Dear AVMA, I am writing this open letter in response to the blatantly sexist and ignorant comments made in the September issue of Bovine Veterinarian in an article entitled “Drivers of Direction.” In the section entitled “Nature of Practice,” the authors, AVMA Economics Division members Barbara Dutton (economist) and Dr. Frederic Ouedraogo (economic analyst) suggest that women are naturally more interested in working with companion animals while men prefer to work outdoors with large animals (section pictured below). As I sat at my desk to read this article a couple of weeks ago, I did a double take. I flipped the magazine back and forth and checked the date. Surely this was some sort of 1960s magazine one of the older retired vets left lying around the office. But no, there it was clear as day on the cover: September 2017. A lot of feelings rushed to the surface, including anger, frustration, and annoyance, but was I shocked? In a word: No. I would like to begin this by saying that, overall, I am a supporter of the AVMA and organized veterinary medicine. I attended the AVMA Veterinary Leadership Convention as an Emerging Leader in 2016. This gave me the opportunity to witness first-hand the important things the AVMA does for our profession and the people in it. I attended wonderful continuing education courses that allowed me to hone my leadership skills and take many lessons back to the practice that I own. However, I'd be lying if I said I didn't observe some concerning issues both at this convention and since then at other professional meetings. As a supporter of the AVMA, I am entitled to offer some criticism as well, as I want the organization to be successful. For that to happen, all members of the profession need an opportunity or seat at the table to participate. It concerns me that it's becoming ever more evident that this is not the case. All you have to do is look at the cover of JAVMA with our most current officers to realize this is not the case. Old white guy, old white guy, older white guy, and the list goes on. Look, I have nothing against white men. I'm married to one, and I'm friends with many of them. However, it is becoming clear that we need more diversity in our leadership. If a female DVM with common sense would have read or edited that article before it went to press, it would have been nixed, and you wouldn't have this firestorm of pissed off female veterinarians on your hands. It is becoming clear that the pale, frail, and male domination in your organization is no longer representative of the profession as a whole, which is now majority female. According to an AVMA Market Research Study in 2016, veterinarians currently employed in private practice are 43.4% male and 56.6% female. Male enrollment from US veterinary colleges has decreased from 89% in the 1969-1970 school year to 22.4% to 2008-2009 (sorry, that's the newest data I could find) according to the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges. So yes, it goes without saying that our profession is majority female and moving more and more that way. It only makes sense that we should be represented at the leadership level. I will start by addressing my initial concerns with the AVMA before addressing this article directly. You see, during this leadership convention, as I said, I experienced both good and bad. Yes, I observed the overwhelming majority of older white men leading your organization. I had a concerning conversation over dinner with someone who had been the president of your organization in recent years. During our polite dinner conversation, he brought up that female veterinarians should absolutely be paid less due to the fact that their pregnancies are liabilities for practices and they miss more work to stay at home with their sick children. I almost choked on my steak. Yes, I had heard many blatantly sexist comments by men in the profession before. After all, I worked and practiced with men who began practicing in the 1960s and 70s. Many of the producers I have worked with are from that generation as well. I was not new to hearing mild to moderately sexist comments at work. For the most part, I would shrug them off and give these men a pass because well, they're from a generation when these comments were acceptable, they are learning that I am just as capable as any man, and they're paying me. This, however, was something different entirely. In my years of working with and dealing with older men with somewhat out-dated thinking, I had never heard something quite as blatantly sexist and inflammatory as this, coming from someone still very active in leadership no less. I was furious. I'm pretty sure steam was coming out of my ears, but I kept my cool and gave reasoned arguments (because that's what freaking professionals do). I informed him that men and women often share responsibility for children now, meaning yes, men do stay at home with their sick children as well. I also wanted to ask him how many days of work he missed during his AVMA presidency because I was sure it was infinitely more than those my female colleagues took for sick children and even maternity leave. I walked back to my hotel that night in the chill of the Chicago January air, still fuming over that conversation. Is this how men in the profession really feel about us? Surely this person is an outlier, and most of our leaders in the profession don't really feel this way. Also, thinking those things is bad enough, but to actually vocalize them and think it's okay is another matter entirely. I began my next day at the convention with high hopes for more encouraging experiences. After all, I had a breakfast meeting with the Women's Veterinary Leadership Development Initiative (WVLDI, which I'd already been exposed to at other conventions) and would also learn more about the Future Leaders Program. Both seemed like great initiatives to get more women and youth involved in the AVMA, something your organization definitely needs. However, I have to say that the more I learned about these programs, the more discouraged I became. The WVLDI breakfast was similar to those I had been in the past. Challenges facing women in the profession were discussed over bagels and scones. A phenomenon called “Imposter Syndrome” was discussed, which had been discussed at many past meetings. Then, at each table was seated various leaders of the AVMA (older white men), and the women at the tables were given the opportunity to discuss their concerns with the AVMA leadership. I thought this was a good exercise and opportunity for the leaders of your organization to hear our perspective. However, it was mostly women complaining about not having an opportunity to participate, not knowing how to get started, and not having time with their family and work responsibilities, with the leaders telling us repeatedly to move up the ranks and put in your time. Both heard each other's sides, but I'm not sure what was accomplished. I began to wonder what exactly WVLDI was accomplishing, even with good intentions. Were women who were involved in this organization actually promoted to real leadership roles in the AVMA? Was it really necessary for this organization to offer more leadership training to women, as if women aren't natural-born leaders and need more training? And how is eating cake, drinking soda, and discussing Imposter Syndrome going to solve the real leadership crisis we're experiencing? Do they really think Imposter Syndrome is the most pressing issue for women in this profession? I thought, oh well, maybe the Future Leaders Program will be promising. I was interested in participating, until I realized that these young professionals were given pet projects and were not assigned any real responsibility or leadership roles in the AVMA. Listen AVMA, I don't want to sound ungrateful. I at least appreciate that you're trying to get more women and youth involved with these initiatives, but you're not trying hard enough, and your execution could be better. Are we really accomplishing anything with these groups if you're still making the women and youth in this profession sit at the kid's table while the “grown-ups” go on as they always have? This is the equivalent of putting a band aid on a ruptured aorta. So to you, AVMA, the problem isn't the magazine article itself. The article is just further evidence of the backwards and outdated thinking in your organization. As a woman, I don't naturally feel more drawn to companion animals. When examining a cow, I don't have to squint my eyes and pretend its a puppy to make it more interesting. When I'm in the great outdoors working a herd of cattle, which I enjoy doing, I don't think to myself, “Gee, I better get back to the kitchen...I mean small animal clinic.” I don't struggle with the physical aspects of my job any more than my male colleagues do. I can rip testicles from an 800 lb bull with ease. I was delivering calves five days before my son was born. I know being a woman in this profession can certainly come with challenges, but I don't see my gender as a weakness. You see, to get where I am today, I have overcome my fair share of challenges. I have been belittled and underestimated. I have been sworn at and rejected. I have been sexually