💡 Why it matters: Healthy animals mean safe milk, meat and eggs, and happy pets. Vets protect livestock from disease and look after a growing number of pet owners.
🌍 Around the world
- Nigeria: Nigeria needs more vets to protect livestock from disease and to look after a growing number of pet owners.
- United States: Jobs for veterinarians 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 – ₦4.5M
- Mid-career
- ₦5M – ₦12M
- Senior
- ₦12M – ₦30M
≈ ₦417k – ₦1M a month mid-career. Indicative estimate by Incusim.
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
UK job profile: Vet. Typical starter to experienced salary. National Careers Service, 2026
🇺🇸 United States
Median pay; low and high are the 10th and 90th percentiles. US Bureau of Labor Statistics, May 2025
🇨🇦 Canada
Job Bank occupation: Veterinarian. 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 sick animals and work out what is wrong
- Give vaccines and treatments
- Perform operations on animals
- Advise farmers on feeding and disease prevention
- Help check that meat and milk are safe to eat
⚡ Skills you'll need
- Biology knowledge
- Care and empathy
- Problem solving
- Hands-on skill
- Communication
Get ready at school
🇳🇬 Nigeria
- Animal health technician training after OND in Animal Health
- Work as a vet assistant on a farm or clinic while preparing for a degree
🇬🇧 United Kingdom
- Veterinary nursing: college course or apprenticeship, registered with the RCVS
- Gain animal work experience; some universities offer a gateway or foundation year
🇺🇸 United States
- Veterinary technician: two-year associate degree plus credentialing (varies by state)
- Work as a vet assistant to gain experience before applying
🇨🇦 Canada
- Registered veterinary technician: college diploma, licensed by each province
- Work as an animal health assistant to build experience
🗺️ Your path to this career
- 1Study Biology, Chemistry and Physics in school
- 2Aim for top grades in the exams needed to enter veterinary school
- 3Complete the veterinary degree, usually five to six years
- 4Register or get licensed with your country's veterinary regulator
- 5Work in a clinic or on farms, then specialise or open your own practice
⏰ A day in the life
You start by checking animals recovering from surgery. Then you drive out to a poultry farm to vaccinate birds, return to the clinic to treat a dog with a stomach problem, and write up your notes.