About the Book
A Compassionate Calling offers an unflinching and deeply personal look into the realities of the veterinary profession.
Dr. Marie Holowaychuk, a veterinary specialist with experience in academia, emergency and referral hospitals, and general practice, weaves candid personal stories with evidence-based insights from published research. In 40 concise and thought-provoking chapters, she explores the hidden curriculum of veterinary school, the toll of on-call work, the emotional impact of euthanasia, the challenges of practicing during a pandemic, and many other important topics. Marie also tackles pressing issues like diversity, equity, inclusion, and the evolving dynamics of pet insurance and corporatization in veterinary medicine.
Despite nearly 90% of pet owners viewing their animals as family members, few truly understand the challenges veterinarians face daily. This book pulls back the curtain to address questions such as:
Why don’t some veterinarians recommend the profession to others?
How do distressing events, like euthanasia and moral stress, affect veterinarians’ mental health?
What do veterinarians wish pet owners knew about the emotional and mental toll of caring for their animals?
With its blend of heartfelt storytelling and practical insights, A Compassionate Calling is essential reading for pet owners, aspiring veterinarians, and anyone curious about the veterinary profession. Practicing veterinarians will also find comfort and connection in its honest exploration of the joys and struggles of veterinary life.
Table of Contents:
PART 1. Journey of a Veterinary Critical Care Specialist 1. Pursuing a Lifelong Calling 2. Between Pre-Vet and Practitioner 3. The Path to Veterinary Specialization 4. The Challenges and Realities of a Residency 5. Adventures in Veterinary Academia 6. A Departure from Academic Life 7. Transforming Overwhelm Into Opportunity 8. From Crisis to Compassion PART 2. What I Learned About Veterinary Medicine Along the Way 9. The Road to Becoming a Veterinarian 10. Veterinary Education's Debt Crisis 11. The Hidden Curriculum of Veterinary School 12. Meeting the Demand for Veterinary Specialists 13. Stories from Veterinary Intensive Care 14. Navigating Euthanasia in Veterinary Medicine 15. Ethical Dilemmas and Moral Stress 16. The Paradox of Compassionate Veterinary Care 17. Compliments, Complaints, and Client Incivility 18. Examining Toxicity in Veterinary Practices 19. The Burden of On-Call PART 3. What We Now Understand About Veterinarians 20. Professional Identify 21. Playing the Veterinary Victim and Martyr 22. The Hidden Struggles of Perfectionism 23. The Human Side of Veterinary Mistakes 24. Mental Health in the Veterinary Profession 25. Recognizing Mental Health Stigma 26. Confronting Compassion Fatigue 27. Addressing Burnout Among Veterinarians 28. Finding Balance With Boundaries 29. Unveiling the Tragedy of Veterinarian Suicide 30. Realities and Resilience Amidst the Pandemic PART 4. What the Future Holds for Veterinary Medicine 31. The Rise of Veterinary Corporatization 32. Insights Into Pet Health Insurance 33. Transformative Technologies Including Telemedicine 34. Striving For Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion 35. Redefining Veterinary Education for a Dynamic Profession 36. Exploring Veterinary Frontiers Outside Clinical Practice 37. The Unsung Heroes of Veterinary Medicine 38. Responding to the Veterinary Workforce Crisis 39. Paving a Path to Self-Care and Self-Compassion 40. Reshaping Veterinary Culture to Value Team Wellbeing
About the Author :
Dr. Marie Holowaychuk is a veterinarian, speaker, and wellness advocate dedicated to improving mental health and wellbeing in the veterinary profession. A board-certified emergency and critical care specialist, she brings over 20 years of clinical, academic, and consulting experience, combined with a passion for fostering sustainable, fulfilling careers.
After completing veterinary school in Canada and advanced training in the United States, Marie spent five years as a faculty member at the Ontario Veterinary College, followed by relief work across North America. During her career, she not only witnessed but personally experienced the emotional and mental toll of veterinary practice, including burnout and compassion fatigue. These challenges led her to focus on wellness, burnout prevention, and workplace culture.
As the founder of Reviving Veterinary Medicine, Marie provides evidence-based resources to support self-care, effective communication, and professional resilience. She is a certified coach, yoga and meditation teacher, and wellbeing facilitator. A sought-after speaker, she has delivered keynotes, workshops, and seminars worldwide, inspiring veterinary teams to prioritize their wellbeing.
