If you think you have it in you to become an animal doctor, then do pursue your passion. You can work on farms, in zoos, in a national park or wildlife reserve, labs, and of course with pet insurance companies. Here are some very interesting pet facts that will be of interest to Americans and pet lovers from all over the world.

1. Whole or non-neutered males are responsible for the maximum number of dog bites in America.

2. Children old enough to harass a dog but still not intelligent enough to understand the perils form the largest component of bite victims; these are kids around six years of age.

3. A dog’s sense of smell is a million times more acute than a human beings; it has four times the number of scent cells as those of a cat.

4. Old dogs can learn new tricks! So much for an old adage.

5. There are at this point in time close to a million lucky canines that have their pet owner’s entire wealth bequeathed to them.

6. There are more pet cats in America but more families have dogs as pets.

7. The average annual veterinary cost for dogs is around $250 and $220 for cats.

8. The Chow dog breed is unique, it has a black tongue.

9. It’s a known fact that pets can alert you to natural disasters such as earthquakes but do you know that your pet dog can also warn you of an epileptic fit coming your way.

10. The oldest dog ever on record lived up to a ripe old age of 29 years.

11. Pet euthanasia is a cruel reality in America. Fifty percent of the dogs and seventy percent of the cats in shelters have to be put down because there is nobody to claim them.

12. If you want a purebred, check out your local shelter. Twenty-five percent of the dogs in shelters are purebreds.

13. Cats can have up to four litters in a year and each litter can have up to six kittens. There are more than seventy million stray cats in America.

14. Snakes may not be everybody’s idea of pets but there are close to a million pet snakes in America.

15. A heartwarming 16% of dog owners in America actually purchase a house or a car keeping their pet dog’s needs in mind.

16. Veterinary medicine in America came into being to take care of livestock and farm animals.

17. Chocolate is toxic for cats and dogs; as a vet you will inevitably come across many chocolate poisoning cases.

18. Once a cat can get its head through an opening, it can pull its body. This is because the animal does not have a collarbone.

19. Cats are cool; they don’t ever break into sweat. They can’t. They don’t have sweat glands.

20. If we could jump like cats, we’d jump 40 feet.

21. Cats are partial to their left or right paw; just as we humans are left-handed and right-handed.

22. A cat’s color perception is sharper than a dog’s. A cat can recognize red, blue, green, yellow, and gray colors.

23. In America, pet insurance is a growing market with a mere 1% of the pets insured. In Europe, pet insurance is much more common. For example, in Sweden every second pet is insured.

24. By 2012, the pet insurance market will be worth close to 700 million dollars.

25. Dogs are capable of more than one hundred facial expressions.

26. Dogs are capable of only ten vocalizations; on the other hand cats can express themselves through close to one hundred sounds.

27. A group of cats is known as chowder; and a group of kittens is a kindle. Did anyone of you guys even know this?

28. A cat’s nose print is as unique as a human fingerprint.

29. If only cats were more social; they can retain memory of an incident for longer than dogs can do.

30. If you’ve got a pet iguana, you’ll probably know this. These reptiles can hold their breath for up to half an hour.

31. If you’ve got a pet cockatoo; there’s a good chance the bird might outlive you. They can have a lifespan of up to 75 years. A goldfish can live up to an amazing forty years.

32. If you’ve got a pet armadillo, know that the animal can get leprosy.

33. Rub a dog’s ears; they love it because the act releases endorphins. You now what else helps release endorphins and make us feel happy, don’t you?

34. It is a fact that if you are a pet owner, you will visit a doctor fewer times in your life as compared to a person that does not have a pet in the house.

35. Reptilian pets are major carriers of the salmonella virus.

What is a vet tech program?
Vet tech or veterinary technician program is the educational program which prepares the students in application, technicalities and variance of veterinary treatment and healthcare. An veterinary technician normally performs his duties under or with the guidance of an veterinary physician.

Job responsibilities and career scope of vet tech professional
The basic job responsibilities of an vet tech professional include technical assistance with a veterinary physician in different clinical set up or in veterinary hospitals. The technical assistance may include performing minor surgeries, injecting fluid, basic diagnosis, first aid and dressing of ailing scars etc. There is a common perception of confusing of confusing the job responsibilities of a  veterinary assistant with the professional responsibilities of a veterinary technician. But, practically veterinary assistants serve mainly as the caretaker of ailing animals, while veterinary technician position is a much higher career focused professional position for performing many treatment  and diagnostic responsibilities alongside and under the direct guidance of veterinary physicians.

