Why can't they understand I don't want to be a technician?

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My parents keep saying I should give up being a veterinarian and try to be a veterinary technician instead. I asked my parents why and their answers keep going back and forth from not being able to ace the math requirements to not having enough money. I'm homeschooled and technically still in high school because a horrible reaction I had to some medication my physiatrist had me on. I wasn't getting the academic help I needed in public school and ended up in the special education class where I was given kindergarten level worksheets and basically "busy work". I was bullied not only by other children, but also by the teachers and if I had stayed in public school, I probably would have committed suicide by the seventh or eighth grade. When my parents took me out to home school me, they basically had to start at the beginning because the only thing I had learned from public school was that everyone was out to get me and that I could never let my guard down. The worst area was my math. I could never memorize the times tables past two. I know the principal but I can't solve the problem because I can't memorize the times tables. My parents let me use a calculator for problems that require multiplication but I can't see a college professor letting me do that even with a diagnosis of dyscalculia. I use a math program called Keys to Math or something like that. It is the ONLY math circulium that has worked for me. It uses a visual hands on approach from India. I have gotten SOOOO much better with math. If only my mom had discovered this program sooner. But my dad still says that I am going to fail the math part of the college entrance exam. My dad is EXTREMLY predijuice against people of African heritage. He's always saying the "n" word and that they don't want to work and want everything handed to them. When I told him I thought it would be a waste of time, money, energy and resources, he accused me of being just like the "n words" who want everything handed to them on a silver platter. He can't see how hard I am trying and accuses me of being lazy just because I don't want to do things his way. My mom says I should be a technician first to see if I could actually handle the field and that techs seem to get more interaction with the animals than the vets do. Then why then do I only see the techs weigh animals and take their temperatures? and if I wanted more interaction with animals I would want to be a zookeeper or wildlife rehabilitator. Plus if I did become a tech and then go to vet school, I think I would have to learn everything I learned in tech school all over again. A waste of time. Plus why can't I use my tech school money towards vet school? My mom says I should be a tech first to see if I like the field but really to see if I can handle it. Why do other people get to go straight to vet school? The main reason I want to be a vet is to prove to myself that I can do it. My brother says if he did not have kids he would join the Marine Corps to see if he could do it and my dad thought that was the coolest thing ever :jealous: but probably because he too was a marine. My mom says I need to be a tech to get the clinical experience required for vet school. If the local rescue places dosen't close and if my mom ever gets to chance to drive me there, hopefully, the vet that the owner of the rescue is working with will help me out with that. Anyway, wouldn't I need some clinical experience for tech school too? Even when I was still in elementary school, my parents weren't constantly reminding me how bad my math skills were and always trying to tell me I was basically too stupid to be a vet and I should be a technician instead. I suppose if they had encouraged me to be an actual vet, I might be more open to being a tech. I never thought tech school would be a walk in the park like my mom seems to and I would probably need some algebra for that too. My aunt wanted to be a nurse but had to be a nurse assistant because her algebra credits were too low. My mom thinks four years of college, plus four years of vet school and two to four years of internship or residency would be too long. But shouldn't that be my decision? I had to wait until I was nineteen for her to even take me to the DVM to get the book I needed to study. I'm so tired of my parents making decision for me because of their experiences with that situation or because they think the AS would make it too hard.

my wife has been in the Vet business for years. at the moment she works for the LSU vet school, which is state run, so its a state job, which has great pay, benefits and retirement. i'm not sure if you are looking ahead to these things but it's something to think about. It does take years of practice and understudy (tech) to learn all you need to know to be a vet. it's really no different from being a doctor. except being a doctor is alot harder. with all the different medications, operating procedures and bookwork, math does play a big part in the job. are you wanting to open your own Vet practice? you'll have to have enough money to rent a place, buy animal food, medicines, tons of equipment, ect.
now i'm not saying you can't do this. you can do anything if you want it bad enough. i'm just saying if you're 18 now, you'll likely be over 30 before this happens. but you could at least start. get a job with a practice, take classes, take a tech job, just start learning. its going to take years. you never see any important doctors under 30, they're all usually 45+. except Doogie Howser, lol.

I'd want to be a veterinarian but cats and dogs don't deserve anything. They are not people. Dog dies - get a new one.

> I'd want to be a veterinarian but cats and dogs don't deserve anything. They are not people. Dog dies - get a new one.

He's showing the really dense side of his AS, apparently.

Anyway, original poster, it's dangerous to get sucked into a tech job and then try to build up to what you really want. Aim straight for the target. If it is your dream, do whatever it takes and don't be swayed. And with all respect to your mom, she doesn't have all the answers. You have to research it yourself. Good luck.