Got a job offer

[galadriel]

I've been looking for a job in FL since June; we moved here in August. I've interviewed a couple of times at the UF Large Animal Clinic as an equine vet tech. They give automatic preference to current employees, though, so anyone wanting to transfer from another job at UF gets the job before someone who's not a current UF employee. Basically, you have to get your foot in the door before you can get into a good job.

Well, I found a foot-in-the-door position, and one that has promise of leading to better paid/better benefit jobs pretty soon. It's just a kind of depressing one :( The job is caring for the UF laboratory experiment horses.

The depressing element is that most lab animals don't survive the experience... and the current batch are all 4-8 months old. They're precious. And as a caretaker, I wouldn't have any say at all in the individual animals' fates--I would just care for them until they were needed (and while sick). I think I could do this, but it would be saddening.

And I could at least contribute something to the animals' lives. Being cared for by someone who really loves animals, and whose priority is keeping them comfortable, would surely make their time there more enjoyable, even if it is short.

But anyway...this has been weighing on my mind and definitely contributed to my maudlin mood yesterday.

[Mehitabel]

yikes. you're a hell of a lot braver than me to even be able to consider it. what kind of experiments are they?

[Tinkerbell]

No doubt the kind that get the activists very excited.

Edited to add: whatever you would do there, you would do for yourself. If that makes you feel better, then that's what you have to do.

[galadriel]

Currently, West Nile vaccine research.

[nat17]

Mmmm Galadriel, i think it would be very hard for you. Can you honestly say you could do it for longer than the first death of one of your first charges?
I can predict my own reaction, i would go there and look after the horses and give them all the tlc i can, knowing what is and will happen to them, then after the experiments and when they get very poorly and die, i would be so upset and get angry that it is allowed to happen. I would then leave most likely leaving the labs still smoking.

Or i would have a big herd of horses that i saved from the lab!:(


I dont know what i would do in your postition, must be very tough. :(

[Alice]

Hi Galadriel, wish you well in whatever decision you make.

If it were my decision to make, factors would be:
Does this research benefit all of horsedom?
Are the horses pain or discomfort managed?

I am sure they would benefit from having such a caring and capable person as yourself looking after them.
With your empathy and horse knowledge I can only think that
you would make a difference to their lives.

Good luck to you!

[chapsi]

It´s your decision, I can only judge for myself, how I would react in a similar situation.
However, knowing you as a caring person and horse lover, no matter how important your motivations are, i.e. to get "a foot in the door", I reckon that if you take that job, eventually it will only wear you emotionally.

[Echo64]

Wish you well on which ever path you decide!

In your position, I don't know what I'd do. I get attached to animals all the time, and I'd be so sad after they pass away. I guess you'd grow accustomed to not getting quite so attached to them, though after a while. Hmm, I don't know about that.

As cheesy as this sounds, follow your first instinct about it. Don't second guess any choice you make, because you will have made it for a reason.

[Em 1]

So sorry you're in this position. It must be really hard. I spoke to a friend who did some research with animals through her PhD. She valued what she did and being allowed to say no when asked to conduct experiments she felt she couldn't justify to herself. You have to ask yourself whether you value the science that is being carried out at the centre. You will almost certainly find that the researchers care deeply about the welfare of their animals but don't look on them as pets. You need to consider whether you can carry on caring for the animals regardless of your beliefs and feelings about specific experiments.

If you can fulfil with this enormously difficult but valued role, you will make a real difference to the animals' lives. Ultimately, will the horses be better off with or without you?

Good luck and all the best!

[stephydoo]

it would be very sad but id rather go as someone who will love these poor animals untill their last day than some uncaring person, pushing them around

[galadriel]

Can you honestly say you could do it for longer than the first death of one of your first charges?

Yes, I think so. It would be hard, and it would be stressful, and I would be sad--but I think I could manage it. It wouldn't be the first time I was in a position to care for animals that would be leaving me--just the first time that they would be leaving me that way.