Marie is also an accomplished writer, having published numerous articles and book chapters on veterinary medicine and mental health. She hosts the Reviving Vet Med Podcast, where she explores workplace challenges, personal growth, and strategies for creating a healthier profession.
Through her writing, speaking, and coaching, Marie is committed to fostering a culture of compassion, resilience, and support in veterinary medicine, helping professionals build careers—and lives—that are both meaningful and sustainable.
Review :
"Veterinarians are more than just the professionals who administer our pets’ rabies vaccines. They have hearts and, like all hearts, these can be broken by the sheer weight of the life and death cases, the needless tragedies, the human indifference to animal suffering, that many cope with on a daily basis. Dr Holowaychuk unpacks what it means to be a vet and what a vet needs to be productive and happy in what is truly both a compassionate and a challenging calling."
– Grant Hayter-Menzies, author of Freddie: The Rescue Dog Who Rescued Me
"With over 20 years of experience as an Emergency Clinician myself, I have found many of the work-related experiences shared by Marie within these pages to resonate deeply with my own. In 2016, I began experiencing physical and psychological symptoms that I now recognize as PTSD and clinical burnout. Navigating this challenging and uncertain period required patience, self-reflection, and the support of a compassionate community. During this time, I discovered a new direction for my energy and teaching skills: becoming a qualified, ethical advocate for the health and well-being of all veterinary professionals. Fortuitously, I was introduced to Marie through a mutual acquaintance—her residency mentor—who recognized our similar backgrounds and shared professional passions. In Marie, I found a highly intelligent, empathetic individual and an inspirational mentor who has guided me on my journey to becoming a qualified veterinary educator.
This meticulously crafted book reflects my perception of Marie as a champion of veterinary wellness. She skilfully combines an academic approach, offering research data and evidence-based resources, with authentic storytelling that invites relatability. Marie candidly shares her life experiences that have shaped her into a dedicated advocate for holistic wellness among veterinary professionals. Her initiatives focus on increasing awareness, building practical skills, and supporting teams and leaders in maintaining their health, thereby fostering practice cultures that prioritize wellness for caregivers, veterinary patients, and businesses alike.
What a gift to have Marie’s heart and wisdom shared in these pages so that all those in and around veterinary medicine can be healthier for it!"
- Dr Sonja Olson, DVM, Veterinary Wellness Educator, Heartstorming Wellness LLC, USA
"This is an eye-opening account of the veterinary industry. As a pet guardian and lay reader in relation to the veterinary profession, I found Dr Holowaychuk’s book easy to read and gripping. She is able to master explaining complex procedures, such as Lacia’s, in an easily understandable way. I think the veterinary industry is commonly misunderstood by the general public, owing to a general lack of awareness of the realities of practice and the trauma many vets experience. This book reveals the reality of the vet industry and helps guardians sympathise and show humanity to those that work in vet practices. It’s also a great account for any students wishing to embark on veterinary studies."
- Konstanze Willett, Lawyer and Animal Advocate, UK
"A Compassionate Calling is about the good, the bad and the ugly of veterinary medicine. It’s so exciting to see a book that openly talks about issues that didn’t even have names when I was a veterinary student. Dr Holowaychuk rejects the notion of our predecessors that this is “the way it is” and we should all “just suck it up”. She takes an in-depth look at what is great about the profession and what is difficult, hard and heartbreaking. This warts-and-all account is a must-read for veterinary professionals, aspiring veterinarians, pet owners and anyone who is curious about the profession. It is only through close and careful examination in a book this well-researched that we can overcome the challenges and improve upon our wonderful, difficult, exciting, taxing, complicated, fun profession. As someone who is a colleague, friend and fan of Dr Holowaychuk, this book is a lot like her. It has a soft side, which tells heartfelt stories about life as a veterinarian, and it has a serious side, that examines the data and research to make sense of how this makes us feel. We need both our soft and scientific sides to reckon with this profession. The medicine is the easy part."
- Sarah Boston, DVM, DVSc, Dipl ACVS, ACVS Founding Fellow of Surgical Oncology and ACVS Founding Fellow or Oral & Maxillofacial Surgery
