Pre-med to pre-vet?

[Twilque]

I'm a junior studying biology, and I've been keeping medical school open as an option while being open to other things. I was thinking about vet med in the past, but I was worried about financial security because I would need to take out loans. However, I am starting to think it might be worth it, because the idea of it is a lot more exciting to me than human medicine. So the way to explore this is to shadow a vet ASAP, right? Should I just call the animal hospital here and ask to shadow? If they are unable to have me shadow, what else could I do?
In the event that I shadowed a vet and really liked it, what would be the next steps to pursuing this? How do you get all the hours needed to apply to vet school? Should I get involved in student vet groups on campus? I don't know where to begin as a junior considering switching, and I know I would need to take at least one gap year...

More explanation for why I am thinking about vet med, read at your discretion-
About a year ago, I interviewed a vet and was considering it, but because of financial reasons and the common notion that vets aren't the happiest people, I discounted it. Then, last summer, I was thinking about switching to a less human focused bio major (which mine is- "human biology"), because I wanted to explore some animal science and plant science courses, though I held back because it required switching to another college at my university... But as I think more about after graduation, I am not feeling that excited about the idea of human medicine, and now I have been having dreams about being a vet? My friend found out her dog has cancer, and that night I dreamed I was telling her I thought I wanted to be a vet? I think it's popped up in my dream because I haven't explored it yet, so I think I should do so.
I also did some community ecology research with invertebrates in high school, and I enjoyed being outside and learning about the ecosystem dynamics. I was very into animals as a kid, I used to take notes on animal planet and stuff lol. I did want to be a vet as a kid too, but euthanasia turned me away from it. And I've been vegan for damn near a decade now (some vegans are weird about vets/pet ownership- I think for me it's about animal welfare).

For those who may have been in a similar circumstance, do you know what I might expect if I go this route?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[nireepoh]

I’m going to try and keep this kind of short because I’m sure others will answer as well, but yes first thing to do would be get experience in the field to see if it’s truly for you! Shadowing would be a good first step, and beyond that I’d start getting experience with animals (work at a shelter or kennel) and then vet experience (work as a vet assistant to get experience supervised by a vet).

As for being ready to apply to vet schools, I would check prerequisite requirements for schools. Some schools require animal nutrition or maybe a few other classes you’d need to take. Most schools have a minimum number of vet experience hours you’d need as well, which you can get as mentioned above (it might take a while to work your way up, you’ll need animal experience to get vet experience basically). Then some schools require taking the GRE.

You could get involved in clubs that get you animal exposure, such as a prevet club or something similar if your school has it.

I know it’ll be a bit more difficult switching to pre-vet as a major, but if you really enjoy it and have a calling for it as it seems you might have, then you can totally do it! Pre-med is at least pretty similar so I hope it works out!

I hope any of this made sense or helped, sorry if it’s jumbled!

 

[DVMDream]

What makes you less excited about human medicine now?

Also, what makes you want to be a vet? Your post doesn't really explain why suddenly vet med is an interest. Doing ecology research outside is not equatable to vet med. So why do you want to be a vet? What makes you want to be a vet? Being "into animals" is great, but does not a vet make and there are many, many other careers that involve animals that don't require a veterinary degree. So what in particular makes you want to be a veterinarian?

 

[FrostySparrow]

Dream brings up tons of great questions that I'd encourage you to explore, and if you're willing to answer on here can help experienced posters guide you a bit better.

Ultimately if you want to cover your basis and not wonder "what-ifs" then shadowing at several vet clinics is the way to go to see what a veterinarian does, asking veterinarians questions about their career, work/life balance, debt:income ratio, etc. I agree with above that your post doesn't make me understand why vet med vs human med now. I could think of several other careers that could be just as, if not more appealing, based on your second paragraph... one big one being a wildlife biologist or a disease ecologist. I would branch out and look into other animal related careers that you may enjoy bc you may likely find that you prefer one over vet med.

You have a lot of self exploring to do and I'd encourage you to not limit yourself to human med vs vet med quite yet. Look into other animal/science related careers too.

 

[that redhead]

Start by shadowing a veterinarian, absolutely. Give a call to a local place, explain you’re interested in learning more about the field and can you shadow for a day.

The things you mentioned as turn offs previously - debt load and mental health — are still two very important challenges. What made you change your mind about them?

