How Amber Elalem Is Building Something Real

Rising Stars 2026

Vet Tech turned Vet Student, Amber Elalem, has been helping dogs get the care they need for the past five years. A vet tech currently pursuing a Master's in Veterinary Medicine, Amber is dedicated to helping pets and their families and she is doing it in more ways than one.

While Amber works as a vet tech, she has become equally known for her work on social media. She regularly shares short videos on TikTok about what it is really like to be a vet tech — what vet techs actually think of your dog breed, what your dog is thinking at the vet, and what vets are really doing with your puppy during curbside. (You guessed it. That longer wait? Mad puppy play time.)

Amber's rich sense of humor has helped her build a warm and genuinely engaged community of vets, vet techs, and pet lovers who show up for her content because it feels like the real thing — because it is. But there is a lot more to Amber than puppy boops and breed commentary. Behind the camera is a thoughtful woman with a clear sense of where she is headed.

Over the next several years, Amber is focused on pushing through vet school and deepening her understanding of veterinary medicine. She credits her progress to three things: perseverance, a sense of humor, and sheer luck. It is an honest answer, which tracks — Amber has never been one to perform more than she delivers.

If she had chosen a completely different path, she would have been a history teacher. Amber has a particular love for World War II history and would have relished the chance to pass that passion along to others. It is a window into who she is: someone genuinely curious about the world, not just the exam room.

The advice she would give her past self is something worth hearing at any stage of a career: "Don't compare your journey to anyone else. You're exactly where you need to be." In a profession where burnout and imposter syndrome run rampant, that perspective is not just refreshing — it is necessary.

Speaking of burnout, Amber believes the most pressing issue facing the veterinary industry right now is the lack of mental health support. The field is high-stress by its very nature, and mental resilience is not a luxury — it is a requirement. The good news, she says, is that this is a fixable problem. When mental health is treated with the same seriousness as physical health, the entire profession benefits.

Amber Elalem is one to watch — not because she is the loudest voice in the room, but because she has figured out how to rise above the noise by simply being herself.