This is not a James Herriot type book, although there a mixture of tales about all kinds of animals, both happy and sad. It shows in depth what it is really like to be a Vet and covers subjects like Intensive farming, Climate change, TB outbreaks and dog breeding. He explains why it costs so much to treat a family pet when people are used to the NHS, and that with long hours and time pressures, the pay per hour is not much more than minimum wage. He also talks about the outcome of such an environment, leading to exhaustion and depression. He himself changed to locum work to take some of the pressure off. The book is fluidly written and well explained and Gavin’s love of animals shines through. It is definitely eye opening and is a much needed expose of what a Vet’s life is really like. It is both informative and recommended.

I really enjoyed this book.
There was a decent mix of the good and bad sides of being a Vet.
No sugar coating but also not graphic enough to want you to stop reading.

This book gives you an insight into the world of a vet, it's not all spending their working hours cuddling puppies and kittens, it's long, long hours, quite a bit spent with their hands in animals nether regions!

Although the book does tell a few funny tales about his encounters with various animals on the whole I found it quite sad and I got the impression that although he loves the job he does he's quite jaded with it, mainly through the actual business side of the practice and I totally get why he decided to do locum work. I also found the book a bit long winded in some parts and I must admit to skipping past them to get to one of the animal anecdotes.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Collins for the ARC

This really is a warts and all look at Veterinary practice and the highs and lows of this wonderful profession. Gareth tells it as it is, and it's certainly not all fluffy kittens and grateful owners. Quite the opposite in fact, although he really does help to lighten the mood where needed with his humour and wit. I was shocked to learn that the suicide rate amongst Vets is 4 times higher than other professions. Really shocked. If nothing else, this book has left me with an even deeper appreciation for these amazing people who give their lives to caring for our pets and livestock.

Read and reviewed in exchange for a free copy from NetGalley. This was an interesting look at the daily life of a vet and a fairly easy read. A nice change from all the nurse/doctor books in this genre.

A good book to read for any one who wants to be a vet or dreams of it as similar to TV dramas. The book is very well written but nitty gritty and shows the plight that vets actually suffer. He writes well but does have it little understandable rants. Not a curl up with a coffee book but a great memoir of the actual life of a vet.

A curious book, written by someone that I feel is very angry at the way the world behaves, especially appertaining to the way that vets and animals are treated. The book is an odd mix of first person, third person and asides but it somehow makes for a very readable book which I read in a couple of sittings. It is not all doom and gloom as there are tales that lighten the mix.

I can and do empathise with Gareth Steel's ambivalence. I totally "get" that he is angry with a world that does not provide support for people who cannot really afford to keep a pet but need that pet as it is their only companion and is "over the moon" when such a companion can be returned to good health without leaving its owner with the choice of being able to afford enough food for themselves for the next couple of months or sort out their beloved pet. Similarly, I too would be incandescent when someone with more money than sense is trying to minimise the veterinarian cost so that they can maximise the profits that their pedigree "breeding bitch" will bring them.

To discover the rest of a vet's reality and the large animal side of a vet's life and all of those trials and tribulations will require you to read the book.

It was okay but I will admit to skipping through a number of pages. I found some of it quite long winded and not particularly entertaining. . I read this as a review for Netgalley.

What a book.
I should probably premise my review with a bit of background. I myself studied as a vet. I say studied because in the fifth and final year, I chose to leave vet school. Without taking finals, without qualifying. It wasn’t because I was failing. Academically, I was doing rather well. Mentally, I was doing about as poorly as you can imagine.
All that to say, I fully support Gareth’s attempt to enlighten his audience on the plight of vets. It is a beyond tough profession, in a sometimes unforgiving environment, and expects a lot out of its people without much thanks other than that which we (as paying customers) dole out.
His account of life as a newly qualified vet straight into mixed practice is laughingly accurate. It sounds ridiculous when you read it, but I promise it’s true.
And the portrayal of a vet’s on call weekend is also depressingly accurate. I’ve had a friend call me in tears after a full weekend on 3 hours sleep. That particular practice had even stipulated in their employment contract that mental illness didn’t count for sick leave. Awfully convenient for them, as depression of all severities is sadly an accepted occupational certainty among vets. She is now 10 years qualified and at the top of her field, and still regularly works several days without stopping. (And I mean that literally - she has slept in a stable to keep an eye on her patients rather than go home between shifts.)
I would say that the book could have done with slightly more brutal editing. There are times where the amount of detail outlined is probably a bit extraneous. And not everything is particularly layperson-friendly, although he does his best to explain everything as he goes. Drug names and anatomical references abound.
In the author’s introduction, he observes that perhaps the public’s perception of the veterinary profession is every so slightly romanticised, and that this book is partly an effort to redress some misconceptions. He definitely doesn’t pull any punches in that regard, and covers topics from global animal welfare on an industrial scale, to frustratingly unrealistic and inexperienced owner expectations in practice, to rescuing a rabbit stuck down the side of a garden shed in the middle of the night.
There are moments where the writing gets a bit ranty, where the jargon gets a bit scientific, where perhaps the point of the matter gets a bit lost in all the information he’s trying to convey to us. But! They are without doubt all good points. The stories about his patients over the years are very nostalgic for me as former member-to-be of the profession, from the cute puppies and kittens to the uncooperative cows and their fiercely protective farmers.
He does indeed shine a light on the veterinary profession. There’s a lot that’s unseen, it’s not always pretty, and the loose ends don’t always get tied up in a pretty bow.

All in all, this is a good book if you just want to hear a vet tell you what’s really going through his mind in all those long hours; what’s really involved in being a vet. He’s obviously had many years to think about the implications of animals in our lives, both domestics and commercial, and how we treat them.
However, it is pretty heavy going. Don’t expect James Herriot. This is a more candid, less forgiving, and without a doubt more informative glimpse into the life of a vet.

