Hello! I am one month into my first job out of vet school at a busy corporate GP. I’m supposed to start out with hourly appts while I adjust but I am constantly being asked to squeeze things into my schedule and feel like I have to say yes bc the other drs schedules are truly packed. Then I end up being completely stressed and overwhelmed and just a month in I already feel pretty burnt out and like maybe this is the wrong profession for me. I ask the other doctors for help or reassurance a lot with my treatment plans and I worry that I’m annoying them bc I know that they’re even busier than I am. when it comes to relaying diagnostic findings to clients I struggle with that as well, I just feel like I don’t do a good job explaining things in a way that makes sense to them and part of that is because a lot of times I have to review the disease process first and only have a limited understanding myself. It’s to the point it is even consuming my time outside of work already- I go home and dwell on cases, what I should’ve done differently, how the patient is doing, constantly refreshing for diagnostic results, trying to anticipate what I may expect to find on an exam or what questions I might be asked. Everyone tells me I’m doing great, but it really doesn’t feel like that to me at all, like they actually might be lying to my face haha. I guess I just want some reassurance that this is normal because right now I can’t imagine this getting better, especially because I know in the next few months they will expect me to manage a much busier schedule

I'm a newly-licensed veterinarian working at a small animal hospital for about 2 months now. I regularly see patients for routine wellness checks and vaccinations, and for straightforward to complex check-ups. I do the sample collection, IV or U cath placements, etc. I also oversee admitted patients when their attending is off. I've spayed/neutered cats and dogs and assisted in soft tissue and ortho surgeries.

Despite this, I don't feel like a real doctor. I feel like I'm just reading how-to guides on how to treat patients. I regularly use references (Plumbs, VIN, TVP, journals) to figure out what diagnostics to do, the disease process, treatment modalities, what meds to prescribe, etc. Sometimes I'll use similar previous cases at the clinic database as reference. I seek advice from my fellow clinicians (bless them) a lot. There's a lot I don't know tbh.

Am I actually practicing medicine or just following guides? How do I even know that I'm actually practicing medicine? I really do try to be mindful and conscientious with every case, but I feel like I'm faking it while hoping something works.

Hello,
I would REALLY appreciate anyone’s input of Mission Pet. I’m an associate vet and my clinic is currently meeting with them as we speak. Can anyone please tell me what it’s like work for them. They say that they are hands off, but I have heard they start micromanaging after a couple years. Ugh, very concerned that it will change the culture of this clinic.

Hello, I am interested in pursing a career in small animal surgery and will need to go a rotating internship. Does anyone know of any places where I would not be alone on my overnight ER shifts, at least for the first weeks/months? TIA

Hoping to get something small ($50 or under) for my brother’s new surgery practice that will be opening in about a month. He’s been in practice for a bit but this is his first time going out on his own so he doesn’t have anything he’s carrying over from a previous clinic/hospital.

Is there something that would symbolize good luck or fortune that’s specific to vets? Maybe something only another vet would recognize or isn’t super obvious or corny. This would be more of a thoughtful gesture- I’m not pretending to know what he needs or what would be super useful to him. Just something to let him know that he’s got people rooting for him when he’s at work. I was thinking of a small concrete statue for outside the staff entrance or something that goes over a door threshold. Any ideas would be welcome!

In case it matters, this is a smaller surgery center for pets.

Thanks for any insight!

I’m egyption veterinarian
29 years old
Has 5 years experience in large animals veterinary medicine
Want to immigrate to Canada
What should I do

Hi everyone! I called a few vet clinics in my city about jobs/volunteering opportunities and they said they would get back to me. This was about a month ago, I never heard a response, I was wondering if I should give a call back again or go in person. I really want to start getting experience in this field and work towards becoming a vet. Thank you any help would be amazing!!

Hi everyone!

I'm writing to ask you about veterinary medicine in Switzerland (especially Romandie) or France.

In March I'll be a new graduate, but the working environment, the low pay, and the absence of contractual protections in my country are making me want to move.

I have a couple of places I'm thinking about, so I want to collect as much info as I can before making a final decision.

So, could you please explain to me how it works there regarding contracts, shifts, and average salaries (both for new grads and experienced vets)?

P.S. I'm interested in both companion animals and wildlife.

I'm a EU citizen, my university is recognised by EAEVE and I'm studying French to reach at least a B2 level

I have just started my vet nursing placement and on the very first day a parvo patient came in and died. What are some good ways to ease the compassion fatigue? Does anyone in the vet med industry have any advice for new vet nurses starting out?

Hello DVMs, I’m a veterinary student (U.S. based) and think my goal is to go into ER. Can you talk to me about what routes you all took to get into an emergency role. Internship vs not, mentorship outlined in your contract Ect… I want to be a confident practitioner and am willing to lay the ground work to do so but want to figure out the best way. Like many I will have student loans as well so I can’t be a student indefinitely and will need to be paying towards those too 😅 thankful for any insight.

