What are the pros and cons of being a vet?

Pros:

• Pay. The average pay for a veterinarian is between $90,000 and $100,000 per year. This figure is nearly double that of the median salary in 2022 of $54,000.

  Veterinary ophthalmologists and pathologists have an average salary ranging from $156,000 to $199,000 annually. Salary for vets is determined by both specializations as well as geographic location.

• Work-life balance. Veterinarians earn a salary that allows them to limit their time at work to a traditional forty-hour week. Except for vets that have chosen to go into emergency veterinary medicine, most vets can work Monday through Friday with ample time to spend with friends and family.

• Variety. In addition to choosing the specific area of veterinary medicine to practice, vets can see various types of animals on a given day.

  Large animal vets work with livestock primarily but also care for exotic animals at zoos and wildlife preserves. Small animal vets see family pets primarily but also care for birds, hamsters, and snakes.

Cons:

• Length of training. It takes a minimum of eight years to become a vet. Students will complete their four-year undergraduate degree and four years of veterinary school.

  Many vet school graduates remain to complete internships or residencies lasting five years or more before they seek board certification in a specialized area of veterinary medicine. For some, it takes the same time to become a veterinarian as it does for others to become a medical doctor.

• The debt potential. Because of the years of formal training in becoming a vet, most students graduate from veterinary school with debt. In 2022, 83% of vet school graduates left school with loan debt. The average student loan debt for vet school students was between $157,000 and $188,000.

• Working with difficult animals. Much like doctors, vets seldom see patients on their best days. Unlike medical doctors, a vet is largely unable to communicate with their patients, making patient interactions more difficult.

  While many animals taken to a vet or animal hospital are pets and acclimated to people, some are wild. Injured animals unused to human interaction can be dangerous.