Working with animals as a career

[jellied]

Second born is in year 11 and starting to mull over next options. Really wants to work with animals but is not up to becoming a vet.

So what are the options? A few local and not so local places do various 1 and 2 year courses but it's difficult to know if they worth a great deal in the trade, there's a wide variety with all sorts of three and four letter abbreviations with sub levels, but it's no good going for a BTEC level 3 in stroking small furry kittens if it's worth bugger all in the big bad world of work.

[L CC]

What sort of animals?
The cute fluffy kind, or big ones that kick?

If (s)he wants to clean up shit all their life, go ahead and encourage it- vet nurse, livestock farming, it's all about the excrement. Otherwise, forget it and discourage him/her as much as possible.

Part time work at a local kennels walking dogs should be enough to put him/her off. Equally, volunteering at a local animal rescue centre will also help see what it's really like. Mostly what animals do is generate poop.

If none of that puts them off, they will at least be able to find out which qualifications available locally are worth having.

[Charlotte]

Might be worth narrowing down what sort of hanimules?  Domestic? Farm?  Could she become a veterinary nurse?

Is she into horses?  I know of a young lady on this very board who did Equine Management at uni.

[mrcharly-YHT]

Part time work at a local kennels walking dogs should be enough to put him/her off. Equally, volunteering at a local animal rescue centre will also help see what it's really like. Mostly what animals do is generate poop.

+500

I grew up with a horse-mad father. Had been since he was a nipper. But then his idea of a fantastic day (when a youngster) was being allowed to muck out stables. When he was older he had me to do that for him.

We used to get horse-mad kids sent to us for work experience. We gave them all the shitty jobs, literally. Some of them weren't put off and went on to have careers in horse racing.

[Gaston Lagaffe]

Farriery can pay well, but it can be a tough job.

[Chris S]

What sort of animals?
The cute fluffy kind, or big ones that kick?

If (s)he wants to clean up shit all their life, go ahead and encourage it- vet nurse, livestock farming, it's all about the excrement. Otherwise, forget it and discourage him/her as much as possible.

Part time work at a local kennels walking dogs should be enough to put him/her off. Equally, volunteering at a local animal rescue centre will also help see what it's really like. Mostly what animals do is generate poop.

If none of that puts them off, they will at least be able to find out which qualifications available locally are worth having.

Well. I guess we know now why you're not a schools career advisor  .

 

[JT]

What sort of animals?
The cute fluffy kind, or big ones that kick?

If (s)he wants to clean up shit all their life, go ahead and encourage it- vet nurse, livestock farming, it's all about the excrement. Otherwise, forget it and discourage him/her as much as possible.

Part time work at a local kennels walking dogs should be enough to put him/her off. Equally, volunteering at a local animal rescue centre will also help see what it's really like. Mostly what animals do is generate poop.

If none of that puts them off, they will at least be able to find out which qualifications available locally are worth having.

Well. I guess we know now why you're not a schools career advisor  .

 

But probably should be.

[clarion]

I reckon any kid who thinks working with animals is a world of cute fluffiness should have a word with boab.

[Notsototalnewbie]

I used to want to work with animals and researched the options a fair bit. I also did some work experience at a vets when I was a teenager.

It wasn’t actually cleaning up the excrement that put me off (though there was plenty of that) so much as being scratched and bitten most days, and the knowledge that if you’re anything other than a vet then the pay will usually be pitifully low (I don't exactly work in a highly-paid profession as it is but some of the salaries for animal-related jobs are truly tiny). The options are also fairly limited. I eventually accepted that I would do something else for a living and just have a pet instead.

[Tigerbiten]

I worked with horses as a groom for around 30 years.
Yes the jobs tended to be low paid but the job satisfaction was high.
So if you accept that youll never get rich, then its ok.

[rafletcher]

There's always the option of a Zoology degree and zoo/conservation work.

[L CC]

I worked with horses as a groom for around 30 years.
Yes the jobs tended to be low paid but the job satisfaction was high.
So if you accept that youll never get rich, then its ok.

Absolutely. I worked with animals for 20 years. You have to know what you're getting into, is all, and there's an awful lot of little girls (and they are usually girls, I've had 2 myself) who really like the idea of working with animals, and have no real clue what it actually entails.

Jellied: I've got a degree in Agriculture. It didn't qualify me to 'work with animals' anywhere near as much as a pre-college year spent lambing, milking, shearing etc did.

There's always the option of a Zoology degree and zoo/conservation work.

Because there's so many who want to do it, there's huge competition for 'interesting' jobs, and the pay is pitiful.

