A Challenging Career: Laboratory Animal Medicine

1. A Challenging Career: Laboratory Animal Medicine “Rodents, and Monkeys, and Hares, Oh My!” Name of LA vet presenting

2. Clinical Veterinary Medicine • Clinicians (small, large, mixed) may feel a call to a new type of career challenge. • Lab Animal field not understood well because vet curricula doesn’t present much on this career option. • Never too late – may enter 20+yrs • Join me on a walk through this exciting career option!

3. Laboratory Animal Medicine • High demand • Diverse jobs • Good pay • Flexible hours • Specialty Boards (not required/encouraged) • American College of Laboratory Animal Medicine (ACLAM) • American Association for Laboratory Animal Practitioners (ASLAP)

4. *at time of application

5. Training Route • Commonly – enter career through a postdoctoral “residency” training program. • Clinical focus: learn LAM & administration of running an animal research program. • Research focus (NIH): may pursue an MS or PhD • Combination program: learn lab animal medicine, administration and research.

6. Finding a Training Program • Visit the ASLAP web site http://www.aslap.org/OnePage.php • Visit the ACLAM web site http://www.aclam.org/education/training/location.html • Talk to a lab animal vet • Do an externship…more info later.

7. Salary for LAM Trainees • Postdoctoral training stipends • 08 NIH scale starts at $39,264 – for no experience but increase ~2-3K for each prior year of health-related training experience. • Non-NIH residency stipends may be higher. • Insurance varies with program. • Travel money varies for C.E. meetings. • May receive funds for graduate degree. • Veterinary school loan payments may be deferred.

8. Where are these training* programs? * ACLAM approved programs; Size of program varies from 1-2 trainees up to 10-12 trainees!

9. Externships • Typically 2-12 weeks • Usually summer programs but can be throughout the year. • Flexible experience depending on interest. • Room and board may be covered (depends on program). • May receive a small stipend for living expenses.

10. Externships • Where? • academia – • LAM training programs • Academic medical centers – medical schools, graduate schools • biotechnology & pharmaceutical companies • NIH, USDA • National Primate Research Centers (8) • Visit the ACLAM web site http://www.aclam.org/print/externships_list_2007-02.pdf

11. Experience Route • Part-time LAM job – good way to start. • Many options at small colleges, contract labs • Full-time lab animal job – ready to plunge. • Be ready to spend a lot of time reading & learning to become a proficient LAM vet. • CAUTION: Always best to have an experienced LAM mentor to learn from!

12. Experience Route (cont.) • Must get involved in C.E. for best learning: • American Assoc. for Lab Anim. Sci. (AALAS) • American Coll. Of Lab Anim Med (ACLAM) • American Soc of Lab Animal Practitioners (ASLAP) • Local branch AALAS meetings • Public Responsibility in Med & Research (PRIM&R) • IACUC 101 training • American Veterinary Medical Assoc. (LAM session) • Others – focus on surgery or research interests

13. 2011 salary range: for all lab animal vets: $68K – $500K 2011 Salary Range for ACLAM Diplomates, all employers 0-5 yrs: $81 – 258K 5-10 yrs: $53-$500K 2011 Salary Range for non-ACLAM vets, all employers 0-5 yrs: $68-122K 5-10 yrs: $66-203K

14. Lab Animal Work • Extremely varied depending on program • Large University • Large diversity of species – mice to monkeys • Research areas span broad base • Many LAM vets and techs to work with/learn from. • Small College • May be rodent only or few species • May be only one area of research – neuroscience • May work alone as consulting vet

15. Lab Animal Work • Extremely varied depending on program • Large Pharmaceutical Company • Large diversity of species • Research areas focused on drug/device discovery • Many LAM vets and techs to work with/learn from. • Small Contract Laboratory • May be rodent only or few species • Research depends on client base – toxicology, etc • May work alone or with one other vet

16. Department Structures • Dept of LAM or Bioresources • Lab animal veterinarians, technicians, animal care staff. • Provide care for animals and manage animal program: housing, feeding, costs, equipment. • May assist with animal study technical support. • Department of Comparative Medicine • Similar but may have stronger focus on providing veterinarians & technicians to participate in collaborative research or lead research projects.

17. LAM/Bioresources • Director – usually an ACLAM Diplomate • Operations/Animal Care Staff – oversee animal care program – daily observations, husbandry, environmental monitoring. • Veterinary Staff – provide health care, preventative medicine program, technical and surgical support. • Run a high quality lab animal program in support of good science/investigator research needs.

18. Comparative Medicine • “One world, one health, one medicine.” • A field of study concentrating on similarities and differences between veterinary medicine and human medicine. • Study of biology and diseases of animals to improve human and animal health. • Departments often support clinical care, daily husbandry operations and research collaboration.

19. Diverse career opportunities • Clinical Veterinary Medicine • Administration • Research • Public Health – MPH • Teaching and Training • Pathology • Surgery • Regulatory oversight (IACUC) • Public education to thwart animal activism

20. Clinical Veterinary Medicine • Provides health care for variety of species. • Expertise in model development & review of research protocols for animal welfare. • Provides technical support for research – x-rays, ultrasound, biopsy sampling. • No 2 days are alike! Attending veterinarian = USDA term for vet with authority for animal care and use program.

