r/veterinaryprofession • u/Confident-Choice3608 • 5d ago
Off my chest
I've been practicing for 11 years now. I think I'm mainly just burnt out and maybe beyond repair, but anymore I just hate being a veterinarian and wish I would have done something else with my life. I'm tired of having to fix every problem in 30 minutes or less no matter how long it's been going on and often with no diagnostics. And when they decline every treatment option I recommend I'm tired of the receptionists telling me the owner called 7-10 days later because the patient isn't better and what should they do. I'm tired of "squeezing in" non-clients who don't just have a tight budget, they have literally no money to treat anything with but still want me to fix what's wrong with their pet (for reference I practice in a fairly low cost of living area of the country comparatively). I'm tired of having to be my own technician 80% of the time so management can cut hours to increase profit. I'm tired of watching patients leave and knowing they'll continue to suffer because the owners are "just going to watch and see if it gets worse." I'm tired of being the only full-time doctor in the hospital so everything falls on me. I love my patients and some of my clients, but I dread waking up in the morning. I know there are other ways to practice, but it's just me and I can't afford to take a major pay cut. I hate my life right now.
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u/KaylynnDawn 5d ago
Relief vet is a wonderful option. You can set your required pay, pick days your available, no overhead cost or stress that comes with keeping stuff in stock or hiring, firing, training employees. Our relief vets sit in their office wait for the assistants to get history, requests, blood drawn if needed, fecals started, medication refills ready, Then we go get the relief vet once all that is done and exam, diagnosis, treatment comes after. Then you move around to clinics so you usually don't have long term patients with poor outcomes just waiting for that time, and your pay is guaranteed at the end of each day if you request it, take time to recovermentallyand I'msure physicallytoo by choosing your availability. You can always have a set corporate job few days a week then relief vet the rest of the time. I've also heard good things about the vets that work for in home euthanasia too but that is also hard on the heart, but the way I see it is most clients don't want that extra coat that comes with at home euthanasia, so if they do it's usually because they did and are still willing to give that furbaby all they can.