http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 Most Recent Submissions from Finch93 on Veterinary Community Thu, 06 Jun 2013 15:08:23 GMT Thu, 06 Jun 2013 15:08:23 GMT meisler@advanstar.com (VetWeb) meisler@advanstar.com (VetWeb) KickApps Feed Builder 2013-06-06T15:08:23Z 24 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/searchEverything.kickAction?as=30809&includeVideo=on&includeAudio=on&includePhoto=on&includeBlog=on&sortType=recent 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Breed-of-the-Month/blog/6534116/30809.html Last fall at the Central Veterinary Conference in Kansas City, I was given a great big notebook as a thank you gift for serving on the Veterinary Economics Editorial Advisory Board.  (Thank you!)  When I got back to Omaha, I held out the notebook to show our office manager and boss.  "You got THAT?!  Ours is in the mail and won't be here for TWO DAYS." "You can read mine..." I said, now hugging it tight, "after I read it." Intriged, I opened the notebook.  "Benchmarks 2012:  A Study of Well-Managed Practices."  One section caught my eye - "Breed Specific Healthcare." "Well, that'd be depressing!" I thought, and read on. After I had read the entire Benchmarks 2012 cover to cover - yes it was as good as they said - I handed it over.  Angie called me that day and said, "We NEED to do this breed thing!" I love specific dog and cat breeds as much as the next rescue-loving domestic shorthair and mutt-adopting veterinary professional, but focusing on the medical concerns of each breed for clients who love the breed because of their awesomeness?  It just sounded like a bad idea - You love Labs?  Have you thought about HIP DYSPLASIA?  Boxers?  Yes they are sweet and their faces are cute, but also cancer.  Bulldogs?  Liquidate your assets.  Oh, and congratulations on your new puppy. Of course we cover breed-related medical issues during wellness care appointments, but focusing on it MORE? "No,"  I said, "too depressing!"   "Yes!"  Angie said.  And so we did.  And it has been awesome - one of the most enjoyable projects I have done. January 2013:  Bernese Mountain Dogs (and Mixes!) [image] February 2013:  Dobermans [image] March 2013:  Russian Blue Cats [image] April 2013:  Portuguese Water Dogs [image] May 2013:  Cavalier King Charles Spaniels [image] June 2013:  Sphynx Cats [image] Here is what I have learned this year: Breeds are fun, and worth celebrating. [image]Your clients and team will be your biggest supporters.  I have e-mailed, called or sent hand written notes, depending on the patient base size, and have gotten cute pictures in piles!  Always get permission before you use pictures, but it will not be a snag.  People know their pets are cute, and having their medical team confirm that?  Awesome. [image]Clients and online friends appreciate learning about breed-related medical concerns, even of breeds they do not have.  Balance it with fun facts, breed history and pictures, and a month of focusing on one breed will be rewarding, NOT depressing. [image]Putting fun facts out there - we do Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest - takes A LOT of behind the scenes work, but it is the kind of work I love most.  If you have someone in your practice who loves learning, reading and assimilating information (And you do, you are a medical team for heaven's sake!) put that person in charge of gathering info. [image]The team will love helping - Our receptionist Amanda gathers client names for me every month.  Vet tech Allison, Dr. Stokes and Dr. Kanne have provided tons of cute pictures of their own pets.  Angie manages the Pinterest page.  Everyone has supported us on Facebook by commenting, liking and sharing posts. [image]Clients will love it.  Most of the rest of our pictures are from clients who have gotten behind our breed celebrations. [image]Online friends will love it.  When we do not have a picture within our team or client base, online friends have always stepped up.  See the Twitter follower number go up with every monthly screen shot? [image]The fancy-pants picture changing is easy.  If you decide to do a similar project, I will help you with all of that if you would like. [image]The only thing that would make this more fun is if more vet teams were doing it with us!  We could share background breed information, cover the same breeds some months and share what is working and what is not. [image]Choosing breeds is easy.  So far Angie and I have chosen them like this:  "Do you like ___?"  "Yes!"  "Me too!"  Next...  We started with Beagles and Huskies (before we were doing monthly Twitter pictures to show you!) because those are breeds of two local rescue groups we love. [image]I have learned so much about specific breeds.  When I am gathering information in order to help clients, I can swallow my pride about thinking I should already know everything about every pet, and secretly (until now) think things like "Sphynx cats tend to be healthy?!  Who'd have thought?" [image]I know we have succeeded if I get near the end of a month and have fallen more in love with the breed.  So far, YES on every count.  SO fun. [image] Who would like to play Breed of the Month with us? [image] Last fall at the Central Veterinary Conference in Kansas City, I was given a great big notebook as a thank you gift for serving on the Veterinary Economics Editorial Advisory Board.  (Thank you!)  When I got back to Omaha, I held out the notebook to show our office manager and boss.  "You got THAT?!  Ours is in the mail and won't be here for TWO DAYS." "You can read mine..." I said, now hugging it tight, "after I read it." Intriged, I opened the notebook.  "Benchmarks 2012:  A Study of Well-Managed Practices."  One section caught my eye - "Breed Specific Healthcare." "Well, that'd be depressing!" I thought, and read on. After I had read the entire Benchmarks 2012 cover to cover - yes it was as good as they said - I handed it over.  Angie called me that day and said, "We NEED to do this breed thing!" I love specific dog and cat breeds as much as the next rescue-loving domestic shorthair and mutt-adopting veterinary professional, but focusing on the medical concerns of each breed for clients who love the breed because of their awesomeness?  It just sounded like a bad idea - You love Labs?  Have you thought about HIP DYSPLASIA?  Boxers?  Yes they are sweet and their faces are cute, but also cancer.  Bulldogs?  Liquidate your assets.  Oh, and congratulations on your new puppy. Of course we cover breed-related medical issues during wellness care appointments, but focusing on it MORE? "No,"  I said, "too depressing!"   "Yes!"  Angie said.  And so we did.  And it has been awesome - one of the most enjoyable projects I have done. January 2013:  Bernese Mountain Dogs (and Mixes!) [image] February 2013:  Dobermans [image] March 2013:  Russian Blue Cats [image] April 2013:  Portuguese Water Dogs [image] May 2013:  Cavalier King Charles Spaniels [image] June 2013:  Sphynx Cats [image] Here is what I have learned this year: Breeds are fun, and worth celebrating. [image]Your clients and team will be your biggest supporters.  I have e-mailed, called or sent hand written notes, depending on the patient base size, and have gotten cute pictures in piles!  Always get permission before you use pictures, but it will not be a snag.  People know their pets are cute, and having their medical team confirm that?  Awesome. [image]Clients and online friends appreciate learning about breed-related medical concerns, even of breeds they do not have.  Balance it with fun facts, breed history and pictures, and a month of focusing on one breed will be rewarding, NOT depressing. [image]Putting fun facts out there - we do Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest - takes A LOT of behind the scenes work, but it is the kind of work I love most.  If you have someone in your practice who loves learning, reading and assimilating information (And you do, you are a medical team for heaven's sake!) put that person in charge of gathering info. [image]The team will love helping - Our receptionist Amanda gathers client names for me every month.  Vet tech Allison, Dr. Stokes and Dr. Kanne have provided tons of cute pictures of their own pets.  Angie manages the Pinterest page.  Everyone has supported us on Facebook by commenting, liking and sharing posts. [image]Clients will love it.  Most of the rest of our pictures are from clients who have gotten behind our breed celebrations. [image]Online friends will love it.  When we do not have a picture within our team or client base, online friends have always stepped up.  See the Twitter follower number go up with every monthly screen shot? [image]The fancy-pants picture changing is easy.  If you decide to do a similar project, I will help you with all of that if you would like. [image]The only thing that would make this more fun is if more vet teams were doing it with us!  We could share background breed information, cover the same breeds some months and share what is working and what is not. [image]Choosing breeds is easy.  So far Angie and I have chosen them like this:  "Do you like ___?"  "Yes!"  "Me too!"  Next...  We started with Beagles and Huskies (before we were doing monthly Twitter pictures to show you!) because those are breeds of two local rescue groups we love. [image]I have learned so much about specific breeds.  When I am gathering information in order to help clients, I can swallow my pride about thinking I should already know everything about every pet, and secretly (until now) think things like "Sphynx cats tend to be healthy?!  Who'd have thought?" [image]I know we have succeeded if I get near the end of a month and have fallen more in love with the breed.  So far, YES on every count.  