Veterinary Vitals

“I started treating monkeys 30 years ago and it all started with one out of the Helping Hands program.”

In this episode, we hear from Dr. Jed Ford of Family Pet Clinic about the only patient he ever had tell him what was wrong. Dr. Ford practices on small animals and exotics in the Greater Fort Worth area. 

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In this episode of Vital News, we hear from Elizabeth Choate, JD, the Director of Government Relations and General Counsel for TVMA, on the legislation passed in the Texas House. 

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“Even though my friends and family were supportive, having someone that knew exactly what I was going through was just invaluable throughout this.”

In this episode, we hear from recent graduate Dr. Connor Rethman on her journey through vet school with a mentor. We also get to see what it's like for her mentor, Dr. Ann Macfarland. She shares why mentorship is important to her and what she got out of it. 

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“What has been produced here is the best agricultural facilities outside of College Station that exist in this state.”

Dr. Bruce Akey, the Director of the Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostics Lab and Dr. Susan Eades, the Associate Dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine & Biomedical Sciences, give us an inside look on the grand opening of the new facilities.

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“That technology is just beginning to become affordable for more specialty centers to be able to provide that to their clients. So that's a huge breakthrough in the way we treat cancer. But it hasn't happened overnight. It's been a gradual process over the last decade or so.”

In the first episode of season two, Dr. Zachary Wright of VCA Animal Diagnostic Clinic in Dallas, Texas shares the latest breakthroughs in veterinary oncology, the ability to create custom treatment plans and the importance of client education.

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This episode marks the final one with Dena Goldstein as your host. If you’d like to keep in touch, email Dena at [email protected].

“Veterinary medicine, as we talked about before, is very underrepresented, and this is where I can potentially channel this energy into making that change within this profession.”

Having conversations about race in veterinary medicine can be uncomfortable and far from easy. However, to Dr. Niccole Bruno of Companion Animal Hospital, it’s vital in order to create change in the profession. In this episode, Dr. Bruno shares the barriers people of color face when attempting to enter veterinary school, why representation in the profession matters and how allies are crucial in creating change.

References
https://www.aavmc.org/programs/diversity/
https://datausa.io/profile/soc/veterinarians#demographics

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“And that’s the nice thing about being solo…is it’s my decision.”

Dr. Tamra Walthall, who is TVMA’s President Elect, has been a solo practitioner for more than 35 years. She opened La Vega Veterinary Clinic in Waco when she was just 28 years old. She didn’t plan on being a solo veterinarian, but it just worked out that way. In this episode, she discusses the challenges she’s faced over the course of her veterinary career, the benefits of working solo, and the lessons she’s learned along the way. She also talks about how she met her husband and their travels around the world.

Would you like to get in touch with the host? Email Dena at [email protected]

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"I always laughed in the past like, 'You could never do vet school online. You have to do labs multiple times a week, we need to learn to suture, we need to learn to do surgery…' And I just remember having this moment of fear when they were like, 'online vet school.' And I wasn’t sure what that was going to look like." 

Being a veterinary student is hard enough with keeping up with coursework, attending labs, gaining surgical skills and securing externships. When Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine closed its physical campus in the spring semester of 2020 due to the pandemic, students were faced with additional challenges and forced to adapt to these changes. Second-year veterinary student Morgan Gunn and third-year veterinary student Carley Johnson discuss how they adjusted, honed their surgical skills at home, stayed connected with their peers and networked with future employers.

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“Every month was kind of a beatdown. I swear I would never pee on a stick ever, ever again.”

Drs. Lori Teller and Nancy Turner knew they wanted to have children, respectively, but the journey to get there wasn’t easy. Both experienced infertility and ended up going down different paths. Dr. Turner eventually got pregnant and gave birth to her son, Sterling, whereas Dr. Teller pursued adoption and welcomed her son, Austin. In this episode, Dr. Turner shares what it was like being pregnant, experiencing postpartum depression, and balancing motherhood with her career. Dr. Teller discusses the process of adopting Austin and the maternity leave that followed. While their journeys may be different, they both deeply love being mothers.

Dr. Lori Teller works at Texas A&M University College of Veterinary Medicine as the Clinical Associate Professor of Telehealth. Dr. Nancy Turner works for ReadiVet, an in-home health care provider.

Sources:
https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/depression/index.htm#Postpartum
https://www.cdc.gov/reproductivehealth/infertility/index.htm#

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“I like doing the forensics work and I like working at the grocery store and I really think that blend could work.”

The pandemic has significantly impacted the way people live, work, and interact with loved ones. Our guest today, Melinda Merck, DVM, who is a veterinary forensics expert, had to find a second job. While she is still the owner of Veterinary Forensics Consulting, she also works at her community grocery store, Randall’s. There, she has formed tight-knit relationships with employees and customers.

Her need to take on this additional role indicates that veterinary forensics on a broader scale has been impacted. In this episode, she delves into the pandemic’s impact on interpersonal violence and animal abuse, what working at the grocery store means to her, and how she and her team coped with the extreme winter storm last month. To learn more about Dr. Merck’s work, please visit http://www.veterinaryforensics.com/

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