Vet Tech or Assistant

Become a Vet Tech or Assistant

When most people think about vet tech or assistant positions, they think of the person that assists the veterinarian in the local vet's office. Typically, this conjures up images of working primarily with cats and dogs that are brought in by their owners for care.

If you are interested in being a vet tech or assistant, however, there are many specialty areas that you might wish to pursue. While being a vet tech or assistant can mean working in the traditional veterinary office, being a vet tech or assistant can be something quite different.

When you pursue a career as a vet tech or assistant, you might want to consider any one of the following specialty areas:

• Animal behavior specialist
• Avian (bird) medicine
• Biomedical research
• Clinical pathology
• Dentistry
• Emergency medicine
• Exotic animals (such as reptiles and amphibians)
• Internal medicine
• Large animals
• Small animals
• Surgery
• Zoo medicine

Since there are so many different areas of specialty that a vet tech or assistant can pursue, it is a good idea to know which area you are interested in. That way, when you take your elective courses while pursuing your degree, you can select those that will best prepare you for a career as a vet tech or assistant in that field.

When selecting the specialty area that you would like to pursue as a vet tech or assistant, there are many things you should take into consideration. For example, if you prefer working with a certain type of animal or have a particular interest in a certain type of animal, you might want to consider pursuing a job as a vet tech or assistant that works in that area of specialty. At the same time, you want to consider your job prospects. As such, if you live in a small town that is a good distance away from major cities, you might not find many nearby employment opportunities if you wish to become a vet tech or assistant that specializes in exotic animals.

Featured Veterinary Technician School

The Brown Mackie College system of schools offers both Veterinary Technician and Veterinary Technology associate’s degrees.* The Veterinary Technician/Technology programs are designed to provide students with the knowledge and skills needed to obtain entry-level employment in a variety of modern veterinary clinical settings and veterinary-related fields.

Coursework focuses on a wide range of clinical skills, including animal patient care, laboratory procedures, medical imaging, anesthesia administration and monitoring, and surgical assisting for a variety of domestic animals.

* Program availability varies by location.

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