Veterinary Work Experience In South Africa What To Expect

If you have a love for animals and are considering studying with a view to joining

the ranks of dedicated veterinarians, you should take time to consider what to do on your gap year or year break from university or college. One of the best ways to combine hands on participation in vet work and going to a place where your help is truly needed, is to plan a trip to Africa to spend time learning about and treating the wildlife.

Dealing with the wildlife in South Africa is very different from treating your average domestic animals here in the United Kingdom, and the veterinary work experience you will gain by getting to see how things are done when the animals are large, and often not the most cooperative, will enrich your own ideas on the practicalities of the profession when you return. While in Africa, you will learn the ins and outs of such things as monitoring and tracking game, darting and tagging rhinos, and possibly even help conduct post mortem exams with the vets.

Monitoring and tracking game

While the main bulk of monitoring and tracking of the wildlife while gaining veterinary work experience in South Africa falls under the heading of conservation, you will find that it is also an important part of maintaining the balance of the ecosystem. The game in South Africa that are tracked are the larger rhinos and elephants, as well as the predators such as lions, hyenas and other varieties of large cats. The purpose of tracking game is to keep an eye on their movements, their feeding habits, health, and reproduction - all of which feeds into the over-arching information that is used to make decisions on the reserve as a whole.

Port mortem exams

Post mortem exams are very important procedures when gaining veterinary work experience. These procedures will not only provide you with hands-on experience with a variety of animals, but also allow you to be a part of the intricate studies done on the reserves that can tell scientists and vets about the reasons behind an animals death. This work can advance your knowledge of the species as well as provide important details that can facilitate the health of the other animals in the reserve.

Darting and tagging Rhinos

One of the most important and thrilling jobs that you may get to do while on the reserve gaining veterinary work experience is the hunting, darting and tagging of white rhinos. A trained hunter will track and dart the large herbivorous species while you watch. I is not harmful, it simply puts the animal into a sleep. Then, you will be able to assist the veterinarian in their examination of the rhino - including taking measurements, notching its ear for identification purposes, and drawing its blood for science and DNA testing. While this all seems simple, it can be quite a task as the rhinos skin can be anywhere from 1.5 to 5 centimetres thick and requires special tools for drawing blood.

by: Mark Bottell

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