Working towards Zoo/Aquatic Medicine...

[Riscatto]

I've come to the conclusion that no matter what being a vet is what I want to do. Everything else bores me or I have no interest. I have always loved Zoo and recently Aquatic and would love to work in that aspect. In order to get certified you have to publish 5 articles which is what worries me. My back up is Equine Physical Therapy, but I have more experience with Zoo than I do Equine.

Any advice? Is publishing an article and easy task or am I working towards unobtainble goals? English and writing has never been my strong suit. Any help is appreciated.

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[cdo96]

I've come to the conclusion that no matter what being a vet is what I want to do. Everything else bores me or I have no interest. I have always loved Zoo and recently Aquatic and would love to work in that aspect. In order to get certified you have to publish 5 articles which is what worries me. My back up is Equine Physical Therapy, but I have more experience with Zoo than I do Equine.

Any advice? Is publishing an article and easy task or am I working towards unobtainble goals? English and writing has never been my strong suit. Any help is appreciated.

Errr... paging @WildZoo ? Maybe?

 

[RecLeagueCurry]

It's not an easy field to get into, a lot of competition and not as many positions. Board certification is a nice goal to have, but that's pretty far ahead if you're still in the process of applying to veterinary school.

It's usually something that requires graduate school after veterinary school along with an intensive residency program, so keep that in mind.

 

[WildZoo]

I don't know about absolutely requiring grad school after vet school, but it is highly conpetitive. At least one if not two internships (small animal rotating and then a specialty internship in a lot of cases) and a residency. And then the job market is extremely competitive too. I'm not super clear on the publishing aspect just yet. It's certainly not an unattainable goal, just realize it's a difficult thing.

Never too early to get some experience and start making connections in the field, or even getting into some research.

Also paging @pinkpuppy9 because she might know more than I do.

 

[FeartheDogMonky]

To tag along here and add my 2 cents, competitive is an understatement. As @WildZoo said, minimum 1 internship, but most end up taking 2 before they are competitive enough to apply for a zoo residency. So on top of 4 years for vet school, that's an additional 6 years of schooling. And THEN!!! The job market is pretty sad for zoo vets. Not only are there very limited spots, but the pay is terrible unfortunately. And the mention of "grad school" after vet school is wrong. Getting a MS or PhD might help if you really want to continue down a more research oriented path, but not required at all.

I've talked to the zoo vets here and a few others from different spots, and have talked to the interns/residents here and none have specifically mentioned a "5" article requirement. Where'd you hear that? Being published definitely helps and is an implied part of your CV on your path to residency, but I've heard no mention of a specific number. If writing (spelling, grammar, etc.) are not your thing and the thought of publishing on a semi-frequent basis makes you nauseous, you might want to reconsider specializing, especially in zoo. Just in the time I've been here, our exotics and zoo vets/interns/residents have written and published several articles. The neat thing about zoo and exotics comes when you're dealing with a case that has never been written about or maybe you establish a drug protocol for a species that's never been recorded. Those types of things greatly benefit the community when you write and publish the details of what you found/did/yada yada ya.

There's also the extended path to getting boarded, but that takes 6 years of practice and a lot of documenting before sitting for boards. It's not specifically "zoo," but it'd help you stand out from peers without any certification. ABVP – American Board of Veterinary Practitioners
Rumor has it though that that option is likely disappearing, but just rumor mill through the halls.

Definitely recommend sitting down with a boarded zoo vet and picking their brain. Or if you can find a resident, even better. Back to priority #1 though: get into vet school and finish that first. Maybe your interests will completely change during vet school - it happens all the time.

Good luck!

 

[Cephal0pod]

I've come to the conclusion that no matter what being a vet is what I want to do. Everything else bores me or I have no interest. I have always loved Zoo and recently Aquatic and would love to work in that aspect. In order to get certified you have to publish 5 articles which is what worries me. My back up is Equine Physical Therapy, but I have more experience with Zoo than I do Equine.

Any advice? Is publishing an article and easy task or am I working towards unobtainble goals? English and writing has never been my strong suit. Any help is appreciated.

I can speak a least a bit to the publication part as I am currently in the process of getting my first manuscript published -- it's definitely a lot of work, to say the least. Keep in mind that you don't necessarily have to have all 5 1st author publications done before becoming a zoo vet - that is just one of the requirements for ACZM boards. At least a few of the zoo vets I know of aren't boarded yet and are still working towards that. Also, scientific writing is quite a bit different than English class writing. If you can get research experience now and start being exposed to what that entails, that would be helpful down the road.

