Kelly Eyre serves as the clinical lead for the Royal Canin Feline Healthy Ageing Clinic at the University of Liverpool. She shares her career journey, which began as an apprentice and has progressed to earning a Masters of Research in Anthrozoology and becoming the Vice Chair of the Congress committee for BSAVA.
Please summarise your career journey:
I always wanted to work with animals, and I remember my teddy bears would always be covered in bandages or plasters! I didn’t feel like I was academic enough to become a vet, or go to university, so I did a diploma in animal management, and began working in the animal industry. I was lucky enough to have the opportunity to take the apprenticeship route of the veterinary nurse qualification, and I went on to qualify as a Registered Veterinary Nurse in 2015. From there, I began to delve deeper into feline medicine and welfare. I went on to complete the ISFM Diploma in Feline Nursing, the ISFM Advanced Certificate in Feline Behaviour, and just this year, in my mid-thirties, without an undergraduate degree, I achieved a Masters of Research in Anthrozoology.
Since 2017 I have been the Clinical Lead for the Royal Canin Feline Healthy Ageing Clinic at the University of Liverpool, which is a project aiming to extend the quality of life in ageing cats through research and education. Every six months, we obtain owner-observed information, and carry out a full ageing health check, to include blood tests, gait analysis, muscle ultrasound and more. In addition to the day to day running of the clinic, I provide education to vets, nurses and the general public on the topics of feline behavior, feline welfare, and supporting the ageing cat.
I also volunteer for the BSAVA, where I am the Vice Chair of the Congress Committee, which works together to create and manage the content for BSAVA Congress. I also sit on the Cats Protection Connect Board, and assist the Cats Protection Cat Watch projects based in Liverpool. I also provide CPD to vets and nurses, and speak at conferences on all aspects of feline ageing.
Describe your typical day from waking to sleeping:
I usually get woken up by one of my cats, then it’s either a coffee on the sofa before moving to my desk, or a coffee on the go if it’s a clinic day for me. If it’s an office day, then I spend my time managing the clients enrolled at the Feline Healthy Ageing Clinic, working through data, general admin tasks, and writing and preparing lectures, webinars and articles. A day at the clinic involves seeing the cats enrolled at the Feline Healthy Ageing Clinic with our vet. They receive a full ageing health check and I then run the blood tests, test urine and put any spare blood in the correct tubes for the biobank in the -80 degrees freezers. After my working day, I’m either spending time on the water in my canoe, working on the allotment or catching up with my partner after a busy day.
How would you describe yourself in a sentence?
I would describe myself as an ambitious perfectionist, with a sarcastic sense of humour and a positive attitude!
How would others describe you in a sentence?
According to my close friends, I am a ‘focused and determined individual, for whom nothing is impossible to achieve. Kindness, caring, honesty, integrity and love are the main traits that she presents to those who surround her’.
I’ll take that!
What has been your top success and what have you learned from this?
I feel my biggest, and most recent success, is to achieve the role as Vice Chair of the BSAVA Congress Committee, moving to Chair in three years’ time. To be an RVN leading such an important committee is a huge milestone for the BSAVA, and for me. I’m really looking forward to bringing more challenging content for nurses to congress, and inspiring the current and future veterinary nurses to achieve great things. The biggest thing I’ve learnt from this is that when you want to make a change and a difference, the little things eventually lead to the big things, and patience is key!
What has been your biggest challenge, setback or failure and how have you overcome it? How did you grow or change as a result?
Tackling a Masters in my mid-thirties, for sure! I didn’t do an undergraduate degree, so achieving a place on the MRes in Anthrozoology based on my career choices and experience was an achievement on its own, but it was very challenging. I felt a bit overwhelmed, especially when it came to delving in to the research process, and deciphering my own results with statistics. Unfortunately, I did have to resit the final stage of the masters, which was my own research project, due to time pressures and other personal circumstances. I felt an element of failure, and struggled to accept that it was all out of my control, but it also showed me that not every path is a smooth route, and sometimes we have to dodge the boulders in the way!
What compromises have you had to make and what, if anything, could have helped?
To begin my career as a veterinary nurse, I had to take the apprenticeship route which resulted in being paid £2.60 an hour for the first year of my studies. This meant I had to cut back on a lot of spending and sacrifice time out with friends at the weekend if I wanted to achieve my goal! Thankfully, the apprenticeship route for achieving the veterinary nurse qualification pays much better now, and in general, practices see the value of a student and pay them much better.
What advice would you have given to your younger self, that you would now give to others wanting to follow your path?
Hang in there! It might feel like a struggle at times, but achieving your goals and adapting your career to suit your skills and personal enjoyment takes time. Don’t feel ashamed if you don’t feel like your path or ambition isn’t in line with others. Once qualified, I soon realised that anaesthesia and theatre practice wasn’t for me. I’d rather be caring for the in-patients, or in the consult room communicating with and educating the owners. I felt ashamed that I didn’t enjoy every single aspect of nursing, but now I understand that there is no shame in this and we can be whatever kind of veterinary nurse we want to be!
I couldn’t have got where I am today without…
…the constant support from my family, friends and partner (cheesy I know)! The veterinary community has also been integral to getting where I am today. It’s such a supportive profession to be part of, and as much as social media can cause havoc with society, being able to easily connect with others in the profession this way has changed a lot for me.
What are your three top likes?
The great outdoors, cheese and old cats!
What are your three top dislikes?
Mushrooms, putting the clean washing away, and people saying their cat is ‘just old’ or ‘It’s just old age’.
Many thanks to Kelly for sharing her story to inspire veterinary women to aspire and grow into their full career potential.
If you would like to share your story please get in touch at info@veterinarywoman.co.uk
For exclusive access to more stories like this, subscribe to our monthly newsletter
You may also like:
Veterinary Woman Role Model Profile: Janny De Grauw
Veterinary Woman Role Model Profile: Tara Evans
Veterinary Woman Role Model: Suzie Armstrong