I decided to become a vet tech at 50. This wasn’t something I had planned. Growing up, I always planned to become a teacher.. Reflecting back, I can’t remember ever really planning a career path!
As I grew up, my curiosity about the world led me to make friends with international students; Other cultures and imagining far-away places always held fascination for me!
Naturally, teaching English as a second language seemed to be a great fit for me.
My job was at a university helping International students develop their English language skills before enrolling in a university here in the US. I found my job, my students, and my colleagues to all be amazing.
I also made a decent salary!
In 2020, the pandemic happened. It forced us online. I got stir-crazy! This led to cats!
How?
To get out of the house, I decided to look for a second job.
A Bigfoot museum was intriguing but wasn’t meant to be.
Then, I considered a nursing home- they did hire me but I panicked and didn’t take the job. The environment seemed too much for me, and they wanted me to spy on employees and report back- drama much?
Then I saw the ad. Cat Care Technician! Clean litter boxes and cuddle cats? Yes! No peopling and only catting!
I didn’t mind the cleaning and found fulfillment in caring for them. Actually, I loved it very much! I found that I loved working with kitties-especially the shy ones. I enjoyed helping them learn to trust humans and be able to find homes.
So how did this lead to a change of careers?
Working with cats was amazing; except when they got sick; I was helpless.
I learned how fragile kittens can be, and how quickly a cat can go from healthy to incredibly sick, so I wanted to be able to do more to help cats.
There was one case of a sick kitten that was a defining moment for me. I had befriended a former vet tech turned human nurse. One day, a kitten was brought in from a foster home, and the foster said it was sick. The vet tech for the shelter said she didn’t expect the kitten to live and she went home. I don’t think she even looked at the kitten- just went home leaving the young girl who was working at the shelter to care for it.
She was in tears over this kitten who was wasting away before our eyes, so I called my friend, the former vet tech, and she came and administered fluids and nutrition. I don’t remember what else, but the kitten made a turnaround!
That moment was pivotal; I knew I wanted to learn more about veterinary care. I wanted to be able to help cats. From this experience, a new passion was sparked.
The sick little kitten grew up and was adopted because of a vet tech who cared. It made an impression!
In 2022, my program at the university closed. We never recovered the number of students needed to sustain it.
No luck in finding another teaching job
I interviewed for a job as an academic advisor
Still, no job!
Time for a change!
Reflecting on how much I enjoyed working with animals, I decided to pursue a job as a vet assistant. A small animal clinic took a chance and hired me!
This is an amazing job. I adore the people I work with and the veterinarian I work for.
At heart, I am a lifelong learner. So, enrolling in Penn Foster to become a certified vet tech seemed like a logical step for me.
Now I am on a new journey! From working with humans, I now spend my days with animals. Now, I’m no longer a teacher but a student. This journey combines my love for animals with my passion for learning and teaching.
If you are interested in joining, you can read about my experiences, see my notes, and study tips. Writing about this experience will help me explore my thoughts!
