Who here works in an animal clinic?

TPF may earn a commission from merchant affiliate
links, including eBay, Amazon, and others

Jeannam2008

Fashionably me :)
Jul 10, 2009
2,533
2
I do! I've been at my job for a little over a year now and I absolutely love it :biggrin: At the moment I'm a kennel assistant so my job is walking,feed,watering, and adminstering medications as needed to boarding pets. Also caring for pets after surgeries such as walking, keeping an eye on their condition. I also sometimes bathe and groom pets and do lion cuts and shave downs as instructed. I've also have many opportunities to work along side the tech. Assist in surgeries when she needs me; like monitor a dogs breathing or help with the breathing process if the pet is too older and can't breathe on it's own while in surgery. I also assist in exams and appointments. I'm in the process of training to become an assistant, and down the road I'll become a technician.

Post all your stories,questions,tips,experiences, whatever it has to do with working in an animal clinic here.
 
I would have loved to be a cat socializer, but it's difficult to commit to when I'm a full-time working student, so I'm a cat fosterer (I work for the RSPCA & Celia Hammond Animal Trust).
 
I went to vet tech school but never finished and now I'm looking into getting back into it... getting my RVT license.... problem is NO ONE is hiring right now, even for a kennel attendant :sad:
 
Yeah I had the same problem. I really worked my butt off to get this job as a kennel assistant, but I have my foot in the door and that's all I needed to further myself :smile: I'm very blessed to be working where I'm at. I love everyone I work with and it's just a great environment to be in.


Bigger problem, when my boyfriend graduates college we will start looking to own our own home together. He wants to live near the city (b/c of his job in computers with the government) which means possibly finding another job at a clinic. I really really don't want to leave the job I'm at. I'll just travel to get to work.
 
I started working as an assistant at 15 years old--worked all through college (pre-vet med) and continued working for the clinic while I went to grad school--changed direction and went into education..learned a lot while working for various vets.
 
my mom worked at a vet for almost 20 years. I loved it! always going in to visit her and the animals. it was a small town vet so basically just my mom and the vet himself. My mom was basically just the receptionist/bookkeeper but because the business was so small my mom was able to help out with other stuff and learned a lot of things.

I remember when i was little I would get so excited to go there and be the one to wash down the runway with the hose lol being older now it seems kinda gross that I was so excited to spray poop off cement with a hose but when I was younger it was fun! lol
 
I love the Humane Society. I go there once a week to see all the adpotee's. Where I work the Dr.'s spay and neuter all the pets from the HS that have been adopted out. Every monday morning the HS brings the pets in and on every other day a few. You'd be surprised how many pets have homes now. I've gotten really attached to a few, but I have to wait till I'm living on my own to bring any home
 
I dont work in a animal clinic but i do work at a ANIMAL SHELTER.. in nyc ! Its called ANIMAL HAVEN its located in soho, Manhattan. I love every minute of it .. I'm a kennel/cattery attendant .. I also help the vet tech and the manager! I love my job with all my heart.. I love making a difference in these animals lives. Its also a no kill shelter so thats also a great thing. I wake up every morning knowing I'm going to do something good for a animal that cant talk. I realllly loveeeeeeeee it!

Here's a link of where I work.. maybe you can adopt lol ;]

http://animalhavenshelter.org/
 
I did many years ago and I hated it. Don't get me wrong there were many parts of my job as a vet tech that I loved, but it was not for me. When you work at an emergency animal hospital you really get to see a dark side of people you usually don't see.

I've had to pts many dogs and cats who were healthy but their owners couldn't be bothered with treatment they needed. Or one owner who threw their dying dog in the back of their truck on the way to the emergency clinic in below freezing weather. The dog was so cold we couldn't get a temp. Poor thing lived but just barely.

I've also had a poor dog come in who was gang raped by a pack of roaming dogs because her owners tied her to a tie-down out in the open WHILE she was in heat. I've assisted in many abortions because the owners couldn't be bothered with spaying and neutering their pets. So now the vet and I had to do the dirty work. It made me almost physically ill to watch those poor babies die after the doctor removed the uterine horns. I could go on but I don't want to. I hated that job.

While I do love and appreciate what you do, it's just not for me. Now I'm a happy stay at home mom of three darling girls and I love every minute of it.
 
I've been promoted! Well starting Dec. 14th I will be working 40 hours a week as a kennel assistant still and now training to be a floater. I haven't quite seen what the floater girls do at my job so I don't really know much about it. I do know they assistant in appointments with the assistants and help out in surgery when needed, stuff like that. Does anyone else do this similar job at a vet clinic?