Learn how IDEXX is enhancing the lives of animals, people, and the planet.

IDEXX: Contributing to something bigger

PetWellClinic—an up-and-coming pet-wellness franchise—has signed an 8-unit agreement in Baton Rouge and New Orleans. The unique walk-in practices will offer affordable, convenient preventative pet care including general check-ups, vaccinations, and treatment of minor ailments and chronic conditions.

, the multi-unit agreement was signed by Ed and Betsy Erb, veterans of the US Army and US Air Force respectively. The Erb’s signed the agreement with PetWellClinic following 10 years in the military and another decade working in corporate positions to prompt a new chapter in their professional lives.

Currently, Betsy works as a part-time veterinary assistant while applying to veterinary school. Ed and Betsy have a passion for public service and felt inspired to bring PetWellClinic's vital pet care model to a community in need of an affordable, easily accessible option.

"We came to Baton Rouge on a temporary assignment, but we fell in love with the area and decided to settle down here," disclosed Ed. "Over the last few years, we had been searching for a new business opportunity. Eventually, we decided to invest in something that would combine our love for our community with our love for pets. With PetWellClinic, we knew we could make a difference by providing pet owners with quality, essential services."

PetWellClinic's preventative care services allow owners to meet their pets' needs to avoid health complications down the line. Its services help pet parents determine potential risks promptly while granting them high-quality care at an affordable price.

Exact locations have not yet been selected for the initial Baton Rouge clinics, but the Erbs are starting to evaluate the area with the mission of eventually expanding into New Orleans, according to the company. With strong community connections, a part-time dog training business, and adjacency to veterinary schools, Ed and Betsy are ready to recruit well-suited clinic team members.

A practical option for veterinarians and veterinary technicians in search of a sustainable career, the PetWellClinic model provides the opportunity for 8-hour workdays and simplified services—no overnight or double-shifts or emergency surgeries.

"At our clinics, we provide quality care to our pet patients, but beyond that, we pride ourselves on the work-life balance we offer to our veterinarians," says Sam Meisler, DVM, founder and CEO of PetWellClinic.

"With manageable work hours and streamlined services, there aren't any stressful surprises," added Meisler. "Our vets can focus more on their patients with the added benefit of leaving work 'at work.' PetWellClinic fosters an environment of care and kindness and that starts with our own staff."

Additionally, each PetWellClinic location employs a proven veterinary software program developed by Meisler to run efficiently. The locations were designed for total transparency and openness, so clients can witness everything that happens at the clinic.

PetWellClinic joined forces with Oakscale, to helm franchise development efforts for the brand.

PetWellClinic signs 8-unit deal in Baton Rouge, New Orleans. News release. PetWellClinic. December 6, 2021. Accessed December 6, 2021. 

https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/petwellclinic-signs-8-unit-deal-in-baton-rouge-new-orleans-301437962.html

Articles

These breakthrough wellness practices will offer convenient, affordable care while providing veterinary professionals with sustainable careers and an enhanced work-life balance.   

PetWellClinic enters 8-unit deal in Louisiana 

“There’s nothing I want more for us in this profession than for us to survive…succeed, and thrive,” said Stephen Cital, RLAT, SRA, RVT, VCC, CVPP, VTS-LAM (Res. Anesthesia). Throughout his keynote address on the final day of the Fetch dvm360

 conference in San Diego, California, Cital sought to inspire veterinary technicians to live with the intentionality to shatter glass ceilings, sustain wellbeing, and push back against burnout.

Cital addressed the commonly known fact that the average lifespan for the career of a veterinary technician is 5 to 7 years. He talked about the level of trauma and burnout that must be present for one to go to school and into debt, only to leave their profession after such a short time. He pointed to the inability of veterinary technicians to progress in their careers and earn more money as one of the primary causes.

How can one smash through this glass ceiling that greatly contributes to burnout? Cital said he believes veterinary technicians need to be a little more openminded about their career options. He spoke about how many see working in a veterinary hospital as their only path but stressed the importance of learning what else is available for a person who has a passion for animals and finds themselves stuck in a rut.