SO fun. [image] Who would like to play Breed of the Month with us? [image] Thu, 06 Jun 2013 15:08:23 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Breed-of-the-Month/blog/6534116/30809.html Finch93 2013-06-06T15:08:23Z Veterinary Community Last fall at the Central Veterinary Conference in Kansas City, I was given a great big notebook as a thank you gift for serving on the Veterinary Economics Editorial Advisory Board.  (Thank you!)  When I got back to Omaha, I held out the notebook to show our office manager and boss.  "You got THAT?!  Ours is in the mail and won't be here for TWO DAYS." "You can read mine..." I said, now hugging it tight, "after I read it." Intriged, I opened the notebook.  "Benchmarks 2012:  A Study of Well-Managed Practices."  One section caught my eye - "Breed Specific Healthcare." "Well, that'd be depressing!" I thought, and read on. After I had read the entire Benchmarks 2012 cover to cover - yes it was as good as they said - I handed it over.  Angie called me that day and said, "We NEED to do this breed thing!" I love specific dog and cat breeds as much as the next rescue-loving domestic shorthair and mutt-adopting veterinary professional, but focusing on the medical concerns of each breed for clients who love the breed because of their awesomeness?  It just sounded like a bad idea - You love Labs?  Have you thought about HIP DYSPLASIA?  Boxers?  Yes they are sweet and their faces are cute, but also cancer.  Bulldogs?  Liquidate your assets.  Oh, and congratulations on your new puppy. Of course we cover breed-related medical issues during wellness care appointments, but focusing on it MORE? "No,"  I said, "too depressing!"   "Yes!"  Angie said.  And so we did.  And it has been awesome - one of the most enjoyable projects I have done. January 2013:  Bernese Mountain Dogs (and Mixes!) [image] February 2013:  Dobermans [image] March 2013:  Russian Blue Cats [image] April 2013:  Portuguese Water Dogs [image] May 2013:  Cavalier King Charles Spaniels [image] June 2013:  Sphynx Cats [image] Here is what I have learned this year: Breeds are fun, and worth celebrating. [image]Your clients and team will be your biggest supporters.  I have e-mailed, called or sent hand written notes, depending on the patient base size, and have gotten cute pictures in piles!  Always get permission before you use pictures, but it will not be a snag.  People know their pets are cute, and having their medical team confirm that?  Awesome. [image]Clients and online friends appreciate learning about breed-related medical concerns, even of breeds they do not have.  Balance it with fun facts, breed history and pictures, and a month of focusing on one breed will be rewarding, NOT depressing. [image]Putting fun facts out there - we do Facebook, Twitter and Pinterest - takes A LOT of behind the scenes work, but it is the kind of work I love most.  If you have someone in your practice who loves learning, reading and assimilating information (And you do, you are a medical team for heaven's sake!) put that person in charge of gathering info. [image]The team will love helping - Our receptionist Amanda gathers client names for me every month.  Vet tech Allison, Dr. Stokes and Dr. Kanne have provided tons of cute pictures of their own pets.  Angie manages the Pinterest page.  Everyone has supported us on Facebook by commenting, liking and sharing posts. [image]Clients will love it.  Most of the rest of our pictures are from clients who have gotten behind our breed celebrations. [image]Online friends will love it.  When we do not have a picture within our team or client base, online friends have always stepped up.  See the Twitter follower number go up with every monthly screen shot? [image]The fancy-pants picture changing is easy.  If you decide to do a similar project, I will help you with all of that if you would like. [image]The only thing that would make this more fun is if more vet teams were doing it with us!  We could share background breed information, cover the same breeds some months and share what is working and what is not. [image]Choosing breeds is easy.  So far Angie and I have chosen them like this:  "Do you like ___?"  "Yes!"  "Me too!"  Next...  We started with Beagles and Huskies (before we were doing monthly Twitter pictures to show you!) because those are breeds of two local rescue groups we love. [image]I have learned so much about specific breeds.  When I am gathering information in order to help clients, I can swallow my pride about thinking I should already know everything about every pet, and secretly (until now) think things like "Sphynx cats tend to be healthy?!  Who'd have thought?" [image]I know we have succeeded if I get near the end of a month and have fallen more in love with the breed.  So far, YES on every count.  SO fun. [image] Who would like to play Breed of the Month with us? [image] nonadult false Breed of the Month text blog 287 1 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 6534116 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_The-Balloon/blog/6521728/30809.html “Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.” -Winnie the Pooh Last Monday we had more euthanasia cases than I have ever had in one day.  I love firsts.  And mosts.  The first time I did a Tru-Cut biopsy.  Yesterday.  True story.  The most cases I’ve had in a morning.  A couple months ago – 25, including phone consultations and prescription refills.  Would have gone faster if I hadn’t stopped to run to the desk and add tally marks to my notebook page all morning.  I couldn’t help it.  It was so fun. Monday though, Monday was rough.  On the whole team.  Stephanie came up beside me while I was entering medical notes into the computer on the third euthanasia of the morning.  ”Please tell me you don’t have another terminal case for me,” I said. “No, I just wanted to see how you were doing.” “Ok,” I said, “hanging in there.  You?” “Yeah, ok,” she said, and we regrouped and had an even sadder afternoon. As Kelly and I were standing over our last patient of the day, in her own backyard, her beautiful spirit free of pain, and her beautiful body appearing so peaceful, her friends and family left behind in shock and heartbreak, we had to be strong.  They needed us. Euthanasias at home are even more heart wrenching than euthanasias at the hospital.  You see the layers of Real Life. Another coworker joins her friends and you realize her late fiance was close to the family and so was she.  Everyone has gathered again to say good-bye, and your husband has come to help with carrying afterwards, and the lines between professional and family completely blur. It happens in the hospital too, but if you need to stop and catch your breath, you can.  If you look up during a home euthanasia, you see the yard the pet loved, or a family picture on the living room table, and you just stay immersed in the grief with the family. And you want to fall apart with them and grieve for them so it is not so heavy for them to bear.  Because there is so much sadness, you sort of absorb it like a sponge, but you have to carry the stretcher and you have to get back into your own pickup, and you have to get the pet and your team back safely and take care of the details of the body care and the rest of the things that you actually can shield her family from. And you want to scream like you yourself have lost something so precious, but you  hold it all in – all you let through is the tears and the hugs, because they need you to be strong so that, just for this short time, they do not need to be. [image] Tonight my family was walking up to the building we thought our oldest’s daughter’s volleyball game was in.  I heard a scream like the one I had internally screamed at the end of that day of euthanasias.  I turned just in time to see a horrified child as her balloon floated gently up out of her reach and into the sky, becoming a pinpoint as she wailed.  The only ones in the area were her family and mine.  I caught my own sob before it became a wail to match that poor kid’s cry, and went inside. The receptionist let us know we were at a building a block away from the game.  Hand on the door, I stopped and turned back. This one I can fix.  I can fix this one, I thought. In my ever eloquent manner I said, “Balloons.”  The receptionist looked up with a kind but confused smile.  ”The balloons.  Were they from an event in here?  I mean, there’s a kid…”  I stopped and pointed outside to the little girl still howling toward the sky.  ”A kid…she lost hers, I mean…”  I looked outside again. “Oh, yes, we have more balloons!  I will call her teacher!” “Thank you!” I said, relieved.  We left the building and headed up the block. Mom was trying to get the screaming little girl into the car.  Her baby sister was already in her carseat, wide-eyed and wisely clutching her balloon with both hands.  Mom looked frazzled.  For the second time in the span of a few moments, ever as eloquent as I am extroverted, especially when making split-second decisions to be so, I decided talking to a stranger was more important than protecting myself from the discomfort of talking to a stranger. I turned back around and approached the car.  I said to Mom, “Wait!  Don’t leave yet.  They’re coming.  I mean, you know, they’ll be here soon.  With another balloon.” Mom stopped.  She smiled the biggest smile I had seen in a long time, sighed and said, “Thank you.” “You are welcome,” I said and my eyes filled with tears.  Hers did too.  Her daughter still had a great supply of tears going, but she had stopped crying and looked cautiously optimistic. I know. I know how hard it is to see someone lose something precious and want so badly to just fix it.  To make things right again. As we turned, almost out of sight, I saw a teacher run out with a balloon.  This one was green!  That one had been pink!  I stopped and held my breath, watching and waiting.  The little girl squealed with delight and jumped into the car, with as tight of a hold on her new balloon as her sister had on hers. I remember what that first moment of panic feels like when you accidentally let go of a balloon outside.  