Alternative Careers for Veterinary Nurses

Posted by & filed under Veterinary Job tips, Veterinary Nursing.

Anyone who works within the veterinary profession will know just how rewarding being a veterinary nurse can be. It is a role that is seen as an ideal job for plenty of animal lovers, but your life takes you in a direction that means it’s no longer quite right for you, it could be worth taking a look at alternative careers for veterinary nurses.

Looking for a new career can be an extremely daunting prospect so here we want to discuss a few of the many possible alternative careers for veterinary nurses who might be thinking about a change to help make the process a bit easier.

Staying within veterinary nursing

First and foremost, you need to decide if a career change is definitely the right choice for you. It could be that you just need a job in a different practice to suit your needs better, so it is worth taking some time to consider why you want a change and what specifically you need this change to be.

Locum vet nursing

If it is the lack of flexibility within the veterinary nursing role that is causing the desire for change, but you really want to remain using your vet nurse skills, you could consider locum veterinary nurse work. Whilst this won’t suit everybody, locum work is an ideal alternative to a permanent position if you want more flexibility and variety within your career.

A fresh career

Veterinary Practice Management

If an alternative career to veterinary nursing is what you are after, then you may be surprised at the number of doors that are already open to you as possible new roles.

For example, a great avenue to go down if you want to stay directly within the veterinary sphere is to consider veterinary practice management. Previous experience as a veterinary nurse can be hugely valuable to practices looking for management, as you will already have a detailed knowledge of the strategies that keep a practice running successfully.

Veterinary Recruitment

Another option which is still very much within the veterinary sector is veterinary recruitment. Similarly to practice management, previous experience of veterinary nursing places you in a great position for knowing the best kind of people to hire within the veterinary sector and where best to place them.

Charity Work   

Or, how about animal charity work? This takes you slightly further afield from your veterinary expertise but still provides an extremely rewarding role that will allow you to be directly involved with all kinds of animals, providing them with love and care!

Pharmaceutical Sector

Another potential career path could be a move into the pharmaceuticals sector if you are looking for a different kind of practical role. Animals need drugs and medications too, and a good alternative to veterinary science is working in this field.

Animal Physiotherapy 

If you want to tackle a bigger challenge, why not consider further study with a view to a new career in physiotherapy or similar? This is an important job role and will require many of the skills you’ve acquired as a veterinary nurse.

Whatever your reasons for considering a career change from veterinary nursing, you can rest assured that there a plenty of options. It’s all about researching to find the perfect new role for you, without having to abandon your love for animals or previous training!

If you are interested in changing paths and becoming a locum vet nurse, you can view our locum vet nurse job vacancies.