My Veterinary Life

Our guest on this week’s episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast is Dr. Wesley Clendinen, a recent veterinary graduate and new practice owner. Dr. Clendinen shares his transition from wildlife science to veterinary medicine, his proactive steps toward owning a practice within five years of graduation, and the importance of mentorship and networking. He discusses the financial and managerial challeng...

In this episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast, Dr. Lindsey Hornickel discusses the importance of advocacy in the veterinary field. She shares how her career journey led her to advocacy work and stresses the impact of legislation on veterinary practice. Dr. Hornickel shares different ways to become involved including, AVMA's Congressional Advocacy Network, the Legislative Fly-In event, which help v...

In this podcast episode, co-hosts Drs. Annie Chavent and Dr. Marci Kirk interview Dr. Christine Heinz-Loomer, a senior global strategic marketing lead at IDEXX. Dr. Heinz-Loomer discusses her career journey from being a small animal associate veterinarian and the transition to industry. She emphasizes the importance of exploring various opportunities within the veterinary profession and shares her...

Our guest on this week’s episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast is Dr. Brett Shorenstein, co-founder of Veterinary Innovative Partners. Dr. Schottenstein discusses his transition from investment banking to veterinary medicine, emphasizing the importance of following your passion. He also shares his journey of purchasing a clinic and establishing Veterinary Innovative Partners, which aims to provide...

In this episode of "My Veterinary Life Podcast, we are joined by Drs. Elizabeth Chosa and Laurie Fonken to discuss the Veterinary Hope Foundation. This non-profit organization is dedicated to fostering the mental health and well-being of veterinary professionals. Their mission is to create safe spaces for learning, healing, and growth within the veterinary community, with a profound focus on insti...

In this podcast episode, Dr. Rebekah Mack, a specialist in small animal internal medicine, shares her journey into veterinary medicine, overcoming discouragement from a teacher and discovering her passion for the field. She emphasizes the importance of hard work, kindness, and empathy in the profession. She also discusses moving from a private referral practice to corporate work and medical educat...

In the final installment of New Year, New Ideas our focus is on finances. We are joined by Tom Seeko and CJ Burnett of Florida Veterinary Advisors and the Smarter Vet Financial Podcast. They share how to make finances approachable so you can avoid ‘ostrich syndrome’ and take small steps to improve your financial wellbeing. At the heart of this conversation is approaching everything with curiosity...

We continue our series of New Year, New Ideas with MentorVet Connect. Today we are joined by Dr. Addie Reinhard, MentorVet Founder and CEO and Scott MacKenzie, AVMA Director of Membership to talk about this initiative. Throughout the conversation, we highlight the importance of mentorship in combating burnout and improving wellbeing in the veterinary field and its value at all career stages. Mento...

In the second installment of New Year New Ideas, co-hosts Drs. Annie Chavent and Marci Kirk talk are joined by two very special guests, Drs. Jenna Donaldson and Callie Fogle. The focus of the conversation today is about innovative on-call solutions in equine veterinary practice. Dr. Donaldson, founder of Trillium Equine Veterinary Services, shares her experience with a subscription model for her p...

In our first installment of New Year New Ideas, co-hosts Dr. Marci Kirk and Dr. Annie Chavent discuss the importance of diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) in veterinary medicine with guest Dr. Latonia Craig, AVMA's Chief Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Officer. Dr. Craig shares examples of the impact DEI can have on everyday life as well as patient care. She also introduces Journey for Teams,...

In this episode of "My Veterinary Life," Dr. Annie Chavent interviews Dr. Kim Yore, a small animal internist and medical affairs specialist at IDEXX. Dr. Yore shares her journey in veterinary medicine, from her early passion for horse care to her service in the US Army Veterinary Corps. She discusses the challenges and rewards of her career, including her time in Japan and Korea, and her transitio...

Welcome to this week’s episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast. We are joined by returning guest, Dr. Kara Escutia. Dr. Escutia is a Trust Veterinarian with AVMA’s PLIT and today our focus is on introducing the concept of spectrum of care from a liability lens. We discuss the definition and how to approach this in the clinical setting with clients and work with their individual circumstances. Dr. Es...

