Here is the uncomfortable question nobody likes asking:
What if some veterinarians leave small animal practice because, frankly, the life inside it is not that attractive anymore?
You are boxed in.
Boxed in by clinic hours.
Boxed in by emergencies.
Boxed in by clients who expect immediate answers.
Boxed in by budgets you cannot control.
Boxed in by patients you cannot fully treat because somebody else decides how far you are allowed to go.
And boxed in by the expectation that because you love animals, you should somehow be okay with all of it.
You cannot just leave at 5 PM because a pyometra walks in at 4:55.
You cannot easily switch off your phone because somebody’s dog is vomiting at midnight.
You cannot guarantee an outcome, but people may still expect one.
You cannot force diagnostics, hospitalization, surgery, or medication.
But somehow, you are still expected to own the result.
That is a terrible deal.
And perhaps this is why some veterinarians eventually look around and realize:
There are other ways to be a veterinarian.
- Industry.
- Pharma.
- Government.
- Research.
- Business.
- Academe.
- Diagnostics.
- Regulatory work.
- Abroad.
Places where your DVM still matters, but your entire life does not have to revolve around a clinic door.
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WHEN LIFE OUTSIDE THE CLINIC STARTS LOOKING BETTER
That realization can be dangerous for small animal practice.
Because once a veterinarian experiences weekends that are actually weekends…
A phone that is not constantly ringing…
A salary that does not depend on how many patients walk in…
A career where one angry client cannot ruin an entire day…
It becomes harder to romanticize clinical practice.
We love saying veterinary medicine is a calling.
Maybe that is part of the problem.
Because once we call something a “calling,” we start excusing things we would never tolerate in an ordinary job.
- Long hours? Calling.
- Underpaid? Calling.
- Missed holidays? Calling.
- Emotional exhaustion? Calling.
- No boundaries? “But you chose this because you love animals.”
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No.
A profession should not require you to sacrifice your entire life just to prove you love it.
And maybe the most controversial truth is this:
Small animal practice can become a very small box for someone who suddenly realizes how many other doors a veterinary degree can open.
So when a veterinarian leaves, stop immediately assuming:
“They could not handle practice.”
Maybe they handled it for years.
Maybe they simply looked at the box they were living in and finally asked:
Why am I still inside?
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LEAVING DOES NOT ALWAYS MEAN FAILURE
Because sometimes, leaving small animal practice is not burnout.
It is not weakness.
It is not failure.
Sometimes, it is the moment a veterinarian realizes that being a vet does not require spending the rest of his life trapped inside a clinic.
Dr. Geoff Carullo is a Fellow and the current President of the Philippine College of Canine Practitioners.
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