Dog Breeding and Agility for Animal Experience

[JRockyS]

Hey Everyone,

Putting together my application for vet school and had a question regarding adding an animal experience. I've read on this forum people going back and forth about home dog ownership and if it counts for animal experience. I currently have 3 dogs, (2 labs and a puggle). My labs produced a litter of pups for me a few years back. The sire who is now fixed, has gone through agility and fly ball training with me, in addition to being a fully trained duck dog. We compete sporadically in agility/flyball and hunt every season. I've spent so much time personally shaping this dog, I would love to get credit for these experiences.

My question is: will most schools allow this experience spanning 6 years to count as animal experience?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[twelvetigers]

Hey Everyone,

Putting together my application for vet school and had a question regarding adding an animal experience. I've read on this forum people going back and forth about home dog ownership and if it counts for animal experience. I currently have 3 dogs, (2 labs and a puggle). My labs produced a litter of pups for me a few years back. The sire who is now fixed, has gone through agility and fly ball training with me, in addition to being a fully trained duck dog. We compete sporadically in agility/flyball and hunt every season. I've spent so much time personally shaping this dog, I would love to get credit for these experiences.

My question is: will most schools allow this experience spanning 6 years to count as animal experience?

General pet ownership, like feeding, grooming, training, and basic husbandry is the iffy part. Some schools think it belongs and some don't. However, actual training for events and agility is something more than usual and should be counted. Just be conservative on the hours.

 

[JRockyS]

Thanks for your reply. I know the basic care stuff is hit or miss. I'm just hoping that all kinds of training for/attending competitions will be counted. I've seen on certain schools websites they say that showing a dog or engaging in competitions is counted. The level of competition we do is very amateur, although we have spent considerable time preparing him for it.

I was very conservative with hours, only put 3 hours a week even though it was much more than that.

Also, how is hunting dog training viewed? I know that some vets are opposed to it. We obviously only used positive reinforcement principles.

 

[twelvetigers]

Thanks for your reply. I know the basic care stuff is hit or miss. I'm just hoping that all kinds of training for/attending competitions will be counted. I've seen on certain schools websites they say that showing a dog or engaging in competitions is counted. The level of competition we do is very amateur, although we have spent considerable time preparing him for it.

I was very conservative with hours, only put 3 hours a week even though it was much more than that.

Also, how is hunting dog training viewed? I know that some vets are opposed to it. We obviously only used positive reinforcement principles.

Well, I don't know - every admissions committee member has their own personal views on it. You can leave it out if you are worried, or mention it and be ready to support it. If you do it a humane way, just mention positive reinforcement. I don't think it will bother anyone. *shrug*

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

Thanks for your reply. I know the basic care stuff is hit or miss. I'm just hoping that all kinds of training for/attending competitions will be counted. I've seen on certain schools websites they say that showing a dog or engaging in competitions is counted. The level of competition we do is very amateur, although we have spent considerable time preparing him for it.

I was very conservative with hours, only put 3 hours a week even though it was much more than that.

Also, how is hunting dog training viewed? I know that some vets are opposed to it. We obviously only used positive reinforcement principles.

Opposed to hunting or opposed to training hunting dogs? I never met a vet opposed to either, although I suppose some may exist.

 

[LadyOtheFarm]

Opposed to hunting or opposed to training hunting dogs? I never met a vet opposed to either, although I suppose some may exist.

At the first clinic I worked at, one of the vets was a former PETA member. Her boss was a heavy hunter. In CO, it seemed like about a third of the vets I met were vegetarians and many opposed hunting while others were avid hunters there too. They come in all stripes.

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

At the first clinic I worked at, one of the vets was a former PETA member. Her boss was a heavy hunter. In CO, it seemed like about a third of the vets I met were vegetarians and many opposed hunting while others were avid hunters there too. They come in all stripes.

A third?! Damn.

To be fair, that's CO where all the dirty hippies are now.