harassed. Yet, none of that stopped me. Many of my female colleagues would affirm the same experiences. Like many other female veterinarians and mothers, we show up to work and save lives with hardly any sleep. We deliver calves and do a lot of dangerous things while we're pregnant. We field questions, run businesses, and deal with disgruntled clients while on maternity leave, all while feeling guilty that we're either short-changing our children, or not being our best at work. We're not asking for free passes to be lazy. My guess is these older generation veterinarians may change their tune if they walked in the shoes of a veterinarian and mother for just one day. I realize that you, the AVMA, has issued an apology in Bovine Veterinarian in response to the backlash of this article. That is a good start, and I hope it's sincere. However, you need to take it a step further. You need to find REAL ways to include more women and young practitioners. Perhaps you should restructure your militaristic hierarchy of leadership. The truth is, the AVMA will need to evolve in order to succeed. If you're celebrating progress “one funeral at a time” as another veterinarian put it so well, you may lose your relevance or go extinct. Perhaps if leaders in your organization took more time to interact and listen, actually listen, to the women in the profession, you would quit wasting your time discussing antiquated male and female stereotypes and instead see our unique perspectives and experiences as an asset to your organization. It's okay, AVMA. You don't have to fear women and youth. Please, just please, give us a seat at the table.
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As veterinarians, we preach to our clients the importance of immunizations in disease prevention. It's frustrating to us when an animal becomes ill or even dies from preventable diseases. We think, “Gosh! We could have prevented that!” In the same way that clients don't always take our advice to protect our pets, not all veterinarians take extra precautions to protect their income (including myself). Last year, I don’t know how many times I told myself to get disability insurance, knowing that I'm the primary breadwinner of our family and paying our bills without my income would be quite difficult. Then when I found out what I'd be paying for health insurance (almost 30% of my base salary to insure myself, my husband, and my son), disability insurance got put on the backburner. “Insurance is a ripoff!” I thought to myself. I'm young and healthy. What are the odds something would happen to me where I would become disabled and unable to handle the physical aspects of my job. Even if I did, surely I could find another job lecturing or in industry. Clearly, I'm not alone in my thoughts. Only 1% of individuals think they will be out of work for over a month but 25% of today's 20-year-olds will become disabled before they retire. I was then diagnosed with cancer and am kicking myself for not purchasing disability insurance. I'll most likely end up missing a couple of months of work total, so my family will be fine with our savings. I won't be replacing Princess Pepe (our beater car) with an Escalade or Dodge Charger anytime soon. Also, my goal of paying off student loans this year probably won't happen. However, I can't help but think what would become of us had my cancer been more extensive and I needed to miss a year or more from work. I'm not an insurance expert by any means. Far from it, actually, but I would like to start a discussion and share my experience so others don't make the same mistake I did. Here are a few things I've learned from the little bit of research I've done and my own personal experience. 1.) You are not invincible. This has been a hard lesson for me to learn, and it was this line of thinking, that I was young and healthy, therefore, I was invincible, that steered me away from disability insurance. No matter your age, it goes without saying that there can be a lot of job hazards as a veterinarian. You can get bit, scratched, kicked, and chased by angry momma cows. I've experienced all of the above, luckily, none resulting in a serious injury. I was knocked out cold once while castrating a 800 lb “calf”. His hocks hit my forehead and the back of my head hit the chute. I'm not sure how long I was out, but long enough for Omer to walk to the clinic and back to get a cold rag and some water. I came to, and then I tried to watch Omer hold the tail while the producer awkwardly tried to castrate the bull himself. I took over and finished the job. He had knocked me out and given me a concussion, so I was extra motivated to rip his nuts out. This was during my first month of practice, and I have since learned to keep my head out of the way of kicking feet. But bottom line: our job is dangerous. There are many opportunities to get seriously injured, and then there's the other unexpected things outside of work, like car accidents… or getting diagnosed with cancer at the age of 31. 2.) Maternity leave help. I know many veterinary professionals that use short term disability insurance for maternity leave. In this country, 89% of women have unpaid maternity leave. The vast majority of veterinarians I know have unpaid leave. I chose to pay myself during maternity leave because I'm the HBIC, and it's good to be Queen (But in all fairness, I give all of my employees paid maternity leave). However, that is not an option for a lot of people, so short term disability is a good idea. Heck, I'm even wishing I would have used it so I would have extra cash for a relief veterinarian. 3.) Read the fine print! This is important advice any time dealing with insurance. It is important to get occupation specific disability insurance. That way, the disability insurance continues to pay even if you find income elsewhere, like lecturing or McDonald's. Make sure your plan covers the area of medicine you're practicing, like if you're a dairy vet or a mixed animal practitioner. Also, it's important to determine if your plan only covers work related injuries or other illnesses like cancer. 4.) Don't delay! It goes without saying that the older you get, the more opportunities you have to require medical attention, which can make you uninsurable if you're wanting disability insurance. I've had colleagues declined due to a history of postpartum depression, restless leg syndrome, gall stones (that had already been surgically removed), and even gastric reflux. Basically, insurance companies will look for any excuse not to insure you, so best to get these policies when you're young and healthy. 5.) Practice owner? Consider Business Overhead Expense disability insurance. This is a good idea for any practice owner. This would keep the lights on, pay all nonveterinary team member salaries, and pay for all or partial salary for a temporary relief veterinarian if the business owner were to become disabled. As a veterinary practice owner, one of your most important assets is your business, so it's a good idea to protect it. This can keep your practice operational and revenues steady until the owner is ready to return to work or can sell the practice for fair market value. 6.) Assess your priorities. It's impossible to insure for every possible risk. If you did, you'd go broke. Like me, many of my colleagues have delayed getting disability insurance due to very high health insurance premiums. You have to consider your individual situation, and weigh the risks and benefits. Are you a sole income house? What are your monthly expenses? Do you have room in your budget for added insurance? There are lots of things to consider. I never expected I would use or need disability insurance. I also never expected to get diagnosed with cancer. Had I known, I would, of course, find ways to make disability insurance work for my budget. It’s impossible to predict the future though, so that’s why I chose this topic now, so others can see what I could have and should have done last year. That’s one year! I went in for a simple sinus surgery and came out with a cancer diagnosis. If it was just a matter of myself, I could possibly go without more insurance in the future knowing that my close family would always be there for me, but now that I support a family and provide jobs in a small community, it feels a little different, a little more urgent. If you can make it happen, or even add a small protection to your income, for your family or business, I suggest that you do. Lessons learned every day, folks! By now it's no secret that I was diagnosed with cancer. I have cancer. Those three words shock me every time I say them (or type them). I have an olfactory neuroblastoma, a very rare tumor of the olfactory nerve, which is the cranial nerve involved with sense of smell. I was diagnosed just a few short weeks ago, and already so much has happened. However, my journey to this diagnosis was years in the making. A couple of years ago, I decided to start going to an allergy center to get started on allergy shots. I had been plagued by allergies and chronic colds. I did the intradermal testing, and I found that I was allergic to cats, dogs, horses, and cattle. If that's not the definition of irony, I don't know what is. I complained to