To think being a vet must be way harder than being a doctor

[Finlesswonder]

Obviously both must be hard!

But a vet has to know everything about a whole bunch of species, from conditions to how totally different bodies work.
Plus they have to do surgery as well as general check ups.
Plus they have to euthanise.
And PLUS there's a fear/danger element with some animals I guess.

If we were I'm an apocalypse situation, don't you think a vet would be handier to have around than a doctor? Could a vet operate on/diagnose a human if push came to shove?

You're right, in Australia at least the suicide rate among vets is four times that of the general population.

I agree to me it’s very obviously harder to be a Dr. Lose a puppy and you might regret it, lose a baby or a father or a sister is scarring.

Access to means is not the primary reason for suicide in veterinary profession.

This is simply not true. Vets who lose patients take it VERY personally.

I’m a human doctor. I resuscitate people for a living, including children, and have to tell their families, including parents, when I fail.

Five of my close dr friends have died from suicide in the past ten years.

I wonder if perhaps both jobs are difficult.

I’ve heard being a paediatrician is the medical equivalent, tiny, vulnerable patients who can’t tell you where the problem is. Plus very worried, stressed parents.

I'd say both jobs must be difficult.

I bet being a vet would be nicer if you didn't have to deal with some humans though.

Vet nurse here, yes it's a tough job! It is for us nurses too tbh. As others have said vets are amongst the highest rate of suicide, I wouldn't say this is due to access to drugs though, more the nature of the job. It is very upsetting to lose a patient (animal or human!). You also have to work to people budgets which means quite often the best pathway of care cannot be given. Then there's the clients that blame you for everything and call you money grabbing when they have absolutely no understanding of the cost of medical treatment & drugs. Making decisions to put animals to sleep is also tough, even when it's for the best. Then there's RSPCA and charity patients which can be extremely distressing cruelty cases. Much like our fellow human doctors and nurses the workload is endless and fast paced. It's actually nice to see people appreciating the industry! 😊

Well animals can tell vets their symptoms unlike some patients with doctors, but not been either so cant really comment specifically

@lampformyfeet i think you’re being obtuse. It is very clear to most people that the death of a human being is vastly more upsetting than of an animal.

Not in my household, or with my family and friends. I grieve for the animals I've shared my life with in the same way I grieve for the humans, they may not have had 2 legs and look like me but we shared a bond.

@lampformyfeet

It would be more stressful to feel responsible for the life of a human you've never met than an animal you've never met before.

Nearly every single one of us would choose to save a close family member over a beloved pet.

Loss of human lives have more impact.

Apologies, that was to @L1ttledrummergirl

In your opinion @ZairWazAnOldLady
Not necessarily in my household either
So you don't speak for all

@MargosMangos all is very different than “most”, but to be honest I would imagine the number of people who value an animals life equally to a humans is vanishingly small.

I think that’s extremely unusual, if true.

Doctors are largely publically funded, and while they have to use their funds economically, they don't generally have to give their patients cost based options for treatment.

Vets are largely privately funded, and have to discuss the costs/benefits of treatment options, which may end in cost driven euthanasia. Which is why every vet I know (only 2!) has a number of pets adopted from owners who couldn't afford treatment.

I think both jobs are hard

Vets obviously treat more species. But they probably don't get the bredth of disease a Dr would. A lot of what we treat in humans would be PTS in an animal, and a lot of the treatments/surgeries we do wouldn't be done in an animal.

They also tend to specialise so you often don't get a vet who treats every type of pet/horse/farm animal. You don't get a lot of vets that treat every type of pet!

Then again a lot of doctors specialise, and some jobs can be more harrowing than others in medicine.

Also a lot of humans cant describe their symptoms effectively, and that can sometimes complicate things. Obviously no animals can.

I imagine making the decision to PTS can sometimes be very difficult

I don't think you can really say one is harder than the other. Treating living beings and dealing with, and having responsibility for, their life and death is always going to be a challenging career.

Don’t know if harder but guessing so in a way. I’ve been educated on Mumsnet by vets with things such as mandatory bloods and other tests prior to planned routine ops such as desex/neuter on young seemingly healthy animals. When I’ve been perplexed as we don’t do this for seemingly healthy humans before routine ops, it seems animals are very different and all this pre work that you wouldn’t deem necessary with humans is critical. Seems a lot more complex.

Not me. I don't feel more than passing, mild sadness over the deaths of people I know (including family members). My animals, and animals I've never met, or met in passing, mean far more. I don't give a toss about most humans.

"Currently, the occupations with the highest absolute and relative risks of suicide are chiefly those employing workers in low skilled, and some skilled, positions. The likely correlates are precarious employment with episodic unemployment, a predominantly male workforce, a relatively high incidence of workplace accidents and lack of consistent social support. High rates of alcohol and drug misuse are also associated with increased risk of suicide.

Proportional mortality rates are high in some occupations – veterinary practice, farming, dentistry, hospitality and
cultural work - where the factors above may be less relevant than access to means of suicide and selection of
vulnerable individuals" HSE 2022

It would be more stressful to feel responsible for the life of a human you've never met than an animal you've never met before.

Only in the sense of legalities for me, @Vintagecreamandcottagepie . I'd feel emotional concern and distress for an animal (well, a cat) far more than for any human.

"If true"? So, are you saying @L1ttledrummergirl is lying, or can you simply not conceptualise that humans can love and bond with other species as much, or more than, their own?

I'm not convinced about this claim either. I would think the highest rates of suicide are among the marginalised/those suffering from addictions and mental health problems and those in truly traumatic work settings such as war zones. Not medics, dentists (?!?) and vets.

I know a couple of vets and ex vets and they all HATE it. One friend said of her group of 6 vet friends from uni, only she is still a vet 10 years later.
She works in a poor-ish area and spends her WHOLE day euthanising healthy pets because people dont have insurance, and crying because she has to make difficult decisions without any support.
Vets also aren't worshiped like doctors. And they typically earn the same as a Marketing Manager.