Thinking about going to veterinary route...

[DVMDream]

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omg, how could you all, chickens are the best 😢 😍

and raptors are so dang cool...macaws/cockatoos/any larger parrot are freaking intimidating though. I attended a workshop on bird physicals for the wildlife education place I interned at and had to restrain the macaw rather than one of the smaller Eclectus or something
Especially intimidating given that one of my coworkers/classmates who worked with the birds A LOT got severely bitten by one of the cockatoos, think it broke her finger.

I stand by my position: Birds are EVIL. The end.

 

[finnickthedog]

I stand by my position: Birds are EVIL. The end.

This sums up the ornithology class I took last summer. 😛

 

[dyachei]

I like most raptors. But that doesn't mean they aren't evil like the rest of the birds

 

[WildZoo]

Only crazy people work with birds.

Fact.

I'm ok with this assessment

 

[rockatiel]

Very interesting that you're passionate about nutrition! I myself do love animals. Maybe I can't vouch for everyone else 😉 lol

I've always had animals and pets in my life and have helped birth, raise orphans, perform husbandry, etc so it was only natural for me to choose this route. I think volunteering that you've done is great, but also get some clinical get experience. The more variety in your experience, the better!

The MCAT is usually accepted by foreign schools. But you want to stay stateside if you can help it for solely financial reasons. Another thing to be wary of is the vet school debt. You can't pay it back quite as quickly at all as other professions. I would say take a year to get experience, take the GRE, and read the VMSAR book about schools to see if this is what you TRULY want to do and not just a passing flight of fancy. Good luck, your coursework seems impressive!

 

[rockatiel]

Only crazy people work with birds.

Fact.

RETWEET (no bird pun intended)

 

[that redhead]

1. Do most of you genuinely love all animals?

The vast majority of veterinary education focuses on dogs, cats, horses and cows. There are certainly courses on other animals - including fish, small ruminants, camelids, exotics, etc - but just because you don't like them doesn't mean you'll struggle with the program or make a bad vet. I think you'll find that even if you love dogs/cats/horses/cows, you will come to see that working with animals in a veterinary setting, where the animals are sick or hurt and always stressed to some degree, is quite different.

2. Have any of you applied with an MCAT score in place of GRE?

I did not personally; be sure to double-check your schools as only a select few will accept an MCAT instead of a GRE. On the plus side, the GRE is a heck of a lot easier/faster than the MCAT!

3. What specifically made you choose the veterinary route?

Honestly, I had always wanted to be a veterinarian and never really explored other options. I considered forensics and lab animal technician work (my job throughout undergrad) when I realized just how uncompetitive I was for admission but fortunately was able to get in on my first try. Going to vet school with a variety of experiences, I had decided on lab animal med but wasn't accepted to a residency program and ended up going into general practice. In retrospect, I wish I had earnestly explored other options but I've been pleasantly surprised with my level of job satisfaction thus far.

4. What kind of extracurriculars would be good for applying to veterinary school?

Veterinary experience is a lot more important in vet med applications than for medical school applications. I would really focus on that over other ECs - most people apply with at least a few hundred, and plenty apply with thousands of vet hours. I think it's good to have other ECs - hobbies, volunteer gigs either with people or animals, etc - but admissions really wants to see that you have a good idea of what you're getting into.

Hope this helps; welcome to the pre-vet side of SDN 🙂