the nurses about severe congestion and phantom smells. I would smell cigarette smoke for 2-3 weeks at a time. Then I would smell bacon. The bacon was much more pleasant than the cigarette smoke. They looked up my nose, said I had a lot of congestion (especially on the left side), and attributed my symptoms to severe allergies, so I started getting allergy shots. The allergy shots seemed to help. I didn't get as many colds that winter. I then got pregnant, and I noticed the congestion got worse. However, I was told this was normal due to increased blood flow from pregnancy. I gave up on the weekly shots during my pregnancy due to the inconvenience of it all. I'm a veterinarian, but they wouldn't let me give my shots. Seriously, folks? I think I'm qualified. A few months after Leland was born, the congestion continued, so I thought I would try switching to the sublingual allergy drops. I had heard good things, and doing the drops at home would work better with my busy schedule. I was told in order to switch to the drops, I had to do the intradermal testing all over again, which I had done just over a year ago. Honestly, I was a little annoyed. Not only was the intradermal testing expensive, but it involved about 40 or more intradermal injections. I'm not needle shy by any means, but you do feel like a pincushion after the process. Nonetheless, I decided to go for it considering I couldn't smell anything and had no air flow out of the left side of my nostril. Another nurse I saw told me I had severe congestion when she looked up my nose, and if I didn't have a significant response to the drops within six months then we may consider sinus surgery. I had heard friends talk about having the procedure done and how amazing it was to breath out of your nose afterward. Fast forward a few weeks, and the congestion got worse and worse and the phantom smells returned. I even got to the point where I could no longer sniff up any nasal discharge due to complete occlusion of my nostril. This basically meant I needed to walk around with a Kleenex in my hand all the time or snot would just fall out. I referred to this as “incontinence of the nose.” I usually just blamed it on all the cats I'd seen in the office that day. I blame everything on cats. I was sitting next to my husband on the couch one evening picking my nose when my finger butted up against something on the left side. Okay. Go ahead and act disgusted, but we all know that everyone picks their nose once in awhile, especially in the privacy of their own home! Anyway, I turned to my husband and said, “Look, Patrick! I can only stick my finger in this far!” As I stick my finger in just past the nail. He looked slightly disgusted, but he's used to me acting like a 13-year-old boy. I decided it would be a good idea to get that checked out by someone more specialized than the nurses I'd been seeing, so I made an appointment with an ENT. When she looked up my nose, she immediately saw the mass. At the time, she described it as a long-standing polyp, meaning it was not likely to respond to medical management alone. We agreed that sinus surgery was the next step, so I made an appointment for a CT before surgery. After the CT, they got me into surgery relatively quickly. My husband drove me to the hospital and waited in the waiting room. I didn't get to speak with my surgeon after, but she came out and talked to my husband. She told him that the polyp was highly vascular, and there was more bleeding than normal so she put in dissolvable packing. She also said that she left the base of it in so they would be able to find it in case the pathology came back cancerous. When my husband told me this, I was dazed on the ride home, as some red flags popped up in my mind. I knew from my medical background that tumors cause angiogenesis. Basically, they can generate blood vessels to get extra blood supply. The stump thing also made me wonder. Did the polyp look suspicious, so she left part of it in? She didn't mention that as routine before surgery. Would this mean I would need another surgery? All of these questions remained, but I knew I had a follow-up appointment in a few days, and hopefully the pathology results would be in at that time. My concerns got pushed aside somewhat out of necessity but also by the heavy painkillers that made everything hilarious. Recovery was no issue. However, the concerns continued. As my husband and I were taking an evening walk with the stroller a few days later, it hit me all of a sudden. At the time, I figured I was just having a melodramatic moment, and I'm sure my husband felt the same way. Surgery was Thursday and I was back at work by Tuesday. That same day, I had a recheck with my ENT. Unfortunately, they did not have the pathology results at that time. She did say that what she removed did not look like a normal polyp. She also said on the CT that this mass was behaving like a slow-growing, benign tumor. She asked if I would like to wait for my pathology results on my recheck the following Friday, or if I would like her to call me. I told her to just call me with the results. No way I was waiting that long. The next couple of days, I anxiously awaited the pathology results. It was the end of the work day on Thursday, and I was pulling up some euthanasia solution in the back of the clinic when my cell phone started to ring with a familiar number. I was the only veterinarian in the clinic that day as it was my associate’s afternoon off. I knew this was probably the pathology results, so I went ahead and answered. It was the nurse for my ENT. She said, “Dr. Francis (not real name) has received your pathology results, and she would like you to come in tomorrow to discuss them.” I asked, “Is everything okay? Are the results bad? Because she was originally going to call me with the results.” The nurse said, “No. Not necessarily. She likes to discuss results in person. But she also asks that you bring a loved one with you tomorrow.” We set up an appointment at the end of the day tomorrow, and I hung up the phone. It doesn't take a rocket scientist to put those puzzle pieces together and I knew that the results probably weren't good. “Geez!” I thought. “Could they be more cryptic?” I take a couple of breaths to gain my composure. I had an old dog in the back of a car in the parking lot waiting to be euthanized, and I needed to be on top of my game. As I pushed the solution into the vein of this long-time companion, tears were streaming down my face. “It's okay,” I thought to myself. “In this context, they'll think you're a sympathetic doctor. Not a basket case.” Just to clarify, I am always sad and sympathetic while putting a pet down. No veterinarian takes that lightly. However, I usually keep my cool in those situations and don't cry. Usually. Anyway, I gave my condolences to the clients, went straight to my office, and cried. I'm not a terribly emotional person, and one of my least favorite things in the world is crying in front of people. I’m an ugly crier. Believe me. My technicians knew something was up, but they were nice enough to leave me alone for a little while until I gained my composure once again. I told them before they left work, and they tried to tell me sweet lies to make me feel better, like, “Maybe they just want to sedate you to suction on your nose, and that’s why they want you to bring someone.” I appreciated the gesture, but I knew better. Omer even said, “Don’t worry, you’re too mean and ugly to die.” Omer is probably the only person on the planet that would call someone ugly during a time like this. In all seriousness though, I knew he was just trying to lighten the mood, and I appreciated it. Then there was the other bad news, another emergency call. “Greeeaaat,” I thought to myself. One more thing I have to do before I can go home and become a total basketcase in privacy. At this point, I still had to tell my husband...and my mom. I called my husband and blubbered, “They want me to come in for my results tomorrow, and they told me to bring someone. And I have an emergency I’m waiting on at the clinic.” I hung up and then shot my mom a quick text. Five minutes later, both of them showed up at the clinic, and we all just sat there puzzled. Mom and I were crying, and my husband was keeping his cool. I survived the emergency, although not without some effort as it was one of those appointments where I had to discuss the case with the client, and then his wife over the phone, and then his second cousin, and then his mailman. But nevertheless, I survived and I could finally go home. Once I got home, I absorbed all the baby cuddles I could. For a period of time, I laid on the floor of my son's nursery, paralyzed by the possibilities ahead of me. My thoughts included but were not limited to, “Why didn't I listen to my gut and buy disability insurance last year. I'm cheap, and an idiot!” “Am I going to go in and they're going to tell me I have two weeks to live?” And, “If this turns out to be no big deal and my doctor is just being overly dramatic, I'm going to kick her in the vagina for putting me through this.” Like most things, the unknown was so much worse than reality. I went to work the next day, and everyone gave me their well wishes before I left for