I think Liz’s comments about the need for an intermediate position in the vet field is so important. The vet field requires doctors to spread themselves too thin throughout the day with so many additional tasks (client communication, finance) that it is more difficult for them to see as many patients. Where would we even start an idea like this?
there is an intermediate postion and its called licensed veterinary technologist! (Nurse once the VNI goes through). I've got my BS in Veterinary Technology and have been practicing for 22 years. My scope of practice is somewhere between an RN and a Nurse practitioner.
There is currently a strong push to standardize definitions and abilities for licensed veterinary technicians - something that should have been done decades ago. Licensed veterinary technicians are grossly under-utilized, which has adversely affected their ability to be compensated. There is no reason that an LVT (or CVT, etc) cannot be paid production. Many states actually allow a licensed veterinary technician to do A LOT under the indirect supervision of a licensed veterinarian - but again, this varies by state. Hopefully we can get that cleared up and transition to a more nurse-heavy service model.
I 100% agree with everything you guys talked about. I’m a receptionist/technician at a very busy vet clinic in Minnesota. Support staff is hard to find, we have been doing on the job training for vet assistants since 2 of our tech schools have closed down within the last few years. Our prices have recently increased a significant amount and clients have to make hard choices on providing treatment their pets. The Covid situation has also been putting extra strain on us too that we have never gone through before. I love my job but it is stressful! I have recently found your channel and I am finding it very interesting! Thank you for putting real life veterinary issues out in open for all to see/hear!
Loved this video and totally agree with you about many of the problems. You hit on the big ones. The other things I have encountered as issues in our profession (I am also a vet neurologist and also married to a vet ER doc!): 1) Decreased possibility of owning a practice or becoming an equity partner due to overwhelming presence of corporations and increased cost of running a practice 2) Inability of academic hospitals to compete with the salaries of private practice, meaning some of the most talented teachers can't teach because they need to pay off their student loans. This inevitably results in students, interns, residents, not getting the best training possible 3) Veterinary non-competes - while this is illegal for doctors in many states or they may have a smaller radius, smaller time restriction, almost all vets are forced to sign extremely restrictive non-competes which inhibits competitive salaries, makes it more difficult for hospitals to find doctors, and decreases the likelihood of owners finding nearby care. This is huge. We don't have "trade secrets" or anything like that in our profession, so a non-solicitation agreement should be sufficient. If the job and management are good, the staff will want to stay. 4) Lack of emotional support to deal with compassion fatigue, difficult cases, etc. For large specialty hospitals, I believe having a veterinary social worker available for personnel and clients as well as a devoted end of life/hospice doctor would change things drastically. I know having one or both of these things is unlikely. Veterinarian's health insurance plans should all cover mental health issues. 5) Separation of veterinary care and finances - When was the last time you talked to your doctor about how much a treatment or hospitalization costs? Medical doctors are able to communicate much more efficiently about the actual diagnosis, treatment, prognoses, etc. because their conversation isn't clouded with finances. If veterinarians had a devoted person available to discuss finances with clients, I believe it would separate the animosity around "veterinarians charging so much" from the medical information that needs to be conveyed. Instead, having the medical conversation mixed in with the cost conversation bluries the lines for clients between doctor and salesperson. Yikes... I mean there are really so many things. I feel like a lot of issues were coming out of the woodwork before COVID hit, and then the pandemic has really highlighted them. Obviously, a lot of the issues and possible solutions I brought up are just something I see working in a specialty hospital. Would love to hear more of Liz's take on being a full-time mom and full-time vet.
A wow a fellow neurologist! Sounds like we have mirror image lives. Where are you based at (if you don't mind me asking)? 1) Yes - all you have access to really is share purchases which have nowhere near the growth potential as being an actual partner. 2) I think you're probably right here but I will say that those who prefer academia are probably those who don't care about $ at all to begin with. 3) Non-competes are the most immoral thing in our profession from a business standpoint. I battled this leaving chicago and was told by my boss that I would be sued into oblivion if I went even 0.2 mile within my 25 mile radius. Totally ridiculous. 4) I think end of life/euthanasia should be its on sub-specialty and practically speaking, would share space with physical therapy in a large referral practice. 5) I totally agree and I've tried to get this changed for 6 years now. Unfortunately that seems to overwhelm techs and tech assistants because its more work than they already have. Thanks for your comment!
