This is an opportunity for either a new graduate or someone wanting to gain more equine skills to become a very competent and confident mixed practitioner with a strong emphasis on horses.
The internship is 75% equine and 25% mixed (small animals/ruminants), which offers a unique opportunity for new graduate veterinarians to learn and develop their skills.
The internship program was started in December 2019 to give graduate veterinarians opportunities to expand on their skills in both Equine and Small Animal practice.
WestVETS Animal Hospital is a unique veterinary practice located in the suburbs of Brisbane and in the Lockyer Valley, with two locations: Anstead and Marburg.
Anstead is within 30 minutes of the CBD of Brisbane, surrounded by multiple 5–10-acre properties and a plethora of sport horse clients, as well as being close to Eagle Farm and Doomben racecourses.
Marburg is located on the Warrego Highway in the Lockyer Valley, approximately 30 minutes from Anstead.
The Equine Hospital at Anstead functions as a referral hospital, receiving cases from as far south as the Northern Rivers area to as far north as Roma.
The caseload includes a variety of cases such as colics (both surgical and medical), ophthalmology (ulcers, conjunctival grafts, stromal abscesses), neonates (septic and dummy foals), orthopedic (arthroscopy, fracture repair, arthrodesis), soft tissue surgery (laparoscopy, sinus and upper airway), and medical cases (liver disease, weight loss, diarrhea, metabolic).
The clinicians also see a high number of lameness cases and prepurchase exams, along with routine calls such as dentals (1000 per year) and regular ambulatory work.
The Equine Reproduction Centre at Marburg allows interns to gain exposure to assisted reproduction, including artificial insemination and stallion collection.
Both the Marburg and Anstead practices have small animal hospitals.
The Anstead Small Animal Hospital is a small clinic (1.5 doctors), but due to the suburban demographic, it has a very good caseload with high expectations.
There is access to referral practices in the city, and the small animal clinicians are highly experienced, performing soft tissue and orthopedic (TPLO and fracture repair) surgeries.
Marburg is a rapidly expanding practice with a 3-doctor team, experiencing growth as the population of the Lockyer Valley increases.
Both hospitals offer interns exposure to typical small animal cases with support from multiple veterinarians.
The intern's role is primarily based in the Equine Hospital, responsible for patient care, assisting senior clinicians, and managing anesthesia.
Skills such as anesthetic planning, catheter placement, obtaining radiographs, performing nerve blocks, working up colic cases, and assessing wounds will become second nature by the end of the internship.
Interns will also accompany veterinarians on ambulatory calls to assist with prepurchase or lameness exams and routine calls such as dentals or castrations.
As they progress, interns will begin to undertake solo calls as deemed appropriate and will have exposure to first opinion small animal consults such as vaccinations, snake bites, desexing, and general medicine cases, always with ample backup from senior clinicians.
The internship is structured to foster learning and collaboration.
Interns are integral to the team, with after-hours and weekend commitments on a rotating on-call schedule (1/3) for nights, supported by after-hours nurses.
Interns have ample time to pursue activities outside of the internship, and Brisbane is a fantastic city to live in.
The internship schedule is flexible, allowing for tailored schedules to accommodate personal activities.
Remuneration and Work Conditions: Salary is in line with the Veterinary Services Award. Weekend duties are 1 in 2, with a long weekend included once a month. The internship includes 1 week of conference/study leave and 4 weeks of holiday leave. Subsidized housing near the clinic. Flexible starting date (June, July, August). Eligibility: Applicants must be eligible for registration with the Veterinary Surgeons Board of Queensland, Australia.
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