Cowboy going for rehab, future job possibility for me?

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

What a great day! Started off crazy stressed about our radiology exam, but it went okay. Then we had a guest speaker for the theory portion. Well don't ya know it's the tech who works at the rehab center I was debating taking Cowboy too. This was such a blessing cause I got all my questions answered. This whole physiotherapy for dogs is such an amazing field. The amount of gadgets and special exercises she showed us is outstanding. They have laser therapy, ultrasound therapy, electro therapy, they have special tools to measure and monitor muscle mass and flexion and extension of limbs. And she assured me they have lots of training and experience on isolating the injured muscle, tendon or ligament. That they will work with his specific injury AND my budget to plan a rehabilitation schedule. That they can show me exercises and massage techniques to do at home. And the tech who does it all happens to be engaged to Cowboy's first frisbee teacher.

I'm really excited about bringing him now. The only thing I need to know, is if I should let him run a bit before his appointment. As cruel as it sounds, I kind of want him to be sore when they examin him. If he's not in ANY pain whatsoever, I don't think they'll be able to figure out what exactly is causing him to get sore. I guess I'll ask when I call to make the appointment.

I think I could make a career of this. It would require doing some studying in the states, but I thought it was the most interesting nursing class ever. It's like, sports medicine for dogs! It's so perfect for me!

EDIT: Also, I'm gona take blood from him at home and bring it in for a heartworm test and I'm gona bring some poop to school to test for intestinal worms. I'm excited about this lol. Got my EDTA tube and sterile syringe and 25G needle all set. Just have to ask when is a good time to come use the lab.

One of the tools used in canine rehab:


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TgBcd11zGO0&feature=related  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

My teacher emailed me back, said to just do it whenever. So I took blood this morning. Took me two tries cause he's got so much damn fur on those legs of his and I don't exactly have a shaver handy lol. So I'm taking the blood in this morning to test Cowboy for heartworm. If I can get some poop from him before I leave I'll do that too.  

[Kipluck]

That sounds awesome. There really are so many specialties nowadays for Vet Techs willing to go for extra training. There are even some that allow you to be a VTS (Vet Tech with Specialist qualification) after a certain number of hours of work in that field. I think that is how that works in Colorado, so there are a lot of VT people here in Utah who get specialties from schools in Colorado while staying here in Utah.  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

Yup I would be a VTS, specifically a CCRA certified canine rehabilitation assistant. But I need to look into where in the US this school is and how long the course is because it could mean bring away from my furries or getting a appartment and finding a job in the area.  

[- Vet Tech - 2011]

It's defiantly a growing field.

There are 2 schools in the US that I know of [x] and [x] although the first link (U of T) seems to be the most recommended from what I have been coming across talking to individuals in the field because it is a more in depth course then the one in Florida. I was also advised that drug knowledge is important for this field. I cannot speculate on the Florida course but the Tennessee course you can do each individually, or I believe there is a 2-3 weeks where you do all courses at once but I believe that is a 6-7 day a week thing for the 3 weeks. I would need to re-check with a couple individuals. That might give you an idea at least of how long you would be away from your furries.

There are a lot of specialties for a VT specialties to be able to go into. The sky is the limit.  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

Awesome! Thank you for all the info. I'm pretty sure it was the Tenesse one this girl went to. I thought it was a university program that I had to enroll in. I didn't realize it was a series of seminars. So I don't see it being worth it to get an apartment. But there is absolutely no way I'm making that drive every week or whatever. I could save up and stay in a hotel maybe. It would be nice to do it all in one shot. I mean, it might not be ideal as far as really absorbing all the material. But considering how far it is, it would be good to just go for one week rather than drive back and forth all month.

It's the only specialty where it seems I don't even need to wait until I graduate. The nutrition specialty that I'm also interested in has a prerequisite of 3yrs experience in the field.

I contacted the girl on facebook to ask her for more information about the school.  

[Gabrielle_AnimalLuver]

So the tech responded to my message today:

Hi Gabrielle, glad to hear that I sparked some interest! There are two main schools. I went to the canine rehabilitation institute (CRI) it was amazing they are very hands on. There is also University of Tennesee, which I am less familiar with but understand that they are more theoretical, which could be fine but considering that you are learning to find and define muscles and then use modalities and learn different ways to treat, I found it VERY beneficial to be able to practice immediately what I was being taught check out CRI's webite here is the link. You may want to double check I'm pretty sure that you need to be a Registered vet tech in order to apply and also when it come time to actually start doing rehab you will need to work under a vet who is also certified in rehab, so will be important that you get into a hospital that does rehab. Let me know if you need any other info or if you have other questions.
Steph