21. Administration • Director, Associate Director, Surgical Director, Vice President for Research… • Manages budget and staffing issues. • May write grants for enhancing the program or equipment purchases. • Liaison to senior management to ensure support for optimal animal program. • Rare/no clinical work, lots of management!

22. Research • Veterinarians may head research projects - veterinary training enhances research! • Independent or Collaborative research • Tremendous diversity of research • Infectious disease, physiology, biology, reproduction, surgery, cancer biology, pharmaceutics, neuroscience, biomedical instrumentation, toxicology,…

23. Teaching & Training • LAM vets needed to teach in veterinary schools, veterinary technician schools, graduate programs. • Veterinarians can serve as trainers for other veterinary residents, graduate students, research staff, animal care staff. • A well-developed training program is an essential part of a good lab animal program.

24. Pathology • Lab animal vets may become dual boarded in pathology which enables them to work in a toxicology group to diagnose toxic effects from drugs. • Pathologists that understand lab animal diseases and species/strain differences, will add strength to a lab animal program.

25. Surgery & Postop Care • Veterinarians with a love of surgery, anesthesia, analgesia can have a challenging career in lab animal programs to develop surgical programs and teach research staff (esp. rodent surgery!) • MDs doing surgery on animals can be a problem (don’t recognize species differences) – Vets doing surgery on people is illegal! • Surgical vets add excellence, depth & diversity to a lab animal program.

26. Regulatory Oversight • Institutional Animal Care and Use Committee (IACUC) is mandated by USDA regulations & PHS. • Must include a veterinarian w/ LAM exp. • Responsible for reviewing and approving all animal use protocols. • Review animal program/facilities ea. 6 months. • Responsible for investigating animal concerns. • Veterinary leadership enhances animal welfare.

27. EnvironmentalEnrichment • Animals are also provided enrichment in the form of exercise, toys, music, group housing, videos and other food treats.

28. Alternatives (3Rs) • 3Rs = Reduce, Refine, Replace • Reduction of animal numbers • Better statistics, less redundancy. • Refinement of animal models • Less invasive, less pain/distress. • Replacement of animal models • Cell culture, computer modeling, etc.

29. What Species Will I Work With? • Depends on type of program • ~95% of research animals are rats/mice. • Rodents, genetically-engineered. • ~5% other species • Domestic species (dogs, ferrets, pigs). • Non-human primates (NHPs - OW vs. NW). • Exotics – woodchucks, bats, fish, amphibians, reptiles, etc. • May work at large NHP facility – one of eight National Primate Research Centers.

30. LAM versus Private Practice • Clientele - pet owner vs. scientist – different issues. • Individual care vs. herd health – depends on study, some rare & valuable strains/species. • Diagnostics – pursue if you have time, money, tools – write up interesting cases. • Hours / Schedule – usually less weekend work! • Tools – ultrasounds, MRIs, endoscopy, varies widely. • No two days are alike!

31. Work Hard but Have Fun!

32. Must Work Well with Human primates too!

33. How’s the job market? • Steady; continuing demand for LAM vets • Future looks bright • Opportunities are varied & exciting; need for diverse skills and experience!

34. Where are the jobs? • Anywhere biomedical research is performed • Academia – both large and small programs • Pharmaceutical Companies • Biotech Companies • Hospitals • Government-Military-NIH • Public health • Throughout the US / world

35. Salaries: “Show me the Money!” • Starting $43-$93K* (varies w/ program, experience, boards) • Avg. starting salary for academia and/or industry jobs in 2005 w/ 0-5 yrs exp.= • 71K (non boarded), • 90K (boarded) • Residency Salaries • Start ~ $37K – no experience • Consulting to supplement income. * Info based on 2005 ACLAM/ASLAP Salary Survey

36. Comparative Medicine and Public Outreach • A lot of misinformation is spread about animal research. • Public surveys reveal that majority of Americans support the need for animal research – but support is declining. • Public does not realize the many benefits of animal research to both people and animals. • Public does not always know that animals are treated humanely and with great respect.

37. Raise your hand if…. • You have ever been vaccinated • You have ever taken a medication • You have ever had surgery/hospital stay • You have ever had thyroid disease • You have ever donated/received blood • You know someone who has diabetes • You know someone with cancer • You know someone with other diseases… Direct Benefits from Animal Research

38. Medical Advances • Examples of medical advances from animal research: • Vaccines against polio, measles, and smallpox; • Open-heart surgery, coronary bypass, valves • Diabetes therapies “Iron lung used for polio victims, 1956”

39. Animals Benefit Too!!! Maggie: Breast cancer survivor Pookie: Living with diabetes Buddy: After his heart surgery Lucy: After her kidney transplant

40. Highlights of this career… • Exciting/diverse career - improving both animal & human lives. • Steady demand, good positions available for range of experience & skills. • Lucrative– good pay/benefits. • Neat tools – always new challenges. • Great environment – flexible hours. • Great colleagues… COME JOIN US!

41. Questions?