my afternoon off. It was a late afternoon appointment. My mom, my husband, and my son all came along. I needed the baby with me to stay calm. It was a busy Friday at the ENT office. There was a long wait. Working in the medical field myself, I understand how busy Friday afternoons can be. Logically, I understood, but internally I was thinking, “Haven’t you guys tortured me enough already?!” I stayed distracted for the first thirty minutes of our wait by watching my son play in the waiting room. After that, I started to shake my foot and fidget the way I do when I’m nervous. Then Leland started to have a come-apart. He was ready for his afternoon nap. I strapped him in his car seat and was rocking him around when FINALLY the nurse came out and called my name. We all filed into the small room, held hands, and took a deep breath. Dr. Francis came in with a couple residents and greeted us. She apologized for our wait. She led up to the news by saying that she was sorry for not giving my diagnosis over the phone, but she knew that I would Google this particular diagnosis, and because there was a lot of outdated information about this diagnosis online and prognoses have changed drastically over the years, she didn’t want me to freak myself out. That made sense. I began to understand why I had been through hell for the past 24 hours. I nodded my head slowly with every statement she made, waiting for her to finally replace the words “diagnosis” with an actual diagnosis. And then she said it. “You have an olfactory neuroblastoma.” The truth is, I had spent time looking up potential differentials for malignant nasal tumors, so I was already somewhat familiar with this cancer. Her assumption that I would Google things was spot-on. “This is a very rare, malignant tumor of the nasal cavity.” That I also knew, and I continued to nod slowly, waiting for the moment for her to tell me what grade it was. She continued, “Prognoses can vary based on grading and staging. Your tumor is a Grade 1.” I breathed a sigh of relief. She explained that while my previous CT looked promising for this tumor being localized, more imaging would be necessary for further staging. She told me there was a doctor associated with University Hospital who had successfully treated eight patients with this particular tumor. For a tumor this rare, that was a significant amount of experience. She explained, “Of course you can research other major centers, but Dr. George (also not the real name) does an excellent job.” I figured it would only make sense for her to recommend someone who was affiliated with the same hospital as her. Then she went on to say, “I would trust Dr. George to operate on my own husband and children.” “Okay,” I thought, “She may feel pressured to recommend this hospital’s doctors, but she didn’t have to say that.” Dr. George was sounding like a great option close to home, but I would still spend all weekend researching hospitals with experience with this type of tumor. She explained that a tumor board would meet to discuss my case, and then I would meet with Dr. George. Tumor board? A board of brainiacs that meet to discuss cool cancer cases? That’s cool! Can I go to those? We asked a few more questions, and my mom ducked in and out of the room with a fussy baby. My husband was even cracking jokes with Dr. Francis, I’m sure trying to lighten the mood. On the way home I texted close friends and family, researched on my phone (which would continue throughout the weekend), and I even cried a little. After doing our research and hearing rave reviews of Dr. George from nurses and former patients, we decided to stay close to home for treatment and proceeded from there. That night, my brother-in-law called from Texas and asked if I had any specific prayer requests. I responded, “Could you pray that I’ll find a relief veterinarian during treatment?” My husband shook his head after I hung up the phone. I didn’t immediately understand why, until he said, “We don’t even know if this thing is in your brain yet, and you’re asking them to pray about a relief veterinarian?!” “Well, when you put it that way…” I thought, but honestly, most veterinarians, with our type A personalities and need to plan, plan, plan, would probably respond that way. A lot has happened since that day, planned and unplanned. I’ve had many, many CTs, an MRI, and a second surgery. I survived a postoperative infection that made childbirth feel like a walk in the park. I’ve been hospitalized more than once, made trips to the ER, puking along the way. I’ve felt victorious and defeated. When I think to myself, “I have cancer,” it still doesn’t feel real. I’m hoping it isn’t real in the sense that they got it all during the second surgery. Unfortunately, because my surgery was endoscopic, it cannot be said with 100% certainty that there are complete margins. However, I can say that things are looking positive. This tumor has not spread to my brain or my lymph nodes. When they biopsied my skull base and orbital area, there was no cancer to be found. Despite this tumor having been there for likely three years or more, it is still a grade 1 and remained localized to my nasal cavity. That in and of itself is a miracle and testament to this tumor being slow growing and not very aggressive. I’ve felt a lot of things. Frustration that this tumor was not caught sooner despite being examined multiple times. Frustration that I had been reporting severe congestion and phantom smells for years, and my symptoms were always shrugged off as severe allergies. More than anything, I was heartbroken that this was happening now of all times. My path toward veterinarian, business owner, wife, and mother had not always been an easy one. I will be the first to admit I was blessed with certain people in my life at just the right time to help me along the way, however, my life has not always been the easiest, and I have been paddling upstream to get to where I am today. For the past year, I felt like I had finally found my place in the world. I was beginning to build something for my family in the clinic, I was enjoying family life and work, and even though I felt like I was hemorrhaging money after buying a business, building a house, and having a baby, the business was doing well, which made me feel good. Dr. Potter, my staff, and I had been working our tails off, and it was beginning to show. Like most people in this situation, I was starting to think “Why did this have to happen to me NOW?! After years of hard work and putting up with bullshit that quite frankly no one should have to put up with, why this? Why is God doing this to me? It isn’t FAIR!” I’m sure all of these thoughts are normal, and once I got that out of my system I was ready to start fighting this thing. “I am going to kick cancer’s ass!” I let go of my frustration about my missed diagnosis, realizing that had this cancer been diagnosed sooner, my husband and I would likely not have tried to have a baby, and I wouldn’t have my beautiful baby boy. I even let go of my resentment and bitterness about why this is happening to me, for the most part at least. I know I have some challenges ahead. The qualities that have made me a (relatively) successful veterinarian and that have helped me overcome adversity will help me fight this, but they don’t always make me the best cancer patient. Learning to let go of things that are out of my control has been the hardest lesson, and one I’m still learning. I’m learning to listen to my body, and try to rest when I need it. Sometimes the marathoner mentality takes over, and I push, push, push. But I’m learning that’s not the best method in this case, that I have to be patient during this process, that I have to slow down and let others take control, and continue on. This is still a learning process for me. As I embark on my next chapter of treatment soon, which is radiation, I feel ready more than ever to fight this. That doesn’t mean that I don’t have days where I’m scared or have doubts. That doesn’t mean that I’m positive every minute of the day. Somedays I watch my son play and I'm overwhelmed with feelings of love and fear. I stay positive most of the time, but sometimes in those moments I tear up at the thought of not being around to raise my son, or not growing old with my husband. Then I push those negative thoughts away, knowing that I've got this. All I can say is that I’m prepared to kick this, and much of that has to do with the kind acts, thoughts, and prayers of close friends, family, and my community. I have the best support system and a wonderful medical team to help me fight this. This is just a bump in the road, part of my journey. Thank you for your support. The fact that you made it to the end of this extremely long blog post says enough. So many of us have memories of the September 11th attacks that will stick with us for a lifetime, and we’ll remember all those that died and all those that risked their lives to help, but when you look to your pets for solace today, also remember the heroic search and rescue animals that were deployed to Ground Zero to help find survivors. Nearly 100 search and rescue dogs were deployed from all over the country after the attacks. With their handlers, many worked 12 hours days for two weeks straight. As we now know, few survivors were found, but those rescue dogs served another purpose during that harrowing time. Denise Corliss, a firefighter from Texas, brought her search and rescue dog Bretagne (pronounced Brittany) soon after the attacks and found that Bretagne had a completely different purpose than what she had expected. Although Bretagne found no survivors, other rescue personnel would stop to pet her. Bretagne became a therapy dog for all those people working at Ground Zero during such a tragic time. They’d find some relief with Bretagne and stop to share their stories with Corliss, about missing friends, loved ones, and colleagues. They needed a break from what they were witnessing all around them, and Bretagne was a good distraction. It’s been 16 years since the September 11th attacks, and Bretagne was the last surviving search and rescue dog that had been deployed to Ground Zero. She passed away last year.