 

[Twilque]

I think this was more about, if I did enjoy shadowing a vet, where I could go from there. I watched some videos of vets talking about it, and I could see myself in it more than a physician. I think the interest in bio is there, the care for animals, I think that's all I can say at this point.

For human medicine, I don't know if I see myself working in a hospital all day. I mean, I could do it and would probably be happy with certain specialties. I don't know that I ever found it to be exciting.

I enjoyed the field research I did, but it was a little removed from having much of a purpose besides just knowledge. Which is cool, but idk if I'd want to do it as a career. There may still be some cool animal science careers that I would like, but one thing at a time

Debt load- I think vets don't usually end up severely financially struggling?
Mental health- It seemed like it might be a bit overblown, but you tell me lol

 

[that redhead]

I think this was more about, if I did enjoy shadowing a vet, where I could go from there. I watched some videos of vets talking about it, and I could see myself in it more than a physician. I think the interest in bio is there, the care for animals, I think that's all I can say at this point.

For human medicine, I don't know if I see myself working in a hospital all day. I mean, I could do it and would probably be happy with certain specialties. I don't know that I ever found it to be exciting.

I enjoyed the field research I did, but it was a little removed from having much of a purpose besides just knowledge. Which is cool, but idk if I'd want to do it as a career. There may still be some cool animal science careers that I would like, but one thing at a time

Debt load- I think vets don't usually end up severely financially struggling?
Mental health- It seemed like it might be a bit overblown, but you tell me lol

Videos about the field and spending quality (and quantity) time in the field are two different viewpoints, and you 100% need the latter to make your decision. So get that time, and if you like it…consider applying to vet school? Isn’t that what this thread is about?

Your other reasons are really vague; the reason DVMD is encouraging you to go into more detail is because there are many parallels between human medicine and vet medicine. You don’t want to spend all day in a hospital…guess what the vast majority of veterinarians do? There are certainly parts of vet med where you could be outside, or in a more unique environment - large animal/equine med, research, zoo/aquarium, teaching, etc. But those opportunities of “outside the walls” work exist elsewhere, with animal work too.

Debt-load - please do your research. The debt:income ratio is absurd and often crippling for veterinarians. Do NOT start down this path without spending time to look into this huge aspect of this career.

Mental health - “it’s a bit overblown” is probably the wrong-est thing to say about mental health, in any context, ever. The huge debt load is a big part of many vets’ mental health struggles, but there are many other factors involved. Not all vets struggle with mental health but id vet every single one of us has to some degree at some point along this journey. The suicide rate is high, compassion fatigue is a thing, potential for substance abuse is greater than many fields, etc. So again, do your research.

 

[Twilque]

Videos about the field and spending quality (and quantity) time in the field are two different viewpoints, and you 100% need the latter to make your decision. So get that time, and if you like it…consider applying to vet school? Isn’t that what this thread is about?

Your other reasons are really vague; the reason DVMD is encouraging you to go into more detail is because there are many parallels between human medicine and vet medicine. You don’t want to spend all day in a hospital…guess what the vast majority of veterinarians do? There are certainly parts of vet med where you could be outside, or in a more unique environment - large animal/equine med, research, zoo/aquarium, teaching, etc. But those opportunities of “outside the walls” work exist elsewhere, with animal work too.

Debt-load - please do your research. The debt:income ratio is absurd and often crippling for veterinarians. Do NOT start down this path without spending time to look into this huge aspect of this career.

Mental health - “it’s a bit overblown” is probably the wrong-est thing to say about mental health, in any context, ever. The huge debt load is a big part of many vets’ mental health struggles, but there are many other factors involved. Not all vets struggle with mental health but id vet every single one of us has to some degree at some point along this journey. The suicide rate is high, compassion fatigue is a thing, potential for substance abuse is greater than many fields, etc. So again, do your research.

I know they are different, that's what I meant. Maybe I should've waited until after seeing how I felt about shadowing to make a thread. I did not mean to give the impression that I know what being a vet is like.

Please ;-; I meant a conventional hospital. I don't think treating people and treating animals in a different type of hospital is the same experience? That just seemed to be the case inherently... but no, I don't know anything.

Debt-load - Ok that's fair

Mental health - Overblown meaning the perception that most vets are stressed and regret the career and things along those lines. I don't think mental health is overblown...