My balloon string slipped out of my fist once after a visit to Grandmother’s Restaurant as a kid.  Once.  My kids have each done it once.  Never again.  You never want to feel that loss again.  When it happens to someone you care about, you want the hurt to stop as soon as possible. Sometimes you can make that happen, and when you can, it is the best feeling there is. “Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.” -Winnie the Pooh Last Monday we had more euthanasia cases than I have ever had in one day.  I love firsts.  And mosts.  The first time I did a Tru-Cut biopsy.  Yesterday.  True story.  The most cases I’ve had in a morning.  A couple months ago – 25, including phone consultations and prescription refills.  Would have gone faster if I hadn’t stopped to run to the desk and add tally marks to my notebook page all morning.  I couldn’t help it.  It was so fun. Monday though, Monday was rough.  On the whole team.  Stephanie came up beside me while I was entering medical notes into the computer on the third euthanasia of the morning.  ”Please tell me you don’t have another terminal case for me,” I said. “No, I just wanted to see how you were doing.” “Ok,” I said, “hanging in there.  You?” “Yeah, ok,” she said, and we regrouped and had an even sadder afternoon. As Kelly and I were standing over our last patient of the day, in her own backyard, her beautiful spirit free of pain, and her beautiful body appearing so peaceful, her friends and family left behind in shock and heartbreak, we had to be strong.  They needed us. Euthanasias at home are even more heart wrenching than euthanasias at the hospital.  You see the layers of Real Life. Another coworker joins her friends and you realize her late fiance was close to the family and so was she.  Everyone has gathered again to say good-bye, and your husband has come to help with carrying afterwards, and the lines between professional and family completely blur. It happens in the hospital too, but if you need to stop and catch your breath, you can.  If you look up during a home euthanasia, you see the yard the pet loved, or a family picture on the living room table, and you just stay immersed in the grief with the family. And you want to fall apart with them and grieve for them so it is not so heavy for them to bear.  Because there is so much sadness, you sort of absorb it like a sponge, but you have to carry the stretcher and you have to get back into your own pickup, and you have to get the pet and your team back safely and take care of the details of the body care and the rest of the things that you actually can shield her family from. And you want to scream like you yourself have lost something so precious, but you  hold it all in – all you let through is the tears and the hugs, because they need you to be strong so that, just for this short time, they do not need to be. [image] Tonight my family was walking up to the building we thought our oldest’s daughter’s volleyball game was in.  I heard a scream like the one I had internally screamed at the end of that day of euthanasias.  I turned just in time to see a horrified child as her balloon floated gently up out of her reach and into the sky, becoming a pinpoint as she wailed.  The only ones in the area were her family and mine.  I caught my own sob before it became a wail to match that poor kid’s cry, and went inside. The receptionist let us know we were at a building a block away from the game.  Hand on the door, I stopped and turned back. This one I can fix.  I can fix this one, I thought. In my ever eloquent manner I said, “Balloons.”  The receptionist looked up with a kind but confused smile.  ”The balloons.  Were they from an event in here?  I mean, there’s a kid…”  I stopped and pointed outside to the little girl still howling toward the sky.  ”A kid…she lost hers, I mean…”  I looked outside again. “Oh, yes, we have more balloons!  I will call her teacher!” “Thank you!” I said, relieved.  We left the building and headed up the block. Mom was trying to get the screaming little girl into the car.  Her baby sister was already in her carseat, wide-eyed and wisely clutching her balloon with both hands.  Mom looked frazzled.  For the second time in the span of a few moments, ever as eloquent as I am extroverted, especially when making split-second decisions to be so, I decided talking to a stranger was more important than protecting myself from the discomfort of talking to a stranger. I turned back around and approached the car.  I said to Mom, “Wait!  Don’t leave yet.  They’re coming.  I mean, you know, they’ll be here soon.  With another balloon.” Mom stopped.  She smiled the biggest smile I had seen in a long time, sighed and said, “Thank you.” “You are welcome,” I said and my eyes filled with tears.  Hers did too.  Her daughter still had a great supply of tears going, but she had stopped crying and looked cautiously optimistic. I know. I know how hard it is to see someone lose something precious and want so badly to just fix it.  To make things right again. As we turned, almost out of sight, I saw a teacher run out with a balloon.  This one was green!  That one had been pink!  I stopped and held my breath, watching and waiting.  The little girl squealed with delight and jumped into the car, with as tight of a hold on her new balloon as her sister had on hers. I remember what that first moment of panic feels like when you accidentally let go of a balloon outside.  My balloon string slipped out of my fist once after a visit to Grandmother’s Restaurant as a kid.  Once.  My kids have each done it once.  Never again.  You never want to feel that loss again.  When it happens to someone you care about, you want the hurt to stop as soon as possible. Sometimes you can make that happen, and when you can, it is the best feeling there is. Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:26:11 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_The-Balloon/blog/6521728/30809.html Finch93 2013-04-25T04:26:11Z Veterinary Community “Nobody can be uncheered with a balloon.” -Winnie the Pooh Last Monday we had more euthanasia cases than I have ever had in one day.  I love firsts.  And mosts.  The first time I did a Tru-Cut biopsy.  Yesterday.  True story.  The most cases I’ve had in a morning.  A couple months ago – 25, including phone consultations and prescription refills.  Would have gone faster if I hadn’t stopped to run to the desk and add tally marks to my notebook page all morning.  I couldn’t help it.  It was so fun. Monday though, Monday was rough.  On the whole team.  Stephanie came up beside me while I was entering medical notes into the computer on the third euthanasia of the morning.  ”Please tell me you don’t have another terminal case for me,” I said. “No, I just wanted to see how you were doing.” “Ok,” I said, “hanging in there.  You?” “Yeah, ok,” she said, and we regrouped and had an even sadder afternoon. As Kelly and I were standing over our last patient of the day, in her own backyard, her beautiful spirit free of pain, and her beautiful body appearing so peaceful, her friends and family left behind in shock and heartbreak, we had to be strong.  They needed us. Euthanasias at home are even more heart wrenching than euthanasias at the hospital.  You see the layers of Real Life. Another coworker joins her friends and you realize her late fiance was close to the family and so was she.  Everyone has gathered again to say good-bye, and your husband has come to help with carrying afterwards, and the lines between professional and family completely blur. It happens in the hospital too, but if you need to stop and catch your breath, you can.  If you look up during a home euthanasia, you see the yard the pet loved, or a family picture on the living room table, and you just stay immersed in the grief with the family. And you want to fall apart with them and grieve for them so it is not so heavy for them to bear.  Because there is so much sadness, you sort of absorb it like a sponge, but you have to carry the stretcher and you have to get back into your own pickup, and you have to get the pet and your team back safely and take care of the details of the body care and the rest of the things that you actually can shield her family from. And you want to scream like you yourself have lost something so precious, but you  hold it all in – all you let through is the tears and the hugs, because they need you to be strong so that, just for this short time, they do not need to be. [image] Tonight my family was walking up to the building we thought our oldest’s daughter’s volleyball game was in.  I heard a scream like the one I had internally screamed at the end of that day of euthanasias.  I turned just in time to see a horrified child as her balloon floated gently up out of her reach and into the sky, becoming a pinpoint as she wailed.  The only ones in the area were her family and mine.  I caught my own sob before it became a wail to match that poor kid’s cry, and went inside. The receptionist let us know we were at a building a block away from the game.  Hand on the door, I stopped and turned back. This one I can fix.  I can fix this one, I thought. In my ever eloquent manner I said, “Balloons.”  The receptionist looked up with a kind but confused smile.  ”The balloons.  Were they from an event in here?  I mean, there’s a kid…”  I stopped and pointed outside to the little girl still howling toward the sky.  ”A kid…she lost hers, I mean…”  I looked outside again. “Oh, yes, we have more balloons!  I will call her teacher!” “Thank you!” I said, relieved.  We left the building and headed up the block. Mom was trying to get the screaming little girl into the car.  Her baby sister was already in her carseat, wide-eyed and wisely clutching her balloon with both hands.  Mom looked frazzled.  For the second time in the span of a few moments, ever as eloquent as I am extroverted, especially when making split-second decisions to be so, I decided talking to a stranger was more important than protecting myself from the discomfort of talking to a stranger. I turned back around and approached the car.  