Vets, why do so much for animals?

Veterinary School Application Advising Ad
This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
P

Phillystudy

New Member
5+ Year Member
Joined
Jan 26, 2017
Messages
2
Reaction score
0
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Members don't see this ad.
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...
Humans are gross
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...
I'm not a veterinarian yet, but, I must say that, when you help someone's animal, you help them as well because many people find it therapeutic to be in the company of an animal, even if the animal does nothing more than sit next to them.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...
To me, animals deserve care and respect because we are a compassionate species. To me, it is inhuman to see animal suffering and not feel the pull to fix it.
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...

We need humans that help animals, too. And humans that help both animals and humans, which veterinarians do quite a bit in a lot of ways.

In a nutshell, I am pursuing a career in vet med because I care very deeply about the applications of medicine for the human-animal bond, animal welfare, public health, and conservation. I want to be able to make some small positive difference in the world in this context, if just for one animal and/or human at a time.

Is vet med my entire world? No - and I hope that it never is. That's not healthy for anyone. It is a significant part, however - and definitely more meaningful to me than being just a job.
 
I work in public health now. I've worked in public health in the past. I want to work in public health post vet school (assuming that happens). My ideal career hinges on the interface between human and animal health so for me, there is no "helping animals" or "helping humans." I will use my skills and education for the betterment of us all - preferably on the med/vet entomology side.
 
I've had family members try to persuade me into human medicine too, but I would be terrible at it. To be honest I feel more compassion towards a sick animal than a sick human, especially the whinny, lying variety of human patients. I tell people that animal health means just as much to the animal as it does to humans-that whole One Health idea and all.

Also I am not a vet yet, but veterinary medicine is not and hopefully never will be my whole life. I think it is more than a job, it's something I've aspired to and worked for; but in the end I have a life (at least until I start vet school in the fall)
 
Members don't see this ad :)
Wow, thank you for all the great answers! I've been a little discouraged lately with a lot of "what's-the-point"s. Could any of you who've been at this longer than I have tell me what the best part of doing it is? Not just those already doing it, but anyone who's studying it too?
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...

Because we are the reason many of these animals exist. Therefore we owe it to them to give them good lives pertaining to their circumstances, which includes veterinary care.

As for the best part, I like the diagnostic process, particularly in the ER.
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...
Besides helping humans emotionally by helping their animals, a lot of veterinarians help humans globally through research on vaccines, disease, drugs, etc. These vets might supervise the animal portion of drug/vaccine testing or be the authority on animal models of disease. Veterinarians are currently on the forefront of the Seoul virus outbreak, which infects humans (and have been in the trenches of many outbreaks before this). Veterinarians help feed the world by managing herd health and overseeing the meat industry.

Look up the One Health initiative. It's a great source of info about the roles veterinarians play in human health. If anything, it proves that vets are better than human physicians 😛

Don't get me wrong, not all vets will have some sort of lifesaving global impact, but neither do all human physicians. Some people ask plastic surgeons why they'd rather do plastic surgery than cancer research, for example.
 
Animals are an integral part of our existence and touch many facets of our lives. Whether it be the food you eat, the lab rat that helps us research new therapies, or the companion animal that you actually love more than your sibling, animals play a part.

No need to save any more hoomans, we need massive depopulation anyway 😀
 
wheelin2vetmed said:
Animals are an integral part of our existence and touch many facets of our lives. Whether it be the food you eat, the lab rat that helps us research new therapies, or the companion animal that you actually love more than your sibling, animals play a part.

No need to save any more hoomans, we need massive depopulation anyway 😀
Click to expand...
Also b/c Corky is too dang cute.
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...

Personally, if the questioner was anything other than an MD, I would just blink slowly and say "well.... why didn't YOU become an MD. And btw, my job DOES help humans."
 
A related theme in some comments from family members (before I stopped going to holidays with them) was that they couldn't believe how much people spend on like, an MRI or spinal surgery for a dog. There are starving children, people can't even get healthcare, etc....

I would usually ask them why they didn't donate the several hundred or thousand dollars they spent on televisions, phones, etc, to the starving children or foundations for people to get healthcare or whatever, if they're that concerned about where money is being spent in society. My pets are certainly worth more to me than any electronics and I say that as a major techie.
 
cellowars said:
You're saying that because you have low self esteem.

Sent from my XT1254 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...

You could not be more wrong, my friend. It is quite a common sentiment.

May I suggest that you spend more time listening (or reading, in this case) before making yourself look as silly as you have here.
 
nyanko said:
A related theme in some comments from family members (before I stopped going to holidays with them) was that they couldn't believe how much people spend on like, an MRI or spinal surgery for a dog. There are starving children, people can't even get healthcare, etc....

I would usually ask them why they didn't donate the several hundred or thousand dollars they spent on televisions, phones, etc, to the starving children or foundations for people to get healthcare or whatever, if they're that concerned about where money is being spent in society. My pets are certainly worth more to me than any electronics and I say that as a major techie.
Click to expand...
This is also my go to snarky response for people.
 
Phillystudy said:
I myself am an aspiring vet, and sometimes I'm posed with the question of "Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.
Click to expand...
I think it's much more than a "job."