Search and rescue dogs are also trained to respond to natural disasters, such as hurricanes and earthquakes, so many are deployed right now in Texas, Florida, and Mexico. As the search for survivors begins, they are right there to serve. Many of these dogs retire to become service dogs for people with disabilities, to a nice home, or like Bretagne, continue to help the community by becoming a reading dog at a local school so children with difficulty reading can read to a friendly and patient face for practice. Freedom Service Dogs of America takes shelter dogs and trains them to become service dogs for children with autism, people with mobility issues, military veterans, and individuals with PTSD, like many of the individuals that worked at Ground Zero or survived the September 11th attacks. As with search and rescue dogs, these dogs go through a rigid screening, and sometimes they aren’t able to do all the challenging things necessary of a service dog, but still need a home. Check out their website to learn more about how you could adopt one of these incredible dogs: https://freedomservicedogs.org/our-dogs/adopt-a-dog/ Today is a day of reflection. Remember those we’ve lost and those who gave their all trying to save others. Also, take time to enjoy your pets for the extraordinary power they give us to heal and carry on. I recently had a conversation with someone that asked a common question about dogs: “Why does my dog eat grass?” My retort: “Why does my kid eat crayons?” With a speculative look, the friend answered, “Well, because babies are gross.” HAHA! Yes, they are gross, but really, they’re just looking for something to do. Depending on what kind of parent you are, or dog parent, you tend to redirect them. Give the baby a rattle while slowly removing the crayons to avoid a fight. Throw a bone and see who can get it first, the dog or the baby. If it’s your second child, you might even be handing them a box of crayons to nibble on just so you can get the dishes done, so it really does come down to parenting style at any given moment. In most cases, regardless of what you’ve heard, dogs probably eat grass only because they are bored, especially if they are a puppy or younger dog. Do you see how well being a pet owner can prepare you for parenthood? In one study on this common problem, three-quarters of the dogs were found to eat grass, so it’s considered normal behavior by most veterinarians. If you are concerned that it may be more than boredom because other symptoms or signs accompany this behavior, here are a couple possibilities you might bring up with your veterinarian: Pica due to nutritional deficiency - Pica is the term used when a person or an animal frequently eats something that is not food. It can be caused by a lack of nutrients, which is being supplemented by whatever they have chosen to eat, in this case, grass. If this is the case, your dog might need a special diet, such as a high fiber dog food, to include more of those lacking nutrients. Upset stomach - Although the common theory that dogs eat grass to help them throw up, which settles an upset stomach, is probably more myth than anything, if you have a super smart pooch, just maybe, small maybe, they are self-medicating. In actuality, fewer than 10% of dogs have been known to be sick before eating grass and only a quarter of them vomit after eating grass according to studies about this phenomenon. If your dog is eating grass and throwing up frequently, ask your veterinarian in case it’s a bigger issue such as digestion problems. If it comes down to boredom, then get your dog a new toy or bone once in awhile to occupy its time, and more walks are always good for you and your pet. If they continue eating grass, they may just like it, just like your baby loves to chew on your shoes. Just keep in mind that some herbicides and pesticides used on your lawn (or places you visit) might be toxic, so keep your canines safe by checking up on your lawn care products. Wait, what’s that? Your kids don’t eat your shoes. Just my kid. Okay, so he is gross. Don’t be afraid to ask your veterinarian for advice if you think it’s more than boredom or you see other signs that there might be a problem with your pet eating grass. Now, are there any doctors that want to write a blog about my son’s general grossness? Something to tell me it’s normal? Oh well, he’s building immunities here. My shoe can’t be worse than big slobber kisses from the grass-eating (and who knows what else) Pyrenees that lives with us. School is about to start, which means there's a brand new crop of veterinary students getting ready to begin the long and arduous experience known as veterinary school. They're full of excitement, optimism, and probably feel like hot sh*t after being accepted into such a competitive program. My own journey in veterinary school began at this time nine years ago. Nine years! In some ways it seems like yesterday, and in some ways it feels like a lifetime ago. I couldn't resist the opportunity to impart some of my wisdom to brand new veterinary students or even students considering attending veterinary school (if by chance any of you are reading this blog). Veterinary school can be the best of times and the worst of times. It can be fulfilling but also soul crushing. Here are my tips on how to survive it. 1. Don't go it alone. In veterinary school, a support network of classmates is crucial. You may have gotten by on your own in undergrad, but veterinary school is a different ballgame. If your veterinary school is like mine and has an orientation weekend, take that time to establish relationships with your fellow classmates before veterinary school starts. Start a Facebook group for your class and arrange get-togethers before school. I was thankful someone in our class did just that. I met a classmate with a common interest: running. We got together for a run, and she even came to my husband's family dairy to help milk cows. A vegetarian from California dodging cow kicks and urine. Can you imagine? This individual became “my person” as Christina Yang from Grey's Anatomy would say, and she's still one of the best friends I've ever had despite now living across the country. Everyone needs a person or people. Also know that veterinary school often feels like you're the new kid in high school. There are cliques. Lots of them. The group of people you start with may not be your forever friends. You win some friends and lose some. And if you're like me, you may feel like you're floating around aimlessly until you find your place or your people, and that's okay. You'll find them. Establish a good group of friends. Veterinary school is tough, and you need people to lean on, as uncomfortable as that may seem. 2. Study groups! Never underestimate the power of study groups! You may be used to studying by yourself in undergrad, but I found study groups infinitely helpful during veterinary school. Veterinary school often requires sitting and studying for hours on end after class. And I mean HOURS. I didn't do well studying at home. Too many distractions. Libraries weren't really my thing. Too much quiet and my brain gets distracted. I need a low level of background noise, so coffee shops were my perfect study spot. Luckily, my uncle owned a coffee shop in downtown Columbia that provided the perfect study atmosphere, Lakota Coffee Company. My group of friends in veterinary school would meet and hold up a table in Lakota for hours on end while studying lectures. Most of us would study on our own, but it helped to have a group there to ask questions when they arise, lament on our social life (or lack thereof), and people watch. Believe me. There is plenty of people watching to do in downtown Columbia, MO. The one time I truly wish I hadn’t been studying so intently and focusing more on people watching was when I was truly zoned in on the work before me, studying my anesthesia notes, when suddenly I looked up and everyone had left the store. There was a crowd outside. I thought to myself, “What in the world is going on?” Then suddenly, my cousin pops through the door, talking about how a guy just got tazed right outside. Apparently my ability to focus on studying was better than I thought if I missed something like that. It just goes to show that finding a