We have another special episode of the podcast today. We are joined by Dr. Patricia Wohlferth-Bethke. Dr. Pat manages the AVMA’s Veterinary Career Center and shares with us why career maintenance is so important, even during times of uncertainty. She has great perspectives and ideas on how to think about next steps for your career. It’s a great reminder to track our accomplishments and celebrate our successes, no matter what is going on around us! Throughout the conversation we mention AVMA’s CO...
Apr 21, 2020•25 min
“Really carving out time to spend in the things you enjoy. And also a big part of it is learning to be comfortable being by yourself. ” We are changing thing up again today! We are joined by Dr. Kristin Wuellner to talk about what we wish we’d known when we had graduated. Put another way, what advice would you give yourself as you enter into the veterinary profession. We have a great time swapping stories and thoughts on this topic. The transition from student to doctor is not always as smooth a...
Apr 16, 2020•34 min
“Even if you think AHHH a fish, a fish, I don’t know what to do, I don’t know what to do it has fins, its slimy. You know the basics, right? You know whether it is a bird or a fish or a cow or a horse, we know the basics.” Our guest today is Dr. Jessica Fox. She is a 2015 graduate from University of Minnesota and since graduation she has packed a lot into her career! This includes attending and becoming Aquavet Certified in at all three levels, receiving a certificate in Fish Health Medicine, Aq...
Apr 09, 2020•40 min
We have another special episode of the podcast today. We are joined by Dr. Melinda Merck. She has an incredible story of how she is responding to the COVID-19 Pandemic. Dr. Merck is a veterinarian who typically works in the area of Veterinary Forensics. Once she realized how COVID-19 was going to impact our communities, she stepped up and started looking for ways to help. She is currently working at a local grocery store and it is truly incredible how she is applying her veterinary skills for th...
Apr 08, 2020•32 min
“Don’t tell me that you want to do something, but you can’t, that’s just going to make me want to figure out how you can.” Our guest today is Dr. Rebecca Steers. She is 2010 graduate from Cunning School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. During school she was very active with the Student AVMA and was national SAVMA president. After graduation, she served as a veterinarian in the U S Army. From here she spent time as an associate veterinarian and as a relief veterinarian before starting ...
Apr 02, 2020•45 min
“Often people see potential in us that we don’t see ourselves and if you can kind of lean into that and just embrace that, it just opens up so many opportunities.” Our guest today is Dr. Ellen Lowery. Dr. Lowery shared so many wonderful perspectives from her time in the veterinary profession. We are so excited to announce that Dr. Lowery is in a new role since recording this episode. She is currently the Director of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital at Purdue University. What an awesome new chapt...
Mar 26, 2020•41 min
We have another special episode of the podcast today. We are joined by three different veterinarians from across the country. They share what adjustments their clinics and organizations have made in response to COVID-19 concerns. We kick things of with Dr. Melanie Bowden. She owns her own veterinary relief business and is currently located on the west coast but does have clients on the east coast, which has required increased communication in the past weeks. She discusses the challenges she has ...
Mar 23, 2020•38 min
“Sometimes taking a hit in your life can be one of the most beautiful things that happens to you.” Those wise words are from Dr. Kristin Wuellner. She joins us on a fun episode where we discuss what veterinarians can learn from the Football Industry. Even if you aren’t a football fan, there are some great insights shared today. We learned so much from each other’s perspectives. We can’t wait it to share this journey with you! Remember we want to hear from you! Please be sure to subscribe to our ...
Mar 19, 2020•36 min
We have a special episode for everyone today. We chat with Dr. Jen Brandt, AVMA’s Director of Member Wellbeing and Diversity and Inclusion Initiatives about wellbeing tips during the time of uncertainty around COVID-19. Please visit AVMA.org or AVMA’s social media accounts for up to date information on the corona virus and the impacts on the veterinary profession. Our Chief Veterinary Officer, Dr. Gail Golab and our entire Marketing and Communications Team have been working tirelessly to provide...
Mar 18, 2020•34 min
“I would just say know your worth. Know your worth and realize it is probably bigger than what you actually think it is.” Our guest today is Dr. Katy Nelson. We had a blast chatting with her! She is no stranger to media outlets, and we hear how taking a chance and putting herself out there has led to an amazing career, which includes hosting her own television series. She shares so much wisdom and insight throughout our conversation. She also manages to sprinkle in some truly hilarious stories t...