I said to Mom, “Wait!  Don’t leave yet.  They’re coming.  I mean, you know, they’ll be here soon.  With another balloon.” Mom stopped.  She smiled the biggest smile I had seen in a long time, sighed and said, “Thank you.” “You are welcome,” I said and my eyes filled with tears.  Hers did too.  Her daughter still had a great supply of tears going, but she had stopped crying and looked cautiously optimistic. I know. I know how hard it is to see someone lose something precious and want so badly to just fix it.  To make things right again. As we turned, almost out of sight, I saw a teacher run out with a balloon.  This one was green!  That one had been pink!  I stopped and held my breath, watching and waiting.  The little girl squealed with delight and jumped into the car, with as tight of a hold on her new balloon as her sister had on hers. I remember what that first moment of panic feels like when you accidentally let go of a balloon outside.  My balloon string slipped out of my fist once after a visit to Grandmother’s Restaurant as a kid.  Once.  My kids have each done it once.  Never again.  You never want to feel that loss again.  When it happens to someone you care about, you want the hurt to stop as soon as possible. Sometimes you can make that happen, and when you can, it is the best feeling there is. nonadult false The Balloon text blog 505 10 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 3 0 6521728 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Max-the-Cat-Loses-Weight/blog/6516288/30809.html Max the Cat is our 16 year old kitty. [image]The Incredible Max the Cat I may have mentioned before what an incredible cat he is. Max was in for his wellness care the other day.  He had lost ANOTHER pound.  He used to be twelve pounds.  Now he is 6.6 pounds.  This most recent pound was lost in the past nine months.  At Max's age, that's scary fast to lose weight that is not lost on purpose. A sixteen year old cat losing weight with no explanation on examination, urinalysis or blood work is a strong suspect for cancer hiding somewhere.  Look at me being objective and doctor-y about my own cat.  I can (usually) do it when needed. I called Dr. Krapfl, who does ultrasounds for most of Omaha and whom I work with at Gentle Doctor (one of my many favorite things about Gentle Doctor - blog post idea - write THAT list).  "No rush..." I said calmly.  (Calm AND objective!  You know this can't last through the whole case.  This is MAX!)  What Dr. Krapfl heard was "my cat"..."16"..."weight loss" and within SECONDS (a couple days) Max was upside down with his tummy shaved having his first abdominal ultrasound/cancer search - me praying for no cancer and Dr. Krapfl probably praying I would not cry. [image]I'd Love to Go to Work with You, But I am Washing My Ankle. Sorry. In those couple days between weighing Max and reviewing his lab work and his ultrasound, I went through all the possible emotions associated with all the possible outcomes. I diagnosed a ten year old (SO YOUNG) cat who was feeling great, eating great and losing weight with probable intestinal lymphoma, and bawled.  You are right, I would have bawled anyways.  But he is six years younger than Max! At the doctors' meeting, we discussed the most recent AVMA euthanasia guidelines.  Every time someone said "euthanasia," I sniffled. I tried to dwell on the fact that Max has been too skinny for almost a decade...and the 25 year old cat I once knew...and how great Max felt...and I spent the time I was not sleeping at night petting Max, and telling him things would be okay.  He didn't really seem interested in what the future held, but loved the attention.  Cats are awesome like that. Today came.  I packed Max up and headed to work. [image]Noodle Wanted to Know Why Max was in His Fort The entire team rallied to support me.  Dr. Thomassen said she was going to have me help with a detail of a case but she would get it in case Max's appointment ended sad - "Then you can just get home with him." Dr. Belfiore came into the appointment with me.  "I'm going to hold him so you can just be the Mom." And Dr. Krapfl said my favorite thing of all.  "Well, you could have done this on a work day after all.  I have no sad news for you."  "I might still cry, Bob," I said.  "Oh," he said. "I can't promise you ten more years," he said.  "26!" I thought.  "I was hoping for 25!"  And then I did cry. Clearly, I was no longer being calm or objective, so I thanked Dr. Krapfl, tucked my cat under my arm, and ran to the corner of the doctor office, set my kitty on the desk, and wrote down all the things Dr. Krapfl ACTUALLY said, and my thoughts on follow up care. [image]When You are Overwhelmed, Write a List! We tested Max for feline leukemia (negative - yes!) and feline immunodeficiency virus (negative - yes!)  Over the next few weeks, we will run a few more tests, but the Big Scary Stuff that was keeping me up at night has been ruled out.  My day is TOTALLY made. [image]Max Contemplating... [image]Max Being Awesome [image]Max Back at Home, Resting with his Poodle - Don't Tell Anyone He has a Poodle Friend!  Thank you, Dr. Krapfl!   *Mental Hugs* [image] Max the Cat is our 16 year old kitty. [image]The Incredible Max the Cat I may have mentioned before what an incredible cat he is. Max was in for his wellness care the other day.  He had lost ANOTHER pound.  He used to be twelve pounds.  Now he is 6.6 pounds.  This most recent pound was lost in the past nine months.  At Max's age, that's scary fast to lose weight that is not lost on purpose. A sixteen year old cat losing weight with no explanation on examination, urinalysis or blood work is a strong suspect for cancer hiding somewhere.  Look at me being objective and doctor-y about my own cat.  I can (usually) do it when needed. I called Dr. Krapfl, who does ultrasounds for most of Omaha and whom I work with at Gentle Doctor (one of my many favorite things about Gentle Doctor - blog post idea - write THAT list).  "No rush..." I said calmly.  (Calm AND objective!  You know this can't last through the whole case.  This is MAX!)  What Dr. Krapfl heard was "my cat"..."16"..."weight loss" and within SECONDS (a couple days) Max was upside down with his tummy shaved having his first abdominal ultrasound/cancer search - me praying for no cancer and Dr. Krapfl probably praying I would not cry. [image]I'd Love to Go to Work with You, But I am Washing My Ankle. Sorry. In those couple days between weighing Max and reviewing his lab work and his ultrasound, I went through all the possible emotions associated with all the possible outcomes. I diagnosed a ten year old (SO YOUNG) cat who was feeling great, eating great and losing weight with probable intestinal lymphoma, and bawled.  You are right, I would have bawled anyways.  But he is six years younger than Max! At the doctors' meeting, we discussed the most recent AVMA euthanasia guidelines.  Every time someone said "euthanasia," I sniffled. I tried to dwell on the fact that Max has been too skinny for almost a decade...and the 25 year old cat I once knew...and how great Max felt...and I spent the time I was not sleeping at night petting Max, and telling him things would be okay.  He didn't really seem interested in what the future held, but loved the attention.  Cats are awesome like that. Today came.  I packed Max up and headed to work. [image]Noodle Wanted to Know Why Max was in His Fort The entire team rallied to support me.  Dr. Thomassen said she was going to have me help with a detail of a case but she would get it in case Max's appointment ended sad - "Then you can just get home with him." Dr. Belfiore came into the appointment with me.  "I'm going to hold him so you can just be the Mom." And Dr. Krapfl said my favorite thing of all.  "Well, you could have done this on a work day after all.  I have no sad news for you."  "I might still cry, Bob," I said.  "Oh," he said. "I can't promise you ten more years," he said.  "26!" I thought.  "I was hoping for 25!"  And then I did cry. Clearly, I was no longer being calm or objective, so I thanked Dr. Krapfl, tucked my cat under my arm, and ran to the corner of the doctor office, set my kitty on the desk, and wrote down all the things Dr. Krapfl ACTUALLY said, and my thoughts on follow up care. [image]When You are Overwhelmed, Write a List! We tested Max for feline leukemia (negative - yes!) and feline immunodeficiency virus (negative - yes!)  Over the next few weeks, we will run a few more tests, but the Big Scary Stuff that was keeping me up at night has been ruled out.  My day is TOTALLY made. [image]Max Contemplating... [image]Max Being Awesome [image]Max Back at Home, Resting with his Poodle - Don't Tell Anyone He has a Poodle Friend!  Thank you, Dr. Krapfl!   *Mental Hugs* [image] Thu, 14 Mar 2013 17:22:35 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Max-the-Cat-Loses-Weight/blog/6516288/30809.html Finch93 2013-03-14T17:22:35Z Veterinary Community Max the Cat is our 16 year old kitty. [image]The Incredible Max the Cat I may have mentioned before what an incredible cat he is. Max was in for his wellness care the other day.  He had lost ANOTHER pound.  He used to be twelve pounds.  Now he is 6.6 pounds.  This most recent pound was lost in the past nine months.  At Max's age, that's scary fast to lose weight that is not lost on purpose. A sixteen year old cat losing weight with no explanation on examination, urinalysis or blood work is a strong suspect for cancer hiding somewhere.  Look at me being objective and doctor-y about my own cat.  I can (usually) do it when needed. I called Dr. Krapfl, who does ultrasounds for most of Omaha and whom I work with at Gentle Doctor (one of my many favorite things about Gentle Doctor - blog post idea - write THAT list).  "No rush..." I said calmly.  (Calm AND objective!  