Gardyne is one of those who took the plunge, preferring farm work over pets.
The 25-year-old’s clinic at Northern Southland Vets is located in the small town of Riversdale, around half an hour’s drive from Gore.
She said the lifestyle of living on a farm and working in a rural practice is fantastic.
“Last night I was stitching up a working dog that had been naughtily chasing a calf that it shouldn’t have been,” she said.
“There are quite a lot of orthopaedic injuries, tending to broken bones, things that need surgeries to fix.”
She enjoyed diagnosing breaks and setting working dogs up for surgery.
Gardyne had already performed a C-section on a cow and had the photo to prove it.
That’s given her a taste for surgery, and she’s keen to widen her skillset and take on more.
“I don’t do all the complicated surgeries, I leave that to the experienced vets.
“But I scrub in on some of the surgeries because it’s something I’m keen to learn.”
She enjoys the variety of work which allows her to get out on dairy farms, large sheep stations and even see some deer.
“It’s a very mixed large animal role, probably around 60% large animals, and most of the small animals we see are working dogs, which are pretty cool to work with,” she said.
“We’re busy, we’ve just been drying off a whole lot of dairy cows, which has been hectic.”
The career choice is living up to expectations so far, with incredible moments thrown in with some stunning scenery.
“I’ve been working here since the start of 2023,” she said.
“I grew up in Christchurch and studied in Palmerston North for five years.”
“We go all the way up to Kingston, which is near Queenstown. And across to Te Anau.
“There are some pretty big stations, and the drive in is very beautiful.”
And is there a downside?
“When it’s snowing, it can be grim, but I guess there’s a drawback with every job,” she said with a laugh.
- RNZ
