When Julie Power moved from Wollongong to Dubbo she had "great difficulty" getting medical attention for her cats because so many local vets were so overwhelmed they had closed their books. Now she's calling on the government to find a solution.
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"It was a nightmare scenario for me. When my partner and I moved to Dubbo we had an emergency where one of our cats ended up with a blocked urinary tract so he couldn't urinate - it's incredibly painful for the animal and can lead to death if not treated," said Ms Power, the convener of the Animal Justice Party in NSW.
"When I realised that was the situation I rang the nearest vet and got a short response of 'are you on our books?'. I told them no, and I'd just moved to the area, and they said 'sorry we can't help'. I rang the next vet and it was the same scenario."
"I was really lucky I happened upon a vet clinic who could help - the staff member said to bring him in straight away. It's those kinds of emergency situations which are really distressing when people can't get that for their animals."
Last week, Victorian Animal Justice Party MP Andy Meddick passed his "Veticare" scheme proposing universal healthcare for pets and wildlife through Victorian Parliament.
The scheme mirrors the Medicare system by providing free or subsidised vet care for eligible animals and would create a network of public animal clinics and specialised wildlife hospitals.
According to the Australian Veterinary Association (AVA), pet owners can expect to spend more than $25,000 per animal over their lifetime on average.
Now - with the cost-of-living crisis hitting pet owners even harder - representatives of the Animal Justice Party in NSW are calling for a similar system to be introduced here.
"There's a big section of society who just can't afford to have pets and we know the benefits of them, in terms of mental and physical wellbeing. Pets support people who might otherwise be lonely and might not have company," said Ms Power.
"Affordability of vet care has long been an issue - desexing a female cat costs $350. And if you're on any kind of unemployment benefits, that's pretty much out of reach."
As well as making veterinary care more affordable, the proposed "Veticare" scheme would introduce measures to address the "vet shortage crisis" across the state like providing extra training and upskilling for vet nurses so they can become technicians and practitioners.
"The industry is unable to retain vets in practice, with rural and regional areas being the worst hit. Unless we see urgent Government intervention, the animal welfare impact of a vet shortage could be catastrophic," said NSW Animal Justice Party, MP Emma Hurst.
In May this year, the only veterinary clinic in Parkes closed its doors with vet Daryl Elphick - who had been with the clinic for 22 years - explaining it was impossible to keep it going when he couldn't recruit and retain full time staff.
"I feel really sorry for the people who can't travel ... It would be nice if somebody else came here and opened a clinic. We can't do it any longer, just the two of us," said Dr Elphick.
The Parkes clinic isn't alone. Despite a record high number of people completing vet courses, federal government data shows there has been a shortage of vets for the past three years.
At the AVA's June conference, vets from regional and rural communities said they were particularly concerned about the shortage - a workforce survey they conducted showed 31 per cent of practices advertising for vets are taking 12 months or longer to fill vacancies.'
The AVA welcome the idea of Veticare but said the shortage of vets needs to be addressed first.
They would like to see financial incentives and HECS debt forgiveness for graduate vets willing to work in rural and regional areas and more mental health support for veterinary professionals.
"Veterinary practices across the country are struggling to find veterinarians and this is even harder in rural and remote areas," said Dr Cristy Secombe, AVA Head of Veterinary and Public Affairs.
"A rural bonding scheme, similar to that offered to medical graduates, would be a strong incentive for early career vets to fill non-metropolitan positions."
Research shows veterinarians are four times more likely to take their own life than the general public and have the highest suicide rates of any profession. Some factors which impact on vets' wellbeing include long working hours, inability to take time off due to staff shortages, managing client expectations and even dealing with abuse from clients.