comfortable spot to study (that works for you) pays off. 3. Get as much experience as you can! This is very important before applying to veterinary school but also during. Veterinary school is a long, tough road. It's important to know what you're getting into by accepting all the experiences that you can, good and bad. You have to know if you have a passion for it in those good and bad situations, otherwise, the long road ahead won’t be worth it. It's sad when I talk to colleagues who feel the job is too difficult or they wish they would have done something else, like going to medical school to become a “real” doctor. It's hard saying if more experience before veterinary school would have changed their path. Sometimes it's hard to get a true feel for the profession as a student when the patients aren't your responsibility, or you're not running the practice. That being said, it's best to get as much experience in as many different practices as you can. I also worked at a veterinary clinic (the one I currently own) during veterinary school, and I'm glad I did. During first year when you're studying anatomy and microbiology for hours on end, you need some hands on experience to remind you why you're torturing yourself so much. 4. Eat real food and exercise! Admittedly, there are certain times in veterinary school like finals weeks where self care is off the table. However, it's good to take a break from binge eating Cheetos and sitting for hours on end to exercise and eat something without packaging. Running was my refuge during veterinary school. Hour break between classes? I would put in a quick six miles at Stephens Lake Park. I would then sneak back into class sweaty and in spandex shorts getting strange looks from my classmates. Not sure if they thought I was crazy for running or if they were turned off by the smell. I may have packed on a few extra pounds during the first two years of veterinary school, but I was able to avoid the freshman 30 at least. Also, even if you put on a little weight in the first couple years, do not despair. I lost all of it immediately when we began clinical rotations. Basically, even if exercising isn't your outlet like it is for me, take the time to do it anyway. Even if it's just three days a week. Might as well get in the habit now. It will clear your mind, keep you healthy, and save money on new scrubs when the stress eating kicks in. 5. Have a plan for debt control. It's no secret that the debt-to-income ratio is high in our career. Knowing that, it's important to have a plan to keep your debt as low as possible. I saw time and time again classmates borrowing the maximum each year while eating out every meal and using loan money to buy new vehicles. Then they got to the end of veterinary school and realized what they'd done and wondered how they were going to pay it off. Things I did to reduce my debt were driving a beater car (that I still drive), taking leftovers as much as possible, not having a smartphone, not having cable or dish, working during veterinary school, and shopping at Aldi. Now, almost five years out, I nearly have my student loans paid off. During my first five years of practice, I also bought a practice, bought a house, had a baby, and recently got diagnosed with cancer (future blog post to come on that one). Maybe it’s not wise to build a house, buy a business, and have a child all in the same year (and then get diagnosed with cancer). Seriously, I feel like I’m hemorrhaging money right now, but being frugal and padding my savings account has prepared me for all of these things. My point is that it’s possible to do all of those expensive, adult things while paying down your student loans simultaneously. Yes, I have a lot of debt now, but luckily student loan debt isn't a huge factor, making it possible to make other adult-like investments. I'm not trying to brag or say I'm perfect. I've been known to splurge on the occasional Coach purse or Stitch Fix. But know that it is possible to graduate with a manageable debt load. It takes a lot of budgeting, hard work, and sacrificing certain luxuries for a period of time, but it can be done However, that budgeting and hard work starts now, not after you graduate. 6. Make sure you like people on some level. I get a lot of students in my practice, and a common answer to the question of why they want to be a veterinarian is usually, “Because I love animals, and I don't like people.” That's fine, and a large part of our job is connecting with animals and treating them, giving them a better quality of life, but know that those animals come attached to a human that loves them, and that human is the person that you interact with most. The human is also the one that pays you. If you truly don't like people, you probably aren't going to like this profession unless you decide to specialize in radiology. 7. Make priorities and stick to them! Veterinary school and your career thereafter may seem like the most important thing right now. Those things are important, and it's important to take them seriously but while you're busy studying and taking on the world, remember to take time for important relationships in your life. Go on a date with your significant other. Go out to brunch with your best friends. Career is not the end all be all, and you'll eventually regret making it your number one priority. Basically, take all these things, find what works for you, and if you choose to stick with this career even after all the late nights and debt accrued because you still feel the passion for it, I promise, those stressful days will be worth it. This is a beginning, so get started on the right foot, whichever one that may be. . A few months after my son was born, I was contacted by an old friend, asking if I would be interested in participating in an 82-mile running relay. It would start in the St. Louis area and end in Hermann. And it would be “fun.” I quickly said yes, basically because I'm crazy. Those that know me know that I ran for most of my pregnancy last year, waking up and running before dawn during the coolest time of the day. I quit running at 36 weeks of my pregnancy, two weeks before my baby was born. It just became too uncomfortable at that point, but I continued walking in the evenings. Because I was so active and felt so good being active, I underestimated how long it would take me to recover from delivery and start running again. My OB told me I could run one month after delivery. I thought to myself, “Good deal! I'll just take a month off and be good as gold.” It wasn't that simple. I tried to run one month postpartum and was plagued by hip pain. After a few painful attempts at running, I decided to continue walking and wait another month. Two months postpartum the pain was better but still lingering. It wasn't until three months postpartum that my body seemed to FINALLY reach an equilibrium where I could run regularly without pain. Yeah. Clearly I'm an impatient person. It was around this time I was contacted about running the relay and I figured, “Why not?!” If I can run three miles, I can run 18! It’s hard to say if my professional career complements my running, or if it's the other way around. Either way, there's lots of ways my profession prepared me for this test of endurance, strength, or pure stupidity. Below is a list of ways veterinary medicine prepared me for this relay. 1. Keeping low expectations. I think a lot of veterinarians, mainly veterinarians in rural practice, have to become the MacGyvers of the medical world. It's hard to carry everything on your truck, and sometimes people’s facilities can leave much to be desired. After a few years on the job, you can throw a makeshift pen/holding area with a couple of cattle panels, some bailing wire, and maybe even your vet truck. You can make a tourniquet out of almost anything. Basically, I've learned to do more with less. When I envisioned our relay team riding around and following the runners around on the course, I pictured the van being a lot like the milk delivery vans my father-in-law drove. I always coined these vans “kidnapper vans.” I'm not trying to be offensive; I just don't know how else to describe an unmarked van without windows. I pictured myself crouched on the floor of such van (because it obviously doesn't have seats) pumping in between each leg of the race. I was prepared and brought my AC adapter for my pump as well as a battery pack for backup. When I arrived at the hotel the night before after introducing myself to a few of my teammates, I checked out the van. Turns out our team captain, Beth, had rented a legit, fancy Toyota van. It was complete with comfy seats. The back windows even rolled up and down, with extra drop shades. Beth said to me, “It even has an outlet in the back for your breast pump!” I could have hugged her. Everyone on our team had been warned I would be pumping in the van. I basically told them that was what was going to happen. Five out of our six runners were mothers, so they were cool with it. Either way, sometimes in veterinary medicine or in life, you get pleasantly surprised by your life somehow being made easier, like when a farmer has an alleyway with a 2x4, a client that sounded sketchy over the phone turns out not to be an ax