interesting activities/jobs?

[sunnex3]

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i'm currently looking to get some variety in my veterinary experience...i've only worked so far as a tech at a busy small animal hospital in DC, and at school i'm a lab assistant at the penn vet school and a reserach assistant with a department in the ryan hospital. i'm also a clinic volunteer at the PSCPA.

but i feel like i have no breadth in my experience. in the future i'd like to volunteer at the Marion duPont Equine Medical Center in Virginia (i have horse experience, just no equine veterinary experience) and want to volunteer at the Smithsonian or Philadelphia Zoo. I also want to go on a trip with World Vets to one of their spay/neuter blitzes in South America because it sounds like great experience.

i was just looking to see if anyone had any creative/innovative suggestions for experience opportunities?

 

[Pandacinny]

This might not be terribly interesting for you, but you could always try Days End Horse Farm Rescue in Lisbon, MD. They work with abused and neglected horses. Most of the horses there are pulled by Days End on behalf of local animal control agencies in MD who wouldn't otherwise be able to take horses in. They have a lot of pretty neat cases and are very friendly to work with.

 

[InanOven]

If anyone is nearby Huntington beach, CA my boss def needs to hire someone but is kinda weird about hiring . . . you need some experience but not too much and need to be ok with being overworked and underpaid . . . no guarantees but i might be able to get your foot in the door

 

[lunazzurra]

I am biased, but I would recommend wildlife rehabilitation. Good rehabbers are more knowledgable about wildlife than many exotic/zoo vets. To locate a federally licensed rehabber, check out http://www.tc.umn.edu/~devo0028/contact.htm.

 

[WildlifeSaver]

If your a Penn student, why don't you get some experience at the New Bolton Center for foal sitting? Wildlife places are interesting and there is one near you.

 

[California1]

If anyone is nearby Huntington beach, CA my boss def needs to hire someone but is kinda weird about hiring . . . you need some experience but not too much and need to be ok with being overworked and underpaid . . . no guarantees but i might be able to get your foot in the door

Please please! More info! VERY interested

 

[alliecat44]

Sunnex, sounds like you have some great ideas. I'm from the DC area--what clinic do you work at?? So curious! 🙂

Working in specialty hospitals was way fun for me and gave me a completely different perspective on veterinary medicine. Feel free to PM me for more details about referral hospitals in the DC metro area. ER work is great experience, too--working with different types of cases as well as difficult ethical and financial issues, etc.

I think you can be on the foal team at the DuPont-Scott EMC in the spring (doubtful in the summer)--my boyfriend's sister does that and she doesn't have any vet experience. 🙂

 

[DVMorBust]

Has anyone ever shadowed a vet working for the FDA or government? Is that even possible? Might be interesting to get some experience with the less 'hands on' types of jobs available...

 

[sunnex3]

Sunnex, sounds like you have some great ideas. I'm from the DC area--what clinic do you work at?? So curious! 🙂

Working in specialty hospitals was way fun for me and gave me a completely different perspective on veterinary medicine. Feel free to PM me for more details about referral hospitals in the DC metro area. ER work is great experience, too--working with different types of cases as well as difficult ethical and financial issues, etc.

I think you can be on the foal team at the DuPont-Scott EMC in the spring (doubtful in the summer)--my boyfriend's sister does that and she doesn't have any vet experience. 🙂

oh cool! i work at citypaws animal hospital in NW DC...

i'm planning on working in the specialty department/ER at southpaws this summer (i'm sure you've heard of them!) and i'm super excited about that, since either specializing or ER is what i want to do later.

i asked about foal siting at the EMC but i was at penn and wasn't able to make their volunteer orientation so i'm just thinking of volunteering as an assistant next summer.

that's so cool how you're from around DC, what hospitals have you worked at?

