Ever since I can remember I have had an abundance of animals running around the house. With owning so many pets, comes a lot of veterinarian appointments. Being around animals and the veterinarian’s office so often, I fell in love with the line of veterinary work. To be surrounded by animals every day and being able to have the opportunity to help them sounds like a dream to me. Not only do you serve animals, but you also help people too by taking care of their pets. As a frequent customer of the veterinarian’s office, I have seen what it takes it to be a veterinarian and how serious and difficult the job is. Since last summer I have been interning at the Animal Bird Clinic to gain experience and to better understand the line of veterinary work.
I have the opportunity to take care of the animals there, assist the veterinarians with animal check ups, and occasionally participate in stitching up an animal during surgery. I believe this line of work would be perfect for me to be able to show my communication skills, empathy, and technical skills. Being a veterinarian requires many skills including physical stamina, detail orientation, time management, communication, and a passion for animals. While I am interested in the skills I will need to be a veterinarian, I am also very interested in the field of study that is required. Since I can remember biology and anatomy have been my favorite two subjects through school. Due to my interest in science, I plan on majoring in Biology in college to become a veterinarian.
After high school, I am going to the community college Saddleback for two years. After attending Saddleback for two years, I am going to a four year college to major in biology. To become a veterinarian it will take anywhere from seven to nine years of schooling. The two colleges I have in mind are UC Davis and California Polytechnic State University. As I plan to pursue my career in California, I am going to study to become a veterinarian near here as well. My family will be moving to Morro Bay in central California when I go off to a four year college. Therefore, Cal Poly would be the closest college to my family so I could visit them often. Cal Poly is only 11.7 miles away from where my parents will be living. My other dream school, UC Davis, is farther away than Cal Poly. UC Davis is in northern California, and 285.5 miles away from Morro Bay. As for the prices of UC Davis, the tuition cost is 13,951 dollars per year. Cal Poly is by far the cheaper option coming in at 9,000 dollars per year. Although Cal Poly is financially the better school for me, UC Davis has a higher acceptance rate than Cal Poly. Cal Poly’s acceptance is 31% while UC Davis’s is 38%. Overall, both Cal Poly and UC Davis are have incredible veterinarian medical programs that will also let me major in biology to become a veterinarian. Majoring in biology has a very promising future, as it is vital information for a veterinarian that will always be needed.
Majoring in biology will help a veterinarian, “understand how to treat disease, illness or injury, as well as the biological systems of various animals and proper nutrition,” (What Majors Are Recommended For Aspiring Veterinarians). It is necessary to obtain a “Bachelor of Arts degree in chemistry, physics, biochemistry, biology, animal biology, or zoology,” (Veterinary Science Major Guide) as well. I am looking forward to this educational opportunity as I have a great interest in biology and wish to continue learning about the subject by majoring in it. After graduating with a Bachelor’s degree in biology, I plan on spending the rest of my education at veterinary school. During the, “remainder of the academic time it will be focusing on clinical procedure, such as treating and diagnosing animal health issues, and performing surgery,” (How To Become A Veterinarian: Education And Career Roadmap). While doing so I will be performing laboratory work in medicine, anatomy, and biochemistry. Doing this will prepare me to become a veterinarian. This will be taking place at UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. While studying, I will be continuing my internship at the Animal and Bird Clinic veterinarian office to be able to study under Doctor Coward. Once completing medical school, “All states require that graduates successfully pass the North American Veterinary Licensing Exam,” (How To Become A Veterinarian: Education And Career Roadmap). Once graduated and certified I will officially be a veterinarian and will be free to start my career.
An overlook of what a veterinarian does on a daily basis includes protecting the wellbeing and health of all of their animal patients. This includes diagnosing illnesses as well as treat them treat, and save injured animals. They also advise owners on proper care of their pets. Although the job may seem very routine, being a veterinarian is very unpredictable. Being a veterinarian is very similar to being a human doctor. Every patient who comes in is very different especially when it comes to veterinary work, as there are many different species of animals that that visit the veterinarian. Although that is very unpredictable, there are many parts of the job that occur every day. “The general practice veterinarian spends one-third to one-half of his or her time in surgery,” (Tufts Veterinary Society). These surgeries include neutering, orthopedic procedures, dentistry, and trauma surgery. This statistic is very similar to a human doctors’ profession. The other half of the time goes to interacting with their patients as well as their owners. This includes ordering laboratory tests, prescribing medication, radiology, and analyzing their patients very carefully to ensure an accurate diagnosis. I am very enthusiastic about this aspect of the job, as I love interacting with animals as well as meeting new people and their pets.
One dark part of being a veterinarian is having to put down a pet, as it is very difficult on the owners. Dr. Beckman says that she, “ …tries to help them make the best decision for themselves and for the pet…if they decide on euthanasia I do everything in my power to make it as dignified as possible,” (Beckman, Kate). He had also mentioned that you never become numb to putting down animals, but your mind set becomes more realistic. Dr. Beckman explained this concept by saying that if, “…we had a cat that lives to eighteen years old, you come to appreciate that the cat…had a fantastic life with a family that loves him,”(Beckman, Kate). Overall being a veterinarian is a very positive job, that I am excited to partake in for the rest of my life. The working hours of a veterinarian are very long, however rewarding. “About 1 in 3 veterinarians worked more than 50 hours per week,” (Tufts Pre Veterinary Society), which averages to about seven hours per day. On top of long hours, sometimes veterinarians must come in to respond to emergencies with sometimes little to no notice before hand. With such demanding hours, comes a higher rate of pay. According to the Bureau of Labor statistics, “ veterinarians in research facilities were paid the best, at an average income of $124,610, while those working for pharmaceutical companies earned $113,270. Veterinarians in private practice averaged $91,160,” (Tufts Pre Veterinary Society). I plan on having my own private practice in near the future.