For what it's worth ...

I care about helping human patients remain healthy, safe, vital and well. For that reason, I chose to become a member of the "medical" profession.

Veterinarians care about helping their patients remain healthy, safe, vital and well. For that reason, they chose to become members of the "medical" profession.

We're all in the medical profession together - although our patients might differ.

I cannot imagine a world without veterinarians!

Veterinarians are some of the most intelligent, compassionate, hardworking, authentic, and genuinely all-around "good" individuals that I know.

They do more than we will ever imagine to help animals (and humans) stay healthy and well. In addition to providing expert medical care for our companion pets, they help to feed everyone by ensuring that much of our production food supply remains safe for consumption. They conduct valuable and tireless research that helps animals (as well as humans) maintain healthier lives (e.g., developing new drugs that benefit animals and/or humans, plus disease control). They work in wildlife medicine and in sanctuaries to help preserve endangered species (that are often endangered due solely to the selfishness or carelessness of humans). They help in breeding, fish & game, and conservation. They work in shelters and zoos; and they also teach in universities and medical centers. Although I could go on even longer, I'll stop right here.

Veterinarians definitely help to make our world a much kinder, healthier, and brighter place for everyone - humans and animals alike.

Actually, now that I think about it: who wouldn't want to become a veterinarian? :cat:
 
Doctor-S said:
I think it's much more than a "job."

For what it's worth ...

I care about helping human patients remain healthy, safe, vital and well. For that reason, I chose to become a member of the "medical" profession.

Veterinarians care about helping their patients remain healthy, safe, vital and well. For that reason, they chose to become members of the "medical" profession.

We're all in the medical profession together - although our patients might differ.

I cannot imagine a world without veterinarians!

Veterinarians are some of the most intelligent, compassionate, hardworking, authentic, and genuinely all-around "good" individuals that I know.

They do more than we will ever imagine to help animals (and humans) stay healthy and well. In addition to providing expert medical care for our companion pets, they help to feed everyone by ensuring that much of our production food supply remains safe for consumption. They conduct valuable and tireless research that helps animals (as well as humans) maintain healthier lives (e.g., developing new drugs that benefit animals and/or humans, plus disease control). They work in wildlife medicine and in sanctuaries to help preserve endangered species (that are often endangered due solely to the selfishness or carelessness of humans). They help in breeding, fish & game, and conservation. They work in shelters and zoos; and they also teach in universities and medical centers. Although I could go on even longer, I'll stop right here.

Veterinarians definitely help to make our world a much kinder, healthier, and brighter place for everyone - humans and animals alike.

Actually, now that I think about it: who wouldn't want to become a veterinarian? :cat:
Click to expand...
😍😍😍
 
Phillystudy said:
"Why do all that for an animal when you could be helping a human?" Does that question come up for anyone else? I'd be interested to know how others respond to it.

Sidenote, I'm curious, is veterinarian mostly just a job to you, or is it something more?
Click to expand...

Because the owner is paying me to help their animal, not humans? Joking aside, that's the root of a lot veterinary work: providing a service to the public, which is to help their animals. Which often helps them from either an emotional or even health perspective. And large animal/public health vets who do food inspection and make sure the food supply is safe for everyone to eat. So we are helping people through their animals. And of course as Abs said, animals are not any less deserving of care than people are, being sentient creatures that fall victim to disease or injury or whatnot. People are not dying or suffering because veterinarians are not pursuing medical degrees.

At this point, it's pretty much just a job to me. A job that can be extremely emotionally draining on many levels, that make me question humanity regularly. A job that I largely enjoy and gain some level of fulfillment from, too. But at the end of the day I do my best to unplug my brain and leave it all at work.
 
dyachei said:
at least I can trip??

😛
Click to expand...
d5ffb2026ee5a44acd4f61f08f6fba21.jpg

🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
 
Premed here, this popped up in my notifications as my daily pick - thought the title was referring to war vets. Please carry on.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile
 
that redhead said:
At this point, it's pretty much just a job to me. A job that can be extremely emotionally draining on many levels, that make me question humanity regularly. A job that I largely enjoy and gain some level of fulfillment from, too. But at the end of the day I do my best to unplug my brain and leave it all at work.
Click to expand...

Yup. I'm with you on that. I go to work, do my job, leave and go home. It has more emotional turbulence than my previous job in that some cases really, really suck (for all the typical reasons), and some are really awesome, but in a big general sense ... I go to work, do it, leave, and try and not think about it when I'm not working.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.

Similar threads

M
  • Question Question
Vet Experience or Animal Experience?
Replies
5
Views
370
mnnatio
M
Kirb
Traditional Small Animal GP Vet Assistant vs Dentist Vet Assistant Job
Replies
3
Views
283
juggling-zebra0831
J
Cowsrcool
Current Vets and Vet students: WWYD?
2
Replies
72
Views
5K
indysadventures
indysadventures
BigBang1234
International Students for Vet School
Replies
23
Views
2K
Minnerbelle
Minnerbelle
C
Female Large Animal Vets- safety in regards to clients
Replies
6
Views
1K
MixedAnimals77
MixedAnimals77
Top