Veterinarians on social media share highlights, challenges

“Sir Francis Duke of Meowington!” Dr. Frank Bozelka yelled across a busy waiting room one day when inspiration struck.

A Seargent Sniffers and one Spicy Mexican Hot Sauce later, Dr. Bozelka’s video of the weirdest patient names he’s ever called out amassed over 8 million views on TikTok.

AVMA News spoke with several veterinarians and others in the field on why and how they’re using social media, their unexpected stardoms, and its impact on their careers and lives.

They come from varying backgrounds, have different ideas, and range in their number of followers—from the thousands to millions—but some common themes emerged: client education and awareness, addressing misinformation, consistency, authenticity, opportunity, and “trolling.”

Another social media content creator is Dr. Hunter Finn, who owns Pet Method Animal Hospital in McKinney, Texas. He urges others in the profession to maximize the platform social media offers.

“We need more educated professionals helping pet owners,” he said. “If they don’t find the information from us, then they will find it from other people without the veterinary background that we have. That is a danger to pets. We need to step up and take back our credibility and stop letting pet influencers dictate how pet owners choose to take care of their animals.”

Going viral

Each viral moment carries a note of surprise.

Dr. Bozelka can be found on Instagram and TikTok when he's not working as an emergency and critical care veterinarian at VCA Arboretum View Animal Hospital in Downers Grove, Illinois. He woke up one morning to find over 20,000 notifications on his phone regarding his video about things veterinarians can say that human doctors cannot.

“It was honestly a very weird feeling,” he said. “I get a bit of anxiety when I see those little red notifications on my phone, and there were a lot of them that day.”

Dr. Finn, who has over 2.1 million followers on TikTok and over 515,000 on Instagram, said his first viral post was a video of him in 2020 dancing and giving “basic” pet tips on what dogs should not eat: grapes, onions, and chocolate.

“I hate dancing, and of course that was the one that got attention,” he said.

Then in another surprise, Dr. Finn said there was some pushback from commenters arguing their dogs were fine after eating those foods. That fueled his fire.

“I knew I had to continue on with content because the general public needs to know how to better care for their pets,” he said.

Finding motivation

Their reasons for jumping into social media vary—from building brand awareness to creating the content they want to see.

Dr. Danny Sack, a small animal veterinary surgery resident in Columbus, Ohio, started his Instagram page during his fourth year at Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine to share his experiences as a student and aspiring veterinarian.

“It has given me a new perspective on how I view the client and animal experience, and its emphasis on education and transparency when speaking to both clients and colleagues,” he said.

Dr. Indya Woods also started her Instagram page when she was a third-year veterinary student to fill a void.

 “I wanted to see more Black women in veterinary medicine,” she said. “I wanted to see vet students talk about some challenges they faced in veterinary school. I wanted to see young veterinarians thriving after vet school and what life after vet school was like.”

Similarly, Dr. Cristina Bustamante noticed a lack of trustworthy, accessible information for Spanish-speaking audiences.

So, the bilingual Colombian native, who practices near Miami, launched a YouTube channel and Instagram account.

“From the beginning, my goal has been to provide reliable, science-based information about pet health and wellbeing to the Hispanic community,” said Dr. Bustamante, who only posts in Spanish.

Educating owners

Many also mentioned their intent is to educate pet owners and provide a reliable source of helpful information amid a sea of misinformation.

For Dr. Bozelka, long wait times in emergency rooms during the COVID-19 pandemic spurred his post about when ER trips are and aren't necessary.

“I wanted to be a source owners could turn to for information without having to spend an entire day in the ER,” he said.

Dr. Marissa Hake, known as “the Calf Vet” across online platforms, also mentioned wanting to be a resource. She started using social media by just answering questions about calf raising.

“We would have bloggers, chefs, and other people out to farms to learn about how their food was raised,” Dr. Hake said. “They would post on their platforms about their experiences, and normally their followers would have specific questions. I didn't want to answer those questions from my personal page, so one day I made ‘Dr. Hake CalfVet.’”

Her video, “Popping a calf,” on treating bloat in calves got 4.1 million views on Facebook.

Creating opportunities

Online stardoms can be awkward and uncomfortable, if not downright bizarre, veterinary creators say, but also rewarding, as they describe how their social media careers have created new opportunities.

Dr. Finn was able to open a startup practice two years after becoming a veterinarian and is now filming his first TV show set to air this summer.

Dr. Bozelka has been on the news, spoken at conferences, and gained tens of thousands of followers.

Veterinary content creators say social media can add up to 10% to their income.

Beyond the financials, Dr. Woods said signing her first brand partnership with FIGS Scrubs has led to experiences she’s never imagined—from traveling to Mexico for a spay neuter impact trip and participating in a FIGS holiday photoshoot to representing veterinary medicine at FIGS Day on Capitol Hill.

“Social media has so much more power than I had originally realized,” she said. “I’ve been able to connect with so many amazing people, veterinary professionals, and brands that have made me value social media so much.”

Dr. Woods added that treating her social media page as a part-time job, with a schedule for creating and posting content, helped when she was juggling clinical rotations while studying for the North American Veterinary Licensing Examination.

Being vulnerable

Behind the scenes, however, are real people who admit honest moments of anxiety, insecurity, frustration, stress, and pain points.

“At first, I would hesitate to post until everything felt ‘perfect’—the right lighting, my hair under control—whatever I considered ideal at the time,” Dr. Bustamante said. “But I quickly realized that what my community values most isn’t perfection or even high production quality; it’s authenticity. People connect with real moments, not staged ones.”

And as much as social media has opened doors, it has also invited online trolls or antagonistic commenters, with one veterinarian likening the comment section to “a brutal war zone.”

Though the comments she received in her early days of social media posting were often filled with anger from animal activists, Dr. Hake said the experience helped her grow thick skin.

“It really helped me feel confident in my ‘why’ and sharpen my communication around food animal production,” said Dr. Hake, who is passionate about educating everyday consumers.

“I realized that my target audience isn’t just other vets and farmers, my larger audience is consumers,” she said. “People who every day are deciding to consume the products that I take personal responsibility (for) in ensuring good welfare and health.”

In addition, Dr. Hake said being on social media as a female large animal veterinarian has helped raise interest in that type of veterinary medicine.

“I became a role model for other women who wanted to come into this side of the profession,” she said. “Which is wild to me, since there are other way more qualified female cow vets out there. I don't take it lightly when someone messages me, ‘You inspired me to go to vet school and stick with large animal.’”

For these creators, at least, the highs and lows of social media are worth it, and interest is growing.

Ashley Koll, a veterinary technician who founded Lemon Collaborative , an animal- and veterinary-focused influencer management agency, has seen the industry's social media footprint grow since her startup first launched in 2023.

“We've definitely seen a large influx of veterinarians entering the social media space in recent years,” she said. “I would say the number has tripled in the last five years, but the space is still not overcrowded.”

Koll urged more to join the mission, offering some tips for veterinary creators thinking about debuting on social media: be authentic, be consistent, and engage with the audience.

“Influencer marketing within the veterinary space is tough to crack but it's clear that is where marketing is headed,” she said.