Mar 12, 2020•54 min
“My big goal is to prove to the profession that you can provide a flexible schedule for our emerging female workforce so that they can have a work-life balance- allow them to be a mom and a veterinarian and not have to choose between the two.” Our guest today is Dr. Cindy Barnes. Dr. Barnes is a 2012 graduate from Colorado State University. She has fit in so much throughout her personal and professional life and we were really inspired by our conversation. She’s held so many different roles in t...
Mar 05, 2020•46 min
“It’s not always about you, right? Sometimes it’s about diarrhea and sometimes it’s about that other person and what’s going on in their head. and you know it’s just kind of, it’s a funny story that I-I just love, because it just helps me remember that little token of advice.” Our guest today is Dr. Ericka Mendez. She is the author of The Purposeful Vet Blog which tackles tough topics in veterinary medicine. Dr. Mendez is very open about her “love-hate relationship with my profession” and her pe...
Feb 27, 2020•39 min
“Veterinarians make the best cocktail or dinner party guests.” We are changing things up on this week’s episode! Dr. Emily Tincher joins us for Vet Med True False. In this episode, each of us shares a statement or misconception about veterinary medicine and we debate if we believe it is true or false. We have a great time digging into these topics and we hope you enjoy our conversation. Next week, we will return to our regular show style and hear about another amazing journey from one of our col...
Feb 20, 2020•39 min
“The question is- what’s stopping us from doing the best work of our lives? And just let that hang in the air.” We are so excited to bring you this week’s episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast with special guest, Aaron Dignan. If you attended VLC, you are hopefully familiar with Aaron’s work as he was the Keynote for the 2020 conference. If you are not familiar with his work, this episode is a great introduction. His entire presentation and body of work centers around one question- What is stopp...
Feb 13, 2020•36 min
: “If a profession limits itself to only including a certain group of people, then the problem with that is you get a limited number of ideas and perspectives and values. And over time, you know, you’ve kind of doomed yourself to becoming stagnant and halting your own growth” Those wise words are from Sean Gadson, our guest today on My Veterinary Life Podcast. Sean is a third-year veterinary student at UC Davis. He reached out to us to discuss diversity and inclusion within the veterinary profes...
Feb 06, 2020•44 min
“But I always say relief vets are a little like pollinators. We will take ideas from practice and bring it to another, we will share things and I think the whole veterinary profession can grow as a result of that.” Our guest today is Dr. Cindy Trice. Dr. Trice is a graduate of UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. She is the founder and CEO of Relief Rover and a HUGE advocate for relief medicine. Throughout her career she has had the privilege of working in over 50 unique settings across the c...
Jan 30, 2020•45 min
“Cows are just so resilient. I think for 2020 I’m going to try to have a more cow-like mind set.” We are changing things up on this week’s episode! Dr. Emily Tincher joins us for a game of Vet Med Would You Rather. We have a great time sharing our perspectives and thoughts on different scenarios. We hope you will play along too and reach out to us with your thoughts or suggestions for shows. We cover everything from clinical cases to meeting vet med royalty and even talk television. We hope you ...
Jan 23, 2020•34 min
“It’s been an incredible journey and if someone had told me five years ago that I would be CEO of a company that sells globally, I would have said you must be joking. I have no training, no skills and an excel spreadsheet makes me break out into a cold sweat.” Our guest today is Dr. Liz Bales. Dr. Bales is a graduate of University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine. She has had a truly incredible career and is having a tremendous impact on how we care for our patients, specifically ca...
Jan 16, 2020•46 min
“and Dr. Mayer pulled out this massive jug of peanut butter and they stick to a pole and they stick it into the cage and the bear smelled the peanut butter and just immediately woke up and started licking the peanut butter.” Our guest today is Bryce Golsen. Bryce is currently a student at the University of Georgia’s College of Veterinary Medicine. He reached out to us to share his experience with research opportunities as a veterinary student. Learn how he first decided to take the leap into res...
Jan 09, 2020•44 min
“Be a reasonable freaking human being, and it doesn’t seem like it should be a hard bar to fit, but I am often surprised when I encounter people who don’t meet that. And that is, you know, just be nice to people and don’t be dramatic and just take life as it is and just be a reasonable freaking human being” Our guest today is Dr. Erik Hofmeister. Dr. Hofmeister is a professor of Anesthesiology at Auburn University and has had an incredible career so far. As someone who is committed to life-long ...
