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If you have finished your secondary education and started thinking about future vocation, but at the same time do not mind spending the day feeding, watering, and examining pets and other nonfarm animals, then you might consider starting your career as a veterinary assistant.
People who possess the ability to deal with animals and people already are good candidates for the obligations needed for the veterinary assistant job.
The positive things are that you do not have to enter any kind of future education if you cannot afford it and you will be surrounded by people who are equally passionate about pets as you are.
Article Table of Contents
Job Description
The daily duty of a veterinary assistant is to provide care to animals and assistance to the people who treat them such as veterinarians and veterinary technicians.
Earn your accredited, affordable Veterinary Assistant career diploma online with Penn Foster in as little as 12 months!
Their first tasks are greeting the clients and answering all their questions and requests, answering phone calls and setting the appointments, as well as taking pets’ vital signs upon arrival.
Besides cleaning and disinfecting cages, providing routine postoperative care, preparing samples for laboratory examination some of them also perform the lab work, assist during the surgery, and in those clinics that offer dentistry services they are involved in this kind of issues as well.
They need to work on services like microchipping, parasite prevention, dermatology and much more and as they spend most of their time on their feet, they need to have stamina and strength.
Becoming a Veterinary Assistant in Utah
As it is already mentioned, young people can become a veterinary assistant with their high school diploma, as there is not a lawful determination of the requirements necessary to become a veterinary assistant.
Many of them learn during their work, but many of them decide to take some courses to learn about animal care since they will be working with animals.
Those eager to improve their knowledge and educate themselves would have a huge advantage as they will be a more appreciated and valuable member of veterinary personnel.
Across the United States, numerous programs and courses are organized by community colleges, training centers, vocational schools, and technical institutes, but the most popular are online vet assist programs since you can learn on your own and at your pace from the comfort of your home.
The instructors will do their best to teach how to effectively manage daily duties once employed.
Some veterinary assistant campus in Utah are:
- University of Utah
- Jordan Applied Technology Center
- Salt Lake Community College
Requirements
The interesting fact is that more and more already employed veterinary assistants want to achieve further knowledge and get a certificate as they realize how important it is upon entering a veterinary clinic and face with difficulties that this job entails.
Knowledge and training are important and NAVTA has organized courses designed to provide the necessary practice for an individual to become a skillful veterinary assistant.
Some of the subjects are related to animal diseases, lab procedures, animal anatomy, pharmacology and surgical assisting.
When you pass those courses you will know exactly what to do in an emergency when the life of an animal is in your hands.
Some of the NAVTA online programs and campuses are:
- Animal Behavior College, online
- Penn Foster, online
- VetBloom, online
- VetMedTeam, online
While courses organized at colleges and universities are:
- Mountain’s Edge Veterinary Assistant Program; West Jordan, UT
- Colorado Academy of Veterinary Technology, Veterinary Assistant Program, Colorado Springs, CO
- Front Range Community College, Fort Collins, CO.
Getting a Job
Gaining higher education can help you during the selection process once you apply for the job.
If you have to go to an interview with the employer it can improve your self-confidence and present you as a knowledgeable person ready to face all the obstacles that this job might put in front of you.
Once you get a certificate you can start looking for a job in animal clinics, hospitals, shelters, and zoos.
The employer determines the appropriate set of skills and qualities that the ideal candidate needs to possess for this job.
Numerous potential veterinary assistant employers in Utah offer future veterinary assistants a chance of redeeming their knowledge, and the number of new open facilities is expected to increase in the future opening even more possibilities for veterinary assistants to become employed.
Potential veterinary assistant employers in Utah are:
- VCA (Veterinary Centers of America)
- Banfield Pet Hospital
- Orem
- Salt Lake City East
- Sandy
- Vetco Wellness Centers and Vaccination Clinics inside PETCO
- Located in Midvale Petco
- Located in Herber City Petco
- Located in Harrisville Petco
Salary
There are external factors that affect the salary of a veterinary assistant such as the development of the region and the city where veterinary premises are located, and the annual incomes of its citizens.
Personal characteristics that determine the amount of annual earning are work experience, education, and complexity of daily duties that are entrusted to a veterinary assistant.
The salary of a veterinary assistant is relatively low, and it differs from place to place which is best shown in the table below.
Annual Salary Range:| Location | Avg. Annual Salary |
|---|---|
| Layton,UT | $27,292 |
| Lehi,UT | $26,791 |
| Logan,UT | $27,009 |
| Ogden,UT | $27,395 |
| Orem,UT | $26,920 |
| Provo,UT | $26,920 |
| Saint George,UT | $30,389 |
| Salt Lake City,UT | $28,120 |
| Sandy,UT | $28,043 |
| South Jordan,UT | $27,991 |
| West Jordan,UT | $28,017 |
Regional Salary in Utah
| Region | Employed | Avg. Annual Salary | Avg. Hourly Pay | Top 10% Annual Salary | Bottom 10% Annual Salary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Logan, UT-ID | 50 | $30,950 | $14.88 | $35,100 | $28,760 |
| Ogden-Clearfield, UT | 260 | $33,710 | $16.21 | $42,780 | $28,280 |
| Provo-Orem, UT | 80 | $32,750 | $15.74 | $42,030 | $26,580 |
| St. George, UT | 40 | $31,360 | $15.08 | $37,680 | $24,860 |
| Salt Lake City, UT | 380 | $34,990 | $16.82 | $44,950 | $28,710 |
* Employment conditions in your area may vary.
Duties
If you have finished veterinary assistant course stop learning do not think that your learning process stops there.
There’s always something new to learn in veterinary medicine due to its constant development.
Veterinary assistants have a very responsible job, they manage a large variety of duties and their services are crucial in the daily activities of a veterinary facility.
Besides doing administrative procedures and greeting clients, they are ensuring the efficiency of appointment flow, cleanness of the facility and assistance to other team members when needed.
They also need to make sure that intervention or surgery goes undisturbed.
Summary
Because the life of an animal has become of equal importance as the life of a human being, veterinarians and their staff are extremely necessary.
Those people have to be physically endurable, patient, mature and emotionally stable.
So, if you think that you are the right person for this job and that you do not mind performing all those above-mentioned obligations, do not hesitate to try your luck in this amazing field.
Read the full guide: How to Become a Veterinary Assistant
Veterinary Assisting by State