Viewing a single comment thread. View all comments

SentryCake t1_iw6mm1o wrote

Reply to comment by Red_Iine in Man donates $18K worth of self-care items to 118 animal shelter workers by btsil001

My dream was also to become a vet- I started going through the animal rescue path.

We all love the happy ending stories, but then there’s the cases where the animals are in such poor condition they don’t make it. It sticks with you forever.

I know that vets (and vet techs) see even worse things. Hope you’re doing okay.

34

SchnozzleNozzle t1_iw6u2wd wrote

I did work experience as a 15 year old hoping to be a vet. The RSPCA brought in 30 rabbits from an old woman's house who had died. She'd been keeping them all over the house - in the oven, in the microwave, the bathtub. They were all very sweet but some of them were in a state. Matted, injuries from fights, nails overgrown and curled into their own feet.

I had to hold about 10 of them as they got put to sleep. The rest were treated and rehomed.

I'm a human doctor now. I couldn't cope with playing an active part in death.

32

bebe_bird t1_iw745ee wrote

And here I'm dreading the day we have to make the choice to put our 10 yo dog down, even tho she's in perfect health and I'm hoping it's 4-5 years down the line

(she's a beagle, although she had a neck inflammation/pulling her back out type scare about a year ago where the vet was encouraging us to do a $10k surgery - we don't believe in spending that much on our dog, although there are ways to afford it, and I seriously thought we'd had to say goodbye. Luckily she responded well to about $300 in medicines and hasn't had a relapse)

My point is, I'm dreading a one time event that vets/vet techs have to deal with so frequently.

8

SchnozzleNozzle t1_iw7gna9 wrote

Same but my dog is 2. I sometimes read rainbow bridge stories on r/dogs and then just worry.

7

IndigoBluePC901 t1_iw7hreh wrote

Did you know there is pet insurance?

4

moose_tassels t1_iw8fwy1 wrote

This. I have Trupanion and they are amazing. Knocked my 23k bill down to 3k. Which is still a lot but hell, I would have remortgaged my house, sold my vehicle, I would have done anything for my kid. Didn't have to thankfully.

5

bebe_bird t1_iwa6vgv wrote

I do - we actually cancelled ours because the annual maximum was $1500 and monthly payments were $40/month - and essentially only accidents were covered (nothing that was preventive care or pre existing condition, which included arthritis for us). That was when she was 6 yo and it kept getting more expensive every year she got older. It just wasn't worth it for us, but maybe there's better policies out there.

2

Red_Iine t1_iw72bu1 wrote

You bet. That was 18 years ago (my god). Stumbled into a career I love

6