You know this can't last through the whole case.  This is MAX!)  What Dr. Krapfl heard was "my cat"..."16"..."weight loss" and within SECONDS (a couple days) Max was upside down with his tummy shaved having his first abdominal ultrasound/cancer search - me praying for no cancer and Dr. Krapfl probably praying I would not cry. [image]I'd Love to Go to Work with You, But I am Washing My Ankle. Sorry. In those couple days between weighing Max and reviewing his lab work and his ultrasound, I went through all the possible emotions associated with all the possible outcomes. I diagnosed a ten year old (SO YOUNG) cat who was feeling great, eating great and losing weight with probable intestinal lymphoma, and bawled.  You are right, I would have bawled anyways.  But he is six years younger than Max! At the doctors' meeting, we discussed the most recent AVMA euthanasia guidelines.  Every time someone said "euthanasia," I sniffled. I tried to dwell on the fact that Max has been too skinny for almost a decade...and the 25 year old cat I once knew...and how great Max felt...and I spent the time I was not sleeping at night petting Max, and telling him things would be okay.  He didn't really seem interested in what the future held, but loved the attention.  Cats are awesome like that. Today came.  I packed Max up and headed to work. [image]Noodle Wanted to Know Why Max was in His Fort The entire team rallied to support me.  Dr. Thomassen said she was going to have me help with a detail of a case but she would get it in case Max's appointment ended sad - "Then you can just get home with him." Dr. Belfiore came into the appointment with me.  "I'm going to hold him so you can just be the Mom." And Dr. Krapfl said my favorite thing of all.  "Well, you could have done this on a work day after all.  I have no sad news for you."  "I might still cry, Bob," I said.  "Oh," he said. "I can't promise you ten more years," he said.  "26!" I thought.  "I was hoping for 25!"  And then I did cry. Clearly, I was no longer being calm or objective, so I thanked Dr. Krapfl, tucked my cat under my arm, and ran to the corner of the doctor office, set my kitty on the desk, and wrote down all the things Dr. Krapfl ACTUALLY said, and my thoughts on follow up care. [image]When You are Overwhelmed, Write a List! We tested Max for feline leukemia (negative - yes!) and feline immunodeficiency virus (negative - yes!)  Over the next few weeks, we will run a few more tests, but the Big Scary Stuff that was keeping me up at night has been ruled out.  My day is TOTALLY made. [image]Max Contemplating... [image]Max Being Awesome [image]Max Back at Home, Resting with his Poodle - Don't Tell Anyone He has a Poodle Friend!  Thank you, Dr. Krapfl!   *Mental Hugs* [image] nonadult false Max the Cat Loses Weight text blog 404 10 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 0 6516288 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_What-If-Every-Case-Is-A-Gift/blog/6482019/30809.html I recently had an incredible trauma case with a technician I enjoy working with but do not get to see often anymore. I do not like trauma cases. I am much too empathetic and in love with preventative care to appreciate how cool trauma really is. But after Trey and I had this particular bird diagnosed and stabilized, his pain well controlled, and had established a better prognosis than we had originally feared and we were working together to maintain anesthesia and literally put the poor thing back together, a strange calm settled in, and for the first time in my life I thought, What if every case is a gift? What kind of gift is a tiny, beautiful, broken and bloody bird? What kind of Gift Giver gives such a gift? What does it say about us as recipients that we return time and time again, hands and hearts wide open, to accept the next case? What if every case is a gift? [image] I dunno, maybe. I recently had an incredible trauma case with a technician I enjoy working with but do not get to see often anymore. I do not like trauma cases. I am much too empathetic and in love with preventative care to appreciate how cool trauma really is. But after Trey and I had this particular bird diagnosed and stabilized, his pain well controlled, and had established a better prognosis than we had originally feared and we were working together to maintain anesthesia and literally put the poor thing back together, a strange calm settled in, and for the first time in my life I thought, What if every case is a gift? What kind of gift is a tiny, beautiful, broken and bloody bird? What kind of Gift Giver gives such a gift? What does it say about us as recipients that we return time and time again, hands and hearts wide open, to accept the next case? What if every case is a gift? [image] I dunno, maybe. Sun, 02 Dec 2012 17:09:08 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_What-If-Every-Case-Is-A-Gift/blog/6482019/30809.html Finch93 2012-12-02T17:09:08Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community I recently had an incredible trauma case with a technician I enjoy working with but do not get to see often anymore. I do not like trauma cases. I am much too empathetic and in love with preventative care to appreciate how cool trauma really is. But after Trey and I had this particular bird diagnosed and stabilized, his pain well controlled, and had established a better prognosis than we had originally feared and we were working together to maintain anesthesia and literally put the poor thing back together, a strange calm settled in, and for the first time in my life I thought, What if every case is a gift? What kind of gift is a tiny, beautiful, broken and bloody bird? What kind of Gift Giver gives such a gift? What does it say about us as recipients that we return time and time again, hands and hearts wide open, to accept the next case? What if every case is a gift? [image] I dunno, maybe. veterinary voices nonadult false What If Every Case Is A Gift? text blog veterinary voices 1147 0 0.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 4 Veterinary Voices 0 6482019 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Happy-Anniversary-Us/blog/6466101/30809.html On September 22, 2012, I wrote THIS about working at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital... Happy Anniversary, us. Not US, that is in June. We had a bunch of ten year old girls spend the night last night, and they were sugared, caffinated and completely wound up. I closed our bedroom door at 2 am because I could not sleep. It muffled the chaos but did not silence it. I must have slept some because we woke up four hours after I shut the door realizing Max the Cat had peed on our bed. I suppose it seemed like the second best option since he could not get out to get to his litter box. Do not judge him too harshly – It is only the second time in two decades that he has done that. I am up (and showered, laundry running – not by choice). And the kids are STILL wound up and yelling. I have long considered these words of my sister-in-law Jodi to be an accurate gauge of the quality of a day: “Any day you can say, ‘At least no one peed on me,’ is a good day.” Even so, today I woke up in a good mood. Today is a good day. I have been officially working at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital for one year. It is my favorite job I have ever had. One year and ten days ago, I called Dr. Pete Bashara and asked if I could come work for him. I called three hospitals, including one where a classmate works. Her boss offered me a job too. I knew it was a great hospital also, and I would love working there with her. I said, “Anne I really think I would love working at Gentle Doctor.” She said, “I know Pete. I really think you would too.” We were right. I told Pete during a working interview before he offered me a job that I would like to retire from his company. Even at my young age :) insofar as it depends on me, that is still my plan. Do you see all the extroversion in this story so far? All of what is for me reckless, crazy, dangerous behavior?? I was desperate. I was wounded. I was done with working in veterinary medicine. I told my husband Russ that I was going to call the three hospitals I knew from growing up in Omaha were awesome, follow through wherever that led, and then basically come home, curl up and recover. Then start over in a new direction. I am so glad I was wrong. I was also wrong about there being only three hospitals in Omaha that are awesome. There are way more. Apparently, it is the norm in veterinary medicine. Now I remember! I did start over in a new direction, but it is within the career and calling that I love. My faith in leadership and my love of veterinary medicine have been restored. And for me, that is huge. Thank you Pete. It's been a good year. On September 22, 2012, I wrote THIS about working at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital... Happy Anniversary, us. Not US, that is in June. We had a bunch of ten year old girls spend the night last night, and they were sugared, caffinated and completely wound up. I closed our bedroom door at 2 am because I could not sleep. It muffled the chaos but did not silence it. I must have slept some because we woke up four hours after I shut the door realizing Max the Cat had peed on our bed. I suppose it seemed like the second best option since he could not get out to get to his litter box. Do not judge him too harshly – It is only the second time in two decades that he has done that. I am up (and showered, laundry running – not by choice). And the kids are STILL wound up and yelling. I have long considered these words of my sister-in-law Jodi to be an accurate gauge of the quality of a day: “Any day you can say, ‘At least no one peed on me,’ is a good day.” Even so, today I woke up in a good mood. Today is a good day. I have been officially working at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital for one year. It is my favorite job I have