Today was a big day for me. My 18 months of mat leave has finally come to an end and I would have been returning to work as a registered veterinary technician at the same small animal hospital I’ve been employed with for over 9 years now.

But instead, I’ve chosen to take a big leap and concentrate all of my efforts on the Pawdoption Guide Membership Experience whilst caring for my young family.

This is huge for me because I am such a proud RVT! I have always loved what I do and have been an advocate for my profession while regularly enjoying the pursuit of continuing education. I thought I had the coolest job in the world; as a registered veterinary technician you’re ALWAYS on your feet and you get to dabble in so many things. One minute you’re prepping and monitoring a patient in surgery, the next you’re taking x-rays, running lab work, reading cytology under the microscope or providing client education. The day to day work I did was everything I had dreamed of during the 2 years I spent obtaining my college diploma for this role.

That being said, working in a vet hospital is anything but perfect, although the role fulfilled me, I seriously considered leaving my animal hospital a few times during my career there but I always chose to stay for the standard of care and professionalism that they upheld. I just didn’t think anyone else could match it.

So How Did I Get Here…

Well, back in 2019 when I started Pawdoption Guide I had no idea when or if it would become a full-time gig. I merely started it with the knowledge that I should have a back up plan because many technicians dealt with burnout or short careers. At one point, a while back, I had heard that the average career length for vet techs was 5 years! Probably in part due to a low salary that was easily matched by that of another job. Shift work, physical demands and clinic atmosphere were most likely a factor in this too. That stat was an eye-opener for me and made me really think that I should have an alternative for what I would do after working in an animal hospital was no longer feasible for me.

Now, there are certainly some technicians who stay in the field long term but I would not hesitate to say that only a few of them have children. The birth of my two children quickly changed my priorities from career to family.

Unfortunately, veterinary medicine is not an easy field to be in while raising children. I quickly realized how much time I would be sacrificing with my kids if I worked the rotating shifts of an RVT. There would be weeks at a time where I wouldn’t see my kids following dropping them off at daycare in the morning. I decided I wasn’t okay with this. I’ll be the first to acknowledge my privilege to be able to make a choice like that or even have the financial stability to do so.

When I went back to work following my first maternity leave I was able to negotiate a stable work schedule with no rotation. However, in doing so, I had to relinquish most of my participation in surgery duties. This was almost unthinkable for me, I loved those responsibilities and my identity as a tech was wrapped up in them, yet I did it because I couldn’t imagine the alternative.

It was definitely the right choice for me and I got used to the new norm but my job no longer held the balance and satisfaction that it once had. This, along with a second child were really the tipping point for my in-clinic career. At this point I started pivoting how I was supporting families adopting dogs from one on one consulting to an online membership model. Based on my experiences serving a few families, I realized that it would be more efficient to provide all of my dog adoption resources and expertise upfront and provide routine support rather than feeding them information bit by bit.

I’ve created so many resources for Pawdoption Guide like the Pet-Friendly Kids course, the Walk Your Dog with Confidence Mini Course, the Application Survival Kit and my soon-to-launch Pawdoption Guide Membership Experience and they have all enlivened my passion for dog rescue and adoption.

I could never have imagined being so fulfilled by something other than my RVT duties in an animal hospital. So, with this personal growth came the awareness that I must continue to pursue this new passion.

The nail in the coffin, so to say, was when I set out to write my resignation letter. I did what most people who despise writing do and googled “resignation letter template.” The template I came across looked great and had all the necessities, plus a few optional things. One of them being, to mention a memorable achievement/big accomplishment or highlight of your career.

I thought, sure, how hard could that be. I must’ve sat on that question for hours, maybe even days. I just kept reliving my 9 years as an RVT at this small animal hospital with so many moments where I took on leadership in the clinic, brought something to fruition or showed initiative. I could think of many things but I could not find even one thing that felt worthy of that title. Every example that came close had this mental asterisk beside it for one reason or another. The truth is, as a veterinary technician you do so many tasks; the accomplishments are many yet that’s all expected of you. What you don’t get is the authority to see projects or tasks through the way you may want to. You’re always overseen and managed by a vet or boss.

A lot of people aren’t fed by completing projects or providing leadership. But for me, it was suddenly and overwhelmingly clear that although I enjoyed the tasks I performed as a tech I was left feeling unrewarded because I didn’t feel I could take full responsibility for my accomplishments.

I don’t want you to get the wrong idea and think that I resent my workplace for this revelation. I honestly don’t think I would have had a different result recalling a 9 year career at any other clinic. The really joyous or impactful memories for me all surrounded the camaraderie I experienced as a team or with my individual colleagues. It just comes down to the role description of a registered veterinary technician and that is to work alongside and assist the veterinarian. This was no longer serving me.

In comparison, with just 2 years under my belt as an entrepreneur, I can name 10 things or more that I’m immensely proud of accomplishing and that have provided me with personal and professional growth. And with that question, I had the clarity I needed to turn my side-hustle into a full-time gig. Pawdoption Guide and the membership experience is undoubtedly the way onwards and upwards for me as an RVT.

If you’d like to learn more about the Pawdoption Guide Membership Experience, join my membership waitlist today! www. pawdoptionguide.com/membershipwaitlist