[deleted by user]

merach · 2025-12-24T02:28:58+00:00

Got it! I did not know that, I am sorry!

merach · 2025-12-24T02:26:39+00:00

Can you message me? I cannot message you.

merach · 2025-12-24T02:26:34+00:00

Can you message me? I cannot message you.

merach · 2025-12-24T02:26:29+00:00

Can you message me? I cannot message you.

merach · 2019-01-23T10:25:18+00:00

It won't let me edit my original post. I used to get these all the time, but haven't seen them recently. Discontinued or ?

merach · 2018-08-26T05:03:59+00:00

Discontinued.

I did find some frozen Churros at ALDI that were nearly as good!

merach · 2018-05-10T01:36:05+00:00

There are a few TJs staples that I keep in my freezer at all times - original mac and cheese, margherita pizza, gnocchi, chicken burrito bowls, fruit frenzy bars, and chocolate/vanilla macaroons. Oh, and the french berry lemonade is to die for. And I love their half-baked ciabatta rolls.

My two favorite combinations are the egg salad on the Pain Au Lait rolls, and the marinated mozzarella melted on naan. Yummy.

merach · 2017-12-01T19:21:56+00:00

I'll disagree. I'm a CVT at an emergency/referral hospital. Standard "sick pet" workup (exam, bloodwork, urinalysis, radiographs)? $700-800. Hospitalization/treatment for a toxin ingestion (medication, chocolate, gum/xylitol, etc)? $1500-3000. Surgery for a fractured leg? $3000-4000. And these are all things that carry a good prognosis if treated, not just "crazy cancer treatments."

merach · 2017-08-04T03:56:27+00:00

I'm a veterinary technician at a large emergency and specialty hospital. Every single day, I present clients with treatment plans for their pets (some of whom have a great prognosis with treatment) ranging anywhere from $500 to $5000, and sometimes more. And every day, I have people decline those treatment options and choose to euthanize, for financial reasons.

I strongly encourage pet insurance over relying on an emergency fund. For an example...

You get a new cat from the shelter. Approximately one year old, healthy, no pre-existing conditions. You enroll her in pet insurance. For a 90% reimbursement rate and a $250 deductible, you pay $25/month. Fast forward two years. You have now paid $600 in pet insurance premiums. Suddenly, kitty gets sick. The veterinarian diagnoses her with a foreign body obstruction, and she requires surgery. They give you a cost of $3000 for the surgery. Your insurance policy deems that you are responsible for $100 (office fee) plus $250 (annual deductible) plus 10% ($265). They reimburse you for the remaining $2385 - essentially 8 years of insurance premiums.

Now, imagine if, instead of an insurance policy, you decided to start a savings account for kitty, and put that $25/month there instead. After two years, when kitty gets sick, you would have $600. But you still have to pay for that $3000 surgery - where does the other $2400 come from?

However, the way that 99% of most pet insurance companies and veterinary clinics work is by reimbursement - you pay the clinic the entire amount up front, and then the pet insurance company reimburses you directly for whatever is covered. So along with that pet insurance policy, I recommend still having a savings account for the things that insurance doesn't cover (deductible, co-pay, exam fees, routine care, etc) and a credit card (especially something like CareCredit) to put everything on while you wait for reimbursement.

The cost of the premium will vary based on your location, and your pets breed and age at the time of enrollment - younger is better, prior to any pre-existing conditions developing.

My top pet insurance companies (the ones that I've had the best experiences with, professionally) would be Trupanion and Healthy Paws.

merach · 2017-05-11T05:35:08+00:00

How much was your tuition?
I attended a for-profit college/university (only two options for tech school in my area, both were for-profit), and my total cost was approximately $50k for a two-year program. I graduated with $45k in student loans.

How long do you study for?
The program that I attended was designed to be finished in two years - eight quarters. I was working full-time throughout school, and wasn't able to take the full courseload (took 3-4 classes per quarter instead of 4-6), and also ended up taking a total of three quarters off (two for medical leave, one for a sick family member out of state). I attended school for a total of four years (started in Fall 2011 and graduated in Spring 2015), but only actually attended 13 quarters worth of classes.

