About Me

The Happy Vet Club is an initiative built on hope and with the passion to make a difference.

Hi!

I’m Vanessa!

One of my most vivid childhood memories was at the age of 5 when I couldn’t decide if I wanted to be an actress or a vet. So, barefooted and in the garden, I expressed to my mother that I had figured it out, ‘I would be a vet, in a movie.’ This led me to pursue a career in acting for the better half of my life, but when the time came to choose a course at university, I chose a Bachelor of Arts in Applied and Contemporary Theatre.

What is ‘Applied Theatre’?
It is a form of utilizing drama therapy as rehabilitation. Through these studies I learned to create programs for people from all walks of life; prisoners, hospitalised children, people living with disabilities, you name it. I found it so interesting that the skills I had learned and practiced since I was young, could help people find ways to express themselves and open up about their lives.

Upon relocating to Melbourne from the ever-sunny Sunshine Coast, I decided to take the leap into the veterinary industry. It began with volunteering at a hospital, folding laundry, and taking care of surrendered cats that I would later bring home as fosters, which led to many a foster fail!
I was of course trying to fulfil that little 5-year-old’s dream of helping animals!

Fast forward to now, I have been working in clinic for 6 years after securing my Associate Degree in Veterinary Nursing at La Trobe. I have done various roles in management, working in one of Australia’s largest animal emergency hospitals.

I always had a passion and desire to care for animals and in recent years, those who care for them. So much so, that I put my own health in the back seat and drove myself in to burn out. I was diagnosed with PTSD due to repetitive exposure to traumatic events in clinic, and in the darkest times, planted the seed of The Happy Vet Club.

It is my goal to make this project flourish, raise awareness of the state of mental health in veterinary practitioners, and create programs that will aid in preventing burnout and shed light in dark places. After all, flowers too have to push through the soil to meet the sun, and so can we!

Other Qualifications:

Certificate of Leadership Intelligence- Crampton Consulting Group (2023)

Compassion Fatigue: The Cost of Caring- The University of Melbourne (2021)