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Madison
Student
Grafton, Ohio
5
Questions
Updated
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What are the pros and cons of being a Veterinarian?
Hello, my name is Maddy and I'm a sophomore in high school. I've always had a passion for animals. Ever since I was little I dreamed of becoming a vet and helping all sorts of animals. But as I've grown up I strayed away from the idea because I didn't know if I could handle putting animals down. However I don't want to completely rule this occupation of my list becuase it was something I had interst in for many years. So if anyone could tell me the highs and lows of being a Vet, it would be greatly appreciated. #veterinarian #animals
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Pamela Boich
IT Director
9
Answers
Dallas, Texas
Updated
Pamela’s Answer
Hi there, I would STRONGLY recommend volunteering a local vet clinic and applying for a job at one before deciding to go into veterinary medicine.
My dream job through childhood was to be a veterinarian. Thank goodness I worked at a vet clinic though, because I learned that it was not something I could do for the rest of my life. There are a ton of really difficult circumstances that vets are faced with (ie families can't afford care, treating dog fighting victims, euthanizing healthy animals, animals passing away, animal suffering, etc. It takes more than just a love for animals to do this job. It takes the ability to compartmentalize your job and your home life. I am still haunted by the things I saw at a vet clinic when I was 17. So please try it out first before committing 8 years of your life to being a vet and then risk potentially determining that it's not right for you.
There are tons of wonderful alternatives to being a vet if you love animals. I went into business with the goal of earning good money to support animal causes financially. That has been a good decision. I'm able to help with funds and also volunteer my time for a number of wonderful animal causes.
Another idea that I wish I'd known at your age... Becoming a lawyer can have a huge impact to help animals. A lot of attorneys volunteer their time to help write legislation to support animal welfare. Example - animal cruelty must be made illegal before animal abusers can be charged and put into jail. It takes lawyers to write the bills and lobby for them to become law. Lots of states have good cruelty laws now, but there is still more to be done. We just outlawed chaining up your dog in a back yard in Texas, for example. We passed a law to require humane euthanasia methods at shelters. We passed a law to crack down on puppy mills as well. So you can make a massive impact for animals by studying animal law.
Good luck!
Pam
My dream job through childhood was to be a veterinarian. Thank goodness I worked at a vet clinic though, because I learned that it was not something I could do for the rest of my life. There are a ton of really difficult circumstances that vets are faced with (ie families can't afford care, treating dog fighting victims, euthanizing healthy animals, animals passing away, animal suffering, etc. It takes more than just a love for animals to do this job. It takes the ability to compartmentalize your job and your home life. I am still haunted by the things I saw at a vet clinic when I was 17. So please try it out first before committing 8 years of your life to being a vet and then risk potentially determining that it's not right for you.
There are tons of wonderful alternatives to being a vet if you love animals. I went into business with the goal of earning good money to support animal causes financially. That has been a good decision. I'm able to help with funds and also volunteer my time for a number of wonderful animal causes.
Another idea that I wish I'd known at your age... Becoming a lawyer can have a huge impact to help animals. A lot of attorneys volunteer their time to help write legislation to support animal welfare. Example - animal cruelty must be made illegal before animal abusers can be charged and put into jail. It takes lawyers to write the bills and lobby for them to become law. Lots of states have good cruelty laws now, but there is still more to be done. We just outlawed chaining up your dog in a back yard in Texas, for example. We passed a law to require humane euthanasia methods at shelters. We passed a law to crack down on puppy mills as well. So you can make a massive impact for animals by studying animal law.
Good luck!
Pam