Veterinary Nursing..?

[Miss B]

I know we have a few vet nurses on here. Anyone got any advice for someone wanting to get into Veterinary Nursing?

I understand it's pretty difficult to get into, and from what I hear, voluntary work experience in a clinic is the first step?

When I finished high school, I spent a year at UQ taking mostly biology subjects. I didn't really have much direction though, so the following year I enrolled in a Bachelor of Science in Animal Studies (Veterinary Technology & Management) at UQ Gatton. Unfortunately life threw a spanner in the works and I ended up cancelling my enrolment to work full-time.

Now, four years later, I am regretting that decision big time. I don't enjoy the line of work I am in, and would love to do something I actually have a real interest in. Anyone got any advice? :|

 

[gail_mac]

Have you done the courses....

My daughter did it in home the course......

 

[Moreliaman]

Cant offer any help MissB (as im not in aus) but my sis is a vet nurse & now wishes she'd done something else, she said the job has too many down sides....like seeing abused/injured animals ...putting stuff down everyday...etc etc...Its all part of the job but not nice to see 1st hand.

 

[Miss B]

The Certificate II in Animal Studies Gail?

I know my local Greencross Vets offer a part-time (one night per week) intro to vet nursing.

This info is off their website:

In conjunction with the Australian Agricultural College Corporation, Greencross Brisbane & Townsville practices deliver an Introduction to Veterinary Nursing Course one night a week over a 6 week period. The course provides an intensive introduction into Veterinary Nursing in a small animal veterinary practice.

Competencies that will be achieved are from the Certificate II Animal Studies Training Package and include:-

• Carrying out reception duties in a customer service environment,
• Working in animal care industry,
• Occupational health & safety procedures,
• Assisting with animal care in a hospital environment,

I'm wondering if the above course would be a good starting point..?

Cant offer any help MissB (as im not in aus) but my sis is a vet nurse & now wishes she'd done something else, she said the job has too many down sides....like seeing abused/injured animals ...putting stuff down everyday...etc etc...Its all part of the job but not nice to see 1st hand.

That's a shame Moreliaman, but I don't think it's the sort of thing that would get to me. Most vet nurses I have spoken to absolutely love their job.

 

[luke.r.s]

hi miss B,
i did the vet tech degree (graduated 2006) and have scince been working for the uq emergency service. i got several offers for employment before i graduated (as did a few others in our class) and can say that their is a shortage of nurses at the moment. sending our resumes and talking to clinics would be your best bet i would think especially f you have any experience.

even doing some kennel attendant work, (boring and low pay tho)on days off should allow you to enroll in the cert 4 tafe programe and once in this program employment should be easier to get.

also compleating vet tech part time my be an option (if you have any q's in regard to this i surgest contacting trish clarke - i have contact details if you need them).

any questions that you have PM me and i will help out as mush as posible.

Luke
(heiniken (spelling?) on her also did vet tech and has worked as a nurse for a reptile specialist vet and im sure would like to help out)

 

[salebrosus]

I know we have a few vet nurses on here. Anyone got any advice for someone wanting to get into Veterinary Nursing?

I understand it's pretty difficult to get into, and from what I hear, voluntary work experience in a clinic is the first step?

When I finished high school, I spent a year at UQ taking mostly biology subjects. I didn't really have much direction though, so the following year I enrolled in a Bachelor of Science in Animal Studies (Veterinary Technology & Management) at UQ Gatton. Unfortunately life threw a spanner in the works and I ended up cancelling my enrolment to work full-time.

Now, four years later, I am regretting that decision big time. I don't enjoy the line of work I am in, and would love to do something I actually have a real interest in. Anyone got any advice? :|

Miss B,

Just remember it is a low paying job. Some people say money isn't everything but when you earn so little that you struggle to make ends meet or even feed any animals the novelty wears thin.

I did my course through TAFE, i didn't have to be in a Veterinary Job to get into the course but it was hard, i missed out the first time around and got in the second time only because someone pulled out.

However, it is a good course to do especially if you want to use it as a stepping stone to get into university. The course is alos helpful if your wanting to get into the dog squad for the police force.

Also you will find not all vets love their animals as much as they love their money. The one i worked for was very dodgey and did alot of things that made you question his ethics and he really turned me off pursuing a Veterinary degree at university. However, he is the only vet i have come across that is like that.

Just a few options for you,

Regards,

Simone.