“People that follow their passion in their career only, burnout quicker and die sooner,” said Cital. “What makes them survive in a career with their passion is finding that intersection of what they are also good at.”

Cital said there are other industries or other parts of the veterinary industry that might sit at that intersection of skill and passion. He talked about his path, which started out with wanting to be a paramedic before realizing how little money they made. Even though helping others was a passion, that low salary would have eventually led to burnout, he said. Next, he trained as a nurse, but a dislike of the more-unsanitary side of human health care drove him away to be a veterinary technician at a specialty practice. Finally, he was enticed to take a position as an animal researcher at the University of California, Davis. Although he initially thought he would hate it, “This is where my passion and what I was good at intersected,” he said.

Cital has since used his opportunities in research to get into zoo medicine and beyond, attaining a fulfilling career that pays the bills and without the burnout. Cital urged the audience to take his path as motivation to constantly reevaluate their passions and their career ambitions, salary included, to reach their ultimate target.

“[Having a passion for animals] doesn’t necessarily mean you have to be on the floor giving an injection, monitoring anesthesia, or holding [a pet] for an ultrasound,” he said. “Some of the most amazing technicians work in industry, and they are making way more money than I am.”

He added that it bothers him that these technicians are “hidden,” making it difficult for other technicians to understand there are other paths available to them.

Cital closed out his talk by giving actionable wisdom to help veterinary technicians attain the success that he has experienced. His advice is as follows:

Cital stressed the importance of networking. He talked about the value not only for career opportunities (as he called out some in the audience who have helped his career) but also for the emotional bond and support networking can provide.

“By networking, we have built a family all over the country,” said Cital. “We have saved each other’s lives when we were feeling that burnout so much to the point that we think we couldn’t go on anymore.”

“We need to understand that once we break through some glass ceilings, there is still the atmosphere,” said Cital. “Once you go outside the atmosphere, there is no more air.”

He advised the audience not to always be striving to move all the time, but rather to find where they are happy in this industry and keep doing whatever is necessary to sustain that happiness.

Reject the “I’m not in it for the money” mindset

Cital said veterinary technicians should not be shy about pursuing high pay.

“This whole idea of ‘we don’t do this for the money’ is not cute anymore,” said Cital.

He pointed out that the director of marketing for the FDA is a veterinary technician, making a much larger salary than they would in the clinic. He said everyone should be aware these opportunities exist to work in a field they are passionate about without having to settle for low income.

As Cital put it, “When you’re making $17 an hour living in the Bay Area of California, trying to start a family, that ain’t cute.”

How one veterinary technician carved a path to a rewarding career and why he is holding the door open for others behind him.

Vet techs: a fulfilling career may be waiting outside the clinic

In a recent interview at the San Diego Fetch 

 conference, Fred Wininger, VMD, MS, DACVIM, defined veterinary seizures and what often causes them, plus he revealed the breeds that are predisposed to this condition and those patients that are more challenging to treat. 

View the video below for the entire discussion. The following is a partial transcript

Seizures I think of as 'the cough of the brain.' They're essentially a symptom of an underlying disease. We try to break those conditions into 3 main categories. One of them would be something outside of the brain affecting the brain like an ingested toxin or inability of the liver to do its job. A second group would be something wrong with the brain itself which would be a tumor or inflammation or a malformation of the brain. But by far and away the most common cause is going to be idiopathic epilepsy. 

Videos

In a dvm360® interview, Fred Wininger, VMD, MS DACVIM, outlined common causes of seizures and breeds that are at risk. 

The lowdown on veterinary seizures

 San Diego conference coming to a close, we want to express our sincerest gratitude and thanks to the faculty, attendees, and dvm360 staff who made this event a beaming success. As we kick off the first full week of December, we remain dedicated to bringing you a robust mix of engaging and informative content. 