 

[sunnex3]

If your a Penn student, why don't you get some experience at the New Bolton Center for foal sitting? Wildlife places are interesting and there is one near you.

i actually looked into doing foal sitting at new bolton, but it's so far from philly and i have no idea how to get there. that's why i just decided to volunteer as a clinic assistant at the PSPCA in downtown Philly.

does anyone know of a way of making it out to new bolton via public transportation?

and yeah i think wildlife (like a zoo setting) would be a really great unique experience for me to do like one summer or something. i have the philly zoo during the school year and the smithsonian zoo during breaks, and both apparently have amazing volunteer/internship programs 😀

 

[alliecat44]

oh cool! i work at citypaws animal hospital in NW DC...

i'm planning on working in the specialty department/ER at southpaws this summer (i'm sure you've heard of them!) and i'm super excited about that, since either specializing or ER is what i want to do later.

i asked about foal siting at the EMC but i was at penn and wasn't able to make their volunteer orientation so i'm just thinking of volunteering as an assistant next summer.

that's so cool how you're from around DC, what hospitals have you worked at?

My former co-worker left us at the Regional Vet Referral Center to go work at CityPaws when it opened--good clinic! 🙂

Worked at SouthPaws all through undergrad (before they changed locations) and still know quite a few people there.

Small world!

 

[WildlifeSaver]

i actually looked into doing foal sitting at new bolton, but it's so far from philly and i have no idea how to get there. that's why i just decided to volunteer as a clinic assistant at the PSPCA in downtown Philly.

does anyone know of a way of making it out to new bolton via public transportation?

and yeah i think wildlife (like a zoo setting) would be a really great unique experience for me to do like one summer or something. i have the philly zoo during the school year and the smithsonian zoo during breaks, and both apparently have amazing volunteer/internship programs 😀

Everyone that I talked to when I drove there Friday night seems to have a little more then a hour drive..It is 1 hr and 20 mins for me to get there. I am 15-20 mins from you, so it would take you about the same time to get there. I will be honest that the drive was not fun at all, but I keep on telling myself it is worth more then the drive and the toll I pay...I drove in the dark over a bridge and through small towns and major highways. If you apply and get accepted to penn one day your going to have to drive there one day anyway. Up to you. It looked amazing.

 

[sunnex3]

My former co-worker left us at the Regional Vet Referral Center to go work at CityPaws when it opened--good clinic! 🙂

Worked at SouthPaws all through undergrad (before they changed locations) and still know quite a few people there.

Small world!

wow that's so cool! does that person still work there?

yeah i'm super excited about working at south paws, we refer a ton of our patients there and they seem to get some pretty interesting cases. the ER sounds like a lot of fun

 

[alliecat44]

wow that's so cool! does that person still work there?

yeah i'm super excited about working at south paws, we refer a ton of our patients there and they seem to get some pretty interesting cases. the ER sounds like a lot of fun

I remember when the current intern director at SP was an intern himself...ah, memories. 😉 Makes me feel old!

As far as the possible CityPaws connection--not sure--red curly hair, name starts with M, super nice...familiar? 🙂

 

[sunnex3]

nahh, she probably went on to work somewhere else. we have a pretty high turnover rate with techs/assistants and i've only been working there since last summer.

as far as southpaws goes, did you ever work the overnight shifts in the ER? i've been invited to work there, and i'm really considering it...because it sounds like such great experience.

 

[SHEEPRL]

Has anyone ever shadowed a vet working for the FDA or government? Is that even possible? Might be interesting to get some experience with the less 'hands on' types of jobs available...

I go to a packing plant several times during the summer with a FDA meat inspector. Honestly the interesting aspects of it totally outweigh any drawbacks of being on the "kill floor". A good way to get in is do a tour (they may be more inclined if you let them know you are a pre-vet student not some uninformed looky lou) or talk to the manager/ask who their inspector is and if they would mind having a shadower a few times. Also hit up the Department of Ag for actual veterianrians within the food sector, as not all FDA inscpectors are vets. It is actually pretty cool.

 

[CatVet2Be]

I also want to go on a trip with World Vets to one of their spay/neuter blitzes in South America because it sounds like great experience.

If you can get on board with one of these I'd highly recommend it. Not only does it stand out on an application but the experience is so rewarding and so much fun. The one I did was in the Galapagos Islands and if I could afford to do it again (between the time off and the cost of the plane ticket) I would do it in a heartbeat. It's a great way to safely visit a foreign country and do something that makes a huge difference to the people who live there. If you're interested check out the group Animal Balance, they run campaigns in different countries throughout the year.

