I’ve loved animals ever since I knew what they were. As a child, I had a guinea pig, a rabbit, three cats and a dog. I always imagined myself becoming either a teacher or a veterinary nurse. Once I left secondary school, I started studying to be a teacher, but realised I didn’t enjoy it enough halfway through my degree and switched to a veterinary nursing course.
In 2021, I began studying to become a veterinary nurse. I loved the study, and was fascinated by the anatomy and physiology and nursing techniques. I graduated in 2023, and began working as a registered veterinary nurse.
I started my career loving my job. I adored nursing animals back to health, conducting nurse clinics, managing hospital wards, carrying out diagnostic tests and monitoring surgical procedures. I saw many interesting cases, and cared for a wide variety of animals and wildlife, including a kiwi, fawn, hawks, lambs, a goat, a turtle, a hedgehog, birds, wild cats, stray dogs, rabbits, guinea pigs as well as the standard cats and dogs.
For all of the highs, there were unfortunately many lows. I saw animals being mistreated, abused, owners not being able to afford treatment leading to the death of the animal, and owners not following care advice leading to the deterioration of the animal. I pulled muscles and damaged my back lifting heavy dogs, got scratched by feral cats and had to go to A&E a few times, got bitten numerous times, and had to chase a runaway dog across town. Obviously part of the job is assisting with euthanasia, as well as supporting owners through this difficult experience. Unfortunately, workplace culture amongst veterinary professionals isn’t always great, which I sadly experienced. Many people aren’t aware, but veterinary professionals are two to five times more likely to commit suicide than any other profession, which is appalling. Veterinary nursing also has one of the highest drop out rates of any profession within 5 years, which I am not surprised at.
I found my time as a veterinary nurse to be interesting, inspiring, fulfilling, draining, depressing and emotionally damaging. Unfortunately, the general public doesn’t understand the difficulties of the profession, and many still believe vets are in it for the money, which is far from the truth.
As a veterinary nurse, you are a surgical nurse, hospital nurse, orthopaedic nurse, oncology nurse, paediatric nurse, radiology technician, phlebotomist, laboratory technician, pharmacy technician, receptionist, emergency nurse, isolation specialist, cleaner and emotional support worker all rolled into one. Not only is the pay terrible, it is incredibly physically and emotionally challenging and definitely a labour of love above all else.
Ultimately, I have decided that the profession is not for me long term, for a combination of reasons. Although for most of my career I really enjoyed it, it became too draining for me to continue with it and still be able to lead the life I want to live. I will remember my time as a veterinary nurse fondly for all of the animals I fell in love with and cared for, the friends I made, and the knowledge I gained, but it is time for me to move on to a new challenge that is more supportive of my long term physical and mental health.
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