What's your career path?

I'm sorry to hear of your struggles. It is unfortunate that some truly dedicated would-be veterinarians are denied. I suppose that with the coming shortage of veterinarians, veterinary schools could be considering upping their class sizes. And it IS super-expensive these days. See my blog "Supply and demand" if you want to know how I really feel about it. :o)

I taught a little bit of veterinary technology for a couple of semesters. Did you like your vet tech school experience? Do you like what you do for a living now?

How about the rest of you? Are you just hanging in there or are you having a ball?

I think, if my husband and I had the opportunity to "do it all over again" we'd stay as far away from the veterinary industry as possible.

Both of us have our undergraduate degrees in marine biology and ecology.  We've both got our dive certifications (my husband is even certified as a dive master).  When we were on our honeymoon in Maui, Hawaii, we walked into a dive shop and inquired about the "Help Wanted" sign out front, and fill out applications.  Just for kicks.

The manager/shop owner was ready to hire both of us on the spot.  Offered a very generous deal to my husband in that the shop would pay to certify him as a dive instructor in two different dive modallities, and was very excited that I had retail management experience.  If we had not just purchased the veterinary practice the month before, we'd probably be living in Maui right now.

This was two years ago.  Owning a veterinary practice is no piece of cake.  Our accountant assures us that if we just "tough things out" that owning would pay-off a lot more than just being an associate somewhere.  And when we're having miserable days, we wonder, is the trade-off in aggrivation, sleepless nights, and finanical head-aches really worth it?

We both love what we do.  Honest, I don't think you can get any greater satisfaction out of seeing a case well managed, an animal get healed, an owner who is beside themselves with gratefulness.  The psychological and emotional drain though, from euthanasias to clients that just like to be disgruntled, really make us think sometimes we made a mistake.

Certainly, any industry has its ups and downs, and if we ourselves had a dive shop (as my husband's father owns), we'd probably have all the associated headaches involved with managing one of those.  The only upside is that a dive tank doesn't die on you when you lock it up overnight.  The people who patronize dive shops already know they're in for a large invoice for an expensive hobby.  BCs don't have midnight, unexpected emergencies with associated unexpected fees.

We're financially locked into our practice at the moment, with no choice but to "tough it out" and hope for the better.  I think, though, my husband would've liked to have remained an associate vet somewhere, so he wouldn't have all the management headaches on his shoulders, and I'd've liked to stay where I was in emergency and critical care, where I went home at the end of the shift and didn't feel as if I had to carry my work there with me.  The practice sale fell into our lap and felt like such a good thing at the time, we couldn't pass up the opportunity.

Hindsight is always the clearest of vision..

I am an RVT and I love what I do.  My whole life is consumed by this profession.  Some would say that is not healthy b/c I need an outside, separate life and they are probably right.  I am burnt out more often than not but I continue to work my best and complete continuing education, post on message boards, etc.  I go on like one non veterinary site, ever, on the internet, all my bookmarks are for veterinary related sites.

I know your original question was more geared towards vets and I started talking about RVTs but I see your point.  There are vets out there that do not want to deal with all the hassles of owning, they just want to practice.  I am seeing so many hospitals being bought by the corporations lately.  I think that majority of the students go in with tunnel vision of equine, dog and/or cat only.  I think your right, not many think about research or exotics.  I just do not think either spark much interest, they did not for me while I was in school.

And again....YES I love what I do.

I'm an RVT, have been in the profession for almost 9 years.  I still adore it.  I love what I do, still get excited when I pull into the parking lot in the morning.  I long for the day when credentialed techs are given the respect they deserve on all accounts.  That's the only thing I DON'T like about what I do.  No offense to assistants (because I have some truly amazing ones on staff!), but it's time to draw the line between them and us.  Only then will we be recognized as the professionals that we are.

Okay, I've gone off on a tangent.  But like a previous poster said, I am very involved in what I do and it's hard to get out of the clinic at the end of the day, just from sheer enjoyment of my job.  I feel very lucky to have chosen the "right" profession for me.

I've been in the veterinary profession for 18 years, all with the same practice.  Started at the lowest level, cleaned kennels, did reception work, was an assistant, then an uncertified technician, then an office manager, then a practice manager, and finally earned my CVT.  I fell into this field and have loved (almost) every minute since.  Though I get bogged down with HR issues, pricing strategy issues, policy making, and employee management, I occasionally get to do what I loved about this job in the first place....work directly with pets.  Mostly in dentistry, although I still put in the occasional catheter.  I've helped drive our practice into the modern age of pet dentistry, bringing in digital x-ray and pushing our Doctors to focus on this area.  They have.  That alone - the opportunity to make an impact, not just on a patient's care, but also on the big picture, isn't available in every industry.  I constantly remind our employees that they can do this too, although they don't always get it.  I've done every job in our practice except Veterinarian, and I wouldn't trade with anyone.  When I went through public school, there was no such thing as career exploration, and I have often wondered if I would have tried to become a Veterinarian.  I'm thankful almost everyday that I didn't.  Although that is my own opinion, I have taken every opportunity to provide access to our practice for the youth of our community as they try to decide what they want to be when they grown up.  Veterinary Camp, hospital tours, an endless stream of career day speeches......it's a pretty great job!

Thanks for the fascinating glimpse into a rewarding career outside of private practice. Your field is one we hear too little about, so thanks for taking the time to tell us about it!

Kristi