I don't think I could keep myself from getting attached to them; I just think I could hold myself together after they were gone. Incidentally, my husband outright does not want me to take this job.

[galadriel]

If it were my decision to make, factors would be:
Does this research benefit all of horsedom?


I don't think I'd even be considering it if it weren't valuable research. The current experiment, West Nile related, is something that the horse world doesn't have yet and does need. I can't speak for future research in the program, though, and I don't know how I'd react if they were doing something I found frivolous. I don't know if I could take that.

Are the horses pain or discomfort managed?

I actually don't know much about this. I only "met" the horses who had arrived and were in quarantine before going into the project; the horses who were already in the project were in much heavier quarantine and I wouldn't be allowed in those areas until I was an employee. However, I do think that the other caretakers are also people who love horses (we all talked about our own horses), and I think it would be very wearing on them if the animals were in constant pain and nothing was being done; they seemed pretty content in their jobs.

[galadriel]

However, knowing you as a caring person and horse lover, no matter how important your motivations are, i.e. to get "a foot in the door", I reckon that if you take that job, eventually it will only wear you emotionally.

That's indeed my concern, is that it would wear me out. It would be a constant drain.

I do want to mention that the "foot in the door" that this job would provide would not be a step into *different* jobs. I wouldn't be taking this job as a means to an eventual end of getting out of there; this job could lead to more jobs in the same area, just better paid ones.

[chev]

That's a tough one. In one way, I can't imagine putting animals through an experiment like that - in another, I can't help think of all the horses that would be spared suffering if a vaccine came about through this research.

It has to be a personal decision, not one made for you - even by your husband. Having said that, if the reason he's not happy is because he has issues with the job itself rather than because he'd worry about how you would feel, is it going to cause mor eproblems? My mother trained as an animal nurse. She was in fact one of the first in this country to hold the qualification. One of the jobs she had was looking after dogs being used for reseach. She became attached to every dog she cared for, and did find losing them very difficult at times - but she also gained a great deal of satisfaction from caring for them. She reckons the care they had was of a fairly high standard, and that as long as she kept in mind the fact that there were benefits to be gained (for the animal world too) she did cope with the stress.

I have to say though, that she left after twelve months to work for a veterinary practice instead; which she did find a lot more rewarding.

Not a decision I envy.

[lisae]

This is tough question if you need the job and the money because of several months without! But your last line of the post - that just considering it has made you sad, well that's something to consider. If you take it, and find it isn't for you, you can always resign, most employers would understand.

[nakedescapee]

Oooooh, what a hard decision. :(

Are the animals *already* infected and so will be in a "clinical trial"so to speak or are these healthy animals that will be infected for the purpose of experiment? I think I would have to ask a lot of questions and doing a lot of praying before I could take such a job.

My experience: One of my first jobs was in a kennel. I soon figured that it would be great to be a vet tech or help to rescue abused animals, so I started looking for a job in the field. I got a "foot-in-the-door" job at the animal shelter. It was my job to hold the animals while they were euthanized. I lasted 2 weeks. Granted, I was just a teenager, but I don't think it would be a lot different for me now.

The bottom line is follow your heart.

[Esther.D]

Best of luck. You have obviously made the decision that you are prepared to work in this field, therefore you feel that not only is good research being done but that the animals are being cared for in an appropriate and humane way. All you can do now is try it, see whether it gets you down too much or whether you can adjust yourself to handle it by feeling that at least you can make their lives as pleasant as possible. Personally I think I would find the job extremely hard and distressing, but at the end of the day someone has to do it and if you have sufficient fortitude to withstand the stress and make those animals lives better then they can only gain by the experience. At the end of the day you can always pull out if it is too stressful, the employers must have seen that happen many times and be prepared for it. Good luck.

