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Veterinary Nurse Jobs

Vet Nurse or Vet Technician, whatever the terminology, when it hits the fan you know who is really running the show. And when it is time to explore new horizons, browse through our Vet Nurse job listings for your next career opportunity.

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Vet Nurse Jobs

Vet Nurse Jobs

What Does It Take To Secure The Best Vet Nurse job?

We asked many of the Vet Nurses that we come in contact with “What does it take to become a Vet Nurse?” and, apart from gaining your qualification, here are three key takeaways:

Persistence

“Especially at the beginning of your Vet Nurse career, persistence is essential.” said one of our Vet Nurse contacts, and this was echoed by many others.

Why persistence? Firstly, it isn’t easy to find Vet Clinics or Hospitals who are prepared to take on Trainee Vet Nurses who are yet to attain their Certificate III or IV Diploma of Veterinary Nursing. That in itself is a challenge, almost a right of passage, that proves that you are in it for the long haul. A sad statistic is that only 25% of people who commence studies to be a Vet Nurse actually graduate.

Once you graduate, finding that first role requires more persistence as again, it is hard to find a Clinic that will take on a “green” Vet Nurse; although this is somewhat understandable as most Vet Clinics are small businesses with less that 10 staff, building a team for the long haul is the foundation of success. Which means investing in fresh team members with the latest knowledge and nurturing them to become the experienced Vet Nurses of tomorrow.

And then more persistence in advancing your career through Continuing Education, skills development and eventually team leadership and management skills. Perhaps even one day pursuing a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine qualification.

Empathy

Sometimes the obvious is not so obvious. Yes, you need empathy towards animals and companion pets in need, who are hurting and in distress. Of equal importance is empathy with pet owners, the fur parents and fur siblings who are very concerned about the well being of their cat, dog, bird or pocket pet. But there is a third level of empathy that came up from our feedback from Vet Nurses – peer empathy; understanding that your fellow team members, Vets, Nurses, Technicians, Customer Service and Animal Attendants also need your empathy. Whilst there are always great days full of puppies and kittens and success stories, there are often days when the results are not so good. You, and your team mates, will need each other’s understanding and caring to pull through the tough days.

Patience

Not patients – there are plenty of those. But patience, sometimes there is not so much to go around. Things take time to happen – test results, studying, salary reviews – just about everything goes slower than we would all like. And then the other piece of valuable feedback we get is the rewards for patience are well worth it when you finally get that Vet Nurse job you always wanted and deserved.

Overview

In specific terms, a Veterinary Nurse cares for animals, large as well as small companion pets, that are undergoing preventive care assessment or are actually having treatment for an ailment.

Vet Nurses assist Veterinarians to perform analysis of conditions as well as medical procedures and surgical operations. Often pets are in temporary residence at veterinary facilities, either for the day or overnight, and are monitored and supervised by Vet Nurses.

Typical Vet Nurse Job Tasks

Whilst the actual tasks and duties of a Vet Nurse will vary subject to the size, scale or specialisation of the practice you are working in, a typical day will usually include:

  • Preliminary assessment and information capture about each animal prior to Veterinarian session
  • Maintaining and handling animals to allow assessment and treatment by Veterinarians
  • Providing animal care advice based on Veterinarian session outcomes
  • Preparing, delivering, and reviewing animal care education programs
  • Assisting Veterinarians in medical and surgical procedures
  • Assisting Veterinarians to administer anaesthetics and oxygen during operations
  • Preparing instruments and placing them with the Veterinarian
  • Cleaning and sterilising instruments, examination tables and equipment
  • Placing animals in cages for pre-operation preparation, post operation recovery and monitoring their condition
  • Giving medications to animals
  • Maintaining medical records, prescription drugs and stock control
  • Undertake diagnostic laboratory tests and reporting
  • May also undertake Customer Service duties, prepare billing and accept payments and complete records management or clerical work as required

Qualifications

The TAFE Institutes and Vocational Education Training Networks offer a variety of courses and a good search on Google will no doubt help you find the ideal course and location for you.

The myfuture National Career Information Service is a great place to start, as is Open Colleges, the Australian College of Veterinary Nursing and the Animal Industries Resource Centre.

Locations

When it comes to locations, being mostly a consumer-oriented service, Vet Nurse Job opportunities pretty much match the overall spread of Vet practices. Roughly 30.0% of roles are in NSW and the same in Victoria. A further 20.0% are in Queensland which means there is an 80.0% chance you will be working on the Eastern Seaboard. South Australia has 8.5%, WA 7.0% and Tasmania 4.0% with a modest number of opportunities in NT and ACT.

In Conclusion

There is certainly something special that triggers someone to want to become a Vet Nurse and to then secure one of those perfect Vet Nurse Jobs. Those jobs are “out there” and over 1,000 new Vet Nurse Job opportunities occur every year. The key to success is of course hard work, but Persistence, Empathy and Patience are also key traits.

And one thing is for sure, when you do secure your ideal Vet Nurse Job, we hope that Vet & Pet Jobs was able to help in our own small way.

The Data

According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics in the USA and similar bodies in the UK, Australia and worldwide, opportunities for Veterinarians are set to climb by 19 percent through 2026, while roles for Veterinary Nurses and Veterinary Technicians will increase by 20 percent in that same time frame.

Vet Nurse Jobs Statistics – Australia

  • It is estimated that there are between 12,000 and 13,000 Vet Nurses in Australia
  • Vet Nurses make up approximately 50.0% of the employees working in the Veterinary Services industry
  • On average there are 4 Vet Nurses per Veterinary Business
  • Given the forecast growth of the Veterinary Industry there will be approximately 500-550 new Vet Nurse jobs created each year over the next 5 years
  • Current trends indicate that 4.0% of Vet Nurses (500+) leave the profession each year
  • Based on the above data, there will be an estimated 1000 to 1200 new Vet Nurse jobs available each year for the next 5 years
  • In 2017, the average income for a Vet Nurse was $990 per week or $4,300 per month or $51,500 per year – typically Vet Nurses are paid on a fortnightly basis
  • On average, employees in Vet Nurse jobs work a 38-hour basic week and typically work 2 to 4 hours paid overtime per week
  • The average age for a Vet Nurse is 28 with he largest sector (24.0%) being in the 25 to 34-year range
  • It will come as no surprise that 98.5% of Vet Nurse Jobs are occupied by female employees
  • From an educational level perspective, 48.0% of Vet Nurses have a Certificate III or IV accreditation and a further 21.3% have an additional certification to Advanced Diploma level or above

Veterinary Industry Statistics – Australia

  • It is estimated that there are 3,250 Veterinary Business Units which includes Veterinary Clinics, local Veterinary Hospitals, Specialist Animal Referral Centres and Animal Emergency Hospitals.
  • Veterinary Revenues -2017 – $3.0bn
  • The average Veterinary Business earns $925,000 per year
  • Number of people directly employed in Veterinary Services – 24,500
  • The average number of employees per Veterinary Business is 7.5
  • Industry growth for the last five years – 2013 to 2018 averaged 3.1%
  • Industry growth for the next five years – 2018 to 2023 is forecast to be 4.1%
  • The total number of registered Veterinarians in Australia on 30 June 2016 was 11,418

Similar Terms To Vet Nurse Jobs

  • Vet Technician Jobs
  • Animal Nurse Jobs
  • Veterinary Assistant Jobs
  • Clinical Veterinary Nurse Jobs
  • Surgical Veterinary Nurse Jobs

Resources, Sources & Materials

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