This was very interesting in places and amusing in some, although sometimes I felt the author was trying too hard to be funny. At times it felt like listening to some bloke having a rant in the pub and I didn't need to listen to him pontificating about this and that. He does admit that he has a tendency to go on, but I found it irritating and ended up skipping quite a lot, especially towards the end. The actual vet stuff was interesting, but the bookcover was misleading.

An excellent book. It gives an insight into the world of a modern vet. Gareth Steel talks honestly about how far veterinary science has come in the past few years but also how costly it is for a pet to receive the full benefit of modern technology.

Gareth writes about all aspects of being a vet and how difficult decisions have to be made on a regular basis. He looks at how the meat trade affects the planet. He also discusses the idea of sentience in animals, how self aware are they, do they feel pain, experience emotion and is it right for humans to breed and kill animals for food.

A thought provoking book I found difficult to put down.

As an ex vet nurse I knew I would enjoy this book. It should be a must read for everyone who owns a pet. I could relate to nearly everything said. A much better expose of life as a vet than "all creatures great and small" ever was.

I love books and tv shows but primarily books that give an almost "behind the scenes" look into a job or way of life and this book gives you a real insight into life as a vet.

It's informative, sometimes amusing and sometimes sad. There's no denying that there are bits that are unpleasant to read but they represent the life of a vet so are a necessary part of the book.There are perhaps controversial subjects raised in the book but I found these parts quite interesting and thought provoking. The scientific parts were explained well and were easy to understand, even for someone who did badly in science at school.

For me personally, I found the bits about cats quite emotional to read as my cat passed away a couple of years ago but thats just me.

I certainly think for an aspiring vet, this is a must read. For someone who, like me, just found the description of the book interesting, I'm certain you will enjoy it.

It's a really good book!

A very enjoyable, easy read - perfect for the holidays! I loved that the author didn't flinch from discussing important and sometimes divisive issues, such as intensive farming and the finances of veterinary care - I think it's important to discuss these subjects and not to shy away from them. There was a slightly surreal line where the author is describing the economics of farming and how (little) we pay for food, where he suggests that knickers are an unnecessary luxury on a par with make-up, which made me wonder if the author considers underwear for men similarly luxurious, and there are a few cringeworthy throwaway comments in the same vein, but they are infrequent enough to put aside and enjoy his descriptions of a varied, intense and rewarding life as a vet.

I enjoyed this book which was a very honest account of a vets life.

Many thanks to netgalley and Gareth Steel for the advanced copy of this book. I agreed to give my honest opinion voluntarily.

This fun new non-fiction stirred up my emotions so much. It was both funny and heart wrenching and i HATE how some humans treat animals it genuinely breaks my heart. I definitely agree that vets & vet nurses are super under appreciated. I’d ensure you read the trigger/content warnings for this one as it does speak a lot about murder, suicide, animal abuse & harm etc. All in all a really good read, probably not one i’ll ever reread but an enjoyable and short novel.

A lovely, genuine and honest portrayal of what I personally think is one of the most difficult vocations / professions in the world.
At least when you're a medic for humans they can clearly communicate what's wrong and where, with animals you're solely relying on intuition and instinct which in all honesty can't really be taught.

I've read a few similar books, but what I love about Steel's writing is that he doesn't pretend it's all glamour and heroics. Yes it's wonderful to read about all the highs and successes that have helped animals and their owners alike, but we know that real life isn't like that all the time.
Hearing about those low moments is just as important and valuble to read.

Nicer than your average look back at a life given over to a difficult profession.

Gareth Steel wants you to understand vets in a way you never could have before. How it feels to watch a healed dog bound into their owners arms. The joy of breathing life into the fluid-filled lungs of a new born calf after a difficult labour. The satisfaction of rescuing a distressed sheep from the high-tide line. What it's like to work 100 hour weeks for less than the minimum wage. How it can scar your soul to euthanize a beloved puppy with it's grieving family beside you.

Gareth Steel is an ordinary guy doing a job he loves for not very much money. I found this book interesting and informative. Gareth Steel has worked as a vet for almost twenty years and he tells us about some of the everyday events: the different types of animals he might attend to, the pet owners - the ones who don't pay their bills and the long hours he has to endure. He also writes about the blood and gore that happens in an everyday life of a vet. Also what made him decide to become a locum vet.

I would like to thank #NetGalley #HarperCollinsUK #HarperElement and the author #GarethSteel for my ARC of #NeverWorkWithAnimals in exchange for an honest review.

Excellent vet memoir.

Gareth Steel has been a qualified vet for almost 20 years. I loved this book which draws on many of his experiences.

I like how he's not claiming to be the world's best vet, or some sort of brain box. He's a regular vet-not to make it sound an easy job-I'm sure we all know it certainly isn't. I don't know if he's a 'telly vet', I'd not heard his name before reading his book, but he certainly knows his stuff, and this is an excellent read.

I find books like this really interesting; I've read quite a few vet memoirs before, and watched a few different TV series about vet life, and this one didn't disappoint-it was exceptionally interesting.

There's a good assortment of cases: Horses, cows, cats and dogs etc. And the downsides, like when customers don't want to pay their bill-the bits you don't get to see on the TV programmes. Includes some more controversial subjects; some of them grittier, harder hitting than I've read about before.

Even though I've already read many of the same genre, still there’s something different here, some very different scenarios. A brilliant book which was very hard to put down.

A nice book onto the insight of what vets do and how despite all their training how undervalued they are by participants and how vet care just is such a hard job! I’ve learnt so much about what they do and how badly they can be affected by what happens . Thanks for the opportunity to read this