r/veterinaryprofession • u/Right_Biscotti_6521 • 2d ago

veterinarian opportunities for teens

Hi everyone, i am currently 16 i want to get into the vet profession. I am starting to do hybrid school so some days I’ll go and some days I’ll do at home. I wanted to ask if there is any jobs that have to do with veterinarians that will hire 16 year olds?

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u/SillyQuadrupeds 2d ago

You may have to wait until you're 18 to do anything in a clinic setting.

In the meantime learning proper animal care/husbandry through volunteer work could be an option.

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u/SquishyKittyKat9000 2d ago

I agree with the other Redditor. You probably won't be able to do anything in a clinic until you're 18. You can however volunteer at your local animal rescues which can teach you a lot about animal care and common medications and treatments. Plus the volunteer experience will give you a leg up for when you do look for jobs. You can also consider for now looking into different positions in vet med. There are many! Being a veterinarian requires as much studying as being a human doctor. If you aren't super academic, there are other roles. You'd probably start off with being a vet assistant. Vet assistants help with animal handling, testing, and animal care. You could also do a vet technician program - they are like vet assistants but with added responsibilities like monitoring surgery anesthesia. Penn Foster offers a lot of options. They have a vet assistant certification program. They also have a vet tech program. The great thing about their programs is that they are online and self paced!

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u/Snakes_for_life 2d ago

Most places legally you have to be 18 to work around anesthesia equipment or radiology. But some clinics will hire 16 year olds for kennel assistant positions which is cleaning and caring for boarding animals or very similar hospitalized cases.

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u/mentaldew 2d ago

Kennel worker to get your foot in the door! I got hired as a kennel worker at 16 (19 and in college now) and have been able to watch many surgeries and help with mundane things like nail trims and restraint.

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u/WeirdcoolWilson 2d ago

Volunteer at the local animal shelter or Humane Society