Why online vet tech program?
Here below we are providing a short list of  some of the most important advantages of an online vet tech program in contrast to campus based regular vet tech programs.

1) Doing job simultaneously with your education is not at all considered to be a constraint.
2) Beside your regular campus based college program you can obtain an professional education in accordance with your own schedule.
3) Cost competitive in regard to cost saving options of obtaining the degree sitting at your home.
4) A globally interactive platform of learning for better sharing of knowledge and views.
5) At par with any top ranked campus based curriculum.
6) National accreditation and industry wise recognition.

Top 5 online vet tech schools for 2012

Argosy University
The online vet tech program of this institute prepares the student in undertaking modern day professional challenges in various clinical atmosphere.

Anthem College
This institute is well known for its rigorous focus on national registration and professional recognition of students.

Brown Mackie College
This college is unique in offering a online vet tech program which is focused on providing the student a wide interdisciplinary exposure in various fields of veterinary treatment.

Stratford Career Institute
This institute is well known for its support system in helping the student to get better job opportunities and career exposure.

Ashworth College
This college have a big name among the online educational institutions of the country for its coverage of a wide array of professional disciplines in its curriculums. Through the online vet tech program of this college students can obtain a thorough exposure in the modern scientific development in the veterinary healthcare.

There is a huge career exposure waiting for you if you can obtain necessary qualification through a online vet tech program with your regular course of education or profession, preferably in a background of biological or health science.

• Radiology (taking radiographs and submitting results to doctors),
• Patient medical care (give medicines, feeding, cleaning and walking patients as needed, administer IV fluids, etc),
• Dentistry (take dental radiographs, ultrasonic cleaning and polishing, etc),
• Surgery (surgical preparation, cleaning, sterilizing and maintaining all surgical equipment),
• Anesthesia (clean anesthesia equipment, induct, maintain and monitor patients),
• Preparation of invoices,
• Prepare prescriptions,
• Assist with inventory control,
• Assist in training new team members,
• Assist with front desk or reception,
• Client communications,
• Clinic technician (assist doctors with outpatient appointments, cleaning exam rooms, taking history and vitals, etc),
• Client medical education, etc

Academic Requirements
Online vet tech programs offer certificate, diploma, associate’s and bachelor’s degree in veterinary technology. You need to undergo a two years’ training program for getting a certified, diploma and associate degree in vet technology. On the other hand, the bachelor’s degree takes four years to complete. You must make sure that the educational program you selected is accredited by American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA). The coursework covers topics such as:

• Veterinary terminology,
• Animal disease,
• Biology,
• Microbiology,
• Advanced animal nursing,
• Ultasonography,
• Animal husbandry and diseases,
• Veterinary clinical laboratory techniques,
• Veterinary anatomy and physiology,
• Comparative anatomy and physiology,
• Surgical principles,
• Hematology,
• Veterinary medicine, etc.

After completing the entry level online vet tech programs, you can go for specialization in veterinary technology. Most of the online veterinary colleges offer specialized courses in research and veterinary behavior, internal medicine, emergency, anesthesiology, dental care, etc.

Necessary Skills
In order to become a vet technician, you must be physically strong, gentle and caring person. You must not be short tempered because you are going to handle misbehaving and noisy animals. You must also be willing to do clerical works as well. You must have good communication skills because you need to communicate with vets, staff members and animal owners. You must also be emotionally strong because you need to manage the feelings of seriously ill and dying animals.

Certification
After completing vet tech and internship programs successfully, you need to appear for certification examinations. Many states conduct Veterinary Technician National Examinations of American Association of Veterinary State Boards (AAVSB). Different states call the certified vet tech as Registered Veterinary Technician (RVT), Certified Veterinary Technician (CVT), Licensed Veterinary Technician (LVT), etc. However, most states use National Veterinary Technician (NVT) examination.

Top Online Vet Tech Schools
You can find a number of schools and colleges which offer online vet tech programs to the students. However, when you select a program for training, you should choose an accredited course. If the program you selected has the right accreditation, you can seek federal and state loan, scholarship programs, etc. You can make use of private and government loans for completing your course. Here are some of the accredited online schools, which offer vet tech programs to students.

Ashworth University
This university offer Professional Veterinary Assisting programs to students. By enrolling in this program, students can earn essential skills such as prevention and treatment of common diseases, lab testing, physical examinations, emergency care, etc.

