Nikki+Arnold

It takes:

♥4 years of college. ♥4 years of Veterinarian college. ♥2 foreign language

Pays: ♥$56,450~$94,880 in 2006 ♥The lowest earns $43,530 a year. ♥The highest paid is $133,150

How many they need: ♥ 62,000 jobs in 2006

The Future: ♥Vets are expected to have very good job opportunities.

♥ Most vets diagnose animal health problems. ♥vacinate against diseases. ♥According to the American Medical Veterinary Association, 77 percent of veterinarians who work in private medical practices treat pets. ♥These practitioners usually care for dogs and cats but also treat birds, reptiles, rabbits, ferrets, and other animals that can be kept as pets. ♥About 16 percent of veterinarians work in private mixed and food animal practices, where they see pigs, goats, cattle, sheep, and some wild animals in addition to farm animals. ♥Veterinarians who work with food animals or horses usually drive to farms or ranches to provide veterinary services for herds or individual animals. ♥Veterinarians who treat animals use medical equipment such as stethoscopes, surgical instruments, and diagnostic equipment, including radiographic and ultrasound equipment. Veterinarians working in research use a full range of sophisticated laboratory equipment. ♥Today, some determine the effects of drug therapies, antibiotics, or new surgical techniques by testing them on animals. ♥Some veterinarians are involved in food safety and inspection. ♥Veterinarians in private or clinical practice often work long hours in a noisy indoor environment. Sometimes they have to deal with emotional or demanding pet owners. When working with animals that are frightened or in pain, veterinarians risk being bitten, kicked, or scratched. ♥ Veterinarians working in nonclinical areas, such as public health and research, work in clean, well-lit offices or laboratories and have working conditions similar to those of other professionals who work in these environments. ♥ Veterinarians in nonclinical areas spend much of their time dealing with people rather than animals. ♥Veterinarians often work long hours. ♥Those in group practices may take turns being on call for evening, night, or weekend work; solo practitioners may work extended hours (including weekend hours), responding to emergencies or squeezing in unexpected appointments. ♥Veterinarians must obtain a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree and a State license. Admission to veterinary school is competitive. ♥Prospective veterinarians must graduate with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M. or V.M.D.) degree from a 4-year program at an accredited college of veterinary medicine. ♥ There are 28 colleges in 26 States that meet accreditation standards set by the Council on Education of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). ♥The prerequisites for admission to veterinary programs vary. ♥Preveterinary courses should emphasize the sciences. ♥New graduates with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree may begin to practice veterinary medicine once they receive their license, but many new graduates choose to enter a 1-year internship. ♥Veterinarians who then seek board certification also must complete a 3-year to 4-year residency program that provides intensive training in one of the 39 AVMA-recognized veterinary specialties including internal medicine, oncology, pathology, dentistry, nutrition, radiology, surgery, dermatology, anesthesiology, neurology, cardiology, ophthalmology, preventive medicine, and exotic-small-animal medicine. ♥When deciding whom to admit, some veterinary medical colleges place heavy consideration on candidates’ veterinary and animal experience.