ever had. One year and ten days ago, I called Dr. Pete Bashara and asked if I could come work for him. I called three hospitals, including one where a classmate works. Her boss offered me a job too. I knew it was a great hospital also, and I would love working there with her. I said, “Anne I really think I would love working at Gentle Doctor.” She said, “I know Pete. I really think you would too.” We were right. I told Pete during a working interview before he offered me a job that I would like to retire from his company. Even at my young age :) insofar as it depends on me, that is still my plan. Do you see all the extroversion in this story so far? All of what is for me reckless, crazy, dangerous behavior?? I was desperate. I was wounded. I was done with working in veterinary medicine. I told my husband Russ that I was going to call the three hospitals I knew from growing up in Omaha were awesome, follow through wherever that led, and then basically come home, curl up and recover. Then start over in a new direction. I am so glad I was wrong. I was also wrong about there being only three hospitals in Omaha that are awesome. There are way more. Apparently, it is the norm in veterinary medicine. Now I remember! I did start over in a new direction, but it is within the career and calling that I love. My faith in leadership and my love of veterinary medicine have been restored. And for me, that is huge. Thank you Pete. It's been a good year. Fri, 16 Nov 2012 02:30:52 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Happy-Anniversary-Us/blog/6466101/30809.html Finch93 2012-11-16T02:30:52Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community On September 22, 2012, I wrote THIS about working at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital... Happy Anniversary, us. Not US, that is in June. We had a bunch of ten year old girls spend the night last night, and they were sugared, caffinated and completely wound up. I closed our bedroom door at 2 am because I could not sleep. It muffled the chaos but did not silence it. I must have slept some because we woke up four hours after I shut the door realizing Max the Cat had peed on our bed. I suppose it seemed like the second best option since he could not get out to get to his litter box. Do not judge him too harshly – It is only the second time in two decades that he has done that. I am up (and showered, laundry running – not by choice). And the kids are STILL wound up and yelling. I have long considered these words of my sister-in-law Jodi to be an accurate gauge of the quality of a day: “Any day you can say, ‘At least no one peed on me,’ is a good day.” Even so, today I woke up in a good mood. Today is a good day. I have been officially working at Gentle Doctor Animal Hospital for one year. It is my favorite job I have ever had. One year and ten days ago, I called Dr. Pete Bashara and asked if I could come work for him. I called three hospitals, including one where a classmate works. Her boss offered me a job too. I knew it was a great hospital also, and I would love working there with her. I said, “Anne I really think I would love working at Gentle Doctor.” She said, “I know Pete. I really think you would too.” We were right. I told Pete during a working interview before he offered me a job that I would like to retire from his company. Even at my young age :) insofar as it depends on me, that is still my plan. Do you see all the extroversion in this story so far? All of what is for me reckless, crazy, dangerous behavior?? I was desperate. I was wounded. I was done with working in veterinary medicine. I told my husband Russ that I was going to call the three hospitals I knew from growing up in Omaha were awesome, follow through wherever that led, and then basically come home, curl up and recover. Then start over in a new direction. I am so glad I was wrong. I was also wrong about there being only three hospitals in Omaha that are awesome. There are way more. Apparently, it is the norm in veterinary medicine. Now I remember! I did start over in a new direction, but it is within the career and calling that I love. My faith in leadership and my love of veterinary medicine have been restored. And for me, that is huge. Thank you Pete. It's been a good year. doctor, gentle, omaha, vet, veterinary voices, vets nonadult false Happy Anniversary, Us text blog doctor,gentle,omaha,vet,veterinary voices,vets 792 0 0.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 Veterinary Voices 0 6466101 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Redrawing-Mortality/blog/6310351/30809.html One of the hardest things about being in our field is dealing with mortality.  We walk our patients through the last stages of their lives with grace and compassion, and by doing so, start our clients on the road to healing.  Then we go home. We drink. We shut down. We burn out. Or we find a way to cope. I draw. I started an online comic in 2011 and called it "When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet." [image] Our family recently lost all of our rodent pets within a short period of time.  Apparently rodents don't always live very long?  So in the comic, I made Hammie the hamster immortal. [image] Our hospital recently lost three wonderful Basset Hounds within two weeks in a series of sad coincidences.  The first Basset had kidney cancer, the next stomach cancer and the last end stage congestive heart failure.  So I drew them into the comic with all three of them going home healthy, tails wagging.  Incidentally, the kitten story referenced in the first square of the next comic was sad in Real Life too, so it was redrawn happy. [image] [image] [image] [image] When my brother's Mastiff James passed away this summer, I drew him into the comic too.  This time, I wrote the story differently though.  I felt like it would be a disservice to James' memory and to readers who had lost pet friends to not go deeper with this story line.  Even with such a silly and light-hearted comic, I guess I always knew that if my subject were going to be veterinary medicine, I would eventually have to deal with pet loss.  There is, of course, only so much I can do with Sharpies and a grade school level drawing ability.  But I tried.  [image] I kept James' story closer to how the case actually unfolded.  I did draw James way bigger than he actually was and added an emotional veterinary pathologist because those two things are just hilarious to me.  I don't know why. I have more of James' story to tell, but here is what I have so far… [image] [image] [image] [image] Come home.  Get a drink.  Don't shut down.  Don't burn out.  Join me as I sit in a corner and draw. It is pretty therapeutic. [image]   One of the hardest things about being in our field is dealing with mortality.  We walk our patients through the last stages of their lives with grace and compassion, and by doing so, start our clients on the road to healing.  Then we go home. We drink. We shut down. We burn out. Or we find a way to cope. I draw. I started an online comic in 2011 and called it "When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet." [image] Our family recently lost all of our rodent pets within a short period of time.  Apparently rodents don't always live very long?  So in the comic, I made Hammie the hamster immortal. [image] Our hospital recently lost three wonderful Basset Hounds within two weeks in a series of sad coincidences.  The first Basset had kidney cancer, the next stomach cancer and the last end stage congestive heart failure.  So I drew them into the comic with all three of them going home healthy, tails wagging.  Incidentally, the kitten story referenced in the first square of the next comic was sad in Real Life too, so it was redrawn happy. [image] [image] [image] [image] When my brother's Mastiff James passed away this summer, I drew him into the comic too.  This time, I wrote the story differently though.  I felt like it would be a disservice to James' memory and to readers who had lost pet friends to not go deeper with this story line.  Even with such a silly and light-hearted comic, I guess I always knew that if my subject were going to be veterinary medicine, I would eventually have to deal with pet loss.  There is, of course, only so much I can do with Sharpies and a grade school level drawing ability.  But I tried.  [image] I kept James' story closer to how the case actually unfolded.  I did draw James way bigger than he actually was and added an emotional veterinary pathologist because those two things are just hilarious to me.  I don't know why. I have more of James' story to tell, but here is what I have so far… [image] [image] [image] [image] Come home.  Get a drink.  Don't shut down.  Don't burn out.  Join me as I sit in a corner and draw. It is pretty therapeutic. [image]   Thu, 30 Aug 2012 22:06:34 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Redrawing-Mortality/blog/6310351/30809.html Finch93 2012-08-30T22:06:34Z Veterinary Community One of the hardest things about being in our field is dealing with mortality.  We walk our patients through the last stages of their lives with grace and compassion, and by doing so, start our clients on the road to healing.  Then we go home. We drink. We shut down. We burn out. Or we find a way to cope. I draw. I started an online comic in 2011 and called it "When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet." [image] Our family recently lost all of our rodent pets within a short period of time.  Apparently rodents don't always live very long?  So in the comic, I made Hammie the hamster immortal. [image] Our hospital recently lost three wonderful Basset Hounds within two weeks in a series of sad coincidences.  The first Basset had kidney cancer, the next stomach cancer and the last end stage congestive heart failure.  So I drew them into the comic with all three of them going home healthy, tails wagging.  