 

[SnowJ]

I don't think treating people and treating animals in a different type of hospital is the same experience? That just seemed to be the case inherently...
I think what people are trying to get at is that not thinking you would like human med isn't the same thing as having a reason to be drawn to vet med specifically. There are large small animal hospitals that may give you a similar experience to a human hospital in terms of shuffling through bureaucracy, coordinating departments, etc, so it depends what it is about being in a hospital all day that you don't find appealing.
Why you want to go down this path is going to be a big part of what motivates you to get through the grueling process that is veterinary school, so admissions departments will want more than not liking human med. It's why people ask what gets you to vet med specifically; there might be another field that suits your interest better if you reflect on what drives you.
You may find what it is that draws you to it as you get more experience, and that's great! I just advise you keep in mind that there may be other paths that will be better for you, financially or otherwise.

Mental health - Overblown meaning the perception that most vets are stressed and regret the career and things along those lines. I don't think mental health is overblown...

Obviously I don't know what your experience with this perception is, but mental health is absolutely a huge problem in the profession. While saying most vets regret their career may not be 100% true, it is absolutely something a lot of vets go through. The debt/income ratio is huge and can impact your ability to do other things down the line, like buy a house or have kids. You will face a lot of people who do not value your education and opinion on a regular basis and resent paying for your services. Many clinics are tragically understaffed, trying to balance the health of their workers with their clinic's and patient's needs as best they can. A lot of vets do wish they had done something else even if they love their job. A lot leave the profession after a time. Mental health is absolutely critical to consider, because it will be a struggle even if you can't see yourself doing anything else. Veterinary school alone is brutal. It will exhaust mental health conditions you already have, and you need to have good coping mechanisms for the extreme stress you are put under.

I think this was more about, if I did enjoy shadowing a vet, where I could go from there.

nireepoh covered this pretty well; continue getting more experience working with animals and working in the field directly as an assistant or technician. I advise trying to get experience in as many aspects of the field as you can; this will give you a good idea of what you will want to do in the future and a better scope of the field as a whole. Veterinary schools like to see a variety of experience as well

And I've been vegan for damn near a decade now (some vegans are weird about vets/pet ownership- I think for me it's about animal welfare).

Just a heads up, no matter what field you want to go into you have to learn about large animal medicine and food production as a veterinarian. Degrees and licensing are not separated by companion vs food medicine; you will be able to practice on all animals once you are done. Just in case this will be an issue for you (there are a lot of vegan and vegetarians in my class, so you will not be alone!)

 

[DVMDream]

I know they are different, that's what I meant. Maybe I should've waited until after seeing how I felt about shadowing to make a thread. I did not mean to give the impression that I know what being a vet is like.

Please ;-; I meant a conventional hospital. I don't think treating people and treating animals in a different type of hospital is the same experience? That just seemed to be the case inherently... but no, I don't know anything.

Debt-load - Ok that's fair

Mental health - Overblown meaning the perception that most vets are stressed and regret the career and things along those lines. I don't think mental health is overblown...

You were interested in human medicine, if "being in a hospital" is what is pushing you away from human medicine, you will likely be disappointed in veterinary medicine. They are both medicine, just one is done with humans and the other with animals. Sure there are other differences as well. But if one of the biggest parts of human medicine (working in a hospital, though not all doctors work in hospitals, so anyway) isn't jiving with you, the majority of veterinarians work in hosptials. Outside of equine/farm animal field work (because you can do equine/farm animal specialty and be in a hospital setting), house call vet or home euthanasia/hospice vet, you are going to be in some sort of hospital or other brick and mortar type building working.

What about medicine in general interests you? Are you wanting to work up, diagnose and treat patients? Before I left general practice veterinary medicine, I would say 60ish% of my time was talking with pet owners (probably a bit more), 15ish% was actually treating pets/surgery, and another 25% was paperwork/other busy work-- typing up records, doing research, reviewing patient labwork, verifying rx refills, responding to emails.

The debt load is there, veterinarians struggle. I have colleagues that pick up relief shifts on a regular basis in order to make ends meet. I am not saying you will struggle massively and your life/financial situation will be horribly, hopeless but you should be very well aware that the debt is significant, the salary isn't the greatest and being shackled to a 6-figure debt is crushing to menal well-being in a way I can't describe.

