Relief veterinary work is often viewed as a daunting leap into the unknown—a career path filled with uncertainty, unfamiliar places, and limited continuity with patients. But after spending significant time in this role, I’ve discovered it offers unique opportunities for professional growth, improved work-life balance, and a fresh perspective on veterinary medicine. While it comes with its challenges, the benefits far outweigh the downsides. In this article, I’ll share five key lessons I’ve learned from my experience as a relief veterinarian that have reshaped how I view my work and my career.
Many veterinarians feel anxious about jumping into relief work—and understandably so. The idea of working in an unfamiliar hospital with unfamiliar protocols, software, clients, and team dynamics can be daunting. But what I’ve discovered is that most of those fears don’t hold up in reality. In fact, I’ve often been met with kindness, patience, and a surprising level of support from the teams I’ve joined temporarily.
More often than not, the staff is genuinely grateful you're there. Whether someone’s on vacation, medical leave, or there's just a gap in scheduling, they often see you as a much-needed lifeline. That appreciation translates into people going out of their way to get you settled, explain the clinic flow, and make sure you're not flying blind. It turns out you’re not walking into the chaos—you’re helping relieve it. That shift in perspective alone makes a huge difference.
One of the most valuable parts of doing relief work is the exposure to a wide variety of medical approaches, protocols, and practice philosophies. No two hospitals operate the same way, and each clinic tends to have its own set of systems, preferences, and workflows—some shaped by the doctors, others by the support staff, or even the clientele.
As a relief vet, you get to see how different teams manage similar cases, how they structure preventative care, what diagnostics they prioritize, and how they handle client communication. You get to see what works best, and you can adopt the best of all practices into your personal veterinary acumen.
This kind of variety has sharpened my critical thinking, improved my problem-solving, and made me more well-rounded as a practitioner. I’ve adopted techniques, protocols, and habits I never would have encountered had I stayed in just one place. I’ve also gained a better understanding of why I do things the way I do. Relief work, in that way, keeps you growing as a veterinarian.
One of the most tangible benefits of relief work is the ability to reclaim control over your schedule—and by extension, your life. As a relief veterinarian, you're not locked into the rigid demands of a full-time position. You're choosing when and where you work, which makes it easier to build a schedule that actually supports your personal well-being instead of constantly draining it.
This flexibility means you can prioritize time for yourself, your family, travel, rest, or even continuing education—without having to beg for PTO or feel guilty about taking a day off. You can say yes to the clinics and shifts that align with your needs, and no to the ones that don’t. That autonomy alone is incredibly freeing and can make a huge difference in avoiding burnout.
Relief work has allowed me to show up to each shift more refreshed and present. I’m not running on empty, and I’m not bringing chronic stress from one week to the next. The work-life balance that comes with this career path has not only improved my mental health but has also made me a more focused and effective veterinarian.
One of the more challenging aspects of relief veterinary work is the limited opportunity for ongoing patient follow-up. Because you’re stepping into a clinic temporarily, you often see patients only once or for a brief series of visits. Unlike a regular practice where you build long-term relationships with pets and their owners, relief work can feel more like short-term triage.
This lack of continuity sometimes makes it harder to fully gauge the outcomes of your recommendations or treatments. You don’t always get the chance to see how a patient responds over time or to adjust care plans based on evolving conditions. For vets who value those deep client and patient relationships, this can be a tough trade-off. If the lack of patient follow-up is super important to you, then this may be a dealbreaker for becoming a relief veterinarian, but I have found that the many pros about being a relief veterinarian far outweigh this one con.
A common concern among veterinarians considering relief work is the potential loss of full-time benefits like health insurance, retirement plans, and paid time off. Thankfully, the landscape is changing, and Evette will bridge that gap and specializes in supporting relief veterinarians by offering access to benefits historically reserved for associate veterinarians.
Knowing you can have the flexibility of relief work, and the security of benefits takes a huge weight off your shoulders and it means you can focus on your work—and your life—without constantly worrying about your health benefits and or retirement.
Evette can provide all of this! Contact Evette for more information on becoming a relief veterinarian today.