murderer and turns out to be very nice and even pays you, or just having a van with seats that doesn't smell like rotten milk. 2. Competitive drive- Admittedly, I was competitive long before I became a veterinarian. However, most veterinarians you meet are competitive, type A personalities. It's hard to get into veterinary school and survive the academic challenges without being that way. I have always been competitive when it comes to school and running. Part of what makes a successful professional is a desire to be better than you were the day before, the ability to dust yourself off when you do make mistakes and learn from them so they don't happen again. A successful professional can learn and excel at new skills and set goals. That same competitive nature is what pushed me in the afternoon heat when I wanted to stop. Seeing a guy ahead of me and knowing I can catch him and pass him keeps me going (and can cause me to run past my exchange zone as you'll read below). I once ran a six minute mile for the last mile of a half marathon because I saw a girl in front of me with a “Runs on Plants” shirt and decided it would be a cold day in hell before I got beat by a vegetarian. In college, a girl lifted me up and shoved me into a bush during a cross country race. I caught her running uphill and raked my spikes down her calf. I admit that was a little overzealous, but that same competitive drive has got me through a lot of races, all-nighters, and finals weeks. You can't push your body to its limits of strength and endurance without being competitive (and slightly crazy). Being an overly competitive jerk keeps me going, and there ain't no shame in that (most of the time). 3. Rolling with the punches- There are times in this job that things don't always work out the way you would hope. Sometimes owners have financial limitations for treatment, sometimes animals don't respond to therapy, a patient has a surgical complication, or much more. These things can eat away at you and you can spend many hours thinking of what you could have done differently. It's good to reflect on these things, but with experience you learn not to let the small things frazzle you. The same goes with running. During the first leg of my relay, I felt good and I was maintaining a good pace. A young man had zoomed past me at the beginning of the leg and he maintained a decent distance (but still within eye sight) for most of the race. With about two miles to go, I noticed the distance getting shorter. I really like passing people, especially men. I really knew he was in trouble when he started looking behind himself (at me) about every ten seconds. “I'm gonna get ‘em” I thought to myself. Having a target ahead of me is a big motivator and, as it turns out, also a huge distraction as I started closing the gap. My phone dings with my mile markers and I was maintaining 7:30 miles at the end of a long run, which I hadn't done since before the baby was born. I passed my target guy with ease and kept going. I had hit 7.2 miles, close to the end of this first leg. I started looking ahead on the trail for the crowd of runners. I got a little further and I saw a few runners running the opposite direction. I asked one of them, “Did I pass the exchange?” The guy said, “Yeah. I did the same thing. You have to turn around.” Turns out the turnoff for the exchange was not well marked and this happened to many runners. I cursed a little bit as I turned around. I ended up running two extra miles on that first leg. I figured I was probably distracted about passing the guy ahead of me. Luckily, I still arrived at the exchange on time because I told my teammates to anticipate a slow pace. It can be disheartening when you get lost and have to run farther than you thought, or an unexpected emergency throws a wrench in your entire schedule, but you learn to suck it up and deal with it. 4. Fortitude- Having courage or persistence through pain or adversity is a necessary skill in this job, from running from angry momma cows to listening to that client talk about their cat's bathroom habits for thirty minutes. I get it; I have vividly described my son’s bowel movements and a harrowing diaper change to the checkout girl at the grocery store, so she had much more patience and fortitude than I’ll ever have. I very much needed this skill during this relay. My longest training run for this race was seven miles. I would be running the longest legs of any teammate, a total of 17 (now 19 due to my mishap) miles. I was relying on a lot of muscle memory. My second leg of the relay was the most challenging. Temperatures were in the nineties and I was starting my leg (a 7.5 miler) at 2 P.M. Even worse, this was a section of trail in the river bottoms without shade. My legs were somewhat dead from overdoing it on leg #1. I rarely run “plugged in” with music, but I decided I could use the distraction. Every part of me wanted to walk, but I kept telling myself, “Slow down as much as you need to. But whatever you do, DON’T WALK!” I knew if I started walking, I would never get going again. Luckily, they had a couple of stops with water and sponges soaked in cold water. It was all I could do not to grab ten of the sponges and shove them in my running singlet. I am not a fan of running in the heat. After suffering from heat exhaustion during my first marathon in Nashville, I vowed I would travel north for every marathon. I managed to survive the afternoon run. I handed off the tracker bracelet to my teammate, turned to our team captain, Beth, and said, “I hate you so much right now.” I was in a much better mood after slurping down some ice cold glacier freeze Gatorade (the best Gatorade flavor IMO). 5. Staying humble- One of the many things running teaches you is you're not invincible. Muscle cramps at the end of a race can take you to your knees. There will always be someone faster, stronger, or more fit than you. I experienced similar things in my quest to be a veterinarian. I went from being one of the top students at my moderately sized college to being thrown in a class with some of the smartest people in the state or even the country. I had never felt so average in my life, and it was a very humbling experience. Even worse, I was getting B’s on my tests in veterinary school. B’s!!! That quit bothering me about two weeks in, but I learned I wasn't as smart as I thought I was. I guess I could say the same thing after passing the exchange zone during the relay. During veterinary school, I also learned it's okay to admit when you don't know the answer. Even if I don't know the answer, I have confidence in using my resources to find it. Bottom line, in running and this profession, it's okay if you're not top dog. There's a lot to be said for being the best that you can be. I've redirected my competitive drive to be competitive against myself, or maybe just the guy or vegetarian in front of me during any given race. You can accomplish a lot with a foundation of hard work, persistence, and sheer will. Stay humble and don't take yourself too seriously. The last leg of my run was only 2.5 miles. I finished cheering on the rest of my teammates, met my husband and baby at the finish, and enjoyed some brats and wine in the finishers tent. Hard work and celebration! I've been a runner much longer than I've been a veterinarian, but for me the two go hand in hand. I can run off steam from a stressful day, have goals and hobbies outside of work, and burn calories because I really, really like tacos. There’s nothing like the feeling of accomplishment after a long, hard run….or delivering a 100 lb calf. It's that time of year again when we continue the tradition of rabies clinics in each small town of Howard County: Glasgow, New Franklin, Fayette, and Armstrong. My last rabies clinic of the year is around the corner. It will be held under the Fayette City Hall on Thursday, July 6th at 5:30 P.M. Since I graduated, I've had mixed feelings about rabies clinics. In school, they taught us that offering things like vaccination clinics cheapen our services and don't do the patients justice. First, I'll explain the purpose of rabies clinics, which is to vaccinate animals for rabies and pick up a city license at the same time for a lower price. While most cities only require rabies for licensing, we also bring the other core vaccines with us for dogs and cats if the owners want those as well. The major problem with rabies clinics are that there's no time to examine animals and discuss any health issues they might have, which is just as important (if not more so) than vaccinations. Then, throughout the years, I learned to get off my high horse and accept that sometimes people just need the opportunity to vaccinate their pets for a low fee so they can get them licensed with the city. As a veterinarian, I want to do what's best for the individual patient, but sometimes we have to broaden our lens and focus on herd immunity and public health. So alas, I've made peace with offering rabies clinics. That being said, any time you commingle lots of animals that may or may not be socialized, you can have some interesting adventures. The following is my list of do’s and don'ts of rabies clinics that I've compiled throughout the years. Enjoy! 