Amelia Yu treasures the letters and gifts of appreciation she receives from the owners of pets she has helped in their time of need.
But although her experiences with clients are overwhelmingly positive, she says a rising number of negative interactions with belligerent and abusive pet-owners have prompted her and other vets to speak out.
In a profession with a suicide rate four times the national average, Dr Yu wants to raise awareness of the stressful working conditions faced by vets.
"We always have that feeling that we will get shouted at get screamed at ... that we have no heart," Dr Yu said.
"We have 'no compassion' for our job. And yeah, that will make me cry."
Dr Yu is one of many vets across the country who have reported a rise in aggressive and belligerent behaviour from customers, often in response to the cost of treatment for their pets.
She said she had personally faced retaliation for suggesting that owners who wanted to euthanase their pets try to rehome them instead.
One client screamed at her when she provided a quote for hospitalising a sick dog.
Sophie's Legacy, a South Australian not-for-profit, yesterday released a survey of 600 veterinarians that found mental illness was an issue for two-thirds of those who responded.
The organisation was founded by the family of veterinarian Sophie Putland who died in 2021.
The family started a campaign urging people to be kind to vet staff, including posters to be displayed in clinics across Australia.
Expectation rises with status of pets
President of the Australian Veterinary Association Bronwyn Orr says there is a rising trend in clients lashing out at vets.
"I think a lot of these negative client interactions come from ... either the cost of veterinary care is higher than what they feel [it should be] or that they can pay," Dr Orr said.
"Or that they essentially expect miracles to be worked."
Dr Orr attributed the trend to society's changing relationship with pets.
"For some people they consider them quasi-children, or they call them 'fur kids'," she said.
"That status of pets as has risen and as a result, the expectation for their care and treatment and interventions has also increased."
She said it was one of several factors that contributed to poor mental health in the profession.
High stress, long hours and the emotional burdens of working in animal health were among the other stressors they faced.
Raising awareness through social media
Christopher Tan uses social media to try to educate the public about the impact abusive behaviour had on vets.
A recent video about his experience of being sworn at by a client who was unhappy with the quote for veterinary fees was liked by about 48,000 people and attracted more than 4,000 comments.
"The majority of the comments are quite supportive," Dr Tan said.
"A lot of them are people from the industry saying things like, 'This is exactly what I go through.'
"It's really nice and comforting to know that this is not a problem that's isolated to me."
Dr Tan said he originally started making videos to show the public what happened to their pets behind the scenes, from teeth-cleaning to sedation in preparation for an x-ray.
He said he wanted clients to have a better idea what their vet fees were paying for.
"I feel like as a client that would give me peace of mind, that me spending this money, this is the results that I'm getting," he said.
He said online support groups for vets were frequently filled with comments from vets struggling with their mental health, feeling they were the target of "emotional blackmail" from clients who tried to pressure them to treat animals at no cost or a lesser cost.
"You've got people that say things like 'If you guys had a heart, if you guys had compassion, you would be doing these things for free'," he said.
"It's difficult because how can we help people and animals and not look like we're in it for the money when diagnostics costs money?"
Research costs of pet ownership, say vets
Dr Tan and Dr Yu suggested that prospective pet owners research the potential ailments that pets could have, particularly certain breeds, and decide what kind of treatment they could afford.
They also suggested exploring the cost of pet insurance or, if that was too expensive or seemed unreliable, set aside some money periodically in case their pet needed medical treatment.
Dr Yu also asked that people consider how they behave toward vets regardless of whether they agreed with the cost of treatment.
"Please be nice, just be a kind human being," she said.
Dr Orr said governments should consider introducing financial safety nets that provided some financial support for pet owners to treat their pets in emergencies.
In the meantime, she said some vet clinics had to enforce "zero tolerance" policies to protect their staff.