@@DVMCellini I am currently a locum/relief neurologist actually in Chicago as of 2 months ago. Before moving, I looked at full-time gigs here, but they weren't the right fit, so I don't want to sign on anywhere for now, then be forced to move across the country again, away from my family, and away from my husband's new job, which seems like it will be a good fit.
I wanted to mention, there is something between a vet tech and a doctor, which is a VTS (Veterinary Technician Specialist). Techs can go through a process similar to the process to get boarded as a DVM specialist. Giving VTS's more responsibility and a wider scope of practice just makes sense.
As a Vet dermatologist I wholly agree for the need for vet NP even in all veterinary care and even specialist care. I have dedicated LVTs who want to specialize in dermatology and I wish we could offer them something like a NP and they make production. Great video. Cheers guys.
Thank you for acknowledging how little techs get paid for the amount of work they do. I’m about almost done with tech school but now doing a couple pre reqs to hopefully go to vet school because I know I won’t be able to live off of a vet techs pay. I really like your videos, thank you!!
Loved this vlog! I liked hearing Liz’s perspective on some of the problems in veterinary medicine. Sounds like you two make a great team to thrive as parents and in your careers.
Thank you so much for posting this. These discussions are so important for both the industry and for pet owners to understand. More Dr. Liz plz ! Y’all are awesome.
YES to more urgent cares! I do think, however, that veterinary technicians deserve much higher wages- not necessarily production (though that would be fair and motivating), but appropriate compensation for our labor and expertise. After 10 years in specialty surgery I'm still living paycheck to paycheck, and I'm not alone. We are leaving because we HAVE to in order to earn a wage that allows us to consider having children, or not rent, or take a vacation. The toll on our bodies is profound, and this career is a terrible long-term plan. Being on call all of the time, being understaffed for years...I understand why people leave. Vet med is going to have to recalibrate the current structure in a massive way if practice owners want to keep experienced and competent technicians, especially ones willing to constantly train new hires which ultimately leave for other careers.
Yeah the market is going to reset eventually. The places that can adapt will (pay techs more) and those that can’t will function at lower capacity. Simple as that. If I owned a practice I would give quarterly bonuses to techs. No doubt in my mind. They’d be based on their service’s gross revenues.
I think once every state requires licensure for LVT/Nurses, then that will help to force the pay up. That and practice owners in states where it has been required actually following the law. There are still many practices hiring folks off the street and calling them technicians in my state where its been required to be licensed(so go through a lvt program and pass state and national boards). I know back when I first started as and LVT many private practice vets didn't go to school with vet techs working at their vet teaching hospitals, so they didn't seem to know what to do with them. I have a BS in Veterinary Technology. It was a very intensive program very similar in scope to what human BSN programs are like, except we had to cover many species!! I know I was ecstatic when I got hired at the University because I knew I'd be 'used' properly! LOL. I've switched departments a couple times but still work at the University.
My state has required licensing for well over a decade. It hasn’t changed a thing. At least 85% of clinics still allow unlicensed assistants sometimes with only a few months in the field to induce, intubate and monitor anesthesia. They don’t care at all, and I’m in a huge metropolitan city. Nobody’s checking on them, and if you report them yourself you’ll get a bad reference/bad reputation in the field. Changes are coming, but they’re trying to make it much easier for people to get licenses without having to do the thousands of hours of classes, labs, and study time.
