Daina Rawlings studied Animal Studies at SMB College Group and is Head Nurse at WECare Worldwide, treating street dogs in Sri Lanka, to find out more about Daina’s amazing career journey read more from Daina herself!
Hello I’m Daina!
I’m originally from Leicestershire and I studied Animal Management at SMB College Group, progressing onto a BSc (Hons) in Veterinary Nursing at the Royal Veterinary College.
I graduated in 2014 and started working within the ECC department at the RVC Queen Mother Hospital for Animals. I was at the RVC for 3 years before jetting off to sunny Australia in 2017.
After a hard-earned break traveling the east coast of Australia, I began work at SASH Vets in North Sydney for 5 months, and then hopped over to the west coast to work at The Animal Hospital at Murdoch University for 3 months.
After that, I travelled New Zealand for a month and then moved to Colombo, Sri Lanka, in 2018 for 3 months to train and teach in a local practice. I came back to the RVC after almost 18 months of traveling to become the senior ECC Night Nurse for the next four years. I managed the night team and nursed the range of emergencies that present at all hours of the night, during this time I also completed the Veterinary Tech Specialist in Emergency Critical Care.
Having spent most of my career in referral I recently decided to come back to Sri Lanka, where I am now head nurse at WECare Worldwide, a charity aimed at providing care and transforming the lives of street dogs.
I also like to spend time in South Africa working with the big 5: neutering lions, relocating giraffes, TB testing buffalo and rescuing rhinos.
I am obviously a keen traveller and I’m always happy to share advice on working and traveling abroad!
Why did you choose to study at SMB College Group?
I choose Brooksby for the hands-on learning. I learn best by doing, and I like to be out and about. Brooksby has a great programme and lots of space with a whole host of animals, so it was a ‘no brainier’ for me.
Why did you choose Emergency Critical Care (ECC)?
I love working at a fast pace and seeing how much a well-trained team can achieve. Many of our cases are critical and require a real team effort to get them through. For me, ECC draws on everyone’s individual skills to achieve the best outcome for our patients. Thinking on your feet is a must in ECC and its something I’m always improving on.
What was the last case that meant a lot to you?
I’m a big dog person, so you’ll normally find me nursing whoever’s in the walk-in kennels. I recently nursed a dog hit by a bus out here in Sri Lanka. He had cervical spine damage and was unable to stand on his forelimbs.
I named him Calvin and coaxed him round from his sassy street dog ways in order to allow me to nurse him and eventually do some physio. In two weeks, he went from being stuck in praying position to trotting around the gardens and then being released back to his old stomping ground.
What would be your biggest challenge to treat in emergency and critical care?
Cats in respiratory distress! I find it difficult walking the fine line between providing care for them and causing them to decompensate. I find this is when a hands-off approach and respect for cats really comes into play.
What advice do you have for students?
My advice for students would be to look for good projects to get involved in, in an area that you’re interested in, and don’t be afraid to be the ‘new’ person who’s still learning. I’ve put myself in lots of situations (jobs/volunteer programs/countries) where I’ve had to start from scratch, which can be really hard, but I’ve learnt so much from challenging myself in this way. I think that, as long as you're nice and hardworking, people see this and are willing to help you learn - then you're off! You build so much confidence and one thing leads to another - it’s just taking that first step that can be the hardest, but often the most rewarding!
If you’re interested in working or volunteering at WECare please contact Daina at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.
If you’re interested in studying Animal Management with SMB College Group, come along to one of our Brooksby Campus Open Days! https://www.smbcollegegroup.ac.uk/