I would also really encourage you to keep an open mind. Zoo med is definitely pretty legit stuff, I'm quite interested in it myself at the moment, but as others are noting... it's a heck of a road to get there. Not impossible, but definitely a very challenging path and one that entails a good bit of sacrifice. It is important to be aware of and really think about that.

It sounds like you are still pretty early in your exploration of the veterinary field, so I would really encourage you to do some more exploring and see what else is out there. Shadow different kinds of veterinarians and get a feel for what they do and what their jobs are like. Zoo med is definitely a neat career, but there are a ton of other neat career options out there as well.

 

[Cephal0pod]

I've talked to the zoo vets here and a few others from different spots, and have talked to the interns/residents here and none have specifically mentioned a "5" article requirement. Where'd you hear that? Being published definitely helps and is an implied part of your CV on your path to residency, but I've heard no mention of a specific number. If writing (spelling, grammar, etc.) are not your thing and the thought of publishing on a semi-frequent basis makes you nauseous, you might want to reconsider specializing, especially in zoo. Just in the time I've been here, our exotics and zoo vets/interns/residents have written and published several articles. The neat thing about zoo and exotics comes when you're dealing with a case that has never been written about or maybe you establish a drug protocol for a species that's never been recorded. Those types of things greatly benefit the community when you write and publish the details of what you found/did/yada yada ya.

Great points - just chiming in to add that the whole 5 1st author pubs thing is a requirement for ACZM boards.

>link with ACZM info<

 

[FeartheDogMonky]

Great points - just chiming in to add that the whole 5 1st author pubs thing is a requirement for ACZM boards.

>link with ACZM info<

Hadn't looked into it that far since that's not my specific path, but good to know. Seems like the advisors push our interns pretty hard for publications, so that's probably a huge driving factor. I just want to get through this semester without failing at all the things before I dig into the specialties I'm considering to make sure I'm setting myself up for success.

 

[WhtsThFrequency]

I've come to the conclusion that no matter what being a vet is what I want to do. Everything else bores me or I have no interest. I have always loved Zoo and recently Aquatic and would love to work in that aspect. In order to get certified you have to publish 5 articles which is what worries me. My back up is Equine Physical Therapy, but I have more experience with Zoo than I do Equine.

Any advice? Is publishing an article and easy task or am I working towards unobtainble goals? English and writing has never been my strong suit. Any help is appreciated.

I hope that's hyperbole.

You're not even in vet school yet. Stop boxing yourself in and freaking out - take this time to explore. Also, realize that the subject matter in vet med is quite vast it's not just all the "fun stuff" like surgery. You study biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, anatomy, immunology, etc. You have to be interested in all of these things, even NOT in the context of vet med.

In addition, if nothing else interests you besides veterinary medicine, you're already on a one-way ticket to burnout. You need, need, NEED to have other passions if you're going to survive vet school (or higher education in general) mentally and emotionally.

 

[Frozenshades]

I hope that's hyperbole.

You're not even in vet school yet. Stop boxing yourself in and freaking out - take this time to explore. Also, realize that the subject matter in vet med is quite vast it's not just all the "fun stuff" like surgery. You study biochemistry, pharmacology, toxicology, anatomy, immunology, etc. You have to be interested in all of these things, even NOT in the context of vet med.

In addition, if nothing else interests you besides veterinary medicine, you're already on a one-way ticket to burnout. You need, need, NEED to have other passions if you're going to survive vet school (or higher education in general) mentally and emotionally.

Is alcohol a passion? I'm asking for a friend.

 

[DVMDream]

Is alcohol a passion? I'm asking for a friend.

Alcohol is my friend.

 

[WildZoo]

To tag along here and add my 2 cents, competitive is an understatement. As @WildZoo said, minimum 1 internship, but most end up taking 2 before they are competitive enough to apply for a zoo residency. So on top of 4 years for vet school, that's an additional 6 years of schooling. And THEN!!! The job market is pretty sad for zoo vets. Not only are there very limited spots, but the pay is terrible unfortunately. And the mention of "grad school" after vet school is wrong. Getting a MS or PhD might help if you really want to continue down a more research oriented path, but not required at all.

