30 Hilarious Stories From Vets About Pets And Their Sometimes Clueless Owners

Bored Panda contacted Dr. Georgia Jeremiah, DVM and CEO of Furmacy, who kindly agreed to share her personal stories and insights regarding veterinarian jobs!

Speaking of funny stories, Dr. Georgia remembered: “I performed a surgery on a dog who had eaten an item of clothing that had become trapped in her small intestine. When discharging the patient, I presented the offending article of clothing to her owners in a ziplock bag. The man looked like a deer in headlights when the woman slowly turned to him and said 'these underwear aren’t mine'. Needless to say, I left quickly and let them sort it out!”

She also shared one more story that she remembered: “I had an elderly client who was struggling to get his severely obese dog to lose weight. We formulated a diet and exercise plan that the owner was dedicated to following, yet after a month, the dog’s weight was still stable. I asked him to keep a journal of everything he feeds the dog down to the morsel as sneaky treats are often the culprit. He later presented me with a journal that showed an additional three cooked meals plus treats that he fed his dog alongside his formulated diet. Once we removed the pancake breakfast, the dog dropped 20lbs!"

“Veterinary work is incredibly rewarding , but can be emotionally draining. Every day you get to make a difference in the lives of pets and their owners and no two days are ever the same (as cliché as that sounds). It’s also funny - I cannot imagine doing another job that would make me laugh as much as vet work,” she emphasizes.

“The hardest part is usually dealing with owner expectations and financial concerns. There is often an assumption that you will know what is wrong with an animal simply by examining them, without performing any diagnostic tests. Whilst this is often the case, we still require diagnostics in a lot of cases to reach a concrete diagnosis. Because most people pay for these costs directly out of pocket, it can be challenging to formulate a plan for a pet’s care that encompasses the diagnostics you wish to perform and takes into account an owner’s financial situation - a scenario that is less common in human medicine.”

Additionally, Dr. Georgia Jeremiah shared that “Saying goodbye to an animal is bittersweet in most cases and euthanasia can truly be a gift, yet as an ER vet, I frequently encounter cases where an animal is uninsured and the owners have limited funds to treat. As I don’t own the hospital or control costs, we do everything we can to lower the expense or seek alternative funds for them, yet euthanasia is sometimes the most humane option. It is the most heart-breaking aspect of veterinary medicine where finances limit your ability to do your job and many vets have received death threats or worse for not treating animals for free. It’s why the suicide rate amongst veterinarians is one of the highest out of all professions.”

Now, as it is clear that the veterinary profession is hard, but rewarding, she shared her favorite part of her job: “Being able to save critically ill animals. When a pet enters my hospital on a stretcher, struggling to survive and walks out of the hospital back into the arms of his or her owners. It’s priceless.”

And finally, as in every job, there are misconceptions. Dr. Georgia shared few of them that are common in veterinary:

“We do it for the money: most of us have crippling college debt and earn a fraction of what our human doctor counterparts earn.

We play with puppies and kittens all day: We are usually rushing between consultations with chronically or critically ill patients, covered in all manner of bodily excretions whilst trying to stick to our schedule. We’re sorry if you have to wait, most appointments run over due to unexpected symptoms that need evaluation. But please - bring us your puppies and kittens, we love puppy and kitten cuddle therapy when we get a chance!”

And a few more:

“My pet doesn’t need a yearly physical exam: Your pet’s yearly physical exam helps us pick up any signs of disease early on. Most of the time, there are no issues, but it’s a great opportunity to discuss any concerns you have with us and for us to get an update on your pet’s health status. I discover more health issues performing yearly exams that you would believe and I’m grateful to be able to catch them quickly. We are also not legally allowed to prescribe preventative medications such as flea & tick products without seeing your pet on a yearly basis.”

And of course, don’t forget to check out Furmacy and Wag!, the best places for you if you have a pet or if you are thinking about getting one - keep that in mind!