Enjoyed this video! Interesting questions and responses. I agree with creating a vet practitioner to bridge that gap for dvm and taking on the workload. I wish they would make that. Do you guys enjoy working in the same field…. of vet med? More videos with Liz! 🙂
I think the idea of a Veterinary PA is a great idea. They could probably do cat neuters, see clients with ear mites or fleas or ringworm, administer vaccines, prescribe antibiotics for simple/obvious ailments, ear cytology (I only know cat stuff - not sure what the easy dog stuff is). I am appalled that where I live you can make more working a retail job than you can as a Vet tech. I help run a neonatal kitten rescue and see how hard the vet techs work, doing administrative work and practicing skilled medical support. They deserve better, and Veterinarians should earn more as well! I also like the "not shaming" people for not wanting to spend thousands to save their animals, and as you said, 20 years ago, there weren't even options. I would imagine it is hard for a Veterinarian to know that an MRI would help you look inside and know if a pet was savable, but the owner can barely afford the emergency room office visit fee, let alone all the diagnostics available. About MRI - I (human) can get one done at the hospital for $4000 and pay cash (high deductible health care plan, first 5k is out of pocket) or I can go to an imaging center and pay $550, so someone has figured out how to not have an MRI cost $2000- $4000.
I just thought of another question/video idea. How about some of the most common (and possibly preventable) reasons why animals end up in the ER. I know in Canada there have been lots of articles saying that ever since marijuana was legalized, veterinarians have seen a massive rise of poisoning in dogs.
I think first and second point definitely go hand in hand, pet care is going to get expensive as techs leave the field in droves due to lack of adequate pay. Higher pay brings these techs back and brings new ones in the field. I haven't graduated tech school yet and already am wanting to give up. I knew going in the pay was not great, but having been in the field and worked as an extern the pay is NOT worth it compared to the work load and it is very disheartening. I do like the idea of a veterinary NP but I think technicians need title protection first before we add a new title and degree. Right now any clinic can hire someone off the street to perform "tech duties" and pay them diddly squat (less than an RVT does..). Getting that title protection will distinguish a tech from an assistant, and therefore a vet NP from a tech. Great conversation!
We adopted a well behaved, trained dog that was abandoned, no tags or chip from a rescue grooup. Within 3 months, we discovered he had lived cancer. We assumed his prior owners found out and just dumped him. We were offered oncology support but was told it would cost thousands for treatment. If he went back to rescue shelter, it would have meant quick euthanasia. We kept him and made him comfortable with drugs and care for about nine more months. We figured being with a family was the best option for him. We still spent about a thousand on his care. So sad.
As far as getting more qualified support staff I think it would also be helpful to make it possible to become a certified tech in either small animal or large animal instead of having to do both. There is such a big difference between the two and most people have a definite preference. Less time and less money to pay back.
Okay, finished. Thank you for a great talk! I am so on Liz' side when it comes to the euthanasia stigma talk. I think it's important for us with both humans and animals that a good death is a thing and death is not always the enemy. One of the best things I've ever heard from a vet was that in her opinion, bringing your pet to the vet, even if it ends with euthanasia is always an act of love. I really loved that, and I agree with it.
I can only partiallly agree. In my opinion (I'm a vet in Germany) the problem is not the stigma of euthanasia. The problem is that people choose euthanasia out of financial and not out of medical reasons. In the German animal protection law ("Tierschutzgesetz") it states that animals are only allowed to be killed if there is a valid reason for it - financial reasons don't fall in that category in Germany. Veterinary medicine is becoming more and more expensive and advanced. That shouldn't lead to people euthanizing their companions for financial reasons. I totally get that many people don't have 5000$ lying around, but if you know that you don't have that kind of money I personally think you should get insurance for your pet when you decide to get/adopt an animal. On average full insurance is 40-60$ a month. If you decide to take in an animal you should be able to afford that. If not - maybe now is not the time to adopt an animal. There are still many other ways to have contact with animals like volunteering at a shelter, dogsitting,... For people who already had their pet and then got in financial trouble there is the option to get financial aid to the treatment costs by the local shelter (at least in my area: Munich, Bavaria). I know this isn't 100% applicapble to the situation in the US, but I think the general trend around the world is similar.