 

[Helikaon]

hi miss B,
i did the vet tech degree (graduated 2006) and have scince been working for the uq emergency service. i got several offers for employment before i graduated (as did a few others in our class) and can say that their is a shortage of nurses at the moment. sending our resumes and talking to clinics would be your best bet i would think especially f you have any experience.

even doing some kennel attendant work, (boring and low pay tho)on days off should allow you to enroll in the cert 4 tafe programe and once in this program employment should be easier to get.

also compleating vet tech part time my be an option (if you have any q's in regard to this i surgest contacting trish clarke - i have contact details if you need them).

any questions that you have PM me and i will help out as mush as posible.

Luke
(heiniken (spelling?) on her also did vet tech and has worked as a nurse for a reptile specialist vet and im sure would like to help out)

HAHAHAHAHAHAH at Heiniken!!!!!:lol: hahhaha but yeah i can hlep out where ever, now i have been told bye the trainee nurses that were workign with me that you have to have a clinic that will take you on befor eyou can start your tafe course, and you ahve to workign at a clinic as you complete it, i am not sure exactly how true this is, but they were pretty certin. so therefore a lto of vet clinics may take you on parttime with the knowledge that you will be undertaking the vet nurse course or as i would say go back to vet tech, we coudl use another reptile vet tech out there but yes i've spoken to you about this before miss b i believe and i recall not beign able to reccommend vet teh any higher. but yes good luck

cheers
H

 

[Wrasse]

On the whole I liked my job, there were aspects I loved even.

But the downsides were huge.

Long hours, often split shifts. 7.30 - 3 then 5 - 8.
Low pay rates.
Cleaning filthy cages.
Parvo dog messes.
Cleaning up vomit and diahorrea.

When working in big clinics, where you had receptionists to deal with phones and front counter work, or up and coming junior staff to take on the basic stuff like dog washing and cage cleaning, feeding, scrubbing dirty food bowls, washing, drying and folding mountains of towels, mopping floors, windows, etc, life was pretty cruisy. But rarely are clinics big enough to employ multiple people and often all the jobs in a smaller clinic fall to one or two nurses.

But the job description is varied, each day bringing in something a little more different, a little more challenging. It beats a desk job, that's for sure.

The sadness of the role got to me though. I had to leave. I couldn't deal with putting whole and complete animals down, just because some dip**** owner couldn't afford surgery to sterilise their cat, or putting a dog down because the owners were going on holiday and figured it was cheaper to replace it with a new one when they got back, rather than pay boarding fees.

The heartbreak when a dog you have watched grow from a puppy, to a happy adult, having to be put down due to a medical problem that was too risky, or too expensive for the owners to afford with less than a good chance of outcome. Your heartbreak, the owners heartbreak. Seeing someone have to make that decision.

I don't miss coming home and crying about an animal that was put down, or smelling like dog poo, or cat wee, or abcess, or having holes in my arms and hands from teeth and claws. I don't miss being woken in the night to return to the clinic to perform an emergency ceasarian on a bull terrier, that the owner KNEW was going to have problems, yet still refused observation for, or coming in in the morning to find the surgery a filthy bloody mess after the vet spent the night patching up a hit and run that died anyway.

I do miss the variety of work, the close knit working environment created by the animals that rely on all staff working well together. I miss being two steps in front of the vet and having all materials/drugs/instruments ready and waiting without having to be asked. I miss that breakthrough when you finally figure out what the problem was and can send an animal home to smiling thrilled owners, happy and on the road to recovery.

Every now and again, when I get a little maudlin about not nursing anymore, I perform a little locum work, just to remind myself why I left.

 

[Helikaon]

Miss B,

Just remember it is a low paying job. Some people say money isn't everything but when you earn so little that you struggle to make ends meet or even feed any animals the novelty wears thin.

I did my course through TAFE, i didn't have to be in a Veterinary Job to get into the course but it was hard, i missed out the first time around and got in the second time only because someone pulled out.

However, it is a good course to do especially if you want to use it as a stepping stone to get into university. The course is alos helpful if your wanting to get into the dog squad for the police force.

Also you will find not all vets love their animals as much as they love their money. The one i worked for was very dodgey and did alot of things that made you question his ethics and he really turned me off pursuing a Veterinary degree at university. However, he is the only vet i have come across that is like that.

Just a few options for you,

Regards,

Simone.

unfortunately simone is right most of the time it is very low pay, but you can upgrade from the initial course to which will allow you to get payed better, things like, radiology certs, getting your cert 4 in vet nursing, but yes the other things she ahs mentioned are all part of this as well, i will admitt that i foudn it hard simply dealing with customers that seemed to have no compassion towards their aniamls as soon as the matter of the bill came into place. the phrase "i shoudl have jsut taken it and run it over in my car" has stuck with me. but yes it si one to think about,, but it is a very rewarding job, and when you meet someoen who really does care for their pets then it turns into the best job.

