Gonna be going to a veterinary clinic for the next week for work

Expect to see a shitload of things that are a mixture of sad/frustrating/infuriating.

You should absolutely listen to everything the people in charge of you say. It gets stressful and there is little reward in being in that environment.
I've worked 6 months in a small dog and cat clinic (very extensive treatment though such as surgery X-rays). Yeah there will be death and yes you will have to deal with feces and urine. Best advice I can give someone is it doesn't matter how dirty you get, you can always wash.
Any specific questions? I'd be willing to answer

>>2212092
Noted
>>2212114
So should I just buy some clothes over the weekend that I'm ok with getting dirty?
On that thought, what do you usually wear at your clinic?

>>2212142
No joke I wore the same scrubs everyday
And threw them in the washer at night

Definitely a good idea
You do not want all those fluids on clothes. Blood saliva vomit urine feces hair. Scrub even dry quickly when you get wet

(Forgive the late response. Ask more questions if you'd like)

>>2212142
Scrubs. Change them when you get home. If you have pets, just put everything in the wash and leave your shoes in the garage/car/mudroom, wherever your pets can't get to them. Best way to minimize contact to disease. Also, shower when you get home.

I worked at a vet clinic in a shelter. Seen some shit. You gotta be very fucking delicate to even the shittiest owners, because the angrier they get, the less likely they are to listen, or even go to any vet again. They know you're new, so I'm going to guess your job will be to no talk to the public for the most part. Also, never ever ever assume an animal isn't going to hurt you or is friendly. That's how people get bit, by letting their guard down.
Vet staff should be able to teach you basics, like how to get a muzzle on, do scruffs and headlocks and hold-offs, find veins and draw blood, restraining, handling ferals, yadda yadda yadda. One thing I was not taught for a while was whenever you are on the ground, do NOT stay on your knees. Keep one foot on the floor if you have to kneel, that way if you need to move quick you can, instead of scrambling to get on your feet.

>>2212955
Sounds like a harsh environment.

I never really thought about it, but I guess if a big, possibly dangerous dog needs but does not want medical attention, things can get ugly.

>>2212114
Not OP, but have you dealt with horses, sheep, cows, farm animals like that before? How different is it to deal with them? To what extent do vets specialize in certain types of animals?

>>2213003
Not sure about the other vet worker on this thread. But my experience was a inner city dog and cat clinic. Guess since it was an incredibly small building and medication for dog and cat basic care is practically the same, I asked once and the Vet said he had few medication for rabbits but no birds reptiles or rodents. It didn't hurt business though since the majority of pets is dogs and cats

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>>2212955
>>2212888
Thanks guys, i doubt ill be doing anything important but are there some sources I can look up for general care? This has been a big help.

>>2213062
If you are going to be doing restraint it'll help to be moldy familiar (eventhough they'll most likely teach you)
This video is a bit silly but she knows what she's doing:
https://youtu.be/z9RoZ7vd2Ps

Bonus: The dog is an American eskimo
You also need to learn dog Breeds
It'll definitely help.

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>>2213479
*mildly familiar

Also here's a list of breeds

>>2212088

Vet student here- so done plenty of work experience at vets. Are you a pre-degree student? Are you meant to be with the vet tech/vet nurse or the actual vet?

Honestly, don't expect to be trusted to do much. Follow every order to the letter, only ask questions when relevant (if watching consults- after the consult, or during surgery not when something is going wrong for example), expect to clean out lots of kennels and after all that- have fun!

Look up basic cat/dog restraint- but expect to be told that particular clinic's preferences when you do it. Be honest, say you've not been at a vets before, and they'll normally be helpful plus show you how to do things.

R.e clothes- yes, the staff will wear scrubs, but your best bet would be to ring up the practice and ask what they'd like you to wear. They shouldn't expect you to have scrubs unless you're a veterinary student, in which case this shouldn't be your first work ex- I'd expect it'll be smart casual, but be aware you might have to clean kennels out so don't wear anything you mind getting dirty. Wear comfy shoes- this is a big one- you will be on your feet all day.

Be prepared to make LOTS of cups of tea/coffee for the staff and wind up following/listening to consults/surgeries rather than getting actually involved. They're not going to let you deal with owners/really fractious animals if you're a newbie.

Take a pen and paper with you- write down anything you don't understand for future looking things up as oppose to repeatedly bugging the staff if things are busy. Take it you're wanting to get into vet school OP?

>>2213003

I'm>>2213520 , I should be able to answer your question.

> Horses are fine, the owners are dicks. Hate horse owners with a passion, most of them are snooty and uptight. Horses themselves can be quite unpredictable: personally not keen on them at all.
> Cows/sheep/farm animals etc I personally find a joy to work with, others on my course hate it. Typically you work with the farmer, and often it's a case of being firm with them. However, I may have a bias as I want to go into farm animal medicine when I graduate. Often a lot of farm animal work is herd health as oppose to your typical dog/cat medicine- mainly due to the fact that certainly in the UK for example the milk prices are rock bottom. So, when a cow gets sick it's a case of sending it to Mc Donald's as rapidly as possible, as they can't really afford vets fees. Sheep herd health is really interesting!

In the UK, vets tend to split into branches- you're either smallies (cats/dogs/your normal clinic- see the odd hamster/rabbit etc), equine, farm or exotics (think zoos). Then vets specialise further- so either into a particular branch of vet med (e.g orthopedics, or cardiology), or a particular species- for example poultry/fish/reptile etc vets.

Hey lads, op here just wanted to say thanks and that I'm current watching an operation, Wil post pics later

>>2214977
based on gf experience, they let you take part in everything or in nothing(just watch)

>>2214977
I assisted in surgery before really nerve wracking....
Amputation of a dogs front left paw. It had cancer removed once and and the cancer came back.
After the Vet sawed the bone off I was left holding the arm. It's really something to see things like that.

Beside that one operation there was simple holding of clamps and some terrifying cosmetic surgeries to re-stuff popping bottom eyelids