As of 2015, the UK pet population stands at over 58 million, distributed across 12 million households. We depend on animals for both labour and companionship, hence the demand for exceptional veterinary care. However, with less than 12,000 practising veterinary nurses in the UK, the need for well-trained student nurses continues to increase. My ability to empathise with animals coupled with a natural desire for scientific insight, makes me an ideal candidate for a career in veterinary nursing. I first became aware of this position when researching careers in veterinary medicine, and felt nursing best suited my personal goals. A veterinary nurse has significant involvement in the welfare of patients and clients, ensuring that owners are aware of their animal's condition …show more content…
In November 2016, I took part in a 2 weeks of work experience at All Creatures Veterinary
Centre, a small animal veterinary surgery in Radcliffe-On-Trent, owned and run by Erica
Coleman-Field, BVM&S, MRCVS. Many of my duties correlated with those of a veterinary nurse, including; the monitoring of patients, maintenance of surgical equipment and facilities, and the provision of auxiliary support to the veterinary team. I also had the opportunity to observe a number of surgical procedures, both routine (spays, x-rays, etc.) and otherwise
(such as a thyroidectomy and carcinoma removal), as well as participating in primary consultations. During my placement, there were a number of instances in which I had to show initiative and resourcefulness. In one such situation, I was tasked with the monitoring of a newly-spayed cat. Upon examining the cat, I noticed that she had chewed through her stitches, and was attempting to remove abdominal adipose. I immediately called this to the attention of a veterinary surgeon, and we managed, with some degree of difficulty, to clean and restitch