Picture of a cat being treated at a vet clinic

I wanted to publish this excellent photograph by Julie Hough because I want to promote it and her. She’s good. She captured this image for a ‘day in the life’ series about veterinary care. It was taken a while ago according to her. She agrees the words of James Herriot the well-known late vet who said that:

“If only vetting just consisted of treating sick animals. But it didn’t. There were so many other things.”

Day in the life of a vet. Cat on the operating table with three medical staff in attendance. Photo: Julie Hough.

So true because the vet is in a unique situation when delivering medical care to an animal. The animal is the vet’s patient. The client is the patient’s owner/caregiver. The patient cannot give or withhold consent to any procedures and operations. The client acts in the role of trustee as if granted a power of attorney over the cat’s affairs.

It is a complicated three-way relationship, perhaps four-way if there are two owners. A vet has to have good people skills. They have to be sensitive to their clients’ emotions. Being at a vet clinic is emotional for most clients. And it is scary for most animals.

There is raw emotion swirling around the clinic. I guess that is why Herriot said what he said.

Julie Hough says on Instagram that she is a documentary photographer, ex-press tog at the Bendigo Advertiser, Walmer based photojournalist, Victoria, Aus.
and volunteer firefighter. You can visit her Instagram page by clicking on this link.