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It's National Vet Tech Week

Posted by: Dr. Darin Collins, DVM, Director, Animal Health



The National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America has proclaimed October 12-18, 2014 to be National Veterinary Technician Week.

Please join me in celebrating this week and share with Woodland Park Zoo's veterinary technicians, Harmony, Linda, Teri, Barb and Kimberly, how much you appreciate them and their work!

Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo.

Our Woodland Park Zoo veterinary technicians have over a 100 years of combined professional work experience. They are licensed professionals having graduated from accredited programs, and are members of their professional organization. Our technicians are highly trained in the latest medical advances and skilled at working alongside the zoo veterinarians to give all our zoo patients the best medical care possible.

Being a zoo veterinary technician is a lifelong learning process through continuing education, and day-to-day work where they must uphold the highest of ethical standards and provide for the humane and compassionate care of every zoo species.

Veterinary Technicians were essential to the lion cub exams in 2013.
Photo by Ryan Hawk/Woodland Park Zoo.

If compared to human medicine, veterinary technicians perform many of the known medical positions all wrapped up into one and on all the zoo’s different species. As a zoo veterinary technician, they must know anatomy, physiology, microbiology, clinical techniques, pharmacology, anesthesiology, surgical and medical nursing, radiology, and clinical pathology training.

Each one of them does the seemingly impossible every day, all year round, here at the zoo. They are key to our ability to deliver the best possible care to our zoo animal patients. As the zoo's veterinarians, Dr. Kelly Helmick and I could not do our work without them!

Thanks, Harmony, Linda, Teri, Barb and Kimberly. Enjoy your week—you deserve it!

To the budding veterinarians and veterinarian technicians out there, explore more about a career in zoo animal health care.

Comments

Jayme Richards said…
To all you wonderful techs. The work you do is amazing,and life changing and saving to all the animals at the zoo. I am forever grateful to have met and spent some time with you.