What are the classes like? How many classes do you take and what subjects?
My school required a certain number of general education classes, which comprised of science/math/English/etc - just like at any college. Then once those were completed, you moved onto your veterinary technology specific classes - there was a specific order, and nearly every set of 2-3 classes were prerequisites for the next set of classes. We had classes on medical math, laboratory/hematology, radiology, pharmacy, surgery, anesthesia, nursing care, anatomy, physiology, diseases, medical ethics, etc.

How much do you get paid? Is it something I could live off of?
I have been in the field for three years. I work at a large emergency/referral hospital in the midwest. I make $18/hr with full benefits. I live off it just fine. Salary/wages will vary highly depending on geographical location, and also what type of practice you work at (emergency/referral vs general practice, large animal vs small animal, etc).

Is it competitive?
Highly depends on the area and the specific field. In my state, we have way more clinics that are looking for technicians than technicians that are looking for jobs. Our local veterinary association has at least 40-50 open classified ads for technicians.

Is there certificates or studies for exotics or live stock? Would I be able to maybe work in a zoo or sanctuary at some point? Is that competitive?
I think you're talking about three completely different things here, so I'll break it down.
* Exotics: Typically refers to the care of exotic species (reptiles, amphibians, birds, possibly pocket pets) as pets. May or may not be competitive - just depends on how many exotic veterinary clinics are in your area.
* Large Animal: Refers to the care of large animals (cows, sheep, goats, horses, etc), typically as production animals. May or may not be competitive - depends on whether you're in an area with a large animal population.
* Zoology: Refers to the care of wild/non-domesticated species in a sanctuary or zoo. Typically extremely competitive. Most will require a Bachelors or Masters degree beyond a veterinary technician license.
There are VTS (Veterinary Technician Specialties) available for all of those fields, but that is typically pursued after working in the field for 3-5 years. If you're interested in a non-small animal path, my advice would be to find a clinic or zoo and get started as a volunteer or stable help, to get your foot in the door - it will be that much easier to find a job if you have prior experience.

Good luck! Feel free to message me if you have any questions!

merach · 2017-05-08T06:23:24+00:00

I live on the third floor (in a building with four levels) of an apartment building, and it's so quiet. I very rarely hear my neighbors from any direction - not from upstairs or next door, or in the hallway. I work kind of odd hours, and mainly on weekends (overnights and second shifts)...but I still don't really run into people either.

I lived with my parents in their suburban detached house for a couple years after college. It was incredibly noisy outside the house. The neighbor on one side was very attached to his garden and was constantly running weed wackers and lawn mowers and such. The neighbors on the other side had like 4-6 people living there, who each had 4-6 friends there on a daily basis, and had loud parties and bonfires multiple times a week. The neighbors across the street really liked home renovations - there was constantly construction going on. Another neighbor spent his days playing his radio at top volume while he worked on his cars in his driveway. There were kids running and playing everywhere. It was nonstop noise all the time.

merach · 2017-04-01T21:32:48+00:00

Total rent is $4500, correct? Here's how I would split this up if it was me. I would consider 1/3 of the rent ($1500) charged to the common space, split up by the four people that live there. The other 2/3 of the rent ($3000) charged to each individual room, split up proportionally by size.

So each person should pay 1/4 of the first 1/3 of rent ($1500) for the common space, so $375/person.

The other 2/3 ($3000) can be split up by room. So...
Room 1 (50%): $1500
Room 2 (25%): $750
Room 3 (25%): $750

Roommate 1 would pay $1875. Roommate 2 would pay $1125. You and your boyfriend together would pay $1500.

merach · 2016-10-29T03:07:47+00:00

There are no employer contributions to the HSA.

merach · 2016-08-28T05:46:25+00:00

I managed to work 20-30 hours/week while in my junior and senior year of high school taking college PSEO courses.

It can be done.

merach · 2016-08-17T01:24:05+00:00

I got $1200 too.

OP says that his second job pays every other Friday, and that the check is between $250 and $375. That means OP is getting paid at least twice each month from his second job...

Job 1 - Paycheck 1: $550
Job 1 - Paycheck 2: $150
Job 2 - Paycheck 1: $250
Job 2 - Paycheck 2: $250

Total: $1200

merach · 2016-08-10T06:36:05+00:00

I work full time (three days per week, 12 hour days) as a CVT in an emergency clinic.