[ferret]

after 40 years of working with every type of farm animal and horses, I've now decided I made a bad career choice.
although if I was offered a job with pigs again,  I would start tomorrow

I'm firmly in the if it's job satisfaction, long hours, crap living conditions and crap pay go for it, otherwise there are a whole lot better jobs out there    

[mrcharly-YHT]

I worked with horses as a groom for around 30 years.

I didn't know that. Now I can guess what happened to your arm. Was it a racehorse that ate it? I got away with a misshapen shoulder blade and damaged blood supply to leg bone (hey, it only took 5 years to recover).

My father had brain damage (twice), both legs broken (separate times), all the fingers on both hands broken. Mum just got a neck fracture (later fused) and her fingers broken.

Working with animals, heh, a great career.

[essexian]

I have never worked with animals but have owned a lot, and I mean a lot of cats, so come at this from the public side of the career.

While I have met quite a few "hardmen" in my time, there are few people harder, IMHO than my vet. She almost daily has to send animals to the great cat basket in the sky, something I could never do. To do that, day in day out without breaking down must take strength beyond anything I have.

[jellied]

thanks everyone. she is pretty well geared up for dealing in shit and death. we're really after some proper study in these subjects.
if any one in the trade could pass comment on this courses for example:

http://www.capel.ac.uk/courses/animal-care/gunnersbury-park.html

On hand we are thinking of just letting her get on with it and go straight into the practical side of things, or do you need a qualification in shit shoveling and hamster stroking?

[L CC]

I'd go straight to the practical. Any employer worth working for will encourage and enable her to get NVQs as she works. Most of what she needs to know isn't necessarily classroom based.
As long as she has biology GCSE, a willingness to work, a modicum of common sense and animal empathy she'll be OK.

[Tigerbiten]

I worked with horses as a groom for around 30 years.

I didn't know that. Now I can guess what happened to your arm. ......

Working with animals, heh, a great career.

I'm Tigerbiten because I'm Tiger bitten.

Horses only broke my bones in the various accidents I had with them.

[why1040]

If she rather enjoys the big buggers, there are some interesting options out there that she might want to consider.

Saddle fitter or master saddler, equine physioterrorist, sports massage therapist, farrier, nutritionist etc.  You can be a sports coach too.  Just like with human sports, more and more horsey people are recognising the importance of proper tack and treating muscles and other potential injuries-not just the obvious ones.

I've done an equine industry management degree.  However, within the industry, more people are likely to be impressed by the proper BHS exams, or a proper Equine Science degree.  Also, make sure you choose a decent college as mine was...errrr...not.

I have a friend who milks cows for a living-a herdsperson.  She works bloody long hours, often gets crap living conditions, but actually quite a decent wage.  Another friend works in equine insurance-an easier desk job, but with horsey people all around her.

If she's good at biology, there are biologists, conservationists, oceanographers...

No idea if that's of any help at all...really depends on what size hanimule she likes!

[Morrisette]

Living in Newmarket as I do I see quite a lot of people who work with horses, in a shit-shovelling capacity. The racing indsutry is quite a big employer, if you think about all the stud farms as well as the racecourses themselves. I see the stable lads and lasses coming back in from riding out when I leave my house at 7.15 - the hours are LONG, and quite a lot of lads will have another job e.g. in a pub so anyone who needs 12 hours sleep a night need not apply!

[giropaul]

When I had a proper job I had some oversight of the developement of Animal Care and Veternary Nursing training and education.

Firstly, I guess you need to have a realistic idea of what sort of balance of academic/practical your offspring is likely to be going to be looking at. All this will need to do is establish where you're going to start - there is a clear and easily followed path from NVQs and GNVQs into degrees, depending upon how far the person wants to and is able to go.

The first port of call for me would be your most local FE College that does the right sort of Animal Care. From your link I'm guessing that that may be Capel Manor. Go and talk to them, and get advice (they'll have regular open days).

Veterinary Nursing is another option to look at as well.

When my colleagues were interviewing for (highly popular) Full-time course places, and places on what would now be Apprenticeships, they wanted to see plenty of evidence of work experience - whatever turns your offspring on; zoos, kennels, etc etc.

It is a low-pay area of work, but I guess knowing this is the test of whether or not it's a vocation or a hobby ultimately.

PS - BTec Level 3 etc has excellent currency in the anmal care market - people like Pets at Home etc look for these sorts of qualifications. They can also get someone onto, e.g. Vet Nursing if the academic qualifications from school were insufficient.