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What do veterinarians do on a day to day basis?

I am very interested in becoming a veterinarian but am not aware of what a typical day would consist of in this career. #veterinarian

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AnimalBirthControl’s Answer

Vanessa: I assume you are an American and have looked into the requirements to become a veterinarian in the USA. The question is too broad as we do a huge variety of jobs including small animal practice, other types of clinical practice, research, teaching, epidemiology and public health. Since more graduates become small animal practitioners than any other sub-group, I will address that. We see manily dogs and cats, both healthy and sick, with either surgical or medical or unfortunately untreatable problems. Unlike human medicine, economic considerations are very important when a pet's owner is deciding whether or how to treat a difficult problem. On a typical day, we do office hours and intake the animals that can't be treated as outpatients. And surgery, both elective such as spay and neuter and non-elective such as C-sections, dental problems and injuries. We do diagnostic tests including outpatient tests and those run on hospitalized pets. We spend a lot of time keeping records, supervising technicians (equivalent to nurses) and talking to owners on the phone, not to mention the financial burdens of a practice if we are in an ownershop position. I was surprised at how much time is spent doing human interaction and not actually doing hands-on animal work. Good career decision if money is not a paramount consideration as the same amount of education will get you way more elsewhere.
Thank you comment icon This Is Awesome! Thank You I Really Learned Alot And Im Skyler Skyler
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Kate’s Answer

To give you another view of what can be done within the Veterinary world, it would include mobile practice where the mobile practice can run like a typical brick-and-mortar practice where everything comes to the client, or it can be a smaller setup and only treat minor illnesses and vaccinations. This brings a sense of relief and ease to pet owners, knowing that their pets can receive care without the stress of a clinic visit. There is another option where Veterinarians will choose to do more of a palliative care route where they treat very sick patients in their homes. There are also Veterinarians that specialize in acupuncture and chiropractic care. Along with board-certified veterinarians, these Veterinarians have spent many years in specialized care and will only care for a targeted group of patients.
This is just a quick overview of a few different routes that Veterinarians may take that will impact their day-to-day activities.
I hope that helps!
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Veena’s Answer

Veterinarians tend to the healthcare needs of animals, including pets, livestock, and zoo and laboratory animals. Most vets work in private clinics treating companion animals, for example dogs and cats. They diagnose illnesses and perform medical procedures.


A small number are equine veterinarians who treat horses, and food animal vets who work with farm animals. There are some vets who specialize in food safety and inspection. They check livestock for illnesses that can be transmitted to humans. Others are research veterinarians who do research on human and animal health conditions.
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Ramya’s Answer

It is also an intresting aspect in medicine. Majorly deals with animals, including pets, livestock, and zoo and laboratory animals. Most vets work in private clinics treating companion animals, for example dogs and cats. They diagnose illnesses and perform medical procedures.
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Becka Walker’s Answer

The best way to answer this question is to say it is different every single day. From an emergency examination and treatment for respiratory disease with heart failure to a general examination for a wellness visit, what is scheduled is not always what the owner believes the pet is experiencing. Volunteering or spending time with a comprehensive (not low cost vaccination only) veterinary hospital will give you a better window into this world.
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AnimalBirthControl’s Answer

Vanessa. I assume you are an American and either in late high school or college
Thank you comment icon @AnimalBirthControl: Yes, that is correct. At this point all of the students using CareerVillage live in the United States. The majority are in High School, and the rest are in College. CareerVillage
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