Penn Foster College
The School conducts Veterinary Assistant program and it offers all materials and textbooks in an affordable rate. The vet tech programs of this college are designed specially for busy people who want to attend classes online. Convenience, support, reliability, affordable tuition, respected degree, etc are the other peculiarities of Pen Foster College’s online vet tech programs.

Animal Behavior College
This college offers flexible and affordable programs for those who interested in caring animals. You can get training in veterinary assistant from Animal behavior College.

Some of the other colleges which offer accredited online vet tech programs are:

• Brown Mackie College,
• Vatterott College,
• Sanford Brown College,
• Kaplan College,
• Platt College,
• Minnesota School of Business,
• Harrison Colleges,
• New England Institute of Technology, etc.

 Vet Tech Salary
After completing the certified vet tech program, you can seek entry level position in animal hospitals and clinics, animal shelters, humane societies, research facilities, laboratories, wildlife sanctuary, zoo, etc. An experienced and certified veterinary technician can earn around $45,000 per year.

The new vet courses are to be given online in the form of online vet tech programs. They started at the beginning of the year and include Bio Statistics, Climate Change and Fisheries. There are also diploma programs being offered for vet ophthalmology, critical care and emergency medicine and dermatology for small animals.

The college is also looking to offer online vet tech programs on poultry production through online and distances educational modes. Science graduates and field vets are expected to benefit a lot from these inventive online vet programs.

The main benefit that Tamil Nadu University expects the recipients to gain is a reduction in the amount of fees payable for these online vet tech programs. Finally, it is expected that the number of enrollments into these programs will increase drastically on account of the fact that the courses will enable students to learn wherever they are located.

More info on this at http://www.onlinevettechprograms.com/

As for the career scope for veterinary medicine it is a highly competitive field and present day veterinarians are doctors who are highly educated as to protect health of animals as well as humans. With respect to career in veterinary science highly qualified veterinarians are in much in need and their demand and job opportunities are endless.  A Veterinarian carry out careful monitoring of live stock, companion animal and wildlife health.  Emergence in zoonotic diseases is well suited to veterinary science’s “herd health” approach.

With respect to specialization in Veterinary Medicine there are presently 20 veterinary courses are recognized by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) involving the courseware anesthesiology, behavior, dermatology, emergency and critical care, internal medicine, cardiology, oncology, ophthalmology, neurology, radiology and surgery. As to become a specialist veterinarian one should complete additional training after graduation from veterinary school in the form of an internship and residency and then pass a rigorous examination. Veterinarians help in maintaining the quality, quantity, and security of food supplies by correcting the health of live stock and inspecting the meat itself. Veterinary scientist keeps an integral and important placed for them in biological, chemical, agricultural and pharmaceutical research.

Veterinarians are ranked as one of the most attractive career paths for youth.  However for becoming a Veterinarian there is necessity of following and developing some traits as necessary in career of veterinarian. The most essential qualifications to become a veterinarian are to have a scientific mind, good communication skills, and management experience.  With a scientific bend of mind it possesses an inquiring brain and keen sense of observation. Career in veterinary keeps and live the quest of scientific temperament. Therefore, a veterinarian should have genuine love for biological love for sciences and understanding of animals. Good communication skills are integral to his career as he would come across a number of people and compassion is the next essential quality for a veterinarian to live along.

Pursuing a veterinary technician program had earlier been confined to the classrooms and laboratories. But with the improvement in information technology, it is now possible to pursue the programs online; a fact that has made it more cheap and convenient to many as far as time delicacies is concerned.

To get and complete a veterinary technician program online you need to do the following simple things:

Browse for accredited vet tech programs that are available online. This should be done carefully because there are very many bogus schools that are available online and you should not be their prey. Another reason is to compare the requirements of each and come up with the best suiting one.

Once you have picked on a suitable program, apply for your preferred vet tech program from the relevant schools accredited by state boards. With that, you should just be ready to start your online studies upon being accepted. Your internet connection should be stable so that you don’t miss out on any instruction and this should be for about two years and then you are ready to graduate.

The need to utilize the online support provided online is paramount because at first the program might seem challenging and you will need the help of your lecturers and professors.

Finally you will be required to have some practical skills, so be ready to visit veterinary clinics and hospitals to learn the basics. Due to less coercion you may be tempted to miss exams; this may delay your completion of the online vet tech programs, so check out on that.