Yes please do more videos like this one.I am currently treating my male !ab for cancer so I can relate as to the cost of chemotherapy, it is very expensive but this is likely the only option for him so of course I will do whatever it takes to help him.My Veterinary is very skillful and I'm so appreciative of him and our cancer specialist so hopefully my sweet guy will come out on the other side of this.I have and always have had the most respect and admiration for Veterinarians thanks for what you all do🙂💜❤❤
Hey there, 4th year vet student here! I'd love if you could do a video on how you went about tackling your loans and any recommendations you have to manage them right out of school. Just found your channel and can't wait to see more!
Wow more Liz please. I agree yes develop a program so u can have PAs or NPs in vetinary medicine as like here unless emergency it takes several weeks to get a appt with your vet. I loved this . U guys should do more together ❤. LOL love how your 1 brother who introduce me to u. WHAT female Vets get paid less?? Seriously? That's just wrong!! Thanks I loved this !
Insurance is a good option. I have Trupanion for my pets and it's been completely worth it! They can pay your bill at check out and saves vet clinics processing fees. I used to HATE when people would tell me "I don't pay that much at my human doctor." You're right, but your insurance pays a lot more.
Great discussion. Yes, urgent care for small animals with PAs and assistants is a wonderful idea. We have something close to this in our town, but not considered ‘urgent’, but more so, emergency. Shands is 45 minutes away and their small animal division along with the help of some local veterinarians, opened up a clinic. My Boxers have made several visits there over the years with minor emergencies and while they do have a DMV on staff, the rest are students. Much the same when you visit shands small animal clinic in Gainesville, where we have spent more time, sadly, over the years. You are greeted and intake is done with students. I feel fortunate we have these facilities close by.
In my general area have an urgent care clinic as well as a newer chain of emergency hospitals that are a step below specialty. The ERs have still been slammed, forced to reduced hours, etc but I think they take at least some of the burden off.
I just discovered your channel and have been binge watching all your videos! Would you consider making a video comparing different vet specialties (pay, work life balance, demand, etc) in the future?
Very interesting the first point your wife soeaks about. I thought only here in third world countrys the cost of vet carne si an issue, especially because our income is relatively low in comparisson with living costos, so sometimes ( or often) the owners can not afford an simple x Ray or complete blood analisis. 🇺🇾
I agree with what Dr. Roy is saying about the level of care advancing greatly compared to decades ago - but hemilaminectomies were a thing 20 years ago :) (2003 UCD grad here - they were certainly cutting backs when I started vet school, I’m not *that* old yet ;)). Maybe 35-40 years ago they didn’t exist? MRI before spinal surgery is definitely an advancement from the last 2 decades though (vs myelography).
yes, hemilams were done 20 years ago with myelography, but there was much less stigma/guilt for owners that did not elect to go to those lengths, because even then it was somewhat expensive. But now that MRI is more easily available, it is accepted as the standard of care and I don't know a surgeon or neurologist that will cut a spinal patient without an MRI and this along with other advances in treatment has doubled the cost of this level of care (and of course also improved outcomes of treatment). This means many more people today comparatively cannot afford the available care, but they feel even more greatly the guilt of knowing that treatment may be available yet out of reach financially for them. Not to mention the exponential increase in popularity of breeds like the Frenchie that are predisposed to severe health problems.
Great video. I find the cost of vetinary care is in the grand scheme of things not too bad. I have two healthy dogs, and annually it is probably less then $1000 (except for the very infrequent emergency). I can definitely see how it can get expensive with imagery and other specialty care. I do have to admit, I was not even fully aware of specialties in the vetinary world, but good to know in the event it is ever needed.
@@DVMCellini my oncologist was amazed to learn that we did bone marrow sampling veterinary patients. (I also let him know that we provide much better analgesia!)
Looove your videos doctor !! Thanks a looot !! I'm graduating this year from vet school after 7 years, I hope yo become as successful as you both are. I will probably start youtube channel too. Cheers.
Thanks for this video. I certainly hope the European development does not cross the Atlantic - we are out of veterinarians. Hospitals closing at nights. People travelling hundreds of kilometers and still not being accepted at the only open emergency care facility, because they are understaffed. We also have a problem with our nurses and techs, but more so with veterinarians. And a main problem is the family - work-life - balance. How many male vet students are there I the US? They started with having a minimum amount per year of male students here (so they get accepted no matter what). I think it all comes back to why the profession changed so much in the last 50 years...?