 

[Pandacinny]

Has anyone ever shadowed a vet working for the FDA or government? Is that even possible? Might be interesting to get some experience with the less 'hands on' types of jobs available...

I haven't directly shadowed much technically, but I have worked with various vets at the NIH as well as some army vets. I say "technically" because I have often been able to speak with vets and even follow some around for a little bit if I've gotten my other work done. I've been able to do this by being employed in the field of lab animal care. It's a pretty good field to be in, if anyone is looking for a job during a year off or something.

Some companies to check out in the DC/Maryland area are Sobran, Charles River, and Priority One. They should have information on jobs on their websites. The time you'd have to actually work with the vet would be heavily dependent on your workload and job description. If you've got like 1000 mouse cages to change every week, you won't have much spare time. On the other hand, if you have the experience to become a technician, you may be working with the vet much more.

With my job, I got to switch around and travel a lot to different places. Unfortunately, most jobs have you stuck at one place. Still, it's great experience and there are many different animals and labs to work in.

Another good thing to do might be to check into the NIH IRTA program and see if they've got any vets looking for post-bacc fellows. I know I spoke with a vet last year who does research at the NIH and was looking for a fellow. He said it's sometimes hard to find qualified applicants who are actually interested in vet school, not med school or a PhD alone. You can also contact some people in specific labs if you're interested in their work and see about being a "special volunteer" and helping with research. Maybe you can contact some vets and see if that would be possible with them, as well? I don't have any useful names to give out, but if you search around the NIH website for info on lab animals, you might find something.

 

[Pandacinny]

I've seen the Southpaws clinic before - it looked pretty nice. I went for one of the big CE days they do. Seemed like an awesome place to work!

 

[sunnex3]

I've seen the Southpaws clinic before - it looked pretty nice. I went for one of the big CE days they do. Seemed like an awesome place to work!

yeah i'm going to one of their CE seminar days in march! i actually haven't seen their new location yet, so i'm super excited 🙂

 

[sunnex3]

If you can get on board with one of these I'd highly recommend it. Not only does it stand out on an application but the experience is so rewarding and so much fun. The one I did was in the Galapagos Islands and if I could afford to do it again (between the time off and the cost of the plane ticket) I would do it in a heartbeat. It's a great way to safely visit a foreign country and do something that makes a huge difference to the people who live there. If you're interested check out the group Animal Balance, they run campaigns in different countries throughout the year.

yeah i'm definitely going to go on one of these by next summer. they look awesome and look like it would such a great experience that is really unique too. thanks for the info on animal balance! 🙂

how much hands on experience did you get on your trip?

 

[Ysabel327]

I see there are some of you from the DC area. I am having a hard time getting vet experience, think you can help???

 

[Pandacinny]

Ysabel, I'm in the Baltimore area, which is close. I got my start with vet experience at an animal shelter. You might try some in your area. If you live closer to Baltimore or wouldn't mind commuting, PM me and I might be able to give you some contacts. Hopefully, someone closer to your area can help!

 

[sunnex3]

I see there are some of you from the DC area. I am having a hard time getting vet experience, think you can help???

it might be tough to find something in the current economy, i noticed that while a few months ago a lot of vet tech/asst jobs were popping up they're hard to come by these days.

your best bet might be to just email/call a bunch of hospitals in your area and ask if they would allow you to volunteer/shadow. once you start doing that, you might get lucky enough to get offered a position after a while. i don't know exactly where you live around DC, but there are A LOT of hospitals/clinics in the area...

i was fortunate enough to start with a paying position, but i know that a majority of the time, that's not the case.

also, you could see if maybe the ffx county or montgomery county humane societies need any help in their clinics/shelters. sometimes they need volunteers.

 

[Ysabel327]

I do volunteer work for a wildlife center, as well as an equine rescue. I go into a SA vet about 2 hours here and there when I can, but I don't feel like I am building a relationship with the vets, enough to write a LOR at least. I would actually prefer to volunteer rather than be paid, b/c my work schedule is all over the place. I am having a hard time even volunteering due to "insurance" reasons. Also, know where I can get industry or research experience?

 

[Rusty27]

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