I've talked to the zoo vets here and a few others from different spots, and have talked to the interns/residents here and none have specifically mentioned a "5" article requirement. Where'd you hear that? Being published definitely helps and is an implied part of your CV on your path to residency, but I've heard no mention of a specific number. If writing (spelling, grammar, etc.) are not your thing and the thought of publishing on a semi-frequent basis makes you nauseous, you might want to reconsider specializing, especially in zoo. Just in the time I've been here, our exotics and zoo vets/interns/residents have written and published several articles. The neat thing about zoo and exotics comes when you're dealing with a case that has never been written about or maybe you establish a drug protocol for a species that's never been recorded. Those types of things greatly benefit the community when you write and publish the details of what you found/did/yada yada ya.

There's also the extended path to getting boarded, but that takes 6 years of practice and a lot of documenting before sitting for boards. It's not specifically "zoo," but it'd help you stand out from peers without any certification. ABVP – American Board of Veterinary Practitioners
Rumor has it though that that option is likely disappearing, but just rumor mill through the halls.

Definitely recommend sitting down with a boarded zoo vet and picking their brain. Or if you can find a resident, even better. Back to priority #1 though: get into vet school and finish that first. Maybe your interests will completely change during vet school - it happens all the time.

Good luck!

Whoops. I definitely should have thought to tag you! Glad you found the thread anyway

 

[FeartheDogMonky]

Whoops. I definitely should have thought to tag you! Glad you found the thread anyway

HashtagStalkerStatus3000

 

[chickenlittle]

I will mention that MANY of my classmates entered vet school with goals of going into zoo medicine. I was one of those people! Only one of us actually did it, though. I'm convinced that her success had just as much to do with her hard work and determination as it did to do with the fact that she had a spouse who was already an experienced veterinarian and willing to relocate each time she changed internships, supporting them both while the wildlife vet took unpaid and poorly paid training positions. Not to be totally gloom and doom, but I think when people talk about sacrifices, it's sometimes hard to understand what that really looks like. The rest of us decided that we couldn't really afford to go that route and decided to focus on things that had a better chance of supporting us.

If zoo vet is the only DVM job that appeals to you, I think I'd reconsider vet school. I wouldn't make the time/financial investment in vet school unless you can come up with a 'backup plan' that would also justify the degree.

 

[pinkpuppy9]

I've come to the conclusion that no matter what being a vet is what I want to do. Everything else bores me or I have no interest. I have always loved Zoo and recently Aquatic and would love to work in that aspect. In order to get certified you have to publish 5 articles which is what worries me. My back up is Equine Physical Therapy, but I have more experience with Zoo than I do Equine.

Any advice? Is publishing an article and easy task or am I working towards unobtainble goals? English and writing has never been my strong suit. Any help is appreciated.

The thing with ACZM is that in order to be boarded, the articles have to be relevant to zoo med. I've found that a lot of people don't realize that, at least until they're applying for residencies. If you have an opportunity to research/publish elsewhere I'd still take it, but just know that when it comes to being competitive for zoo residencies, those who already have a relevant article published will have the competitive edge (a lot of residencies like applicants who are already published because it means less work on the part of the residency to find you something to write up). A residency is designed to set you up with various research opportunities, or at least you have the means to set up your own project. You'll also be surrounded by everyone you need to make the paper. It will always be the 'easier' and quicker way to go about being a zoo vet, but there are a lot of factors that come into play when you decide whether you want to apply for one or not. Personally, I'm leaning towards not even bothering with a residency and seeing where life takes me from there.

A lot of unboarded zoo vets didn't even start publishing until well in their careers, if at all. If you're not working under a mentor (which is probably easiest to do as a student, intern, or resident), it's tough to establish yourself and get grant money. It's not necessary to publish if you plan on staying unboarded, but research does go hand in hand with being a zoo vet.

Publishing is certainly possible but absolutely not easy. Some of these articles take many years to be published, and the process of peer review is quite frustrating. I wouldn't worry about English not being a first language, that's what proofreaders are for.

Hope that helped.

If zoo vet is the only DVM job that appeals to you, I think I'd reconsider vet school. I wouldn't make the time/financial investment in vet school unless you can come up with a 'backup plan' that would also justify the degree.

This. I have many classmates who are of the 'zoo med or bust!' type and I feel bad for them, honestly. I even have a classmate who has said she'll work at a zoo for free as a vet, which is ridiculous. Establish a logical and practical plan of action if you pursue it. Out of the 10ish or so of us in my class that are hardcore zoo med, I'd be surprised if one of us broke into the field. It's insanely competitive, the pay is terrible, you are all but guaranteed to have to move, and it can be a thankless job. Aquatic medicine is even more competitive. I get having the passion for it, I do as well. It's what I love. However, I'm fully aware that it may never happen for me and I've come to terms with that.