Right now, I think pay discrepancy is a huge issue. I can say in our area that people will absolutely make more money working at a grocery store than they can at entry level veterinary assistant position. I know that the people I hire really want to do the job I've hired them for(they've decided to take lesser wages) but how do you keep employees with the stress they have to deal with and the pay that we offer?
Whether or not a pet gets expensive care, also depends on their age (an elderly dog wouldn’t benefit much from expensive, uncomfortable procedures), their health (a dog with cancer can’t understand why it’s away from it’s owner for treatment and it can’t understand why it’s in pain), and what will the costs and time for care do to the family that cares for them? In many ways it’s like care of geriatrics in the human population. The family has to balance all these things when arranging care for their elderly, parents. I’ve seen much suffering done in the name of “it’s for their own good”.
As a former professor and boxer foster, I always suggested that adopters start a special savings fund to cover veterinary costs. I set aside enough each month to cover all annual costs plus enough to add to an emergency fund. This has been a lifesaver for many of my boxers. One of my students and adopter has followed this religiously. She now has $5000 extra saved and earmarked for her girls. I'm so proud of her that I match half of her vet bills.
I tell people the same thing! Just pretend you have an insurance premium only set it aside yourself. That way you can still use it if you don't use it (you know what I mean).
Here in Germany all that stuff is done by our nurses. They clean, do XRays (and CTs and MRs), monitor Anesthesia, put in catheters and collect payments. Though I wish at times we had nurse consults here in germany for the more trivial stuff light changing a dressing. The horrible thing with ER duty of course is, that (et least here in Germany) 80% of what I deal with is basic trivial stuff that takes only time and could have waited till Monday (or 800 whatevers next) anyway. Since we are required by law to add an out of hours fee additionally to the otherwise doubled fees that has gotten much better. Prices for services are ridiculously high in the US. When I do an MRI for a Disc it will be around 800,- with Anesthesia. MRI + surgery around 2000 Euro and on top of that hospitalisation. Thr truth is of course that our hospital owners are in the middle of learning that no one wants to work for them anymore. And the biggest issue is not payment (which is much lower than in the US) but work life balance. Spinal surgery for discs in dogs btw was started in the 80s. Kind of glad though we dont do Radiographs with Myelography anymore. Now I didnt practice in the 80s but from what I see the amount of discs to be operated on has gone through the roof. So from a breeding standpoint I dont think we are doing us a favor with our high tech medicine (see French Bulldog rant). While we dont do much else than do surgery on French Bulldogs spines I cant see frenchies last as a breed another ten years if they continue that way. While Pet insurance was ubiquitous in the UK, what really ticked me off there were the Vets (and Chains) that designed their business around getting a much off the 3 or 5 grand a plan might pay a year for a dog or cat for the least possible work with ridiculously inflated prices and sometimes completely unnecessary procedures. Lots of customers there told me in my face that they wouldnt do what I told them because I wanted to fleece them only anyway. Which I thought was very sad from a professional point of view. Sorry that was kind of random. Great channel!
The problem is support staff can't afford to live of the low wages... it's an unfortunate truth! The mid level provider is a good idea, but that will involve a boat load of money for schooling, and I don't think the increase in pay will make up for that.
Honestly with the support staff shortage, I think employers are finally realizing they can’t retain people while paying them barely above minimum wage.
Drs., Here in the boondocks (rural southeastern Ohio) there are not plenty of veterinarians and recruitment is exceptionally difficult, at any pay scale. But on the up side we can get good support staff relatively easy. Also, as long as veterinary nurses are legally veterinary technicians, there will be no middle position between us and technicians. If the human nursing profession is against calling them veterinary nurses, what would they be called? Technician practitioners?
