Veterinary Care Assistant Apprenticeship
PAWS & CO GROUP LTD
Wakefield (WF3 1DR)
Closes in 24 days (Friday 30 October 2026 at 11:59pm)
Posted on 5 October 2026
Contents
Summary
A Veterinary Care Assistant (VCA) supports veterinary surgeons, veterinary nurses, and the wider clinical team in providing safe, compassionate care to animals. The role involves assisting with the day-to-day care of patients, maintaining a clean and hygienic clinical environment, and helping the practice operate efficiently.
- Wage
-
£16,640 to £26,436.80, depending on your age
National Minimum Wage
Minimum wage rates (opens in new tab)
Pay amount is dependent on age and experience.
- Training course
- Animal care and welfare assistant (level 2)
- Hours
-
Varying shift patterns throughout the week.
40 hours a week
- Start date
-
Tuesday 17 November 2026
- Duration
-
1 year 2 months
- Positions available
-
1
Work
Most of your apprenticeship is spent working. You’ll learn on the job by getting hands-on experience.
What you'll do at work
- Assist vets and vet nurses with examination, procedures and safe handling and restraint of patients
- Provide general care and support to animals whilst they are in the practice, including feeding, exercising, cleaning and monitoring
- Prepare consult rooms/treatment areas/kennels
- Clean and disinfect clinical areas/equipment/kennels
- Some reception duties - answering the phone/booking appointments/taking payments
- Monitor animals for changes in behaviour, appetite, comfort, or general condition and report concerns promptly to the veterinary team
- Assist with the preparation and movement of patients before and after procedures
- Handle animals calmly and safely, prioritising their welfare and reducing stress wherever possible
- Maintain appropriate records and assist with administrative and reception duties when required
- Stock and organise clinical supplies and report when items need to be replenished
- Follow health and safety, infection-control, animal-welfare, and practice policies at all times
- Communicate professionally and compassionately with clients regarding the care of their animals, referring clinical questions to the appropriate veterinary professional
- Work effectively as part of a multidisciplinary veterinary team
Where you'll work
Topcliffe Close
Tingley
Wakefield
WF3 1DR
Training
Apprenticeships include time away from working for specialist training. You’ll study to gain professional knowledge and skills.
Training provider
THE COLLEGE OF ANIMAL WELFARE LIMITED
Training course
Animal care and welfare assistant (level 2)
Understanding apprenticeship levels (opens in new tab)
What you'll learn
Course contents
- comply with UK and EU Animal related legislation
- work effectively in a safe and healthy working environment following current / relevant health and safety legislation and work place policies
- identify and report potential hazards and breaches of security within animal accommodation/enclosures
- clean and maintain animal accommodation/enclosures/environment and equipment and provide appropriate resources including species specific enrichment (e.g. hiding, perches and areas to dig)
- maintain hygiene, bio security procedures and infection controls when working with animals including quarantine and isolation
- dispose of waste in a safe and appropriate manner in line with legislative and workplace requirements
- store, use and administer medication in line with legislative and veterinary instructions as appropriate
- monitor, record and report the health and welfare of animals in line with animal welfare legislation and workplace policies
- observe and be aware of the behaviour of animals and take appropriate actions
- approach/handle/restrain/move/recapture animals as part of routine husbandry appropriate for the species and individual
- exercise/socialise animals and provide appropriate enrichment relevant to their specific needs
- provide appropriate care, for example coat, skin, scales, plumage and feet to ensure good health and appearance
- provide food and water to animals and monitor the intake
- store and care for foodstuffs
- identify and describe animals using appropriate methods to the species involved (e.g. scanning for microchips)
- maintain, update and reference correct records in accordance with current legislation
- deliver customer experience (internal and external), where applicable, in line with workplace policies and procedures
- respond to animal first aid, urgent, ongoing and preventive care requirements as appropriate
- Beyond routine animal husbandry as listed in the core i.e. for animals with specific needs, unknown or unpredictable behaviour: i.e. animals recovering from routine operations such as neutering, or who may be obese, pregnant or fearful. Behaviour such as barking or pulling on the lead or who react unpredictably when meeting other animals.
