I grew up with my older brother in a low-income household headed by a single mother. We were a family of animal lovers and I decided at an early age I wanted to pursue veterinary medicine. When we finally moved into a home with a yard I begged for us to get a dog. Finally,… Read More
How This Tech Responds To “Vets are in it For the Money”
Recently someone asked me what is the worst part about my job as an RVT. I’m sure they were expecting me to say something about euthanasias, but really, the worst part is having to listen to clients tell me that we are only in this for the money, that we don’t care enough about their… Read More
An Open Letter to Veterinary ER Clients
Dear Emergency Room Pet Owner, Your pet is sick or hurt and you’ve just been told that you are going to have to leave him in the hospital overnight. You’re scared, you’re worried, you’re angry, you’re tired. You just want him to be ok. You just want to take him home. Instead, you’re led to… Read More
Vet Med Doesn’t Get Easier, and That’s OK
“It only gets worse after you graduate,” a practicing veterinarian once told me. “You have real patients to take care of with real legal consequences if you screw up – things were way simpler in vet school.” I was a first-year veterinary student just trying to survive anatomy at the time, and this piece… Read More
The Truth About the Worst Part of My Job
Today an owner told me I have the worst job in the world. His reasoning was not what I expected. Said owner’s dog was dropped off for an exam by the pet sitter. She said the dog was just not acting right. The owners were out of town and could be expected to… Read More
7 Things MDs Can Learn From Veterinarians
My daughter and I have chronic illnesses that took a long time and many doctors to diagnose. We’ve met some outstanding doctors and others that have frustrated us and dismissed our suffering. I’m a veterinarian, and during this journey I’ve learned many things from the physicians we’ve met that have helped me be a better… Read More