Good resource for more information regarding specialties

[Ducklips]

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I just signed up to SDN because this forum looks like an amazing resource and you all seem very knowledgeable. Before I dig into my huge load of questions, I was wondering if anyone could direct me to some more basic information that I can't seem to find.

I am currently pre-vet, and for the looongest time, I focused on doing zoo work for a number of reasons. Primarily I just really enjoy exotic animals. I find them fascinating, and having worked with companions for the past two years in boarding kennels, I am interested in the differences between an animal that is truly wild. BUT... the more research I do, the more the cons seem to pile up. For one, I have not been having the best experiences with my anatomy education and I find the prospect of learning so many different forms truly daunting. Two, the job market is tiny for zoo veterinarians and three, and the real blow, the pay is substantially lower than I originally thought. I love animals, and I would very much love to work with exotics, but I am a realist and I know what kind of money I want to make and the kind of life I want to provide for myself and any kids I may have; the average zoo vet salary does not support that lifestyle.

I haven't completely cast it out yet, though, for all I know I will just fall head-over-heels in love and not care about the money, but just in case, I was wondering if anyone knew of a resource that went into depth about the various vet specialties. I noticed that nutrition seemed to do very well, but what do nutrition vets actually do? I know I am interested in human nutrition, and depending on what animal nutrition is all about, that could actually be a specialty I have a passion for. I just like to plan/day-dream in advance and the more information I have the better.

Oh, additional little question, does anyone here go to or have ever heard of Pierce College in Woodland Hills, CA? They have a pretty well respected pre-vet program, and I am planning to start there this fall. If anyone could share their experiences or at least what they have heard, I would really appreciate it.

 

[Walsh1122]

http://www.avma.org/education/abvs/specialty_orgs/default.asp go to the first drop down box on that link and it will show you every specialty recognized by the AVMA.

 

[jpeterman13]

Well, you could go into exotics. However, I don't know how feasible it is to be exclusively an exotic veterinarian nowadays. But honestly, a good portion of people that enter vet school with a certain specialty in mind end up finding something else that they like even more. For now, concentrate on getting in and getting a good amount of VARIED experience. But regarding zoo med, it's a very popular specialty for students to pursue, so it's extremely competitive. A lot of people on here are hoping to get into that.

 

[ckd816]

Well, you could go into exotics. However, I don't know how feasible it is to be exclusively an exotic veterinarian nowadays.

It's pretty feasible! I work at a 2 doctor exotics only clinic. 😉 It's been open about 3 years and seems to be doing well... There's almost always a solid day's worth of appointments.

 

[Nechochwen]

But regarding zoo med, it's a very popular specialty for students to pursue, so it's extremely competitive. A lot of people on here are hoping to get into that.

Guilty. 😀

But I don't care, I'll work for it until/unless I find something better.

As for the OP's other question: Wouldn't a specialized nutrition vet, find good work with animal feed companies and such? Or is it more of assigning the proper nutrition to individual/herds of animals?

 

[su_grad2007]

I also have a question about specializing, that maybe someone has the answer to. My current interests are leading me to specialize in veterinary behavior, and I'm wondering if I can still practice in other areas if a board certify in behavior. For instance, could I work in a mixed practice (dog, cat, equine, etc) and be a veterinary behaviorist or would I only be able to see behavior cases exclusively. Or I'm also interested in shelter medicine, so after being certified, could I work as a vet in a shelter/rescue environment and see behavior cases? Just curious if anyone had any thoughts on this.

 

[david594]

As a vet you can do whatever you want within the scope of veterinary medicine. There are essentially no limitations.

The only thing you can't do is represent yourself as a "specialist" in name when you haven't completed the proper board certification in that field.

(This is leaving all ethical issues aside).

 

[parietal]

I also have a question about specializing, that maybe someone has the answer to. My current interests are leading me to specialize in veterinary behavior, and I'm wondering if I can still practice in other areas if a board certify in behavior. For instance, could I work in a mixed practice (dog, cat, equine, etc) and be a veterinary behaviorist or would I only be able to see behavior cases exclusively. Or I'm also interested in shelter medicine, so after being certified, could I work as a vet in a shelter/rescue environment and see behavior cases? Just curious if anyone had any thoughts on this.

Absolutely. We have a board-certified surgeon who comes and does occasional pro bono orthopedic surgeries at our local humane society. It's awesome. A behaviorist would be really valuable, too.

The only thing to be aware of is that if you do a mixed/behavior thing, is that your pay will likely be different. You're generally paid more for your specialty, but a rural mixed clinic probably isn't going to have much demand for a behaviorist, so I'm not sure if a practice owner would be willing to pay you any more than a regular vet. But you could moonlight in a mixed clinic while doing your residency or something....

 

[VeganSoprano]

I also have a question about specializing, that maybe someone has the answer to. My current interests are leading me to specialize in veterinary behavior, and I'm wondering if I can still practice in other areas if a board certify in behavior. For instance, could I work in a mixed practice (dog, cat, equine, etc) and be a veterinary behaviorist or would I only be able to see behavior cases exclusively. Or I'm also interested in shelter medicine, so after being certified, could I work as a vet in a shelter/rescue environment and see behavior cases? Just curious if anyone had any thoughts on this.

Last I looked in detail, UC Davis' shelter medicine residency could be done with the eventual goal of board certification in behavior, since there is currently no board certification in shelter med (unless my info is outdated).

 

[NStarz]

I also have a question about specializing, that maybe someone has the answer to. My current interests are leading me to specialize in veterinary behavior, and I'm wondering if I can still practice in other areas if a board certify in behavior. For instance, could I work in a mixed practice (dog, cat, equine, etc) and be a veterinary behaviorist or would I only be able to see behavior cases exclusively. Or I'm also interested in shelter medicine, so after being certified, could I work as a vet in a shelter/rescue environment and see behavior cases? Just curious if anyone had any thoughts on this.

Um...are we the same person? LOL. Interests in behavior and shelter med. Haha. I thought I was weird.

 

[Tobysgirl81]

I've heard of several people who went through residencies, passed their boards, practiced for a while in just that specialty... And then decided to just go back to general practice. So you CAN become a specialist and then see "normal" patients along with specialty patients if you so choose!

 

[Ducklips]

Thanks so much, this was really useful.

I still don't know exactly what I want to do, but I am at least pretty sure about wanting to work with animals so at least that's a start!

I wish the rest of you the best of luck!