2 answers
Theo
Student
Perry, Iowa
1
Question
Asked
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What’s the empowering aspect of vet medicine?
What was the moment you knew, or had thought to yourself, “yup, I was made to do this job.” What is the thing that keeps you getting up every morning and keeps you going? The pay? The patients? Coworkers? Coffee?
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2 answers
Nichole David
Veterinary Assistant and Inventory Management
3
Answers
Charlotte, North Carolina
Updated
Nichole’s Answer
I have worked in the veterinary field for over 20 years. Burn out and compassion fatigue are real issues in this field. Under appreciated and under paid are as well. Self care is extremely important to be able to keep getting up in the mornings. What they don’t tell you in school is that this field is customer service as much as it is medicine.
When I was growing up, I wanted to be a veterinarian, specifically a horse vet. I was lucky to find a program in my area that worked with different fields for students to try out. After several days of going into a practice, I realized that what I actually wanted to do was be a veterinary technician. You have to find your passion in vet med. Sometimes that passion changes and that’s okay. This field offers many opportunities and options to keep it fresh and increase your skill set.
What really keeps me going is the relationships I’ve built with owners and their pets. I know that there are animals I can help heal and clients that I can educate and support. The sad days keep me going too. When an owner cannot be present for an end of life appointment, I know that I can be there to love and comfort that pet just as they are my own. My team mates are like family and we pull each other through the day.
Coffee helps, too.
When I was growing up, I wanted to be a veterinarian, specifically a horse vet. I was lucky to find a program in my area that worked with different fields for students to try out. After several days of going into a practice, I realized that what I actually wanted to do was be a veterinary technician. You have to find your passion in vet med. Sometimes that passion changes and that’s okay. This field offers many opportunities and options to keep it fresh and increase your skill set.
What really keeps me going is the relationships I’ve built with owners and their pets. I know that there are animals I can help heal and clients that I can educate and support. The sad days keep me going too. When an owner cannot be present for an end of life appointment, I know that I can be there to love and comfort that pet just as they are my own. My team mates are like family and we pull each other through the day.
Coffee helps, too.
Michelle M.
Entertainment Industry
1913
Answers
Updated
Michelle’s Answer
Even though I am not a veterinarian, I read your question and wanted to give an opinion - something for you to think about. Veterinary Medicine is such a wonderful career because it starts with a love and caring about animals, wanting to and knowing that you can help ease their illnesses and also put them on the road to healing in many cases. So if you will excuse that this is not first hand experience that I speak of, I will just tell you some things to consider.
As in all careers, there are the happy times as well as the sad times. The things that are motivating and hold your interest will be mostly in what I mentioned already. Assisting an animal in healing and easing their pain. It's probably the same motivation that medical doctors have about people. Discovering what the ailment is and than treating it. When a person loves animals so much that they dedicate their life to being a vet, they know the positive outweighs the negative. The thing that keeps people getting up in the morning to go to work is knowing that they are making an impact in people's lives (and pets, too) and knowing that their work will mostly be result oriented in a good way, with the exception of having to put a pet down when it comes to being a vet.
You will also be dealing with pet owners. Sometimes there may be conflict, but your training will prepare you to interact with the pet owners, too. There are lots of benefits, however, such as a standard work week, good work/life balance, and the salaries tend to be good. There is also the potential to open your own clinic. Since you have not started studying yet, you will also be happy to know that the demand for veterinarians is good and expected to grow. I also imagine that you get a good variety during the work week, with no two days being alike.
It would be good to get as many first hand opinions and advice from veterinarians because their shared experience can be valuable to you. I am providing a link to a video that may be of interest to you. It is "Day In The Life Of A Veterinarian" In this video, a veterinarian will give you a tour of her office and than discuss exactly what the study course and the career is like. I think that any information you gather about the subject will help you process what the experience might be like.
Best wishes to you on your studies and future career !
https://youtu.be/VMaejf0EStU "Day In the Life of A Veterinarian" Video 18 minutes
As in all careers, there are the happy times as well as the sad times. The things that are motivating and hold your interest will be mostly in what I mentioned already. Assisting an animal in healing and easing their pain. It's probably the same motivation that medical doctors have about people. Discovering what the ailment is and than treating it. When a person loves animals so much that they dedicate their life to being a vet, they know the positive outweighs the negative. The thing that keeps people getting up in the morning to go to work is knowing that they are making an impact in people's lives (and pets, too) and knowing that their work will mostly be result oriented in a good way, with the exception of having to put a pet down when it comes to being a vet.
You will also be dealing with pet owners. Sometimes there may be conflict, but your training will prepare you to interact with the pet owners, too. There are lots of benefits, however, such as a standard work week, good work/life balance, and the salaries tend to be good. There is also the potential to open your own clinic. Since you have not started studying yet, you will also be happy to know that the demand for veterinarians is good and expected to grow. I also imagine that you get a good variety during the work week, with no two days being alike.
It would be good to get as many first hand opinions and advice from veterinarians because their shared experience can be valuable to you. I am providing a link to a video that may be of interest to you. It is "Day In The Life Of A Veterinarian" In this video, a veterinarian will give you a tour of her office and than discuss exactly what the study course and the career is like. I think that any information you gather about the subject will help you process what the experience might be like.
Best wishes to you on your studies and future career !
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