I had a big weekend. Wore my vet hat on both days, busy clinic on Saturday after what was a very stormy night here in Ocean Grove, and attended five end-of-life appointments across the weekend, each carrying a significant emotional load:
A distraught family whose older pug drowned in their swimming pool after the cover blew off in the storm. We think he became anxious and disorientated while outside. It was absolutely tragic.
A family with limited finances whose adorable little toy poodle developed a paralysis of unknown diagnosis, and they exhausted their funding and emotional reserves to continue to support her care. One of the daughters was beside herself, and we held space for that moment.
We farewelled a loveable giant Labrador who lived well beyond our expectations - with seizures and mobilty decline - and even though he could no longer stand, his spirit, heart and head continued to love this life and his humans. He had belonged to my client’s father who died in 2016. They are together again.
A lovely young family whose 10 year old cavoodle was declining rapidly with liver failure. It was time and a home burial allowed them space for ceremony, ritual and farewelling.
Sunday night call from a distressed elderly client who has health issues herself, and lives alone after losing her husband two years ago. Her feisty little foxy was diagnosed with a bladder tumour last week and she went in to crisis on Sunday with a complete blockage. This client does not drive, and her family are not close to her, but fortunately she has been embraced by our community through our home care assistance program with our wonderful Community Vet Nurse paying her regular visits. In recent times we have assisted with pet transfers and on Sunday, in their hour of need, we were able to attend and support them both, so that her little dog could pass peacefully and our client could access the support she needed.
Come 9.30pm Sunday night I felt wiped, emotionally and physically. “What weekend”.
So it was timely that on Monday morning I had my scheduled virtual presentation to the SA Parliament Joint Committee into Mental Health and Wellbeing of Veterinarians.
We sent our submission from Cherished Pets Foundation back in February and were honoured to be invited to present (virtually) this week.
It was my first experience presenting to a parliamentary committee and I enjoyed it immensely. The committee members were lovely, Both the Chair, Sarah Game MLC and the Hon Nicola Centofanti MLC are veterinarians and understand the issues first hand. The vibe was relaxed, so I could be myself. Even at my age I get quite nervous with this sort of thing. Fortunately my cat, Jaycee (pictured here) was by my side, albeit slept thought the whole thing! Pets make everything better.
Here's a summary of some of what I said + other thoughts since :)
After 40 years in practice, I've developed my own resilience and strategies to cope with the emotional burden that comes from being a vet. I incorporate ritual, music and honour walks in to my tool kit, and lean on my family and our Cherished Pets Team for support. But I know many younger veterinarians are breaking under pressures that have intensified dramatically in recent years.
Vets are not just treating animals—we're absorbing our community’s disconnection, a loneliness epidemic, cost of living pressures, emotional trauma, and rising social issues. Vets are baring witness daily to people’s struggles. And we also know that when people struggle, animals suffer. Our role in supporting pets and people has never mattered more; pets have never mattered more, and so do the veterinary teams that care for them. Imagine a society without companion animals and veterinarians. We can’t. They are integral to the fabric of a healthy society, and yet often overlooked when it comes to community and health based funding.
The combination of a deepening human-animal bond, public misunderstanding of the true cost of veterinary care, rising expectations of clients, and lack of support mechanisms for veterinary teams to respond is leading to a perfect storm which fuels the tension playing out in veterinary consultations across our nation. The issue is very real and contributing to the profession’s mental health crisis. I take a moment here to thank veterinary teams who work in emergency and critical care. That’s a challenging gig.
In summarising my submission I called for the SA Government to consider immediate investment into:
Veterinary bill assistance for eligible and vulnerable people, against a framework and process for eligibility, access and fairness for all, and a demonstrated commitment to ethical pet ownership;
Independent social veterinary services such as that modelled by Cherished Pets Foundation, with a multidisciplinary and skilled professional team of Human Animal Bond (HAB) Practitioners including social workers, community vet nurses, allied health professionals, program support and skilled volunteers.
I am grateful to the Parliament of SA for this enquiry. My home state is taking a lead, which is largely thanks to the tireless work and advocacy of Sophie’s Legacy. Let’s hope the SA Government takes on board recommendations to the Committee and takes this opportunity to truly lead the way in creating a sustainable and supported veterinary profession, which in turn will contribute to a healthier, connected society.
A transcript of my presentation and the Q&A will go live on the website mid September and we’ll share a link to this when it is available.
#SocialHeartedVet #VeterinaryMentalHealth #OneHealth #CherishedPets
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