- follow a prepared interaction/handling plan to prepare the animal and resources required i.e. muzzle, collar leads, harnesses, head collars, crush cage, grasper, snake hook, hoods
- undertake interaction/handling activities and use methods such as desensitisation and socialisation in accordance with the interaction/handling plan
- handle the animal throughout the interaction/handling to promote the animal’s health, normal behaviour and physical and emotional welfare
- monitor, report and record the response and welfare of the animal throughout interaction/handling activities
- apply techniques which take into account the animal’s welfare and emotional wellbeing, such as positive reinforcement to interact/handle the animal
- contribute to the assessment of an animal’s readiness for rehoming
- provide advice to customers/clients on the suitability of animals according to their circumstances and experience in line with the workplace policies and procedures
- support customers/clients during the rehoming/intake process and provide direction to further sources of information and guidance following rehoming of an animal
- contribute to the assessment of the animal during the intake process
- contribute to the matching process
- prepare means of transport appropriate for animals, ensuring serviceability and cleanliness
- prepare animals for movement and/or transportation taking into consideration their welfare potentially dealing with sick or injured animals
- use of appropriate equipment and methods to move and transport animals ensuring their safety and security
- monitor the physical and emotional health and welfare of animals during and after movement and transportation
- identify route and contingency plans
- identify if an animal required veterinary care and take appropriate action
- present a safe, friendly and welcoming reception for internal and external customers/clients/animals as appropriate
- provide information, advice, support and guidance on a range of topics such as animal care and welfare to customers/clients and seek advice when necessary
- use appropriate methods of technology for internal and external communication such as telephone, walkie talkies, email and scanning documents
- prepare, receive and store deliveries of goods including animal related products such as food stuffs and sundry items
- prepare and display stock for sale, including stock rotation
- take payment for goods, services and charitable donations
- process customer and animal registrations and bookings
- keep records for individual animals and people in line with the organisation’s procedures
- prepare animals and environment for mating
- monitor animals during parturition, recognising signs of difficulty
- carry out general care of animals through gestation
- prepare and manage pregnant animals pre and post parturition
- provide appropriate care and monitoring of neonates
- carry out procedures for caring for the young (once weaned) and introducing them to new environments
- socialise young animals appropriately
- fit and maintain appropriate equipment, ensuring the dog can operate safely
- conduct refresher/maintenance training with the support of a helper and dog trainer at an appropriate frequency to maintain the minimum standard of operational performance.
- interpret the dog’s behaviour and indications and react accordingly to the operational situation
- ensure that the dog team (handler and dog) maintains the minimum standard of operational performance as determined by national standards or the employers’ policies and procedures
- operate the dog team within the legal and ethical framework associated with their employment
- transport working dogs
- respond to collection requests
- identify wild animals that are suitable for rehabilitation and release
- plan and undertake rehabilitation for release into the wild
- capture and handle healthy and casualty wild animals
- move and transport wild animals appropriately
- release and monitor wild animals as appropriate
- carry out the hand rearing of wildlife species
- identify a range of different species (wildlife) or breeds (domestic) in order to understand the behavioural and ecological needs of the animal as well as be aware of the potential risks it may pose
- support, as directed, a veterinary surgeon / veterinary nurse in a clinical environment with: dealing with potential and actual emergency situations pre and post-operative care patient monitoring for example anaesthetic monitoring in-patient care diagnostic care/tests/X-rays – positioning and exposing the dispensing and administration of medication end of life care for pets and providing support for the owner
Training schedule
One college day of learning at The College of Animal Welfare Leeds centre. The rest of the working week will take place working at Paws & Co Group.
Requirements
Desirable qualifications
Relevant qualifications in:
- Animal Care (grade Pass)
- Veterinary Care (grade Pass)
Share if you have other relevant qualifications and industry experience. The apprenticeship can be adjusted to reflect what you already know.
Skills
- Communication skills
- Attention to detail
- Organisation skills
- Team working
- Genuine interest in field
- Compassionate
- Patient
- Confident handling animals
- Reliable
- Able to work in busy workplace
- Willing to follow procedures
- Physically capable
- Composure in situations
- Willing to learn
- Willing to develop skills
- Professional
- Commitment to animal welfare
About this employer
First opinion Veterinary Centre.
After this apprenticeship
Your earnings can increase over time with an apprenticeship. Find out about potential future pay (opens in new tab).
You will become qualified as a veterinary care assistant and will gain employment in this sector.
Ask a question
The contact for this apprenticeship is:
THE COLLEGE OF ANIMAL WELFARE LIMITED
Justin Groves
jgroves@caw.ac.uk
01480 422060
The reference code for this apprenticeship is VAC2000055643.
Apply now
Closes in 24 days (Friday 30 October 2026 at 11:59pm)