Incidentally, the kitten story referenced in the first square of the next comic was sad in Real Life too, so it was redrawn happy. [image] [image] [image] [image] When my brother's Mastiff James passed away this summer, I drew him into the comic too.  This time, I wrote the story differently though.  I felt like it would be a disservice to James' memory and to readers who had lost pet friends to not go deeper with this story line.  Even with such a silly and light-hearted comic, I guess I always knew that if my subject were going to be veterinary medicine, I would eventually have to deal with pet loss.  There is, of course, only so much I can do with Sharpies and a grade school level drawing ability.  But I tried.  [image] I kept James' story closer to how the case actually unfolded.  I did draw James way bigger than he actually was and added an emotional veterinary pathologist because those two things are just hilarious to me.  I don't know why. I have more of James' story to tell, but here is what I have so far… [image] [image] [image] [image] Come home.  Get a drink.  Don't shut down.  Don't burn out.  Join me as I sit in a corner and draw. It is pretty therapeutic. [image]   grow, i, james, loss, mastiff, pet, the, up, when nonadult false Redrawing Mortality text blog grow,i,james,loss,mastiff,pet,the,up,when 1089 10 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 6310351 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_My-Dog-Nephew-James/blog/6270931/30809.html My brother Dave and Sara's big beautiful Mastiff James died this summer.  He was one of my very favorite dogs.  He is the James of the veterinary blog that my brother set up for me years ago - Riley and James.  More importantly, he was James of the Nelson family and James who was loved by everyone who met him. [image]James Nelson December 2003 - July 2012   James developed Addison's disease, and though we diagnosed him and treated him and even got him to the emergency clinic for the weekend during his first Addisonian crisis where he received stellar care, his blood pressure did not remain high enough for long enough to keep him going.  He fought hard for three days.  We didn't think he should have to keep fighting so hard when he kept getting sicker, and his family let him go early Monday morning, July 23, 2012. I was able to spend one of his last days with him - the first day of his hospitalization while he was at Gentle Doctor.  As his friend, it was strangely nice and will always be one of my most precious memories. And yet, he had a treatable disease that was treated well and a family doing everything they could to get him through.  As a sister and veterinarian, being unable to save the dog I love so much and spare the family I love so much that pain and loss is very hard.   [image]James Did not want me to go around the corner to the doctors' office and he did not fit comfortably in a "dog" sized kennel, so we hung out together in the treatment room - as it should be. I am sorry I could not save you James.  I really tried, Buddy.  I love your family, and I sure love you too. [image] My brother Dave and Sara's big beautiful Mastiff James died this summer.  He was one of my very favorite dogs.  He is the James of the veterinary blog that my brother set up for me years ago - Riley and James.  More importantly, he was James of the Nelson family and James who was loved by everyone who met him. [image]James Nelson December 2003 - July 2012   James developed Addison's disease, and though we diagnosed him and treated him and even got him to the emergency clinic for the weekend during his first Addisonian crisis where he received stellar care, his blood pressure did not remain high enough for long enough to keep him going.  He fought hard for three days.  We didn't think he should have to keep fighting so hard when he kept getting sicker, and his family let him go early Monday morning, July 23, 2012. I was able to spend one of his last days with him - the first day of his hospitalization while he was at Gentle Doctor.  As his friend, it was strangely nice and will always be one of my most precious memories. And yet, he had a treatable disease that was treated well and a family doing everything they could to get him through.  As a sister and veterinarian, being unable to save the dog I love so much and spare the family I love so much that pain and loss is very hard.   [image]James Did not want me to go around the corner to the doctors' office and he did not fit comfortably in a "dog" sized kennel, so we hung out together in the treatment room - as it should be. I am sorry I could not save you James.  I really tried, Buddy.  I love your family, and I sure love you too. [image] Fri, 10 Aug 2012 16:46:48 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_My-Dog-Nephew-James/blog/6270931/30809.html Finch93 2012-08-10T16:46:48Z Veterinary Community My brother Dave and Sara's big beautiful Mastiff James died this summer.  He was one of my very favorite dogs.  He is the James of the veterinary blog that my brother set up for me years ago - Riley and James.  More importantly, he was James of the Nelson family and James who was loved by everyone who met him. [image]James Nelson December 2003 - July 2012   James developed Addison's disease, and though we diagnosed him and treated him and even got him to the emergency clinic for the weekend during his first Addisonian crisis where he received stellar care, his blood pressure did not remain high enough for long enough to keep him going.  He fought hard for three days.  We didn't think he should have to keep fighting so hard when he kept getting sicker, and his family let him go early Monday morning, July 23, 2012. I was able to spend one of his last days with him - the first day of his hospitalization while he was at Gentle Doctor.  As his friend, it was strangely nice and will always be one of my most precious memories. And yet, he had a treatable disease that was treated well and a family doing everything they could to get him through.  As a sister and veterinarian, being unable to save the dog I love so much and spare the family I love so much that pain and loss is very hard.   [image]James Did not want me to go around the corner to the doctors' office and he did not fit comfortably in a "dog" sized kennel, so we hung out together in the treatment room - as it should be. I am sorry I could not save you James.  I really tried, Buddy.  I love your family, and I sure love you too. [image] nonadult false My Dog-Nephew James text blog 484 0 0.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 6270931 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Omaha39s-New-Spay-Neuter-Center/blog/6197353/30809.html I started to write about a subject dear to my heart, but perhaps a bit overreaching for a short post... Pet Overpopulation After considerable effort, I narrowed my focus... Overpopulation of Dogs and Cats in and around Omaha And then again... Intact Outdoor Cats in and around Omaha, the Quality of Life for Them and Their Kittens and Their Effect on Song Birds and Health and Behavior Issues of Intact Dogs and the Effect on the Community of having More Puppies Than Available Homes And then once more... The Farmer with Fifteen Barn Cats Who Can Now Afford to Have Them All Spayed, Neutered, Leukemia Checked and Vaccinated and did. The Family WITHOUT $1200 but with a Nine Year Old Dog with Closed Pyometra Who Really, Really Wanted to Help Her and did. Finally I settled on this... The Spay Omaha Solution Lied Spay/Neuter Center Omaha has a fairly new veterinary hospital.  They provide spay and neuter surgery for dogs, puppies, cats and kittens for a reduced fee compared to the fees of most veterinary hospitals. Low Cost Clinic Aims to Reduce Pet Overpopulation Omaha World Herald May 2, 2012 [image] The Spay Omaha Solution Lied Spay/Neuter Center is affiliated with Nebraska Humane Society and funded by private donations, including donations from the Lied Foundation Trust. Dr. Engel and her staff are equipped to perform surgery on up to forty-four pets a day.  The line most days is out the door. These are not pets leaving private veterinary hospitals for this one.  These are mainly young adult pets who are not otherwise being spayed or neutered, often from typically lower income areas of town whose families now have an option they can afford. They are pets taken in by the huge rescue network of Omaha that are now being spayed and neutered for an even lower cost than Omaha's private veterinary hospitals were able to offer (often at a loss to the hospitals). These are the barn cats and the feral cats and the outdoor cats of Omaha, who do not always have just one family or even any family, but now can be spayed or neutered for a very low cost, hopefully breaking the cycle of Omaha's cat and kitten overpopulation problem, maybe even in the very near future. This is not a hospital cutting corners to make ends meet.  This is a hospital with a highly skilled surgeon practicing excellent medicine and reaching a portion of the community that we as private practitioners were not able to reach before. I have seen Dr. Engel and her team perform surgery.  Imagine if you took the portion of veterinary medicine you were most passionate about and did it exclusively day after day, how incredibly good you would become.  Imagine how fun it would be to watch someone do what they love to do and what they do best.  That is what it is like watching Dr. Engel and her team work. As the debate continues over whether low cost spay-neuter clinics are stealing our business and whether they are of the high quality our profession demands and whether it is fair that some are subsidized while we are not, I will say I am so proud to have the Spay Omaha Solution Spay/Neuter Center here in Omaha, and Omaha is so blessed to have them. My caseload has not suffered. The team, the facility and the medicine are very high quality. They have been funded by private donations in order to help the members of our community - pets and people - who need them. Were none of that true, I would still be very excited that pet overpopulation will soon be solved.  