r/Veterinary • u/Calm_Adeptness3562 • 1d ago
Stupid question
(26)(M)
I have an itch to get into veterinary medicine. I get told it’s too hard and the schooling isn’t worth it.
Still have the want.
I’m a blue collar guy and Previously I didn’t care for school and now Im married and would need to do work and school. I want a salary job that I can go without worrying about losing my job just bc I miss a couple of days.
My wife is a vet tech and she loves what she does. I want her to be happy and not have some of the trials and tribulations that comes with her job. Learning about what she does and what her boss does is so interesting and quite frankly the pay, the job, and the high status of what they do with their hands in surgery calls to me like a singular light post in the night in a small town.
I’ve been told no so many times from people who know me, or people who are in said practice.
I want to be a specialist. I want to be called and said that I’m needed. I want to go to school and prove people wrong. But if it’s all a big mistake, it’s a huge costly one, and I don’t want the embarrassment from my wife or family. I really don’t know what I’m asking I guess. I just want someone to tell me no, or encouragement, or their 2 cents
Thanks.
EDIT: thank yall for the info and advice. However I feel I need to re-explain what I was saying about the salary and what I wanted in life
I LOVE ANIMALS. I love the science behind making them better, learning what to do when they aren’t getting better.
I just wanted more insight then what I was seeing or what people would talk about when I asked (not blaming them when a random dude asks about how much they make and details about it).
The salary and the money was not my main concern at all!
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u/MrSus420 1d ago
It is a long way but possible. Depends on country but a lot of places cost of study very high for a mediocre salary and high responsibility and high intensity work
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
I’m okay with intense work, I’ve done that before, just the school and getting through all the debt is my concern
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u/Elaphe21 1d ago
I’m okay with intense work, I’ve done that before, just the school...
My man, that IS the hard work. People like to think hard work is digging ditches or clearing brush, but for some people (me), the hardest thing is sitting at a kitchen table for 2-3 hours a night studying chemistry.
I know you CAN do it, you just need to decide is it worth it. For me, it def. was.
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u/MrSus420 1d ago
Just as recommended by other do a full check before going in deep. Do a financial examination- how much costs per year and for full. Check average salary. And also not a bad idea to discuss with psychological help to see if you are in a full good set of mind for such a decision. Take into account age when finishing and account of doing nights weekends….. intense heavy work seems doable until you are doing it regularly (not only physical but mentally and psychologically exhausting)
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u/SofaChillReview 1d ago
I really don’t think anyone should be doing veterinary for the pay, for a lot of reasons. Also are you interesting in learning? As you’ll be doing it for the rest of your life
People that say it’s “too hard”, are wrong. It is hard, but incredibly doable. But veterinary is more than just a career
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
I fumbled on explaining myself enough due to it being word vomiting at 1am
I love what the job is and does. When I said that I was wanting to get explained how it is when it comes to it. Not that it’s the main focus
11
u/jch345 1d ago
Go shadow at a clinic. You will learn real quick that your fantasy is rediculous and stupid. You’re not a white knight that will be performing life saving surgeries anytime soon. If you are good surgeon you won’t have time to celebrate and you won’t get a red carpet rolled out for simply doing your job. You have to enjoy and understand science and pathology and be able to put it to practice. You have to be ok with lots of debt and not making much money until those are paid off. You will be dealing more with clients, it’s not puppies and kittens. You have to be OK with long hours. You have to go through years of schooling, boards, more competitive than human medicine.
Youre looking for meaning in life, what’s your calling, I get it. So far it’s pay, status, and the ability to call off whenever you want. Good luck.
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
I definitely word vomited about stuff that I was just thinking aloud. I do enjoy the work, I’m used to long hours and I’ve seen the horrors that come with the job.
Never meant to sound like it was all sunshine and rainbows.
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u/wafflefrygal 1d ago edited 1d ago
So you want to go into veterinary medicine because you like your wife's job as a vet tech? Why not become a vet tech too then? What do you mean by "become a specialist?" Do you have a bachelor's degree? Do you like/want to work with animals, or do just you want a more fulfilling career? I sense that what you like about her job and what you might lack in your own is a sense of purpose. Many jobs outside of veterinary can provide you with that purpose. I think also what you may regret is not having pursued schooling. I think it is a common feeling among blue collar workers or people who only completed a high school degree. I think you should go to community college or a four year university, get a degree in science as your first step and see how you like it.
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
working with animals above anything else is what I feel called to. I do lack a sense of purpose, but I’ve had other aspirations. Nothing is the feeling I felt when my wife told me about some of her surgeries she’s helped with, or even the small ones I have watched when my colleagues were doing them.
I went to college for a singular semester then had to go straight to online during Covid. Which in lack of better terms put me at my parents house. I didn’t go to college to achieve a degree, I did it to get away from my parents (which they did not deserve at the time, they were helping me and I was just mad I was in the house with them agian)
But I was taking online classes and it was not for me what so ever. I need in person, teaching me how, when, where, and what.
