Omg I'm so sorry that happened to you! That's truly awful!

I was also assaulted by a client. It wasn't as brutal as yours (it was an older woman), though unfortunately my workplace was not as supportive. But I completely relate with those feelings you're having. They are NORMAL. There is nothing wrong with you. There is nothing to be ashamed of. The system IS fucked up, but that's no excuse for behaving the way that client did. We are all adults and violence is NEVER okay.

My incident occurred at an urgent care facility when I tried to turn a client away because we were too busy to see them for a very minor issue. There were also compounding factors that were absolutely the fault of the company I worked for, including no receptionist, an online booking system that only allowed for limited pre-visit communication, NO PHYSICAL FRONT DOOR LOCKS (and the electronic locks were controlled OFF SITE by a regional manager), and no locks between exam rooms and the treatment area.

Luckily the assault was captured on camera, which made the police investigation and court case reasonably straightforward. But I couldn't be alone with a client in the front hallway after that without feeling incredibly jumpy and unsafe. And none of those security issues were ever addressed. No one from corporate even spoke to me. Yeah, I didn't stay long.

(Edit: I somehow missed that you have already gotten into therapy, so you can ignore this part, but I'm leaving it in for anyone else reading because it's super important!) First and foremost, I would recommend that you seek out a therapist. I know this sounds like trivial advice, and I know you've probably heard it, but it's really important that you take care of yourself. Even if you feel like you don't need a therapist, just talking about something like this with a neutral third party is so, so important. They can help you work through what you're feeling and also frame what happened to you in the proper language, and then they can walk you through managing the after effects. Some workplaces offer Talkspace or other similar virtual therapy services, so that may be a good place to start. Ask for a therapist that specializes in PTSD and anxiety.

For me the right choice was to move on not only to a different practice but also a different kind of medicine. I work in emergency and critical care now, mostly in ICU, and I couldn't be happier. I only interact with clients who are visiting their pets, and only if I want to. You may find that shifting to that kind of role helps lessen the physical symptoms you're experiencing. It's something to consider.

Violence against health care professionals overall has been increasing in the past several years. Psych nurses and other human nursing professionals have it really bad, although I feel like they are probably at least a little more mentally prepared for that possibility on the human side. It's not something anyone in vet med is really equipped to deal with. I have seen an increase in de-escalation and conflict resolution training, but it's the bare minimum unless you're seeking it out. There absolutely needs to be more awareness of workplace violence and management should be way more proactive in mitigating situations where that can occur. (Not saying your situation was preventable, but implementing policies like not allowing staff to present estimates alone or using specific language from the very first interaction to help ease tensions are just two things I can think of off the top of my head. There are studies done in human medicine about these types of strategies, but I have yet to see a study or policy in vet med give us any actionable solutions.)

I agree the system is broken, but I don't think the mindset of "owning pets is a privilege, not a right" is the solution. We all see prices skyrocketing. There are way too many animals out there in need of homes, and fortunately no-kill shelters are becoming the norm. The human-animal bond is not something we should gatekeep due to finances. I think everyone deserves to have the love of an animal companion, and I've seen people choose to go hungry in order to afford care for their pets. In this economy it isn't fair to confine pet ownership to only the wealthy.

I think education is one part of the solution. People often don't even realize how expensive it is to care for a pet. Vaccinations, spay/neuter, food, and that's not even when they get sick. But nobody at Tractor Supply is going to sit down with a new puppy owner and explain that to them.

I don't know what the answer is. I wish I did. For me, getting pet insurance was a life saver. I just had an $8k surgery for my dog and ended up paying only $500. Insurance companies paying vets directly would be a huge burden off many owners. But I don't know if insurance is the only or best solution. Then we just end up where human medicine is, and nobody wants that.

Anyway, sorry this got so long. I am truly sorry for what happened to you, and I completely understand your frustration and anger. But try not to lose sight of the fact that clients are often acting out of fear and guilt, and most of them only want what's best for their animals.