Great video, Jim (as always)! Please do include Liz in some future videos. It would even be cool to see a "day in the life" video of an emergency vet, or of the emergency practice in general as it varies from a primary vet's office. (Does that make sense? ie - How a specialty clinic or emergency vet center practice differs from a typical vet's office.) Best regards to both of you from the warmer climate of Houston.
Also, how do you deal with technician mental health? We've been trying to fill tech positions but it's just not happening. Techs are stretched to the limit. How do you keep your staff happy and healthy?
We don’t. I mean if I were in charge I know what I would do (give them quarterly bonuses based on their services gross revenues) but where I am we suffer from that like everywhere else. Look eventually this market is going to reset itself and we’re gonna have to either pay these people more, expect less work from them, or start hiring high school kids and cycle through them every 3-4 years.
@@DVMCellini This is so true. As an ER vet, that worked as vet tech in general practice and ER for years before vet school, II couldn't agree more. If I hadn't been able to move on to earning a better income as a vet, I would have changed to a different field entirely. I hate to lose good support staff, but have to support their smart decision to change their career. This ultimately makes our work as vets so much more challenging.
I couldn't agree more about costs, as well as people being unprepared. But also when you compare it to human medicine is where I feel like you go wrong in some ways. If I go in for an CT my insurance is billed and I pay the copay, and any other associated fees I am responsible for according to my insurance plan .... YET, My dogs have insurance and just this week my dog needed a CT, I got it preapproved, but still I had to pay 5k out of pocket (11k total for eveything), at a trupanion sponsored hospital ... they got automatically reimburse by trupanion ... and now I have to wait 3-5 weeks to get my money back from the hospital. I have been using this hospital for 10 years, with not only my dogs but many of my rescues dogs. Vet med needs to start accepting pre-approval from insurance companies.
I’ve been accepted into a pre-veterinary program for this next fall. What in your opinion are some of the most important classes to take, especially if you want to one day own your own practice. Other than the Business classes, because I’ve been taking some of those through my schools College class programs.
I would focus solely on the pre-req courses that whatever vet school(s) you're looking at, require. For business classes I don't know if that's going to be served in undergrad, aside from just general business classes. So that but also I am a huge fan of youtube financial channels - MeetKevin, Andrei Jikh, Graham Stephan, "Millenial Money", et al. There's more learning going on there than anywhere else I think.
On the topic of needing more technicians, how do you feel about the states that don't require education for techs? I went to school, I get my CE every year, but I now live in a state where that's not required and it angers me, so much that I, a tech with 10 years experience and 3 in ER, left the field because it wasn't worth the verbal and overwork abuse anymore.
We tried to get the insurance for Dex. He came from the pound with a slew of preexisting conditions. We try to put the money away every month that the insurance was. But I fear the day we won’t be able to take care of our kid. For the moment, he is getting his dental this week. Without my dental insurance mine would be close. I understand this.
I think the greatest problem is trust. I've been visiting vets for 50 yrs and the changes are very disappointing! I've received quotes on vet care over the phone and once I'm in the office the price has more than doubled. I've seen services preformed that were unnecessary or duplicated. I see vets insisting 4 series of shots is now better than 3. I'm seriously disappointed in this field of medicinal care for animals. I'm so sorry that VET SCHOOLS are so expensive now, and student loan amounts are, now astronomical. But, is that my fault or did my dog cause this problem? I've become a very dissatisfied customer. But I was probably spoiled by my vet (age 73) who was honest and ethical and had NO STUDENT LOANS!
Can gou make a video about the vet cost and the cost off be a vet in europe the cost diffrent and the cost off vet school usa vs europe vet school cost is ther a diffrent betven usa and europe itt wood be relly funn the se iff it is the same ore not
It’s fascinating to watch both of you! Could you both address about the suicide rate among small animal veterinarians? Would either of you consider moving to a more rural area, and taking on farm animals?
I think the problem with vet techs is the pay. I know i personally looked into it several years ago and they make barely above minimum wage. I understand they usually do it because they love it and not necessarily for the paycheque but if you are the main source of income then its not possible to pay bills on that wage. I understands vets arent paid like human doctors either so im not criticising them either.
