The Savvy VetTech

When you think about monitoring a critically ill patient, what comes to mind? Do you immediately jump to electrocardiograms, blood gas analysis, and other high-tech tools? The truth is that these advanced monitoring technologies can be immensely helpful, but the most important tools are your own eyes and ears. 

Animals may be critically ill for any number of reasons, including trauma, infection, or organ failure. Some critically ill pets present on an emergency basis, while others are hospitalized for what appears to be a straightforward illness and deteriorate over time. Regardless of the cause or timing of the pet’s deterioration, critically ill pets need specialized round-the-clock monitoring because things can change quickly.

If you work in small animal practice, you are bound to one day find yourself somehow involved in giving a blood transfusion.

While the administration of blood transfusions can vary significantly, depending on whether you’re working in a general practice that doesn’t routinely perform transfusions or a high-volume emergency clinic, there are certain steps that should always remain constant. It’s important to have a grasp of these basic steps in pre-transfusion testing. 

As a veterinary technician working in large or small animal clinical practice, you are likely to eventually encounter a retired racing animal as a patient. Former racing Thoroughbreds and greyhounds are often adopted by owners who enjoy these breeds and want to help out by providing a home for a retired working animal. 

While there are many benefits to adopting a retired racing animal, these pets can also be associated with unique behavioral and medical concerns. As a vet tech, it’s important to be familiar with these concerns, so that you can help clients provide the best possible care for these unique pets.

While all vet techs care about animal welfare (after all, you don’t invest the time and money in vet tech school if you don’t care about animals), some are more passionate about this field than others.

If you’re a vet tech with a special passion for animal welfare, you may be wondering if there are opportunities outside of private practice. Fortunately, there are a number of career opportunities that will allow you to harness your passion and make a difference.

When it comes to feline hyperthyroidism, there are four treatment options: radioactive iodine, surgery, medication, and iodine-restricted diet. Each of these approaches has unique pros and cons. 

Although radioactive iodine treatment is regarded as the treatment of choice for most cats, the reality is that the optimal treatment for any individual cat is based on a number of patient and client factors.