If Vets Knew What They Know Now: Lessons from Owners Who Almost Quit

When I graduated, I thought the hardest part of being a vet would be diagnosing tricky cases. I imagined myself solving mysteries like “House” for animals. What I didn’t imagine was sitting at my desk at midnight, surrounded by unpaid invoices, wondering if I should sell my car to cover staff salaries.

That was the moment I almost quit.

And here’s the thing: I wasn’t alone. Almost every clinic owner I’ve spoken to has had that night — or something like it. The night where you ask yourself: “Why did I ever think owning a practice was a good idea?”

What I wish someone had told me back then is that the medicine is rarely the problem. It’s everything else: staff dynamics, clients who think Google knows more than you, and the relentless pressure to make payroll every month.

Lesson 1: Cashflow Is a Beast No One Warns You About

One of my first shocks as an owner wasn’t clinical at all. It was when I realized that you can have a packed waiting room, and still be broke. The problem wasn’t income — it was cashflow. Clients paying late, suppliers demanding early, and taxes lurking like a shadow.

What finally clicked for me was this: profit on paper means nothing if you don’t have cash in the account. The day I started tracking cashflow weekly instead of monthly, my anxiety went down by half. I wish I had done it from day one.

Lesson 2: Staff Don’t Quit Clinics, They Quit Chaos

I lost my first nurse not because of money, but because I was disorganized. She was tired of showing up to shifts where the schedule changed last minute, medications were missing, and I was too frazzled to listen.

When she handed in her notice, she told me: “I love the animals. I can’t handle the chaos.” That sentence haunted me. It forced me to realize: if your team is drowning, your clinic is already sinking.

The “aha” moment? Culture is built on clarity. Once I started setting clear schedules and actually asking staff what they needed, turnover dropped dramatically.

Lesson 3: Clients Don’t Remember Prices, They Remember How You Made Them Feel

There was a time when I obsessed over being the cheapest clinic in town. Spoiler: it didn’t work. Clients didn’t flock to me because my consult was €5 less than the competition. But when I stayed 15 minutes after closing to explain a diagnosis to a worried owner, that person came back — and brought three friends.

That’s when I learned: price is rarely the dealbreaker, but trust always is. The sooner you accept that, the sooner you stop undercharging and undervaluing your work.

Lesson 4: Burnout Doesn’t Arrive With a Warning Label

My breaking point came on a Sunday morning, after a 70-hour week. I found myself crying in the storage room because I couldn’t find the right size catheter. Not because it was truly catastrophic, but because I had nothing left to give.

What saved me wasn’t “self-care Sundays.” It was learning to set boundaries. Closing the phone at 9pm. Hiring someone to handle admin even when I thought I couldn’t afford it. Saying “no” to that one extra appointment at the end of the day.

Burnout sneaks up slowly, but recovery only starts when you take back control of your time.

Lesson 5: The Vet Owner’s Job Is to Step Out of the Exam Room

The hardest pill to swallow was realizing that if I spent all day in consults, the business side crumbled. Vet owners who make it long-term learn the lesson of stepping out of the exam room often enough to actually run the business. Hiring another vet to

free up my time felt terrifying, but it was the only way the clinic grew.

The Turning Point

I nearly walked away from the practice more than once. But I didn’t. And the vets I know who almost quit didn’t either. We learned the hard way that success isn’t about being the smartest vet in the room — it’s about being the one who adapts.

If vets knew what we know now, they’d realize the stress, tears, and chaos are part of the journey — but not the whole story. There’s pride too. There’s joy in seeing a team thrive, a client trust you, or a clinic finally turn a corner.

Final Note: You Don’t Have to Figure It Out Alone

I wish I had asked for help earlier. Whether it was a mentor, a consultant, or outsourcing parts of the workload, it made all the difference.

That’s why at DxVet, we created tools to support clinic owners: from our ROI Calculator that shows exactly where your money is going, to tele-diagnosis services that free you from complex imaging cases. Because your energy should go to leading your clinic — not burning out inside it.