 

[salebrosus]

Long hours, often split shifts. 7.30 - 3 then 5 - 8.
Low pay rates.
Cleaning filthy cages.
Parvo dog messes.
Cleaning up vomit and diahorrea.



The sadness of the role got to me though. I had to leave. I couldn't deal with putting whole and complete animals down, just because some dip**** owner couldn't afford surgery to sterilise their cat, or putting a dog down because the owners were going on holiday and figured it was cheaper to replace it with a new one when they got back, rather than pay boarding fees.

The heartbreak when a dog you have watched grow from a puppy, to a happy adult, having to be put down due to a medical problem that was too risky, or too expensive for the owners to afford with less than a good chance of outcome. Your heartbreak, the owners heartbreak. Seeing someone have to make that decision.

Jesus Wrasse, i was trying not think about parvo dogs. lol. You are so right in everything that you say. The smell of Parvo messes tests even the strongest of stomachs. Fly blown animals covered in maggots is also a close second.

But the heartbreak is really intense like you say. Seeing an animal put down because the owner would rather see it dead than with anyone else , because they can't afford to keep it or because now there having kdis and they are worried about the dog around the baby. So many times i felt like picking up the animal and taking it home. One dog that finally made me snap and quit my job gave me nightmares for ages.

Seeing someone put an animal to sleep because it is riddled with cancer and watching them cry is also pretty distressing.

Simone.

 

[Miss B]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

I would love to take the Vet Tech course, however I do have a mortgage so studying full time is not an option. I would have to take the course by correspondance. The course also takes three years, and I guess I was kinda hoping there was a faster way into the industry! :lol:

Simone, what kind of money are we talking? It can't possibly be worse than what I earn now :lol:

And Helikaon, I think you are right - I'm pretty sure that in order to gain entry to the TAFE course, you must first have job placement lined up at a clinic. I've heard that clinics are pretty reluctant to take on work experience students due to the extra time and effort involved in supervising them.

Wrasse... thanks for the food for thought. I do understand that every job has it's downsides, but my current job (office job... reception/admin) bores me to tears, I have 0% job satisfaction at the moment. I'm kind of at a point where ANYTHING would be better than this. Heck, I'd even settle for a Veterinary Reception position. If I did get into a Vet Nursing position, I would definately be looking to ongoing training, completing a Cert 4 etc.

 

[firedragon]

You can do courses through correspondance(sp) and you can pay it off, I payed mine over 10mths and it is self pased study..I did an animal care course through Thomson Education Direct, Ithica also do short courses in Basic and Advanced Reptile and Amphibians care, And voulenteer is also a good thing... Even working at a pet store is a small step in the door to animal related work

 

[Helikaon]

Thanks for the replies everyone.

Simone, what kind of money are we talking? It can't possibly be worse than what I earn now :lol:




haha miss B you'd be surprised, i'll tell you this, i worked at a specialist , and i am now doign the poop kicker job while back at uni of packign shelves at night, and i am getting about double what i was gettign at the clinic. hahahahha but yes and oh hahah yeah work experience kids can be dam annoyign to have around, i was incharge of finding them things to do, my god every 2 sconds i needed to find somethine else for them to do, and when there wasnt anythign interesting happening most didnt like helping me clean. so eys i can see why vets dont take many on

 

[Colin]

just to hijack the thread for a second sorry.

what reptile courses are available at TAFE these days? Say at Ultimo Sydney.

I did Herpetological Techniques and Advanced Herpetology at Ultimo TAFE Sydney years ago and it was pretty good fun

 

[Trouble]

Miss B, I am doin this course at the start of next yr instead of yr 11 & 12 http://www.thomsoneducationdirect.com.au/index.cfm?id=114
You hav your own tutor and you can get into any profesion (I think)

 

[firedragon]

Trouble thats the same course i did.. Very easy. It was really good, the only thing i didn't like is it didn't cover reptiles.. I an qualified to work as a vet nurse, it's finding the places to put you on to do training and further studies that is the hard part but it probably also depends on the availability in your area too.

 

[Tatelina]

Hehehe... From memory the first year of vet nursing is mundane and boring...so you will probably get about 0% satisfaction out of that.

 

[firedragon]

gotta start some where

 

[salebrosus]

Simone, what kind of money are we talking? It can't possibly be worse than what I earn now :lol:
.

At the time which was 2002, the award wage was $10.98 per hour. The boss then put it up to $13.50 per hour. The snior nurse was on just over $15.00 oer hour.

Too much **** for too little money and far too many hours.

Simone.

 

[Tatelina]

But that's the same as nursing (human nursing I mean). Ridiculous wage and conditions for a crap (yet vital) job.
You don't do it for the money.