Jan 02, 2020•43 min
“I had to actually to put into practice all of these things that I had learned in veterinary school that I didn’t necessarily think I would use. And I think it built my confidence pretty early in my practice experience” Our guest today is Dr. Heather Case. Dr. Case received her DVM from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine. She didn’t stop there. She also has her Master’s in Public Health, is a diplomate for the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine and a Certi...
Dec 26, 2019•1 hr 7 min
“I’ve decided that since we are friends, I can hijack your podcast for just a moment and instead I would love to play with you guys two truths and a lie veterinary version” Our guest today is Dr. Emily Tincher. Dr. Tincher is a 2016 graduate from Auburn University. After veterinary school she pursued an internship with the intention of going on and practicing emergency medicine. Beyond clinical practice, she also volunteers her time with the Veterinary Business Management Association, the AVMA’s...
Dec 19, 2019•1 hr
“I mean really anything could happen, I could be a relief vet. That’s the beauty of being a veterinarian is you can really do anything and you can reinvent yourself at any point in your career. And that’s the best part of being a veterinarian.” Our guest today is Dr. Jenn Bornkamp. Dr. Bornkamp is a 2009 graduated from Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine. After veterinary school she pursued a large animal internship at Iowa State and went on further to complete a residency in Anesthesi...
Dec 12, 2019•48 min
“I had no idea what public health was until the first couple weeks of vet school. I knew that I wanted to be a veterinarian. When I started vet school, I thought I was either going to be a wildlife vet or an equine vet. Which probably will sound familiar to many of your listeners because I think a lot of us started out thinking things like that” Our guest today is Dr. Katharyn Kryda. Dr. Kryda is a 2011 graduate from University of Illinois. Her career journey has taken her where no veterinarian ...
Dec 05, 2019•54 min
"Prioritize your safety at all times. Even if that means you have to have an uncomfortable conversation of ‘I don’t feel comfortable doing this’ because there is likely somebody else in your environment that feels the same way and is just waiting for someone to be that safety champion. So I encourage folks to be that safety champion, to prioritize their safety.” Our guest today is Dr. Heather Fowler. Dr. Fowler is a 2010 graduate from University of Pennsylvania. She also has her Master’s in Publ...
Nov 28, 2019•57 min
Welcome to another special episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast. We are so excited to bring you the final installment of our mini-series focused on Women Leaders in the Pet Health Industry. Today’s guest is Dr. Laura Pletz. Dr. Pletz is the Scientific Services Manager, Eastern Region for Royal Canin. She also helped develop the Royal Canin Women’s Veterinary Leadership Forum. We talk about what inspired the creation of the forum and what our major takeaways were from our experience in Washingto...
Nov 26, 2019•36 min
“I think I was sort of Vice President of the class. And my primary role senior year was setting up the vet school happy hour and so I think I took it on mostly because Kinkos was right next to Dairy Queen and Thursday was dollar blizzard night and that’s when I would go up and get blizzards and photo copy the signs to paste all of the vet school that showed where we were to get together on Friday nights” Our guest today is Dr. Billy Griswold. Dr. Griswold is a member of the University of Florida...
Nov 21, 2019•1 hr 8 min
“The future is unknown in terms of my career there, but I’m actually very excited about it. It’s also very nerve-racking, you know like we mentioned before income is always good and I always need something to do. I’m not an idler at all” Our guest today is Dr. Kelly DeBaene. Dr. DeBaene is a 2011 graduate from the University of Illinois. Since graduation she has had an incredible career. She completed her Master’s in Public Health through the University of Chicago. After that she moved to the we...
Nov 14, 2019•46 min
Welcome to another special episode of My Veterinary Life Podcast. We are so excited to bring your part two of our mini-series focused on Women Leaders in the Pet Health Industry. Today’s guest is Dr. Carolyn Henry. Dr. Henry is currently the Dean at University of Missouri College of Veterinary medicine. We had an incredible conversation with her and gained so many tips and tricks about navigating a professional career. So much of what she shared really resonated with us and we can’t wait to shar...
Nov 12, 2019•42 min
“So, I think from a very young age, I thought I wanted to be a veterinarian. There was this weird year where I decided I wanted to be a taxi drive and I don’t know where that came from, but there was that off year where I put my veterinary dreams on hold to pursue being a taxi drive.” Our guest today is Dr. Jeff Olivarez. Dr. Olivarez is currently a first-year resident in the Vet Diagnostic and Production Animal Medicine field at Iowa State University. During his time in veterinary school, Jeff ...
Nov 07, 2019•46 min
