In the public imagination, a veterinarian’s work is first and foremost about medical expertise, clinical judgment, and the ability to make the right decisions for an animal’s health. That is certainly true. But veterinary practice is never just a series of technical acts. It unfolds in a deeply relational environment, one shaped by emotion, attachment, uncertainty, and sometimes distress. Every consultation involves not only an animal patient, but also an owner who may be worried, hopeful,...