Responsibilities of a Licensed Veterinary Technician

Veterinary technicians, also known as veterinary technologists, are trained veterinarian assistants. Colleges and universities have formal education offered for vet techs. A four-year veterinary technology education program accredited by the Canadian Veterinary Medicine Association (CVMA) or American Veterinary Medicine Association (AVMA) must be attended by the individual before being awarded with an Associate’s or Bachelor’s degree in veterinary technology. This is to give them adequate knowledge and hone their skills. Clinical rotations and field experiences are also being conducted to further increase their learning. These methods are used to foster learning with the use of both classroom setting and actual clinical setup of practice. After graduation, a vet tech who wishes to be credentialed, or licensed, must pass a series of examinations as deemed necessary by the law of the state or province where he wishes to work. A license is then given by a state licensing board.

A licensed veterinary technician’s scopes of work are the following: assessment of animals – pets such as dogs, cats, birds and fishes; livestock such as sheep and cattle; and wildlife animals such as lions, tigers, and bears. They are responsible for technical works such as taking of ECG and X-rays, venipuncture, performance of laboratory procedures such as urinalysis, fecalysis, blood culture, and biochemistry, carrying out proper interventions depending on the diagnosis given by the veterinarian, and evaluation of the implemented interventions so as to see if the intervention’s result is satisfactory or if there is a need for changes in the plan of care.

Licensed veterinary technicians are also responsible for the intravenous insertion, calibration, checking of IV flow rate, intravenous feeding, maintenance of anesthesia, and administration of medicines – both oral and parenteral. They work under the watch of a veterinarian working in a private practice. In order for their license to be renewed, vet techs should undergo continuing education units. The continuing education credits could be acquired, either by enrolling in a continuing education seminar, via continuing education online, or thru the accumulated CE quizzes which the vet tech has answered and submitted via courier.

After credentialing, a vet tech could also have a specialization. Advanced skills in emergency, intensive care, anesthesiology, analgesia, internal medicine both in small and large animals, cancer medicine, neurology, cardiology, equine veterinary nursing, animal behavior, and clinical practice are among the different specializations available for vet techs who wish to have specialty certification. Addition of “VTS” plus the particular specialty is being carried post-specialization. Laws which govern the veterinary technology profession vary from state to state.

Having a vet tech specialty could open a lot of opportunities. The vet tech could work as a vet tech researcher, on the zoo, as a vet tech anesthetist, neuro vet tech, cardio vet tech, vet tech specializing on equines, vet tech educator, operating room vet tech, among others. Recent updates on technology and research causes a revolution in animal health care. Veterinarians and licensed vet techs alike play a pivotal role in giving care and looking after the health of animals.