The mental health issue is not blown out of proportion. I would say the majority of vets are insanely stressed today and are not enjoying the career as of current. COVID changed vet med, it was already changing some, but COVID just lit a fire under it. I talk to other veterinarians regularly (there are multiple veterinary facebook groups) and they are exhausted, stressed, depressed and really just trying to take each day as it comes, because, well see above about being shackled to 6-figure debt, can't really just walk away when you have that kind of debt. Even veterinarians that previously were happy/fine and enjoying the career are saying this last 1-2 years has been living hell and there doesn't appear to be a light at the end of the tunnel. It is pretty bad when you hear vets who have been in the field 25+ years say "I have never seen anything like this and I don't like this job that I used to love anymore."

The best way to see what veterinary medicine is like is to shadow a few different veterinarians. So, I would start there, but I wouldn't be sweeping the debt load, financial issues, mental health, burn out and discussion of how unhappy a lot of vets are currently "under the rug" as "not really as bad as people say."

 

[battie]

Debt load- I think vets don't usually end up severely financially struggling?

Check out the links below for the concern from actual vets about the debt. Sure, the average of ~170k according to the AAVMC/AVMA. But that average includes the 20% of veterinarians that graduate without debt as well as the 20% of veterinarians that graduate with 300k+ in debt (so only 60% graduate with 0.01-299,999k).

I graduated with significantly less debt than anticipated due to an unexpected inheritance. But I was projected to graduate with 282k. I have 90k with 20% production contract. If I had 282k in debt, my husband and I would not have a house or be pregnant cause we simply couldn't afford it. And 282k is not out of the realm of possibility for most OOS vet students, particularly with 6% interest on loans.

The money is absolutely a major consideration. Our specialists make less money on average compared to human med specialists. It is what it is due to the way human med is structured. That's why we stress going to the cheapest undergrad and vet school students are accepted to.

Mental health- It seemed like it might be a bit overblown, but you tell me lol

Studies on mental health in vet med didn't start until less than 10 years ago: Study: 1 in 6 veterinarians have considered suicide.

And things have only gotten worse: Study captures pandemic’s impact on veterinary profession

The aspect of veterinary professionals' mental health being overblown is a simplification. If anything, I feel like it is flying under the radar for most of my clients. I have plenty of clients complain about waiting 45 minutes for ER after being warned of a 2-4 hour wait; these are always the clients with an ear infection and consider the wait "not their problem" despite the 3 criticals (and subsequent 3 euthanasias) I dealt with during their wait. At least 2 cases either complain about the wait or straight up leave the days I have 10-15 ERs in a 10 hour period. There is a true disconnect between the stressors in vet med and the general public.

I meant a conventional hospital

My Fam Med/OBGYN double boarded DO doesn't work in a conventional hospital about 80% of the time. She and her husband own their own family med clinic and then she delivers 90% of her patients' babies in the hospital across the street. There are plenty of out patient human medical facilities. I would say a higher percentage of human docs (DOs/MDs) don't work in a hospital setting compared to veterinarians (especially since specializing has increased 50% in vet med). 60-65% of vets go into small animal GP; so at least 60-65% of vets are in a hospital/clinic setting. And unlike my human GP, the vet GPs see plenty of urgent/emergent cases. Plenty of local clinics manage day time emergencies and then transfer to me for overnight care and further work up the next day.

And like others have mentioned, we deal with a lot of the same things in human med. We just get paid less.

My suggestion would be to shadow docs in both professions across several different facilities. Ask for the good/bad of every doc you talk to. We will all give you our genuine opinion. There is a pre-med (MD and DO) here on SDN. Go over there and post.

 

[birbtime]

