Leelaa17 Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 I am thinking of changing career paths and I want to do something with animals - in particular, dogs. I was looking at getting into vet nursing and the only thing stopping me from getting into it was the possibility of someone coming in and wanting to euthanise their animal for no reason. I don't think I could handle that so I stopped looking into it. I just wanted some advice on something that I could do as a career that would at least pay the bills and would be rewarding. Any ideas? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dandybrush Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 (edited) dog groomer? maybe one of those mobile washing franchises? dog trainer? vet nurse - u ruled out work at a kennel? hmm thats all i can think of atm good luck if i could afford the pay cut i'd do vet nursing in a heartbeat Edited March 26, 2012 by dandybrush Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Weasels Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 (edited) How long are you willing to spend building your skill base? :) Edit - American sites, so not all are relevant, but a pretty long list and has reference at the end - http://www.akc.org/public_education/careers.cfm Or - http://dogs.about.com/od/funphotos/tp/dogjobs.htm Edited March 26, 2012 by Weasels Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
spyke88 Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 im wandering along the same path leelaa17. goodluck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 thanks for your advice guys. Still really don't know what to do. I'd be taking a pay cut as well and I am struggling to live now as it is so I really just don't know what to do. good luck spyke. hope you have better luck than me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Gah.... All I ever wanted to do was be a vet nurse.....I did it but unfortunately could not survive/pay my mortgage on the pittance they call a wage, and yes people will come in to have their dog put down for no good reason. If you can put up with that and live on what they pay, then go for it. I also worked in a pound/shelter. Let me tell you now it was no kind of fun. Very depressing, very hectic and you pretty much lose all faith in humanity. I had to leave, a few people I worked with also either left or completely burnt out. A boarding kennel or grooming would be good, but keep in mind you are always going to come across animals that are not as well looked after as your own and that will always be upsetting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 Gah.... All I ever wanted to do was be a vet nurse.....I did it but unfortunately could not survive/pay my mortgage on the pittance they call a wage, and yes people will come in to have their dog put down for no good reason. If you can put up with that and live on what they pay, then go for it. I also worked in a pound/shelter. Let me tell you now it was no kind of fun. Very depressing, very hectic and you pretty much lose all faith in humanity. I had to leave, a few people I worked with also either left or completely burnt out. A boarding kennel or grooming would be good, but keep in mind you are always going to come across animals that are not as well looked after as your own and that will always be upsetting. I know what you mean. I volunteered for the RSPCA and that really opened my eyes up to a lot of things and so I left. This is just so difficult because all I want to do is be around dogs for my job but it seems that no matter what I do its going to end up badly. I'd love to breed dogs but I don't know the first thing about becoming vertified or actually doing it - and do you even make a profit off breeding? I don't know. I wouldn't want to do anything to do with breeding unless I'd spent time with an actual proper breeder and gotten experience and training in what I should do. I'm so stuck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Gah.... All I ever wanted to do was be a vet nurse.....I did it but unfortunately could not survive/pay my mortgage on the pittance they call a wage, and yes people will come in to have their dog put down for no good reason. If you can put up with that and live on what they pay, then go for it. I also worked in a pound/shelter. Let me tell you now it was no kind of fun. Very depressing, very hectic and you pretty much lose all faith in humanity. I had to leave, a few people I worked with also either left or completely burnt out. A boarding kennel or grooming would be good, but keep in mind you are always going to come across animals that are not as well looked after as your own and that will always be upsetting. I know what you mean. I volunteered for the RSPCA and that really opened my eyes up to a lot of things and so I left. This is just so difficult because all I want to do is be around dogs for my job but it seems that no matter what I do its going to end up badly. I'd love to breed dogs but I don't know the first thing about becoming vertified or actually doing it - and do you even make a profit off breeding? I don't know. I wouldn't want to do anything to do with breeding unless I'd spent time with an actual proper breeder and gotten experience and training in what I should do. I'm so stuck. It's such a hard one, all I wanted to do was work with dogs, but the crap wages and the sad nature of it all can make it so hard! Trust me I feel your pain. