learn more about a career in large animal medicine.
https://www.google.com/search?q=veterinary+schools+near+walton+ky&client=firefox-b-1-d&tbm=lcl&sxsrf=APq-WBvG_o_yoWyiQ96JvUXcOB3lGJWuIw%3A1645673019280&ei=O_oWYrXPEPm5qtsPrOyOoAw&oq=veterinary+schools+near+walton+ky&gs_l=psy-ab.12...0.0.0.47880.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c..64.psy-ab..0.0.0....0.z-Y_Qa_vgP4#rlfi=hd:;si:;mv:[[42.82251665605551,-75.36884981875],[35.598040453031906,-94.13349825625],null,[39.30339659576206,-84.7511740375],6]
You may also want to call your local veterinary medical association, your local agricultural extension office or FFA, and the Vet Schools at Auburn and Tuskegee which appear to have programs that accept students from Kentucky (ask for the admissions office).
Ask all of these organizations if there is a way for you to visit to see what it is that large animal veterinarians actually do. If you do decide to pursue a career in large animal medicine you will need experience working in the field as well as references from professionals already in the field.
If you haven't already read it, the "All Creatures Great and Small" series of books by James Harriot is an old but entertaining tail of veterinary medicine and human relations. Good luck & best wishes. Todd Phillips, DVM
https://www.google.com/search?q=veterinary+schools+near+walton+ky&client=firefox-b-1-d&tbm=lcl&sxsrf=APq-WBvG_o_yoWyiQ96JvUXcOB3lGJWuIw%3A1645673019280&ei=O_oWYrXPEPm5qtsPrOyOoAw&oq=veterinary+schools+near+walton+ky&gs_l=psy-ab.12...0.0.0.47880.0.0.0.0.0.0.0.0..0.0....0...1c..64.psy-ab..0.0.0....0.z-Y_Qa_vgP4#rlfi=hd:;si:;mv:[[42.82251665605551,-75.36884981875],[35.598040453031906,-94.13349825625],null,[39.30339659576206,-84.7511740375],6]
You may also want to call your local veterinary medical association, your local agricultural extension office or FFA, and the Vet Schools at Auburn and Tuskegee which appear to have programs that accept students from Kentucky (ask for the admissions office).
Ask all of these organizations if there is a way for you to visit to see what it is that large animal veterinarians actually do. If you do decide to pursue a career in large animal medicine you will need experience working in the field as well as references from professionals already in the field.
If you haven't already read it, the "All Creatures Great and Small" series of books by James Harriot is an old but entertaining tail of veterinary medicine and human relations. Good luck & best wishes. Todd Phillips, DVM
thank you so much!
kaylee
Eleanor Harowicz
Business Operations Support
47
Answers
Wind Gap, Pennsylvania
Updated
Eleanor’s Answer
Hi Kaylee!
Large animal vets are some awesome people! Some of them work in smaller private practices that go out to farms to see their patients, while others work at large clinics where the clients bring their large animals to them. You are actually just about an hour away from one of the top equine veterinary hospitals in the country - Rood & Riddle in Lexington, KY. They actually offer tours (as do most equine hospitals), and that might be a great place to start to see what life would be like for and equine vet!
https://www.roodandriddle.com/about/hospital-tour---video
Large animal vets are some awesome people! Some of them work in smaller private practices that go out to farms to see their patients, while others work at large clinics where the clients bring their large animals to them. You are actually just about an hour away from one of the top equine veterinary hospitals in the country - Rood & Riddle in Lexington, KY. They actually offer tours (as do most equine hospitals), and that might be a great place to start to see what life would be like for and equine vet!
Eleanor recommends the following next steps:
Thanks for the advice.
kaylee