I’m seeing some harsh comments here, so I just wanted to add a different perspective! I made the switch from pre-med to pre-vet my senior year of college and applied that same year (so i also took a gap year). I started by calling up a family friend who is a vet and asking for an informational interview, which was very helpful for getting a sense of the profession in general. Then I volunteered in the clinic of my local animal shelter and used that experience to get a job as an assistant. I did shadow one vet for about ten hours total. At the time I finished my application I had only been prevet/an assistant for about six months, so it is totally doable. I was accepted into 4 of the 12 schools I applied to, and I’m starting this August at Illinois! Vet med people can be a little defensive about the profession just like human med people, but it really is a job like any other. One of the main draws for me was that there is a HUGE increase in flexibility for veterinarians as compared to human doctors. Mental health is difficult, but having the option to work relief or part time is a MAJOR factor for me. As far as finances go, people downplay the importance of lifestyle expectations. I assume you’re familiar with pre-med students, so you know that they expect the full package: house/cars/boat/pool/private schools etc. That expectation isn’t there in vet med, so a lot of veterinarians live pretty modestly and it’s a lot easier to manage debt even on a smaller salary. I’m not a “crazy animal person” and I didn’t know I wanted to do this since I was 5 years old or whatever, but I still love the profession and I’ll be as good a vet as anyone else.
TLDR: vet med as a career has a lot of advantages over human med and you should absolutely consider switching. The myth that it has to be your lifelong passion in order for you to be successful is false. Start by speaking to some vets and getting a job or volunteer hours, and don’t listen to anyone who says you can’t do it. Good luck!

 

[Trilt]

I’m seeing some harsh comments here, so I just wanted to add a different perspective! I made the switch from pre-med to pre-vet my senior year of college and applied that same year (so i also took a gap year). I started by calling up a family friend who is a vet and asking for an informational interview, which was very helpful for getting a sense of the profession in general. Then I volunteered in the clinic of my local animal shelter and used that experience to get a job as an assistant. I did shadow one vet for about ten hours total. At the time I finished my application I had only been prevet/an assistant for about six months, so it is totally doable. I was accepted into 4 of the 12 schools I applied to, and I’m starting this August at Illinois! Vet med people can be a little defensive about the profession just like human med people, but it really is a job like any other. One of the main draws for me was that there is a HUGE increase in flexibility for veterinarians as compared to human doctors. Mental health is difficult, but having the option to work relief or part time is a MAJOR factor for me. As far as finances go, people downplay the importance of lifestyle expectations. I assume you’re familiar with pre-med students, so you know that they expect the full package: house/cars/boat/pool/private schools etc. That expectation isn’t there in vet med, so a lot of veterinarians live pretty modestly and it’s a lot easier to manage debt even on a smaller salary. I’m not a “crazy animal person” and I didn’t know I wanted to do this since I was 5 years old or whatever, but I still love the profession and I’ll be as good a vet as anyone else.
TLDR: vet med as a career has a lot of advantages over human med and you should absolutely consider switching. The myth that it has to be your lifelong passion in order for you to be successful is false. Start by speaking to some vets and getting a job or volunteer hours, and don’t listen to anyone who says you can’t do it. Good luck!

Nobody is saying they can't do it.

The actual, practicing vets who have dealt with the loans and mental health issues and gone through vet school are simply trying to make sure OP gets experience to actually know what they're getting into, and doesn't hand wave off true concerns with the field. It's not harsh. I get so annoyed when vet students or pre-vets come after actual veterinarians and say we're being harsh.

I also wasn't someone who wanted to be a vet since I was a zygote. And I'm a good vet - that's not a pre-requisite for being a good vet! But getting experience and doing your damndest to understand what you're getting into before going several hundred thousands of dollars of debt for a degree is extremely important.

 

[DVMDream]

I’m seeing some harsh comments here, so I just wanted to add a different perspective! I made the switch from pre-med to pre-vet my senior year of college and applied that same year (so i also took a gap year). I started by calling up a family friend who is a vet and asking for an informational interview, which was very helpful for getting a sense of the profession in general. Then I volunteered in the clinic of my local animal shelter and used that experience to get a job as an assistant. I did shadow one vet for about ten hours total. At the time I finished my application I had only been prevet/an assistant for about six months, so it is totally doable. I was accepted into 4 of the 12 schools I applied to, and I’m starting this August at Illinois! Vet med people can be a little defensive about the profession just like human med people, but it really is a job like any other. One of the main draws for me was that there is a HUGE increase in flexibility for veterinarians as compared to human doctors. Mental health is difficult, but having the option to work relief or part time is a MAJOR factor for me. As far as finances go, people downplay the importance of lifestyle expectations. I assume you’re familiar with pre-med students, so you know that they expect the full package: house/cars/boat/pool/private schools etc. That expectation isn’t there in vet med, so a lot of veterinarians live pretty modestly and it’s a lot easier to manage debt even on a smaller salary. I’m not a “crazy animal person” and I didn’t know I wanted to do this since I was 5 years old or whatever, but I still love the profession and I’ll be as good a vet as anyone else.
TLDR: vet med as a career has a lot of advantages over human med and you should absolutely consider switching. The myth that it has to be your lifelong passion in order for you to be successful is false. Start by speaking to some vets and getting a job or volunteer hours, and don’t listen to anyone who says you can’t do it. Good luck!

