The advice I give to all budding veterinarians

Veterinarians carry vaccines in Nyeri during a livestock vaccination exercise in 2016. PHOTO | FILE

What you need to know:

  • Many professionals have become entrepreneurs where they have created businesses and they employ other people.
  • University education is truly universal, much as it may be based on particular disciplines. It gives the graduate the options to diversify their knowledge into myriads of disciplines seemingly unrelated to their original training.
  • The first degree should equip the graduate with the ability to inquire and identify knowledge, skills and expertise that can be transferred into other disciplines so that when one area becomes saturated, the graduate can easily venture into another more virgin or abandoned but fertile field

After the hard work of serving animals and their owners, I often get invited to participate in community gatherings to celebrate achievements.

Such events are ideal places to offer informal talk on animal health, production and related issues. I have noticed that people getting information at such venues tend to fully commit it to memory, especially if delivered in a succinct and entertaining style.

However, many professionals find it unsettling to answer peoples’ concerns during social events. In fact, a lot of people consider professionals snobbish and egocentric noting they do not know how to converse with those outside their professions.

The observation may be traced back to the training of professionals. Most are trained to stick to their work, do their work without shouting about it and wait for the consumers to judge from the quality and outcomes of the work.

Professionals becoming entrepreneurs

Things have long changed, though. Many professionals have become entrepreneurs where they have created businesses and they employ other people.

Last week, I attended a graduation party of a neighbour’s child and things were not any different.

Since I graduated 30 years ago and I have worked in various organisations in different capacities, people correctly believe I have experience with the various applications of university education.

I can confirm to all the readers that belief is true. I have advised new graduates to venture into previously uncharted courses and they have excelled while their counterparts are still trying the well-trodden path in their line of study.

University education is truly universal, much as it may be based on particular disciplines. It gives the graduate the options to diversify their knowledge into myriads of disciplines seemingly unrelated to their original training.

The first degree should equip the graduate with the ability to inquire and identify knowledge, skills and expertise that can be transferred into other disciplines so that when one area becomes saturated, the graduate can easily venture into another more virgin or abandoned but fertile field. These are called transferable skills.

Career diversification

For instance, a veterinary medicine graduate can easily diversify into scientific writing or programme management because sound animal health and production practice is dependent on good scientific communication and execution of work as projects and programmes.

Think of vaccination, feeding, breeding and livestock marketing programmes. There are also production programmes that ensure the farmer always has animals or produce to sell.

Among the speakers at the graduation party were two medical doctors. Interestingly, one of the doctors held the position of county executive for land.

As the doctor introduced himself, I heard someone from an adjacent table comment, “What does medicine have to do with land?” I can assure that person and any other with doubts that any graduate with the proper experience, knowledge and desire to do all that appertains to the degree, can flawlessly run any ministry. A ministerial position requires a servant who is a manager, administrator, leader, politician and visionary all wrapped up into one and not a technical matter specialist.

The second doctor juxtaposed medical and veterinary practice as he concluded his speech. The master of ceremony asked him to briefly advise the audience the best way to avoid visiting his clinic for bone and joint problems.

The orthopaedic surgeon responded, “Exercise and eat a balanced diet. Avoid meat, especially roast, and alcohol.” The laughter from the audience was deafening with the appetising smell of roast meat saturating the air.

Eat meat in moderation

Being the next in line, the audience gazed at me with anxiety when I was introduced as a veterinary doctor. The master of ceremony wondered loudly if I would still be in business if all consumers were to take the advice of the orthopaedic surgeon. “There would be no farmers to produce meat,” he concluded.

I greeted the orthopaedic doctor and told him audibly I would continue from where he had left. I explained to the audience the doctor had just summarised the advice and more details would be available if one visited his office.

He, however, meant we must always eat meat in moderation according to the needs of our bodies rather than our appetite for the food.

We must also exercise to build muscle with the meat we eat and burn the excess fat that we gain from the meat. I, therefore, concluded my job was safe.

Have you ever wondered why there are no obese lions in the world and their diet is only readily available meat? It is because they only eat according to their bodies’ needs and they do lots of exercise.

Finally, I advised the graduate, who had been awarded the Bachelor of Medicine and Surgery by the University of Nairobi.

I told her just like the veterinary one and others, the degree has the potential to be diversified into many other disciplines but its advancement takes between seven and 10 years to be fully established.

However, the degree has a high staying power in the job market, including self-employment. All one needs is self-sacrifice, determination to be a reputable doctor and continuous acquisition of appropriate knowledge, skills and expertise.
Incidentally, this is the same general requirement for all science-based professional degrees.