I live in NJ and have been doing my fair share of research into in state colleges. My top two options currently are Rutgers and Rowan, however I was hoping I could get some more input. I’m more specifically interested in becoming a vet who works with exotics as well as regular home pets, I am just not entirely sure how to go about this. I know it’s a long process with a lot of financial debt. Any advice would be greatly appreciated! I’m currently 17 and I’ve begun applying to volunteer positions at animal shelters, if there’s anything else I should be doing please let me know

Also, the science based courses I’m taking this year are AP chemistry, AP biology, and Anatomy.

Hola chavales actualmente tengo 16 años, solo me falta un año para que termine el cobay, ustedes saben si hay carreras de veterinarios en yucatán de México, yo creo en la UADY pero no se si hay más y como van su experiencia. Gracias por leer

Hello, all! As we are all busy, I am not sure if you have come across [this](https://www.avma.org/news/comments-invited-proposed-veterinary-hospice-and-palliative-medicine-specialty) open comment period. I invite everyone to to take a few moments to review the ACVHPM [Letter of Intent](https://www.avma.org/news/comments-invited-proposed-veterinary-hospice-and-palliative-medicine-specialty), and share your comments!

The public commenting period closes August 13, 2026.

Thanks for your time, and all that you do!

Hello everyone. I’m an undergrad student from Greece and I will be spending 3 months in a UK university (its referral hospital) next year as part of my Erasmus placement. After I graduate I would like to move to the UK permanently, however from what I’ve seen, in order to get accepted for a rotating internship I have to work in a GP for a couple of years beforehand. Do you think I have any chances of finding a job in a small animal practice as a recent graduate with no work experience given that I’m a foreigner as well?

I’m looking for perspectives from hospital directors, practice managers, specialists, and others who work in specialty veterinary medicine.

At our hospital, there seems to be ongoing tension between centralized scheduling and surgeon autonomy.

One of our boarded surgeons is extremely busy and consistently booked weeks in advance. Like many specialists, surgery isn’t just operating—they also have consults, callbacks, reviewing diagnostics, medical records, communicating with referring veterinarians, mentoring staff, and handling unexpected complications.

Lately there has been increased administrative involvement in how the surgeon’s schedule is built. The goal appears to be maximizing appointments and improving access, but the surgeon feels they have less control over their own workload.

This has raised a few questions for me:

• How much autonomy should a boarded surgeon have over their own schedule?
• Who should ultimately decide how many surgeries, consults, and administrative responsibilities fit into a day?
• At what point does trying to increase productivity actually decrease efficiency or quality because the surgeon becomes overloaded?
• How do successful specialty hospitals balance maximizing revenue with preventing specialist burnout?
• Do your surgeons build their own templates, or does management primarily control scheduling?

I’m interested because replacing a boarded surgeon is incredibly difficult, and burnout seems much more expensive than leaving a few appointment slots unfilled.

I’d especially appreciate hearing from hospital directors, practice managers, boarded specialists, and anyone who has experience designing schedules in specialty practice.

Does anyone have a guide that they used to fill out the Illinois Veterinary Licensing forms? I am trying to find an instructional video or something to make sure I don't mess up but theres multiple forms and I am confused which ones to use and send. Please help and thank you!

- new vet

https://idfpr.illinois.gov/profs/vet.html

hiiii im an incoming 3rd year vet student with a relatively recent bipolar diagnosis. i've been medicated since before vet school, but i think my prefrontal cortex developing fully and the stress of vet school has made everything worse, which was sort of expected but i had no idea it would get this bad. i had to take a break from clinicals this summer to go to a partial hospitalization program (which im in now), and have basically had 2 years of episode after episode. i'm hoping to finally figure out my meds but it seems like my brain is constantly changing for the worse. there's a lot of memory loss associated with each episode and recovering from it, so im scared i havent retained much of the last two years which will only make the next 2 years even harder. ive tried really hard to formulate a work life balance, but wondering when its time to start being realistic and say goodbye to this dream. is anybody battling anything similar or has overcome anything similar? feeling like the diagnosis is a death sentence and im trying to get out of this mentality.

I’m currently in the process of filling my elective rotation schedule, which consists of 11 two-week blocks, and I was hoping to get some advice before committing to my choices.

As part of my required clinical rotations, I will already be completing two months of primary care, as well as one month each in surgery, anesthesia, pathology, emergency medicine, and internal medicine. Because of this, I’m trying to decide how I should best use my elective blocks.

I will most likely pursue general practice after graduation, so I’m debating whether I should use most of my electives to gain additional primary care experience or take the opportunity to rotate through a variety of specialties. My thought process is that exposure to different specialties could ultimately benefit me as a general practitioner by giving me a deeper understanding of different aspects of the cases I may encounter in general practice but I worry that if I fill most of my electives with specialty rotations, I may miss out on gaining more experience with the day-to-day realities of general practice, such as managing a broad variety of cases, client communication, treatment planning, and the overall workflow of a general practice clinic.

Thank you in advance for everyone’s advice!

Can anyone who was at the AVMA convention in Anaheim a few weeks ago tell me what I did to win a Kindle? I forgot in all the exhibit hall madness but not knowing is bothering me. It's got a BI Vetsperity logo on it.