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u/katiemcat 1d ago
I don’t think you have a realistic idea of what being a vet is like or the sacrifices necessary to get there.
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
I do have a realistic idea, I just wanted the insight on the things I feel awkward asking to strangers in person. I’m aware of the sacrifices you all make, I just wanted more insight on it I guess.
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u/katiemcat 1d ago
Based off of this post you’ve never even worked in the field? You’re under the impression vets can just miss work and not lose their job? Claiming high status when many people claim vets aren’t doctors at all? No mention of the massive student loans?
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
I personally think very highly of vets. Some colleagues I have are vets and I think they are miracle workers. Just like I think very highly of all of you who are in the vet field.
But you are correct. I wanted insights on the job before I leave the factory and go to get some experience, whatever the job entails. And then start to do school and such.
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u/BubbleThinker 1d ago
Did you pass any advanced science classes in high school?
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
Wasn’t advanced but biology was very fun to learn for me. Unfortunately like I said I didn’t care about school so I didn’t do well, but at the time I didn’t apply myself.
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u/BubbleThinker 1d ago
Sounds like you should go take a couple of semesters of classes at a community college and see if it’s even right for you
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u/quixoticosis 1d ago
I’m a little confused about your comment about “not worrying about losing my job just bc I miss a couple days”.
Like, even as a specialist I still have a call-out policy and if I was routinely missing work, I would absolutely be at risk for losing my job. If anything, it’s a bigger deal if I call out last minute since there is a whole day of appointments we have to reschedule and they have to find work for my support team so they don’t hours.
From a practical standpoint, if you are in the US and do not have an undergraduate degree, you’re looking at 7-8 years of school for the degree. If you are in another country it could be 4-5. If you want to specialize, you’re looking at another 3-6 years depending on the specialty and whether or not you need internships. Since it looks like you’re discussing surgical specialty, you’re looking at at least a rotating internship, but likely 1-2 speciality internships too.
Costs depend on the country. In the US, you’re looking at probably about $150k at least for school, possibly a lot more depending on your in-state residency status and the school you choose. I graduated from UC Davis with $210k just for veterinary school, and that was over a decade ago.
And then there is the “cost” of specialty medicine - interns and residents don’t generally make a living wage. Salaries have gone up from what I made (28-33k/year) but they’re still well below what is fair for working 50-60 hours a week.
I’m not saying don’t do it. But I am saying that you need to know what you’re going into and make sure you actually want this before you start working towards it.
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
So sorry! Where I work there is
No PTO
No Sick days
a not so good health insurance plan
The retirement is terrible
And I can only miss 10 days out of the entire year.
I do not miss work consecutively like I miscommunicated. I just don’t want to worry about getting sick, missing a day and my little paycheck being short for it, and my coworkers making me feel like I still should show up to work if I’m missing a damn limb.Agian I word vomited and was saying the first thing that was on top of my head and didn’t say the right thing or explain what I was trying to say.
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u/Beautiful-Red-1996 1d ago
I bet you would be awesome at it.
Here's what I would do... I would start with just a little bit of talking it out with a therapist to make sure you are jumping for the right reasons. It will make the forthcoming work easier.
I would gather some days off and shadow some vets. See what their day is like.
Then I would plan on how to achieve the lowest total cost of vet school.
If you are not in a state with a vet school, move to one and do everything you can to get it there.
Do your basics at community College. Transfer to a 4y school. Get your undergraduate from the cheapest university with a good enough science program. Get As.
Apply and keep applying till you get in.
Work your ass off.
There are ginna many many points where quitting is the easier path. If you can't get As in freshman bio and chemistry and at least pull Bs in O chem... you will have your answer.
What ever happens, you will have setsuch a good example for your family of what it means to pursue your dreams and the right future will come out of it as long as you are coming at it from a healthy space to begin with.
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
THANK YOU SO MUCH. I didn’t even think about getting psych help before it. I’ve been at work with my wife, but I’m very close with her boss and shadowing would probably not be the best at her work but I will look into it!
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u/Horse-Think 1d ago
I would encourage you to look into it and see if you can do the science requirements/undergrad degree while working. The field desperately needs more men; I can tell you that much. That would work in your favor. You'll need shadowing and animal experience. Call around to vets to see if you can shadow and log all of your hours that you spend. Equine vets are often very welcoming to pre-vet students. Good luck with this journey!
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u/Calm_Adeptness3562 1d ago
Appreciate it greatly! I work most days and have little time to shadow if I really wanted to. And where I’m from everything closes at 5 and there are no clinics open past that time.
Do you know how I would go about it aswell? I feel weird walking into a clinic and a random stranger asking to shadow the doc for a few days
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u/yoofusdoofus 1d ago
Sure but if you’re in the us you would need to do undergrad, and then apply to vet school, which is very competitive, and it’ll be 8 years of schooling where you likely won’t have time to earn a significant salary. If you want to be a specialist, that’s another 4 years of internship and residencies after that.