Rewarding Work
Veterinary technicians enjoy working with animals with shorter training time
By Bobbi Mlynar
Saturday, October 13, 2007
They’re the nurses of the animal world — and the anesthetists, the surgical assistants and much, much more.
Veterinary technicians Vicki Jones and Michele Schubarth discovered that their seldom-publicized profession allows them to work daily with animals of all sizes and types in so many roles that they never get bored.
This week, the women have been recognized for their work during National Veterinary Technician Week.
Both women work at Emporia Veterinary Hospital, and both carried an overriding desire to nurture animals since they were young.
“Originally, I wanted to be a veterinarian, but the thought of going to school that long really didn’t appeal to me when I was in high school,” Jones said.
Her high school home economics teacher, Mrs. Schoap, suggested the teenager look into Colby Community College’s vet tech program, which offered two-year and three-year programs. Jones found the career so appealing and satisfying that she has been in it for 21 years and plans to stay.
Schubarth took a different route, discovering early in life that she could have a career in animal health without becoming a veterinarian.
“When I was in grade school, my dad saw a program on TV about vet techs and he’s the one that told me about it,” Schubarth said. “I like the medical aspect of it. I like to see the animals get better because of my care — that’s very rewarding to me.”
Schubarth received her license through Maple Woods campus of the Metropolitan Community College in Kansas City, Mo. Continuing education classes are necessary to maintain their licenses each year.
Much of the techs’ time is spent performing nursing tasks — giving shots and medications, taking temperatures, changing dressings and making sure their patients are comfortable.
They also work in radiology and the laboratory; they assist in surgery, administer anesthetics and medications, and work cattle by doing pregnancy checks and brucellosis tests.
Last week, they were busy with cats, dogs and an angry cow with an infected eye injury.
Schubarth removed a medication catheter from the leg of a pointer crossbreed before her release from the hospital. The dog had eaten rat poison and was bleeding internally and could hardly walk when it was brought in a few days before.
“Emotionally, the hardest thing is when you have something you’ve worked with for a long time, and the results turn out bad,” Jones said. “You get attached to them just like the owners.”
The outcome for the pointer was excellent, and she’d recovered more rapidly than expected.
Schubarth went on to an examination table near the operating room. She gently cradled an anesthetized cat onto its back on a V-board, tucked the forearms under the forms on each side, and prepped the cat for surgery. It was to go to the adjoining operating room to be spayed, and Schubarth was going with her.
Jones, in the meantime, had been called to the large-animal area to assist veterinarian Scott Gordon treat the 1,000-pound cow, who seemed determined to fight.
The vet tech profession can be physically wearing; feet ache from standing for hours, and there can be a fair amount of lifting involved.
“Even a 70 or 80-pound dog has to be on the table at some point,” Jones said.
The women’s “average” days usually include four to six surgeries, “and we can have up to five patients up here in the intensive care,” Schubarth said.
Those patients need extra oversight and care.
The techs also must take care not to become exposed to some parasites and bacteria that can travel from animals to humans.
“We touch a lot of animals every day,” Jones said, so hand-cleansing has become second-nature.
They’re wary of brucellosis vaccinations that can cause the disease, and they take vaccinations themselves to stave off some of the hazards, like rabies.
“We deal with rabies tests,” Jones explained. “We have to cut the head off (the dead animal) and get it ready to send.”
As a result, the women receive rabies booster shots whenever their rabies “titers” checks show a level too low to be effective.
The techs need to be sensitive to treatments and aware that some cause discomfort and distress that can’t be communicated with words.
“They can’t talk to you,” Jones said. “They can bite you instead.”
On the other hand, once the animals begin to feel better, the techs can see it in their faces and their eyes, Jones said.
Veterinarian Duane Henrikson values the contributions the techs make to the clinic, which has employed veterinary technicians for more than 30 years.
“They make our work a lot easier,” he said. “We can delegate responsibility to people who have been trained.”
The techs know how to handle animals, understand pharmaceutical information and can talk with the animals’ owners to explain treatment.
“It does take a commitment from that person,” Henrikson said. “Not all vet techs end up doing veterinary work.”
A former tech at Emporia Veterinary Hospital now is associate director of the vet tech program in Nebraska. An EVH secretary moved to Kansas City, got her license from Maple Woods, then became a teacher at the college and, later, a pharmaceutical representative for animal products.
“So, there’s several different tracks,” Henrikson said.
justthinkin (anonymous) says...
THANK YOU --- It takes a very special type person to do this work & those that truly love their animals appreciate your committment, dedication & caring. Michele, you dad is a wise man - I'm glad he helped you find your niche. The same can be said for Vicki's teacher -- Thanks to all involved. To Dr. Hendrickson - thanks for promoting the program and for recoginizing your employee's value. Thanks to the Gazette for a nice article.
October 14, 2007 at 10:32 a.m. ( permalink | suggest removal )