Here is a quick look at what to expect this week on dvm360:

Fred Wininger, VMD, MS, DACVIM, will share common causes of veterinary seizures and breeds predisposed to this condition.

PetWellClinic signs an 8-unit deal in Baton Rouge and New Orleans to provide convenient, affordable preventative care for pets. 

Bridget Rollins, PhD, EMBA, vice president of operations for Thrive Pet Healthcare, will describe common triggers of conflict at veterinary clinics and how to avoid them.  

Thurston Group has formed a National Veterinary REIT with AMO partners. 

Tune back in here throughout the week for more coverage of the veterinary industry.

This week on dvm360: Our Fetch dvm360 San Diego conference comes to a close, plus more veterinary news

 conference, Jan Woods, cofounder of Ask Jan, revealed various ways in which veterinary businesses can go wrong and lose their practices. 

One of the most common things I see is that a doctor will hire a manager but that manager has no management experience, and then they don't train them in what they want. The other thing I see is they hire a manager that came from a practice on the other side of town who's been trained by that doctor and their mission and their core values...and if you don't train them, then they're bringing all of those things to [your practice].

In an interview with dvm360® Jan Woods, cofounder of Ask Jan, described common ways veterinary practices fail, so those in the business can avoid this and aim for success. 

Ways businesses lose their veterinary practice

It is the final day of the Fetch dvm360® conference in San Diego, California. Each day, a selection of sessions will be highlighted with Pacific Standard Time. Keep visiting dvm360.com for our ongoing coverage of 

Featured sessions for Sunday, December 5, 2021 are as follows:

Taking Back Our Career and Breaking Glass Ceilings

 Stephen Cital, RVT, SRA, RLAT, VCC, CVPP, VTS-LAM (Res Anesthesia)

Learn about Cital’s career path and how non-DVMs have been underutilized, underpaid, disrespected, and misinformed. In this keynote sessins, the speaker will use his experiences in nearly every facet of the veterinary industry to encourage and inspire listeners to look for and shatter the glass ceiling.

Atopic Dermatitis (Part 1 and Part 2): The New Paradigm and How It Changes the Way We Treat It

Atopic dermatitis is a chronic, frustrating disease for both veterinarians and pet owners. Understanding that the disease is not just an aberrant immune response but also a dysfunction of the skin barrier function has changed the approach to managing atopic dermatitis. This presentation will give a step-by-step approach to diagnosing and managing a dog with pruritus. In the past, steroids or allergen immunotherapy were our go-to treatments, but now we have many new options. We will discuss cyclosporine; oclacitinib, a caninized monoclonal antibody that targets canine IL-31, a key cytokine responsible for pruritus in canine atopic dermatitis; skin-directed therapies such as topical lipid replacement therapy; and sublingual immunotherapy.

Keep up with the latest information about adverse food reactions through a review of the more recent Clinical Consensus Guidelines by the World Congress of Veterinary Dermatology. This lecture on food allergies will include information on cutaneous and noncutaneous symptoms, diagnosis, and reviews of the current diet trials.

This lecture will review the different presentations—juvenile vs adult onset and localized vs generalized—and how each form is treated.New treatments will be discussed, including topical moxidectin and oral isoxazolines. Learn the different forms of canine demodicosis and how they affect prognosis and treatment, which diagnostics should be performed, and the treatment options for different forms of demodicosis.

This session will cover the most common questions asked regarding working as an emergency department veterinarian in a relief capacity. We will discuss what makes emergency department relief work an attractive option for many and how to go about finding the right emergency hospital for you.

What Is New in the Diagnosis and Treatment of Malassezia Dermatitis in Dogs?

Canine pruritus has many causes, one of which is Malassezia dermatitis. Unfortunately, this problem is frequently missed. Learn how to diagnose and manage this common pruritic disease easily and quickly. Find out more about Malassezia dermatitis, its clinical signs, how it is diagnosed, and how it is treated.

Highlights from the Fetch dvm360® conference’s robust agenda in San Diego, California; December 2-5, 2021.