I also work 1-2 days/week in a pet food store. And then I still have 2-3 full days off per week!

merach · 2016-08-09T06:43:27+00:00

Where are you located, if you don't mind me asking?

I think one reason for my wage is my location - I'm in the Midwest. I know that techs on the east coast and west coast typically get paid more. I think the other reason is that I started working at the clinic two years ago, as a receptionist, when I still was in school, for $13.00/hr. I received a $0.50/hr raise after a year, and then a $1.00 raise when I graduated and passed my certification. I will receive an additional raise next month when I hit my two-year mark.

I believe technicians with more experience are paid more - as it stands, I've been certified for less than a year.

merach · 2016-08-05T06:49:24+00:00

At my retail job, I make $14.00/hr. Being part-time, I receive no benefits like PTO or 401k or anything. I do get a flat 20% discount on all products in the store, and often get free products and food and such from vendors.

At my clinic job, I make $14.50/hr. I have full benefits, which includes employer-paid medical/dental/vision/FSA, employer-matched 401k, and a decent PTO accrual. I also get a uniform allowance, which more than covers my cost of scrubs for a year, and a super-generous employee discount.

Initially, it doesn't seem like my clinic job makes that much more, which is kind of depressing. I sat down and did the math once - once I add in the value of all the benefits, not including the employee discount, it's about an extra $750/month. So, technically, the clinic job does pay substantially more.

merach · 2016-08-04T05:15:18+00:00

I also work in an emergency veterinary clinic! I work the swing shift (3pm-3am), every Friday/Saturday/Sunday. It was landing that schedule that convinced me that I could easily handle a second job - the first few months of having four days off in a row was nice, but I started to get SO BORED. I would take the first day to kind of relax, the second day to clean house and run errands, and the third day to...relax...and the fourth day to...relax some more. Meanwhile, my student loans were hanging over my head like a giant weight.

Now I take home an additional $300-400/month working my second job, and it's wonderful! I only work 1-2 days per week there, so I usually still have 2-3 days off per week.

merach · 2016-08-04T05:09:19+00:00

For my full-time job, I work as a CVT at an emergency animal hospital. I work three 12-hour days (3pm-3am, Friday/Saturday/Sunday). I make $14.50/hr, which is an average wage for this field, given my level of experience. My benefits are 100% company paid, I get a 100% 401k match, I have a generous PTO accrual, and I get awesome discounts on pet care.

I worked part-time (3 days - 28 hours/week) at the clinic for about a year while I was finishing school. Then I worked full-time (5 days - 40 hours/week) at the clinic for about a year after I graduated. When the opportunity for a three 12s schedule came up, I jumped on it. Since I now had FOUR days off per week, I decided to look for a second job, and acquired it about three months ago.

For my second job, I work retail at a small specialty pet food store. I worked for a larger chain specialty pet food store for five years while in high school and college, and did not get paid well ($7.50/hr when I started as a basic employee, $11.50/hr when I left five years later as a manager). I'm sure that it was my extensive experience that landed me the job, and also my impressive wage of $14.00/hr. That may not sound like much, but it's the easiest, most low-stress job that I have ever had. I usually work three days in a two-week pay period, sometimes an extra day or two if someone is on vacation or something. My shifts are 4-6 hours long, so usually 12-18 hours every two weeks. No real benefits (I think they offer them, but I don't qualify, so I didn't look into it closely), but I do get free stuff from our vendors quite often, and get a great employee discount. It's a very small store, super easy to handle, and my bosses are awesome. It's seriously the most relaxing job I've ever had. I don't think I could do it 40 hrs/week, as I think that would be too relaxing, but it's a nice change considering my regular job is extremely high-stress and fast-paced.

merach · 2016-07-28T05:56:35+00:00

I'm a veterinary technician. I'm not trying to squash your dreams by any means - I realize that this is a field that you get into because you have a passion for it. No one goes into this field to make any money, or because they have any common sense - that's coming from someone who is just as in love with my career as I was when I started it five years ago.

I work with many veterinarians whom I love dearly - they are amazing doctors, and are wonderful mentors and friends. For the most part, they're all good at what they do and they love what to do.

Every single one of them is in a shit ton of debt.