1. DO bring hand sanitizer- I've found this is a must for rabies clinics. I wash my hands between patients at the office, so it only makes sense to do this at rabies clinics. At least reserve it for the cat you pull out of the carrier covered in vomit and/or urine, the flea ridden or mangey dogs, or just animals that rolled in something disgusting before they came in. 2. DO bring your dogs on a leash- This is important for vaccination clinics or the office. When I politely ask people to put their pets on a leash, the common response is, “Oh, my dog is fine around other dogs.” That's fine and dandy, but not all dogs or cats are that way, and the next animal your pet approaches might want to fight. So put your animals on a leash, please. 3. DO bring your cat in a carrier (or not at all)- I probably shouldn't have to tell people this (and I know I'm preaching to the choir when it comes to my blog readers), but carrying your cat in a towel across the parking lot around fifty dogs is not ideal. I've seen this scenario played out many times, and it doesn't end well. Usually the owner is covered in blood and scratches with possibly a lost cat. Just don't do it. If you absolutely have to bring your cat to a vaccination clinic, bring them in a legit carrier (not a cardboard box). Ideally, don't bring them at all. You think your cat gets stressed going to the vet's office? A rabies clinic with lots of dogs will be ten times worse. 4. Don't pay me in pennies! Look, I'm not trying to be ungrateful or unsympathetic. Most of the time I'm just happy to get paid, no matter what the form...until I was paid the $10 rabies fee...in all pennies. Yup. One. Thousand. Pennies. I'm pretty sure I thought I was getting punked at first. It wouldn't be such a problem, except that when I return from the clinics, I have to make a deposit and balance my checks and cash, which means I need to count everything at least twice. When you have mild ADHD like me, you probably have to count it four times because you got distracted and lost count. On the bright side, it was probably a good exercise in memory improvement or strength training. I really do sympathize. Sometimes times are tough and people have to gather whatever loose change they have to vaccinate their pets, but for the love of all that is Holy, please stop by the change machine at the bank before coming to the clinic. Speaking of which, I think that's what I'll do next time instead of counting that much change. Brilliant! 5. DON’T ask for your pet to be examined or multiple pet health questions- Well, you can actually do this if you want, but don't be surprised if my response is, “I see you're concerned about Fluffy. Why don't you call the office and schedule an appointment so we can have enough time to adequately address these issues?” I assure you I'm not trying to be insensitive and greedy. However, when I have over 60 animals to vaccinate in an hour, there isn't time for a fifteen minute consultation. Also, my time after-hours is valuable, especially now that I have a cute baby to go home to. As mentioned before, a huge benefit of having your pets vaccinated in the office is that they are examined and issues can be discussed. Vaccination clinics are cheap, but there's not enough time in that setting to address those issues. Unfortunately, you can't have it quick, cheap, and thorough. If you're concerned about your pet's heath, skip the rabies clinic and make an appointment with my office. 6. DON’T bring extremely aggressive animals- Many in the profession know that there are different forms of aggression in dogs. Some have predatory aggression. Some dogs are great with people and just aggressive with other dogs (or cats). Then there's the dogs that want to eat you for dinner. None of these animals are easy to handle at a rabies clinic with lots of animals and limited staff for restraint. Not to mention these clinics are usually held in an open outdoor area. If you think your dog may try to bite other people or animals, I recommend bringing them with an appropriately sized basket muzzle. The benefit of basket muzzles is the dog can still pant for cooling. I've seen all sorts of contraptions at these clinics. I even had a dog show up with his mouth duct taped shut (not recommended). If you have an aggressive animal, we definitely have more resources in our office to deal with them (including my favorite method, which I like to call chemical restraint). Not to mention, there will be fewer animals in the office that could trigger that behavior. Sometimes we'll even have people stay in their vehicles with their dogs until all animals are out of the lobby and a staff member can tell you when to come in. I'm a stickler for safety. I don't want to see other animals, clients, me, or my staff getting hurt. Despite my initial hesitation of rabies clinics, I'm now glad that my clinic can continue to offer this service for those who need it. Pets need vaccinations to protect themselves and their humans from disease. I look forward to seeing most of you in my office in the near future, but if money is tight, stop by our rabies clinic this Thursday in Fayette to get your pets up-to-date. My clinic recently launched a new online store, technically three online stores: My Vet Store for companion animals, My Pharm Store for food animals, and My Equine Store for equine products.
Check out this article from HoCo Media to find more information and to learn about our July sales. Happy Shopping! Dr. Potter has had the honor, the privilege, or maybe the unfortunate bad luck to work with me for a year. He was nice enough to answer a few questions in lieu of a large celebration at the local Dairy Queen. How would you describe your first year of working at Howard County Veterinary Service? My first year of practice has been very rewarding and fun! After spending so many years in school learning about how to practice, I have finally been able to spread my wings, think for myself, and apply what I have learned for the past four years in school. I feel extremely blessed to be able to go to work everyday and truly enjoy what I do and have a great time working with all the staff of Howard County Veterinary Service. What has/have been your biggest challenge(s) in your first year of practice, and how have you faced them? The biggest challenge for me starting out was trying to not let the small things get me down. The fact is, in veterinary medicine, sometimes we are not able to fix every situation that arises. As a new grad I felt like it was my fault if I couldn’t fix the problem and would spend many hours dwelling about different instances. As I have become more comfortable with practice, I don’t stress about the small things anymore. The best way for me to cope was to call my classmates and realize that they are having the same issues. It has definitely helped me to stay in close touch with about 4-5 classmates. Describe how it’s been working with Dr. Stroupe. Dr. Stroupe has been a very good boss and mentor for my first year of practice. She has been very willing to listen to my ideas (no matter how off the wall they may be) and also teach me how to be successful in practice. I can definitely say that I made the right choice by working at Howard County Vet Service for my first year of practice. How has the clinic and/or Dr. Stroupe changed since she had a baby? This question is just an excuse to post another picture of my baby. Probably the biggest change has been that we get to play with baby Leland over the lunch hour. He is a great baby and a lot of fun! I also thoroughly enjoy hearing the parenting stories that both Dr. Stroupe and Omer have. I can say that it is pretty good birth control right now. Who complains about McDonald’s closing more, Dr. Stroupe or Omer? Omer for sure. I have never heard Dr. Stroupe complain about the closing honestly. I figure it is because they don’t serve butter on a platter. Do you read the blog? I read the blog when I see the link on Facebook. I don’t spend much time on Facebook, so I have probably missed some of the blog posts. Do you have any useful knowledge you’ve learned since working in a majority female workplace? Honestly, I love where I work even though it is ruled by the women. I generally will give my opinion when asked, but I try to keep the peace most of the time. Ok, I have played this question really safe so far. Actually I have learned to never start remodeling the clinic unless I want to hear a multitude of different opinions about what color the paint should be and how the trim should look. What do you think is the most important thing you learned in your first year of practice? I have learned to stay open minded to new ideas. Science is always changing and we are constantly trying to improve medicine. It is really dangerous to get set in your ways and not be willing to change. I have found that change is generally a good thing and even though it may be painful at that time, it is worth it in the end. Thanks Dr. Potter for all your hard work and congrats for surviving your first year of practice!!!
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Jessica Stroupe, DVM
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August 2017
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