Anyone work with animals??

Hello all..

Anyone working with animals..i am thinking of a career change and would love to hear any advice/experiences...i am looking at vet nursing as a possibility - i think its an NVQ or animal care..this office life is getting me down..time for a change...

hehe. I work with animals!! If only they werent human then their behaviour would be acceptable!!

Actually, I dont work with REAL animals but my granddad did in his younger days. He's told me a lot about how he got into working for the San Diego Zoo (petting zoo and silverback gorilla enclosure). Things have probably changed a lot since then and they may be really different over here in the UK but at the time he was working for medical research facilities taking care of all the monkies and mice (La Jolla Cancer Research Institute, Stanford University, and Salk Institute) and just fancied a bit of a change. So he just went to the HR office and said he wanted to work with the animals. They said "do you like gorillas" and the rest is history!

Somehow I doubt it'd be that easy today but saying that - I guess Ben Foggle did it! Anyway, maybe a good way to get started would be to work as a junior in a research facility at a university taking care of their mice and whatnot. You'd get good experience in animal medicine as well as medical research and animal care. You could probably even find time to attend school to get an animal medicine cert of some kind so that you could practice in a vet's clinic, zoo or other sort of animal park. Who knows, maybe the Lab might even help fund your education or take you on as an intern.

Probably not the info youre looking for, Im not exactly the best person to give advice in this arena. But I thought you might find the info handy, if nothing else. Anyway, good luck and let us know how you get on!

Take care,
Sarah

Have you checked out your local colleges for what courses are available?  Are you thinking of a regular vet or, if you live in a rural area, there are vets with agricultural clients.

Warwickshire College offers a lot of these types of courses for qualifications in agricultural, equine, etc. type careers.  Although this may not be near to you, it might be a good starting point and could give you some ideas ?? 

How about setting up your own pet sitting business? Or grooming business?

We have a lady that visits our pets when we are on holiday. She charges £10 for each visit. Or you could walk dogs for people that are out all day. Some kind of animal care qualification would probably look impressive to potential clients so it wouldn't be a bad idea to see what local colleges offer.

I don't really blame you for wanting a change!

This might be a bit off-topic, but I'm interested in what it'd be like to get an NVQ.  Would you be in a room full of teenagers?  Or do lots of "old" people go back and get them?

Probably a weird question...I've been doing too much thinking about the UK educational system lately!   

This might be a bit off-topic, but I'm interested in what it'd be like to get an NVQ.  Would you be in a room full of teenagers?  Or do lots of "old" people go back and get them?

Probably a weird question...I've been doing too much thinking about the UK educational system lately!   

My Mum did an NVQ aged 59!

Yeah, got some clarification this morning from DH....I was just confused about the secondary/high school/college/sixth form/university levels...and then when A levels, NVQs, and GCSEs are added it, I just give up!  But I think I've gotten it now!   

My boss is a PIG -- does that count?

you are too funny!!! ha ha

Hey Blondshania!
Are you still considering working with animals?  I have been a pet groomer for many years and before that worked as an assistant in a Vet's office.  In my own personal experience people can be tough to work with anywhwere but I LOVE the animal care industry because no matter what else is going on between the people the critters are always there to lighten things up.  I can't think of any other business where a co worker can get cheeky with you and then 10 min later you have the privladge of seeing her get peed on! (insert evil laughter!!!) 
Also everyone is always working for the common good of the animal and every day you will see things to warm your heart and lighten your spirit.  I wouldn't change professions for anything!  (Of course I should mention that I've been the one peed on from time to time)
 
 I haven't moved yet but will be going to N. Ireland this spring with my Irirsh DH.  I've heard good things about the animal care industry in the UK really booming right now.  If I can be of any help please don't hesitate to ask! 

what kind of training have you been through...

I started bathing dogs for a professional groomer.  Later I'd help her more and more doing simple cuts and brush outs.  She taught me a great deal.  As of now there are no licencing requirements for dog groomers in UK or USA.  A little scary that but true none the less.  The groomer I was working with was self taught and she was very good.  I decided I wanted to go to school anyway just to learn some of the more of the difficult cuts and things that she could not teach me.  I took a 10 week course in Cleveland OH.  I also got a lot of practice grooming dogs who were up for adpoption at our local humane society.  Humane societieys are always delighted to have people volunteer and you can groom dogs without worring about if the owner is going to like it or not.  Gaining confidence is the majior thing.  Once you learn to trust yourself there isn't any cut you can't do.  Second guessing yourself leads to dogs who look like they've been shaved with a lawn mower. lol It takes time and a lot of pratice to gain confidence but once you've got it you've made it.  There are a lot of good books and videos out there.  Also there are tons of grooming seminars and competitions throughout the year.  Even attending dog shows and watching the groomers work can teach you a lot.  Grooming isn't for the faint of heart.  You deal with squirmy dogs, dogs that bite and owners whose behavior is sometimes even worse then their dog's. 
But on the other hand you also get a lot of wonderful dogs, you get the satisfaction of knowing you've made them look and feel better, and you meet lots of wonderful people who truely love their pets.  There is no better feeling when one of them tells you that you have done a fantastic job and they will always bring their pet to you in the future.  If you have any more questions feel free to ask!