Large+Animal+Veterinarian

=Large Animal Vet: =



= Job Description: = [|Watch The Video] ** To provide high quality, compassionate veterinary care to local large animal species. To help you and your animals with diagnosis, treatment, and prevention of health problems and sports medicine related problems. Large animals include, horses, cattle, hogs, sheep, goats, llamas, alpacas, etc. (anything that is more of a farm animal). Most veterinarians diagnose animal health problems; vaccinate against diseases, such as distemper and rabies; medicate animals suffering from infections or illnesses; treat and dress wounds; set fractures; perform surgery; and advise owners about animal feeding, behavior, and breeding. **



**Large animal veterinarians treat farm livestock as well as companion horses. Unlike small animal vets, they usually travel to their patients and live in rural areas. Their work is physically demanding, with unpredictable hours. Prevention of problems is a focus, but some work primarily for farms raising animals for consumption. Much of this work involves preventive care to maintain the health of the animals. These veterinarians test for and vaccinate against diseases and consult with farm or ranch owners and managers regarding animal production, feeding, and housing issues. They also treat and dress wounds, set fractures, and perform surgery, including cesarean sections on birthing animals. Other veterinarians care for zoo, aquarium, or laboratory animals. Veterinarians of all types euthanize animals when necessary.**


 * ^ ^ ^ sometimes large animals vets use their trucks to transfer medichine and all the equipment with them to the farm**

= Personal Characters: = ** You must demonstrate ambition and an eagerness to work with animals. Prospective veterinarians must have good manual dexterity. They should have an affinity for animals and the ability to get along with their owners. Veterinarians who intend to go into private practice should possess excellent communication and business skills, because they will need to manage their practice and employees successfully and to promote, market, and sell their services. ** = Working Conditions: = **For a large animal vet, they usually go out to farms, so their working condition is based on how well the farm is kept clean. You can contract desiese from animal, that is why you see vets wearing gloves and washing their hands before and after as best as they can. Some times large animal vets have to go on long road trips to a certain state or town. These veterinarians usually drive to farms or ranches to provide veterinary services for herds or individual animals. Veterinarians who are livestock inspectors, for example, check animals for transmissible diseases, such as E. coli, advise owners on the treatment of their animals, and may quarantine animals. Veterinarians who are meat, poultry, or egg product inspectors examine slaughtering and processing plants, check live animals and carcasses for disease, and enforce government regulations regarding food purity and sanitation. These veterinarians spend time driving between their office and farms or ranches. They work outdoors in all kinds of weather and may have to treat animals or perform surgery, under unsanitary conditions. They 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 and weekend hours, responding to emergencies or squeezing in unexpected appointments.**



= Places Of Employment: = Veterinarians held about 62,000 jobs in 2006. According to the American Veterinary Medical Association, about 3 out of 4 veterinarians were employed in a solo or group practice. Most others were salaried employees of another veterinary practice. Data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics show that the Federal Government employed about 1,400 civilian veterinarians, chiefly in the U.S. Departments of Agriculture, Health and Human Services, and, increasingly, Homeland Security. Other employers of veterinarians are State and local governments, colleges of veterinary medicine, medical schools, research laboratories, animal food companies, and pharmaceutical companies. = Job Outlook: = **There's a shortage of veterinarians who specialize in large farm animals. It's a problem for farmers and consumers, who need vets to ensure a quality food supply. In New England alone, there will be more than 1,000 vet vacancies in the next six years. That's according to a study by the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tuft's University. The shortage may be due to the shrinking number of family farms, which means fewer children are exposed to agriculture.** [|Video Link] ** There is a large shortage of large animal veterinarians!. At Ohio State University's College of Veterinarian Medichine (the only veterinarian school in Ohio), there is a dramatic decrease in people who want to be a large animal vet. They had 106 graduates last year. Of those graduates, only six went into a large animal exclusive or predominant practice and 12 into a mixed practice. In comparison, 51 went into a small animal exclusive or predominant practice. The breakdown is similar at the nation’s other 26 veterinary schools. Of 1,405 graduates nationwide last year, only 197 went into a large animal or mixed practice, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). There are several possible reasons why there is a decline in large animal vets. Alot could have to do with the fact that, not many people are from rural backgrounds anymore. Also, a large animal vet includes long work weeks and a long time on the road on calls. Having a shortage of large animal veterinarians would be “catastrophic for the industry and for society,” said Dr. Lyle Vogel, director of AMVA’s Animal Welfare Division. AMVA said in a study last year that the demand for food supply vets is projected to increase a modest 12 percent to 13 percent between now and 2016. The research forecast a shortfall of 4 percent to 5 percent per year, which means that for every 100 food supply veterinarian jobs available, only 96 veterinarians will be available to fill them **. = Salary: = **The average starting salary for large animal vets only is around $61,029.**

= = = Recommended Education and Training: = **Experience with large animals is essential to understanding the physical difficulty and dangers of this work. In Veterinary School, students take additional courses in large animal medicine, learning to deliver calves, calm frightened horses, and prevent illnesses from spreading throughout a barn. 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). This is also for large animal vets. The prerequisites for admission to veterinary programs vary. Many programs do not require a bachelor’s degree for entrance, but all require a significant number of credit hours—ranging from 45 to 90 semester hours—at the undergraduate level. However, most of the students admitted have completed an undergraduate program and earned a bachelor’s degree. Applicants without a degree face a difficult task gaining admittance. Preveterinary courses should emphasize the sciences. Veterinary medical colleges typically require applicants to have taken classes in organic and inorganic chemistry, physics, biochemistry, general biology, animal biology, animal nutrition, genetics, vertebrate embryology, cellular biology, microbiology, zoology, and systemic physiology. Some programs require calculus; some require only statistics, college algebra and trigonometry, or pre-calculus. Most veterinary medical colleges also require some courses in English or literature, other humanities, and the social sciences. Increasingly, courses in general business management and career development have become a standard part of the curriculum to teach new graduates how to effectively run a practice. All States and the District of Columbia require that veterinarians be licensed before they can practice. Licensing is controlled by the States and is not strictly uniform, although all States require the successful completion of the D.V.M. degree—or equivalent education—and a passing grade on a national board examination, the North American Veterinary Licensing Exam. This 8-hour examination consists of 360 multiple-choice questions covering all aspects of veterinary medicine as well as visual materials designed to test diagnostic skills. Formal experience, such as working with animals on a farm or ranch or at a stable or animal shelter, also can be helpful. Students must demonstrate ambition and an eagerness to work with animals.**

=Biblography:=
 * "Lg animal vet." __HSU Main Page (2008)__. 31 Mar. 2009 [].
 * __Large Animal Veterinary Services Home Page__. 31 Mar. 2009 [].
 * "Veterinarians." __U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics__. 31 Mar. 2009 [].
 * "NPR Media Player." __NPR : National Public Radio : News & Analysis, World, US, Music & Arts__. 30 Apr. 2009 [].
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