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rusty&biscuit Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 If breeding is done correctly, there is usually next to no profit made off it, and it's certainly not a job, simply a hobby. You can get uni degrees for dog behaviour/animal behavious or something along the lines of it...I think. So behaviorist/trainer is an option. In todays society there are so many more opportunities too - doggy daycare, animal chiropracter, animal massage, animal accupuncture, animal healing through herbs and natural remedies...and that's just a few. For a high paying job there are also lawyers who specialise in animal cases. Hope I could help :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 If breeding is done correctly, there is usually next to no profit made off it, and it's certainly not a job, simply a hobby. You can get uni degrees for dog behaviour/animal behavious or something along the lines of it...I think. So behaviorist/trainer is an option. In todays society there are so many more opportunities too - doggy daycare, animal chiropracter, animal massage, animal accupuncture, animal healing through herbs and natural remedies...and that's just a few. For a high paying job there are also lawyers who specialise in animal cases. Hope I could help :) Thanks rusty&biscuit. I didn't think of all the massage and animal healing stuff! And I would still like to breed dogs - even just for a hobby. but I don't think I'll do that till I'm older so I can have more time to spend with the dogs. I hear breeding can be a full-time job. Thanks again for your suggestions - I wouldn't mind doing the lawyer thing but I'm just not smart enough! haha Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whippetsmum Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 What about getting into the customs service? Guide Dogs? Pets as Therapy? Assistance Dogs? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dame Aussie Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 What about getting into the customs service? Guide Dogs? Pets as Therapy? Assistance Dogs? Yeah, this is another good area, I looked into, didn't go ahead with anything but I think it could be a lot more positive than working in a shelter or the likes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leelaa17 Posted March 26, 2012 Author Share Posted March 26, 2012 How would I get into that? Would I need to study something - I'm about to leave work so I will research a little on the way home. It would be awesome working with assistance dogs. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Daisy Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 There is always a need for good groomers. Most people get into it not knowing the amount of physical work that is involved and leave pretty quickly. It was so hard for me to find good staff. I even had one lady come from interstate for the position only to give her a dog to groom and she shaved it backwards Supposedly she had 7 years experience!! I would estimate I employed close to 15 staff and the only one who was brilliant was a 16 year old girl who worked with me on Saturdays, she just had the gift with dogs and didn't care how dirty she got. And believe me you do get filthy and it is depressing seeing the state some owners let their dogs get into and trying not to be judgemental. I was working full time while training as a groomer working for free on my days off. It is a great way to build up your skills and to see if it's what you want to do. There are also the vans that go to dog shows on the weekend? Not everything is dog related, there are also food vans. I don't know what sort of profits they make though but you would be around dogs every weekend? What about in house pet sitting? If you can get up good references and are happy to travel to different houses that may work? I have paid between $25-35 a day to have someone feed, water and play with my animals when I'm away. Otherwise keep your eye out on animal related websites for upcoming jobs. Maybe start as a secretary in a big organisation and work your way up? Oh and after going through the last three weeks with a bitch in season and trying to keep my entire male away and calm.....breeding is definitely not for the faint hearted! :laugh: Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clyde Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 I even had one lady come from interstate for the position only to give her a dog to groom and she shaved it backwards Reverse clipping is a technique gaining popularity. I don't do it as I don't see the point, and other reasons, but lots of experienced groomers are playing around with it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crazy Daisy Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 I even had one lady come from interstate for the position only to give her a dog to groom and she shaved it backwards Reverse clipping is a technique gaining popularity. I don't do it as I don't see the point, and other reasons, but lots of experienced groomers are playing around with it. No it was just inexperience on her part and one of many, many things. I'm not a fan of reverse clipping either, especially with short blades. I've seen too many cases of ingrown hairs and bag regrowth patterns. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FalconRange Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Police dog handling is also an option. This does require going through the Police course and spending three years on general duties before specialising, but that's the same amount of time one might spend doing a Uni degree before getting to work in their dream job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
grizabella Posted March 26, 2012 Share Posted March 26, 2012 Maybe handling quarantine sniffer dogs? I had a look on the website and there are a few months training but could be an option? Possibly looking after dogs on quarantine from overseas? I couldn't find anything about that on the 'careers' section though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Whippetsmum Posted March 27, 2012 Share Posted March 27, 2012 How would I get into that? Would I need to study something - I'm about to leave work so I will research a little on the way home. It would be awesome working with assistance dogs. There is Assitance Dogs Australia and Pets as Therapy (Through Guide Dogs Australia), possibly some other groups too. Maybe strat by emailing them and ask about how to get a start, or get some volunteer or work experience to make sure it's what you want to do. I know Occupational Therapists and Physios sometimes work with these organisations, but there would be a lot of people involved. There's an e course on one website (google Therapy pets and assitance dogs), but you'd have to look into if it's nationally recognised, and if it's what the organisations will accept as a qualification. Good Luck Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GeckoTree Posted March 27, 2012 Share Posted March 27, 2012 A customs dog handler would be pretty rewarding I think. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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