im just out of high school and looking at going to shasta college. im really interested in animals but i need to know before i sign up for the veterinary science class that its what i really want. i dont know a whole lot about college and degrees, so i need help. i get a little nauseous about blood and dissecting things, so is there another job that pays good to work along side a vet, like a nurse or something?
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To be a veterinarian you will need both a Bachelor of Science (B.S.) degree and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (D.V.M.) degree. You can earn your B.S. from any four-year college in the U.S. and you can major in any field you wish, so long as you also take the required pre-veterinary courses as outlined by the veterinary colleges you wish to apply to. For your D.V.M. you will need to apply and be accepted to an AVMA accredited veterinary school, you can find a list of these schools here: http://www.avma.org/education/cvea/colle…
As for the blood my advice for you would be to begin shadowing at some veterinary clinics in your area. That experience will help get you acclimated to seeing blood as well as letting you see what being a veterinarian entails on a daily basis which will help you decide if this career is for you. Shadowing is also required by many veterinary colleges before you can even apply. In regards to dissections I'm going to assume that you've performed some in high school and didn't care for the smell of the preserved specimens. Most people have trouble dealing with those smells although you do get used to it after a while (I speak from experience). Also, performing surgery on a live animal is nothing like doing a dissection. Yes the anatomy is the same but the smells are completely different, that may or may not be a good thing!
As an alternative, veterinary technicians are in many ways analogous to human nurses. They work with the animals, talk to clients, and take the animal's history and some simple measurements like temperature. They don't perform surgeries although they will be expected to be capable of assisting the veterinarian should the need arise. To be a vet tech you need to enroll in a veterinary technology program which is usually a 2-yr degree offered by community colleges.
As for the blood my advice for you would be to begin shadowing at some veterinary clinics in your area. That experience will help get you acclimated to seeing blood as well as letting you see what being a veterinarian entails on a daily basis which will help you decide if this career is for you. Shadowing is also required by many veterinary colleges before you can even apply. In regards to dissections I'm going to assume that you've performed some in high school and didn't care for the smell of the preserved specimens. Most people have trouble dealing with those smells although you do get used to it after a while (I speak from experience). Also, performing surgery on a live animal is nothing like doing a dissection. Yes the anatomy is the same but the smells are completely different, that may or may not be a good thing!
As an alternative, veterinary technicians are in many ways analogous to human nurses. They work with the animals, talk to clients, and take the animal's history and some simple measurements like temperature. They don't perform surgeries although they will be expected to be capable of assisting the veterinarian should the need arise. To be a vet tech you need to enroll in a veterinary technology program which is usually a 2-yr degree offered by community colleges.