51. What is Veterinary Social Work? with Taylor St. Onge, MSW

In this episode, we talk with Taylor St. Onge, MSW, a veterinary social worker at an animal specialty hospital in Los Angeles. We chat about what her job looks like day to day, with most of her work being grief support, including euthanasia, quality of life conversations and pet loss support. She also supports veterinary staff navigating moral injury, compassion fatigue, and burnout.

Taylor shares some of the other settings where veterinary social workers can work and offers advice for social workers interested in getting started in the field. We also talk about the connection between animal cruelty and human violence and why asking about pets can be an important part of a social work assessment.

This episode is for anyone interested in animals, the human-animal bond, grief and bereavement, end-of-life support, or finding a unique way to bring their social work skills into the veterinary world.

We chat about:

What veterinary social work looks like day to dayHow social workers support families through euthanasia, quality-of-life decisions, and pet lossWays veterinary social workers support veterinary professionalsWhere veterinary social workers can workThe connection between animal cruelty and human violenceWhy asking about pets can be an important part of a social work assessmentTips for social workers interested in getting started in veterinary social work

Resources mentioned:

See the expanded show notes here for all resources mentioned

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