My wife retired after 45 years as a veterinarian. She’s a broken person after practicing with primary progressive Multiple Sclerosis. Now, the big money Wall Street jerks have moved in to grab profits out of the products and supplies veterinary medicine needs to care for patients.
As graduated veterinarians you have a certain skill set to work with, however, there are other skill sets and other approaches, which you have probably never been exposed to that may address the disease or trauma state just as well or better than drugs and surgery. The ultimate medicine is 'energy medicine,' which few practitioners have the level to practice and would not be acknowledged by licensing agencies. I am not a fan of licensing agencies because it is about collecting money and control. There should be a review by peers should any complaints or lawsuits arise.
I have been saying this for a while. A mid level professional would help to generate income for a practice to then be able to afford to pay the rest if the support staff a living wage. It is sad that someone can make the same or more working in a grocery store than as a veterinary support staff member. This has been an issue for so long but it has reached a peak with COVID.
Hello Drs. thank you for sharing. If you may, share with us how do you handle compassion fatigue? Especially after euthanasia, I can feel a part of my soul just died, I'm failing the animal and the owners...... Thanks again
true, I'm thankful that my boss is a great person and allows us to take a long holiday to recover. I believe this should be a norm. To allow for mental health day off. Thank you for your reply.
I volunteer with a German Shepherd rescue and I’d love to see a video on your prospective on how rescues impact vet care, pet over population, and possible issues with rescues! We pull a lot of dogs from Texas and they’re transported to Virginia:)
The discussion about pet inequality was hard to hear. I am fortunate to be able to provide my pup with the care she needs. I hate to admit it but I never thought about people who have to euthanize their pets due to financial difficulties. I assume that most people have pet insurance or a doggie fund that they put into, like I did.
If you haven’t already, would you do a video on pet insurance? In general, the first thing I look at on any insurance policy are the EXCLUSIONS (because it seems that those things are more likely to happen). I worked with health insurance in my career as an RN and became aware of so many loopholes and things to be aware of … I have always been skeptical of pet insurance, but maybe it’s better than I have imagined (and has improved from it’s initial reputation).
I have a question! Do you/y'all believe pursuing a career focusing in low cost animal healthcare is worthwhile? I'm a senior and am readying for vet school and want to help low income people, but am not sure how realistic that is.
I need to research this more. Also its hard to answer a broad question such as that, because being "worth it" can mean so many different things to different people.
Our cat gat relly relly sick about 1in the Night and the 24/7 vet is about 2h away . cost wos about 780! butt! thank good for i have the cover so about 220Euros insted off 780euros i dont now prize size cost betven USA and Europe as i live in Finland 🇫🇮 Butt 220 heck better then 780euros
How about some light hearted questions? Cats or dogs? Favourite dog breed? Is there a breed that you think is an absolute spawn of satan... like every single one you have met is an absolute asshole? Do you agree that people tend to take after or resemble their pets?
Great video!!! For people with generally healthy adult pets, would you recommend a pet insurance policy or just setting aside money? Do you have a preferred pet insurer?
Put aside money. Have $5000-10,000 sitting in a money market or other high interest savings type account. That way its totally liquid and if you don't use it for vet visits, you still have the money.
Agree 100% with Liz re the patriarchy. I am a vet who is now a human doctor and I think that the salary and work conditions in veterinary medicine are driving people away from that profession. The way to fix that problem requires raising prices, thus worsening access of animals to care. I don't think there's an easy answer to that issue.
@@DVMCellini over here insurance has wide exclusions and is expensive and therefore not popular as it isn't good value (you pay a lot for something that won't pay when you need it eg excluding all chondrodysplastic breeds from IVDD related claims because it's a known breed issue).
@@wordsfindme I find that to be a totally reasonable exclusion. The purpose of insurance is to protect against the unanticipated. If it is reasonably anticipated (such as brachycephalic obstructive airway syndrome, spinal issues, etc), the breeder or owner should be prepared to assume that cost. The challenge is that people need to be educated on the problems with these breeds and the current costs of veterinary care in general.
