NO PLACE FOR VET ABUSE
Animal doctors stand united as people take advantage of their calling
IT’S a dream job for many but there’s an ugly side to being a veterinarian, says Townsville nurse Lisa Wood.
Ms Wood has worked at Hammett Street Veterinary Surgery for seven years and in that time has borne the brunt of verbal, and sometimes physical, abuse from disgruntled members of the public for just doing her job.
The attacks have left Ms Wood feeling shaken, vulnerable and with permanent scars.
One of these altercations happened recently when a man dropped a stray male labrador cross to the vet service.
Unfortunately the dog’s microchip details were incorrect and the pup was taken to the council pound 24 hours later, as per clinic policy, after its owner could not be located.
The man returned several days later with a friend to inquire after the stray dog but when told it had been taken to the pound, became agitated, Ms Wood said.
She said the men became “cranky” and verbally attacked her, calling her cruel and using their physicality to intimidate her.
“He got really cranky and said we must get something out of this for calling the pound, and then he banged his newspaper on the counter,” she said.
“He just kept arguing and saying we were cruel and we had to ask him to leave.”
A similar altercation with another customer led to Ms Woods taking extended sick leave at the end of last year.
She said she had lost her confidence and was scared of being “torn to shreds” while doing her job.
“I feel angry and really upset that he thought we were getting something out of it because we are all in it because we love animals and the last thing we want to do is send them to the council,” she said.
“People think they can manipulate us because we love animals.”
Ms Woods’ story is not an uncommon one, with several other local vet services, including Wulguru Veterinary Clinic, Ross Island Veterinary Clinic and Palms Veterinary Group, all reporting similar behaviour.
Now they are standing together in solidarity to let people know that physical and verbal aggression is unacceptable.
In the last two months, Hammett Street Veterinary has helped 21 stray dogs and seven stray cats.
Twelve of the animals were microchipped, while eight did not have up-to-date details.
Ms Wood said it was critical pet owners kept their contact details relevant with their pet’s microchipping company.
“You get excited because you hear a beep on the scanner but you call the number and it has been disconnected,” she said.