Relief Veterinarians in New Jersey
The Garden State is a great place for relief vets. High salaries for relief veterinarians in New Jersey can balance out a high cost of living.
Licensing for Relief Veterinarians in New Jersey
New Jersey veterinary licensing has a few items to be aware of, but nothing completely out of the norm. You’ll want to plan ahead for your NJ veterinary license, as you’ll have to go through a background check with fingerprinting. This can take 1-3 weeks. You may also have to submit a recent professional photo.
You’ll then have to pass the Jurisprudence Orientation Program, which is done online at your convenience.
The total cost is $343.75, including the fingerprinting/background check process.
New Jersey Veterinary Salary
New Jersey is in the top 5 states for veterinary salary at $153,630. NJ edges out NY state salaries, but falls in behind Hawaii, California, Massachusetts and Washington, DC. Looking at neighboring states, New Jersey comes out on top, salary-wise.
| State | Avg Salary | Tax Rate | Net Annual |
|---|---|---|---|
| New Jersey | $153,630 | 6.37% | $143,844 |
| New York | $151,100 | 6.00% | $142,034 |
| Pennsylvania | $123,000 | 3.07% | $119,224 |
| Delaware | $123,420 | 6.60% | $115,274 |
Inside the state, the net salary is highest for the New York City metro area, at nearly $160k annual salary. Warren County, in the Allentown metro area, has the lowest average salary in NJ at around $125k.
Local Veterinary Issues
Here are a few animal-related issues that relief veterinarians in New Jersey should be aware of:
- Tick-borne diseases
- Rabies
- Animal abuse or mistreatment
Note that in New Jersey, meal breaks are not legally required. Discuss with your hiring contact whether breaks are part of the hospital’s regular schedule, and if so, when they are taken, especially if you’re coming in from another state.
Telemedicine in NJ
New Jersey has addressed the question of telemedicine for veterinarians and has specifically allowed telemedicine in relief work in their legislation:
A substitute licensee, who is acting on behalf of an absent licensee in the same specialty, provides health care services on an on-call or cross-coverage basis, provided that the absent licensee has designated the substitute licensee as an on-call licensee or cross-coverage service provider.
If you feel like a specific issue can be resolved remotely, the law supports you. You can always request the animal come in for an exam if you prefer.
Balancing Work and Relaxation in New Jersey
New Jersey has more than you’d think! For our pics, we chose a place in nature, The Jacques Cousteau National Estuarine Research Reserve; a place for art, the Grounds For Sculpture Museum; and a place to party – where else but the Atlantic City boardwalk?
New Jersey can be a great place for relief vets to earn some money or to settle down. Get the latest availability from our territory manager.