In this podcast episode, co-hosts Dr. Annie Chavent and Dr. Marci Kirk interview Dr. Linda Black, CEO of Gallant Therapeutics. They discuss Dr. Black's career journey in veterinary medicine, her interest in regenerative medicine, and her transition from scientist to CEO. Dr. Black shares her experiences in consulting, advisory boards, and product development, and offers advice to listeners interes...

In this episode, Dr. Steve Oehley, founder of Next Step Vet, shares his journey from being a clinical veterinarian to a career coach. He discusses the importance of self-reflection, understanding one's strengths, interests, and purpose, and finding work that aligns with these. Dr. Oehley also talks about his experience with work-related stress and its impact on personal relationships. He shares hi...

In this podcast episode, Dr. Chatfield shares her journey from considering a career as a flight attendant to becoming an associate veterinarian at a local zoo. She discusses her various roles, including lecturer, podcast host, and advisory board member for DVM 360. She emphasizes the importance of seizing opportunities and learning from others. Dr. Chatfield also shares her volunteer experiences i...

Ariana Anderson, DVM, joins us as our special guest in this episode. Dr. Anderson, a relief veterinarian, shares with us her unique experiences even from early on when trying to decide whether to go into vet med or linguistics. We hear about how ice cream sandwiches lead to lifelong friends, LLC v. sole proprietorships, and insurance needs as a relief vet. We talk about setting simple yet effectiv...

Our guest today is a Dr. Andres Montoya. He is currently the Associate Director, Technical Services Poultry at Merck Animal Health. We discuss his wide-ranging experiences from completing veterinary school in Columbia, to learning English and teaching in the U.S., to global industry jobs, all the way to his current role. We discuss the importance of growing your connections, following your passion...

Our guest this week just finished her externship with the AVMA. Megan Kellen, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Candidate at Iowa State University, gives us her unique perspective about the experience. We learn how she combines math, science, and the love of animals in vet med. We discuss the importance of being involved in your SAVMA chapter and knowing what is being advocated for in your state. We t...

This episode’s special guest is Jason Nickell, DVM, PhD, DACVPM. Dr. Jason is the Director of Insights and Outcomes at Merck Animal Health. We learn how he grew up around animals and follow in dad’s footsteps into vet med. He had a private practice with mixed practice, but something was missing. We discuss his exposure to different parts of the industry, food animal R&D, and production systems...

In this episode, Dr. Annette Chapman and Dr. Simone Tomlinson share their experiences as USDA veterinarians. They discuss the various aspects of their job, including clinical work, logistics, flexibility, and travel. The guests provide insights into the application process for government jobs and offer tips for success. They also highlight the importance of exploring different opportunities in vet...

Our guest for this episode is Lowell Midla, VMD, MS, a Cattle Technical Services Veterinarian at Merck Animal Health. Growing up on a cattle farm we hear how he wanted to be a scientist, engineer, and a vet to solve infectious bovine kerato-conjunctivitis. From joining a mixed animal practice out of vet school to learning thru emergencies, and ultimately being prepared for opportunities, we hear h...

Our guest this episode is the one and only Dr. Andy Roark. He is a practicing veterinarian, international speaker, author, media personality, the founder of the Uncharted Veterinary Conference, and was the VBMA National President. We talk about how following a girl to the labs at the National Institute of Health and volunteering at the zoo leads to a Vet degree and working on a snake farm during g...

Dr. Jeff Olivarez returns to the podcast to give us his dos and don’ts of internship. Now an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Agricultural Animal Medicine and Surgery Department at Washington State University, he talks about being involved in SAVMA and realizing his love for students as a driving force for pursuing an internship. We learn great life lessons about comparisons, finding a broad-ba...

Matt Asciutto, DVM is our guest, and we learn so much from him! He is an ER overnight relief vet, a dad, a podcast host, a songwriter, and an author. According to Matt, he did not follow the ‘normal’ route into vet school but instead followed a girl after trading improv lessons for vet care. We cover everything from parenthood, daycare guilt, writing a song about metronidazole, and inspiring other...

Wrapping up our internship series with deep diving into the lab animal specialty. Our guest, Jessica Plunkard, DVM, MPH, did her Lab Animal Residency at Johns Hopkins University. We hear how she became interested in lab animal before starting vet school and we learn about the match process and most importantly, the early deadlines. From managing colony health to facilities to staff, residency give...