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Attending the Vets Go Wild course shaped
my vet nursing career
Michaela Vinales (2018 FdSc Veterinary Nursing)
In the summer of 2017, I was fortunate to travel to South Africa for the Vets Go Wild (VGW) course, led by the famous William Fowlds. I was the only vet nurse
student in the group, with 15 vet students, so was understandably apprehensive at the start of the placement ·¬ÇÑapp“ the pressure was on to up my game!
Whilst there, I was able to work hands- on with a huge variety of animals including elephants, rhinos, giraffes and antelopes. I found that being the only nurse was a huge advantage, as I had more practical and anaesthetic experience; I was therefore often asked to help the other students.
After leaving the course I knew my time in South Africa wasn·¬ÇÑapp™t over, so I got back in touch with the team ·¬ÇÑapp“ amazingly, they offered me a three month internship to go back out into the wild world once I qualified! However, this time, I was in charge. My confidence had flourished since my first trip, and again, I was joined by four other interns, all newly qualified vets. My internship was amazing, and once again I was often asked to help the other interns and the VGW students.
I worked with both wild and domestic animals, and found that as each day passed, Will and his team trusted me more, giving me more specific jobs.
I was even in charge of the spay day anaesthesia where I monitored over 70 dogs and cats, roughly four at a time.
I learnt how to juggle my time, work with minimal resources, prioritise animals and ·¬ÇÑapp˜make a plan·¬ÇÑapp™ when things didn·¬ÇÑapp™t go to plan. The highlight was definitely hand rearing my baby sable antelope calf from near death and becoming her mum, as you can see in the picture.
Whilst in South Africa, I received a message from the vet where I did my nursing training in my hometown. He offered me a job at a new practice he was opening, and he wanted me to run it! He appreciated how much I had grown, both as a nurse and a person,
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and felt that my newfound confidence and experience of working with a range of animals was a valuable asset to his new practice. I am now working in a new independent practice and I am Head Nurse alongside the Practice Manager.
I feel super confident in my abilities, both personally and as a nurse, and it all stemmed from the Vets Go Wild trip!
Find out more at: worldwideexperience.com/vets-go-wild