[JaniceH]

I have just one question, is there any remote chance that you may carry an infection, germ, or ANY contamination from the vaccine to your own horses? I am just thinking that if these horses are infected with something to test the vaccine then you might unwittingly take this back to your own horses, after all it would only take one germ? I think testing has definately got its place, when used in a humane and considered way, but there is always big emotional and political issues tied up with it too. I think you need to ask yourself if you could protect your own horses from any risk involved.

[galadriel]

Originally posted by chev
Having said that, if the reason he's not happy is because he has issues with the job itself rather than because he'd worry about how you would feel, is it going to cause mor eproblems?

No, he is worried about me. He thinks that no amount of money is worth it, to put a horse lover through this sort of experience.

Esther.D and lisae both point out that I don't have to stay with this job.
True :) And if it is too much for me, I'd probably resign in relief.

are these healthy animals that will be infected for the purpose of experiment?

Yes :( Tough to handle.

I think the job you mention would be about the hardest I could think of. That's miserable. I don't think I'd have lasted a day.

Originally posted by JaniceH
I have just one question, is there any remote chance that you may carry an infection, germ, or ANY contamination from the vaccine to your own horses?

The whole setup is designed not to carry any germs either in or out; you change clothes when you get there, you put on a disposable coverall and shoe covers before you go into an area which is under quarantine, etc. In addition, West Nile is spread by mosquito, not contact-to-contact. Again I don't know what they'll do *after* this project, but we'd just have to see then.

[kedwards]

Oh goodness, Galadriel. What a difficult situation and surely one that must have resulted in some serious soul-searching on your part. Best of luck in whatever you decide to do. That would certainly be a difficult job for a horse lover, but it's even more painful to imagine it being done by someone who didn't love the animals in their care.

[LindaAd]

It's a difficult one, Galadriel; I know what a sensitive person you are, and how you might find it very hard. But I can see that you also recognise the value and the importance of the research, and of the job of looking after the horses.... I'd say go for it, try it, see how you feel about doing it, then make your decision. Maybe set yourself a time limit, or some other sort of deadline. But if you take the job and then decide it's not for you, you can always leave; if you don't take it, you'll never know if you could have coped with it or not.

[galadriel]

Thanks, guys. You're all such stars, being so sweet :) I really appreciate your concerns and advices, but most of all the support.

[Tinkerbell]

Animals used for experimentation are looked after a lot better than domestic animals, or at least they are in the UK.

[nakedescapee]

Hey Galadriel, what happened with the job? Did you take it?

[galadriel]

Well, actually, I've just gotten home from my first day. They've got me in "training" in another area--I'll be playing with rats, mice, and cats for a couple of weeks. Apparently, since they care for all of them, in order to be an employee I need to be trained in care of all of them. Eh well.

As you guys have pointed out to me, I don't have to stay at this job if it's too much for me. I can quit if I can't take it. I appreciate that; I really wasn't thinking of it that way. And, well, if it seems like it's going to be too stressful, I'll leave. In the meantime, I can play with little baby horses all day. Well, once they finish teaching me all the appropriate procedures dealing with rats & mice :)

[OlavS]

Best of luck in your new job, Galadriel!

As others have said you can always leave if you don't like it - a trial period is not just for the employer, it's for the employee, too! even if you don't officially have one (?), set yourself one of a few months and then decide.

I've accidentally seen some rat experiments for a customer project at work and didn't like it one bit. Although the animals were heavily sedated, the way they were regarded as "disposable subjects" got to me. But I guess cures for diseases don't come without some losses...

[Tinkerbell]

Originally posted by OlavS
But I guess cures for diseases don't come without some losses...

I think that's a really good point - whether the cures are for humans or animals. On a personal level, I am opposed to any kind of animal suffering but on a professional level, I have to realise that without such experimentation, the wards would be empty. In fact, there probably wouldn't be much population at all. I can't speak for those in animal healthcare, but I would imagine they too would feel the same. It perhaps helps to have someone on the job who is motivated to an animal's well being, rather than someone who is there for the pay cheque.