What's a Licensed Veterinary Techncian?
A licensed veterinary technician (LVT) is much like a registered nurse in the human medical field. You may also see titles such as CVT (certified veterinary technician) and RVT (registered veterinary technician)--there are some slight differences but they all mean pretty much the same thing. All vary slightly depending on what state you live in.
A licensed veterinary technician must go through a college program accredited by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and pass a standardized exam in order to earn their credentials. Veterinary technicians have a lot of responsibilities and it's often the vet techs who have the most hands on experience with your pet during his visit to the hospital.
Veterinary technicians can do everyhing a veterinarian can do except for three things: perform surgery, diagnose disease, and prescribe medications.
What nutritional training do vet techs receive?
Vet techs receive about the same amount of nutritional training as many veterinarians--very little. Of course this will vary from program to program. If I remember correctly, one day during classes we had a sales rep come in from a large pet food company who talked to us for about an hour about nutrition. That was about the extent of our training. Most veterinary technicians who graduate go to work in a veterinary hospital and never learn anything else about nutrition except what they learn on the job from sales reps who come to visit. Some veterinarians do the same thing.
I've attended numerous continuing education classes on pet nutrition and after several years found myself beating my head against the wall. The same information was being repeated over and over again. A light bulb went off in my head that during all this time I wasn't learning anything useful about pet nutrition at all but instead was learning how to convince pet owners to purchase the recommended products. Ugh!
Now I'm able to think "outside the box" when it comes to pet nutrition and everyday I find myself learning something new that I want to share with pet owners. There is so much yet undiscovered about human and pet nutrition. Trying to get your head around everything can sometimes be a daunting task. Thankfully my education and training in animal physiology and anatomy has helped me immensely during this process!
I like to think that I have a pretty level head when it comes to pet nutrition. I know enough about dogs and cats to sort through most of the Internet nutritional gossip. My years as a veterinary technician have taught me more than anything I could read from a book. And not to discredit anyone, but owning a pet doesn't automatically make you a pet "expert." I own a car, but that doesn't mean I know anything about mechanics or engineering!
Please note:
I am not a veterinarian nor do I claim to have knowledge equivalent to that of a veterinarian or an accredited veterinary nutritionist. My advice is not to be used as a substitute for a discussion with your personal veterinarian but instead should be used in conjunction with his/her professional opinion.
