SCARBOROUGH, Maine — There seems to be a shortage in just about every industry due to the COVID pandemic, and veterinary medicine is no exception.
The industry was short on workers prior to COVID-19 but a surge in pet adoptions brought on higher demand for vets.
"We're seeing about 60 percent more patients than we saw compared to a year ago," Dr. Ginny Gill with Rarebreed Veterinary said.
According to an APPA National Pet Owners Survey, there was also a 67 percent increase of households that have added pets to their families nationwide.
"The vets around here aren't taking new animals," Bobbie-Jo Lary of East Millinocket said.
She and her family adopted a dog during the pandemic, but it's the family's cat, Wishbone, who requires care.
"With having to put the cat down they're like 'oh it's a waiting list it's gonna be a while' and we don't have a while she's getting sicker," Lary said.
Sean Miller with Rarebreed Veterinary said the vets want to help these animals, "They're willing to stretch and extend and see patients outside of normal working hours and on weekends and, 'cause they really care."
With that comes compassion fatigue. According to the Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, veterinarians are three and a half times more likely to die by suicide than someone in the general public.
The study adds that women veterinarians are two and a half times more likely to die by suicide than male coworkers. Miller says 90 percent of people coming into the field are women.
"I think it is hard in these times to make the choice between working a job that may be relatively lower-paying and the demands at home," Dr. Gill added.
Miller and Gill say they are working to provide more mental health resources in order to keep the veterinary workforce healthy.