💡 Why it matters: Vets keep pets healthy, protect the food animals we eat and help stop animal diseases that can spread to people.
🌍 Around the world
- United States: Jobs are projected to grow 9% from 2025 to 2035, much faster than average (US Bureau of Labor Statistics).
💰 What it can pay
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Starting out
- ₦2M – ₦5M
- Mid-career
- ₦5M – ₦12M
- Senior
- ₦12M – ₦28M
≈ ₦417k – ₦1M a month mid-career. Indicative estimate by Incusim.
🇺🇸 United States
Median pay; low and high are the 10th and 90th percentiles. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
🇨🇦 Canada
Hourly wage low/median/high x 2,080 hours. Job Bank (Government of Canada), 2023-2024
Yearly pay before tax. UK, US and Canada figures come from the official sources named on each card. Nigeria has no official salary survey, so those are our indicative estimates. Real pay depends on the employer, the place, your skills and experience.
🛠️ What you actually do
- Examine and treat sick animals
- Vaccinate pets and farm animals
- Perform operations on animals
- Advise farmers on animal health
- Help control diseases that spread from animals to people
⚡ Skills you'll need
- Animal handling
- Problem solving
- Empathy
- Stamina
- Communication
Get ready at school
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Animal health and production technology diploma, then a degree
- Postgraduate training in livestock or wildlife medicine
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Graduate-entry or gateway courses at some universities
- Animal care experience before applying, as places are very competitive
🇺🇸 United States
- Work or volunteer in clinics, farms or shelters to build experience before applying
🇨🇦 Canada
- Animal health technology diploma, then university
- Apply to colleges abroad and meet Canadian licensing rules
🗺️ Your path to this career
- 1Do well in Biology and Chemistry at school and in the entrance exams for veterinary degrees
- 2Study veterinary medicine for 5 to 6 years
- 3Do a period of clinical training or internship
- 4Register with the national veterinary licensing body
- 5Work with pets, farms, government or wildlife
⏰ A day in the life
You vaccinate a flock of birds in the morning, then visit a farm where a cow is sick. In the evening you operate on a dog that swallowed a toy and talk to its worried owner.