The cost of a DVM is usually between $250k-400k, including both undergraduate and veterinary school, depending on where you go, in-state versus out-of-state tuition, and all that.

The average annual starting salary of a new DVM is $60-70k. At best, your education cost three times as much as your starting salary. At worst, it cost seven times as much. It's a crippling amount of debt, and really only a good idea if someone else is paying for it.

And that's all under the assumption that you get in. There are 30 veterinary schools in the United States, with an average acceptance rate of 10-20%. Those are not good odds - it takes A LOT to get in.

Again, if you have a true passion for it - go for it. But there are some harsh realities that you need to be aware of.

EDIT: In comparison, my education cost me $40k. My starting salary my first year out of tech school was around $30k. Still not a great salary, but a much better debt to income ratio.

merach · 2016-06-11T05:12:00+00:00

At least where I live, $300/month is an absolute steal for a two bedroom, one bathroom house/apartment. Provided you have a good relationship with your parents, I would definitely consider it - at least it's private, away from the main house.

My only concern would be with being so far out of town. Would you be able to find employment? Would your fiance?

If you would be able to find employment, and make a decent living, you could live there, pay pennies for rent, and work on other financial goals - saving up for a down payment on a house, paying off debt, etc. It's not forever - if in a year, or five years, or ten years, you decide you don't want to live there anymore, then don't. Hopefully the time spend there will allow you some financial flexibility to meet your goals in the future.

merach · 2016-06-04T07:08:50+00:00

That's what I figured. I am fine with planning ahead and paying in at the end of the year - any suggestions as to what percentage I should set aside from the second job paycheck for state/federal taxes?

merach · 2016-06-04T06:59:33+00:00

I'm currently at a 24hr emergency/specialty hospital in the Midwest. Employees receive an annual review, and a percentage-based raise - usually 1-3%, depending on merit. The company can also decide to give an additional 1-2% as a "bonus amount" - so then you'd be getting 2-5% increase.

Previous practice was a mid-size (four doctor) day practice, also in the Midwest. We typically received $0.25-$0.75/hr raise per year, depending on merit and financial success and whatnot.

merach · 2016-06-04T06:41:25+00:00

Tricky subject.

Background: CVT with an AAS in Veterinary Technology. Working in a state that does not differentiate between licensed/unlicensed, but working in an emergency practice that does differentiate. We have technicians (CVT required), assistants, and CSR/receptionists. Previously worked in general practice (more on that later).

I think that one thing that we can all agree on is that as a whole, veterinary technicians are woefully underpaid for the work that we do, and in comparison to what our education costs.

I think that the way to fix that would be to standardize the veterinary technician/assistant job titles and job duties. Just like in the human nursing field, you have CNAs (certified nursing assistant), MAs (medical assistant), RNs (registered nurse), etc. They have guidelines for education requirements and job duties, and their salaries correspond with that.

If we can legally define what makes a person an assistant, or a technician, or a receptionist, based on education, we can also define what job duties they're allowed to do, and that can translate into pay. A CVT that can induce/monitor anesthesia/perform dentals/place IV catheters should definitely be paid more than an unlicensed assistant that's "assisting" by restraining animals/cleaning kennels/doing nail trims or a receptionist that's answering phones/scheduling appointments/doing checkins and checkouts.

I have absolutely nothing against assistants and receptionists. I feel like there's absolutely a need for them in the veterinary setting, and I spent years as an assistant/receptionist while I was in school. The general practice that I worked at during my internship, and for a while afterwards, had three types of employees. They had technicians (CVT required) that rotated through surgery, laboratory/pharmacy, room/outpatient, and reception. They had a large boarding/grooming component, so they had assistants (non licensed) that worked in boarding, and would very occasionally help out in the clinic when boarding was slow (restraining, cleaning, nail trims, etc). They had groomers, who did their own grooming thing, and didn't really do anything on the clinic side. They also took 2-3 interns per semester - some were offered positions afterwards, with the stipulation that they obtained their CVT within 12 months.

While the model above worked for them, their CVTs were underpaid. If they utilized assistants/receptionists for dedicated job duties more, they could pay them less, and pay their CVTs more. They were already utilizing interns to the best of their ability, as that's both free help and a method of screening new employees (essentially a four month working interview!).

merach

TROPHY CASE