No one is saying you have to have wanted to be a vet since you were an embryo. There are a ton of vets who have decided on veterinary medicine as a career much later in life and this is 100% just fine.

We are trying to get OP to answer the very, very, very basic question of "why do you want to be a veterinarian? What interests you about veterniary medicine? What turned you away human medicine and towards veterianry medicine?" These are very basic, very simple questions that at least one will be on veterinary school applications. If there is any indication in the application that there was an interest toward human medicine initially they may ask in an interview what made them change their mind on human medicine and toward veterinary medicine. These aren't harsh or rude comments. They are basic questions that will be asked when applying for veterinary school.

Human medicine and veterinary medicine are much more similar than they are different. Veterinary medicine trends more and more and more toward the human medicine model as the years progress. So if you have been "turned off" from human medicine, depending on why, veterinary medicine may not be a better option as that reason may be very prevalent in veterinary medicine. I also explored human medicine, wanted to be a pediatric oncologist, I decided against that because I determined I couldn't emotionally handle the death of children on a not irregular basis. I also can't stand human bodily fluids. So I decided against human medicine. I had also always wanted to be a veterinarian, that was the period I was exploring other options other than veterinary medicine.

Everyone still recommends the OP shadow a veterinarian. I say shadow more than one, shadow as many as you possibly can and start determining what in veterinary medicine interests you (cat/dog/exotic/horses/food animal) and shadow that particular type of vet. No point in shadowing a small animal vet if you want to work in equine medicine (at least initially), if you determine you really enjoy equine medicine, then 100% need to shadow all the other areas of vet med to have a well-rounded amount of experience when applying for vet school.

 

[that redhead]

@Trilt and @DVMDream said it more eloquently than I could; I don’t mean to be harsh, it’s just frustrating to see people who haven’t lived the life post-graduation (both personally and professionally) advise another pre-vet on what to not worry about.

“It’s a lot easier debt to manage even on a smaller salary” because we’ve had to lower our life expectations because society doesn’t place enough value in what we do? Just think about that one a bit.

 

[DVMDream]

@Trilt and @DVMDream said it more eloquently than I could; I don’t mean to be harsh, it’s just frustrating to see people who haven’t lived the life post-graduation (both personally and professionally) advise another pre-vet on what to not worry about.

“It’s a lot easier debt to manage even on a smaller salary” because we’ve had to lower our life expectations because society doesn’t place enough value in what we do? Just think about that one a bit.

Setting those expectations low really early in the game apparently. How dare we want to be valued for doing similar work as a human doctor? How dare we want to be able to buy homes, have families, go on vacations? Tsk, tsk.

I also don't know that many human doctors that have an expectation of boats, private schools (the rest of the stuff: homes/cars) are all things people should be able to afford with really any job. Everyone should be able to afford a roof over their head and transportation. Period.

 

[finnickthedog]

Even living a modest life style, it's not like the debt is just no big deal. Student loan deferments due to COVID are the reason that I'm able to have things like an emergency fund and savings towards a down payment on a house. If I'd been making loan payments/saving for taxes from the start, I'd be a lot further behind on what are actually some pretty low bar life goals.

It would also be a lot easier to manage if I was making twice my salary (or more) as a human doctor. Making more money wouldn't mean that my lifestyle goals would change--it would just make the goals I already have easier to achieve.

And I do not regret my career choice at this point in time. I'm very happy at my current job and think I got exceedingly lucky with where I landed. I never wanted to be a human doctor. But if my happiness in my career ever changes? I can't afford to leave the field. That is a big deal.

 

[battie]

Harsh is pretty subjective. As others have said, it is insulting for non-practicing individuals to discredit the information given by people actually living the experience, including the survey links I posted. Finances and mental health are 2 of the top 3 concerns of *practicing* vets. Hence why the advice that is given year in and year out is to get as much exposure to the field and talk to as many vets as you can to get a balanced look at what it is like for the average practitioner.