First of all, Merry Christmas/Happy New Year/Happy Holidays.. etc etc. I’m not feeling particularly festive this year however I feel like that is directly related to my job. The weeks surrounding Christmas are always a whirl wind for those in the veterinary medicine world. I’m willing to wager I know that this time of year is chaotic for anyone in any type of health related field. So go you, health professional, for making it through another holiday season.

The main reason my job puts a damper on my festiveness is because Christmas gives people a sense of entitlement when it comes to their pet. If someone has to pay $350 for diagnostics for their pet any other time of year, most are understanding of that. Medicine and healthcare are not cheap – that includes for animals. However if it is around Christmas time, we as professionals are “gouging” the owner of the pet. “Don’t you have a conscience?” “People aren’t made of money, you know” “Don’t you have any Christmas spirit?”. Well yeah, I did, asshole. Up until about 30 seconds ago when you started shitting on me like I’m the one person in the entire world that decides every veterinary cost everywhere. Don’t get me wrong, I understand that money doesn’t grow on trees. A dollar these days sure as shit does not go as far as a dollar did even ten years ago. As a vet tech I am not a stranger to financial worry – I make a measly $20/hour. In a lot of US states, there are vet techs that make half of that. Most vet techs and veterinary support staff (heck even some vets) are not exactly rolling in coin.

Another work related damper are the euthanasias that we see around this time of year. There is usually a rush of death of old pets in the weeks leading up to Christmas. Some people do it because we’re heading towards cold weather if we haven’t gotten it already (-30 C before wind chill) and know that the cold will be hard on them. Horses are usually done earlier, around late fall, so that their owner can bury them properly in a deep enough hole. This year we had a longer fall so we had a rush of horses in the past weeks leading up to the first week of December. Supposedly some people bring in their old, sometimes decrepit pet before Christmas so that the new family puppy/kitten can be given as a Christmas present without too much gloom. I can honestly say that I personally have never had a client verbalize that reasoning to me, but others have. What a bummer.

I’m twitchy typing this because I’m on call as well, yet another reason why I’m not feeling very cheery. I do not mind the on call aspect of my job, but it is definitely a downer that I’m on call the week of Christmas. I had to be limited in my wine drinking (probably for the best) and I couldn’t fully relax during visiting as I kept expecting the phone to ring. Some vet techs are paid to be on call, however you hear of that more commonly in larger centres with larger veterinary facilities. I am not paid to be on call, I am not reimbursed with gas money (I am a 20 minute drive each way to and from). I am paid a minimum of two hours OT which is great, but at $20/hr that doesn’t go very far. Especially when I am called in for a midnight c-section on a dog. Then I drive mach-chicken with my eyes half open to get to the clinic as fast as I can (Picture a tired looking Cruella Deville with blonde hair and you’ve got a pretty clear mental image).

Why do I do it? Why am I working this job if I sound so bitter about it? I’m not bitter, I’m tired. But I love my job. I still love it, just tiredly. I’ll continue doing this job until I no longer love it. When I wake up one day and think to myself “I’m just tired” … that’ll be when I start to consider a career change. But for now, I love it.

Next time I promise a more positive blog entry. I didn’t start doing this to be radiating a false sense of positivity. I did this to be real.