As a society, we are close.  In Omaha, we are very close. Dr. Engel, we are so glad you and your team are here.  We - as a community and as the Gentle Doctor Animal Hospitals team - will do whatever we can to help you succeed.  Thank you for helping the families we so desperately wanted to help but were not reaching.  We look forward with you to the day when pet overpopulation is no longer an issue in our community. I started to write about a subject dear to my heart, but perhaps a bit overreaching for a short post... Pet Overpopulation After considerable effort, I narrowed my focus... Overpopulation of Dogs and Cats in and around Omaha And then again... Intact Outdoor Cats in and around Omaha, the Quality of Life for Them and Their Kittens and Their Effect on Song Birds and Health and Behavior Issues of Intact Dogs and the Effect on the Community of having More Puppies Than Available Homes And then once more... The Farmer with Fifteen Barn Cats Who Can Now Afford to Have Them All Spayed, Neutered, Leukemia Checked and Vaccinated and did. The Family WITHOUT $1200 but with a Nine Year Old Dog with Closed Pyometra Who Really, Really Wanted to Help Her and did. Finally I settled on this... The Spay Omaha Solution Lied Spay/Neuter Center Omaha has a fairly new veterinary hospital.  They provide spay and neuter surgery for dogs, puppies, cats and kittens for a reduced fee compared to the fees of most veterinary hospitals. Low Cost Clinic Aims to Reduce Pet Overpopulation Omaha World Herald May 2, 2012 [image] The Spay Omaha Solution Lied Spay/Neuter Center is affiliated with Nebraska Humane Society and funded by private donations, including donations from the Lied Foundation Trust. Dr. Engel and her staff are equipped to perform surgery on up to forty-four pets a day.  The line most days is out the door. These are not pets leaving private veterinary hospitals for this one.  These are mainly young adult pets who are not otherwise being spayed or neutered, often from typically lower income areas of town whose families now have an option they can afford. They are pets taken in by the huge rescue network of Omaha that are now being spayed and neutered for an even lower cost than Omaha's private veterinary hospitals were able to offer (often at a loss to the hospitals). These are the barn cats and the feral cats and the outdoor cats of Omaha, who do not always have just one family or even any family, but now can be spayed or neutered for a very low cost, hopefully breaking the cycle of Omaha's cat and kitten overpopulation problem, maybe even in the very near future. This is not a hospital cutting corners to make ends meet.  This is a hospital with a highly skilled surgeon practicing excellent medicine and reaching a portion of the community that we as private practitioners were not able to reach before. I have seen Dr. Engel and her team perform surgery.  Imagine if you took the portion of veterinary medicine you were most passionate about and did it exclusively day after day, how incredibly good you would become.  Imagine how fun it would be to watch someone do what they love to do and what they do best.  That is what it is like watching Dr. Engel and her team work. As the debate continues over whether low cost spay-neuter clinics are stealing our business and whether they are of the high quality our profession demands and whether it is fair that some are subsidized while we are not, I will say I am so proud to have the Spay Omaha Solution Spay/Neuter Center here in Omaha, and Omaha is so blessed to have them. My caseload has not suffered. The team, the facility and the medicine are very high quality. They have been funded by private donations in order to help the members of our community - pets and people - who need them. Were none of that true, I would still be very excited that pet overpopulation will soon be solved.  As a society, we are close.  In Omaha, we are very close. Dr. Engel, we are so glad you and your team are here.  We - as a community and as the Gentle Doctor Animal Hospitals team - will do whatever we can to help you succeed.  Thank you for helping the families we so desperately wanted to help but were not reaching.  We look forward with you to the day when pet overpopulation is no longer an issue in our community. Fri, 29 Jun 2012 06:39:59 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Omaha39s-New-Spay-Neuter-Center/blog/6197353/30809.html Finch93 2012-06-29T06:39:59Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community I started to write about a subject dear to my heart, but perhaps a bit overreaching for a short post... Pet Overpopulation After considerable effort, I narrowed my focus... Overpopulation of Dogs and Cats in and around Omaha And then again... Intact Outdoor Cats in and around Omaha, the Quality of Life for Them and Their Kittens and Their Effect on Song Birds and Health and Behavior Issues of Intact Dogs and the Effect on the Community of having More Puppies Than Available Homes And then once more... The Farmer with Fifteen Barn Cats Who Can Now Afford to Have Them All Spayed, Neutered, Leukemia Checked and Vaccinated and did. The Family WITHOUT $1200 but with a Nine Year Old Dog with Closed Pyometra Who Really, Really Wanted to Help Her and did. Finally I settled on this... The Spay Omaha Solution Lied Spay/Neuter Center Omaha has a fairly new veterinary hospital.  They provide spay and neuter surgery for dogs, puppies, cats and kittens for a reduced fee compared to the fees of most veterinary hospitals. Low Cost Clinic Aims to Reduce Pet Overpopulation Omaha World Herald May 2, 2012 [image] The Spay Omaha Solution Lied Spay/Neuter Center is affiliated with Nebraska Humane Society and funded by private donations, including donations from the Lied Foundation Trust. Dr. Engel and her staff are equipped to perform surgery on up to forty-four pets a day.  The line most days is out the door. These are not pets leaving private veterinary hospitals for this one.  These are mainly young adult pets who are not otherwise being spayed or neutered, often from typically lower income areas of town whose families now have an option they can afford. They are pets taken in by the huge rescue network of Omaha that are now being spayed and neutered for an even lower cost than Omaha's private veterinary hospitals were able to offer (often at a loss to the hospitals). These are the barn cats and the feral cats and the outdoor cats of Omaha, who do not always have just one family or even any family, but now can be spayed or neutered for a very low cost, hopefully breaking the cycle of Omaha's cat and kitten overpopulation problem, maybe even in the very near future. This is not a hospital cutting corners to make ends meet.  This is a hospital with a highly skilled surgeon practicing excellent medicine and reaching a portion of the community that we as private practitioners were not able to reach before. I have seen Dr. Engel and her team perform surgery.  Imagine if you took the portion of veterinary medicine you were most passionate about and did it exclusively day after day, how incredibly good you would become.  Imagine how fun it would be to watch someone do what they love to do and what they do best.  That is what it is like watching Dr. Engel and her team work. As the debate continues over whether low cost spay-neuter clinics are stealing our business and whether they are of the high quality our profession demands and whether it is fair that some are subsidized while we are not, I will say I am so proud to have the Spay Omaha Solution Spay/Neuter Center here in Omaha, and Omaha is so blessed to have them. My caseload has not suffered. The team, the facility and the medicine are very high quality. They have been funded by private donations in order to help the members of our community - pets and people - who need them. Were none of that true, I would still be very excited that pet overpopulation will soon be solved.  As a society, we are close.  In Omaha, we are very close. Dr. Engel, we are so glad you and your team are here.  We - as a community and as the Gentle Doctor Animal Hospitals team - will do whatever we can to help you succeed.  Thank you for helping the families we so desperately wanted to help but were not reaching.  We look forward with you to the day when pet overpopulation is no longer an issue in our community. neuter, omaha, sos, spay, veterinary voices nonadult false Omaha's New Spay Neuter Center text blog neuter,omaha,sos,spay,veterinary voices 1070 1 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 3 Veterinary Voices 0 6197353 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_When-I-Grow-Up/blog/5958809/30809.html This is my story.  Most of it is true.  Except for the Zombie Giraffe.  [image] Oh, and there was not really a Real Live Porcupine.  All of my coworkers have been actual people.  The rest of most of the story is mostly true.   [image] The whole series (so far) is at When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet. [image] Fun. :) This is my story.  Most of it is true.  Except for the Zombie Giraffe.  [image] Oh, and there was not really a Real Live Porcupine.  All of my coworkers have been actual people.  The rest of most of the story is mostly true.   [image] The whole series (so far) is at When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet. [image] Fun. :) Tue, 10 Apr 2012 22:18:43 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_When-I-Grow-Up/blog/5958809/30809.html Finch93 2012-04-10T22:18:43Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community This is my story.  Most of it is true.  Except for the Zombie Giraffe.  [image] Oh, and there was not really a Real Live Porcupine.  All of my coworkers have been actual people.  The rest of most of the story is mostly true.   [image] The whole series (so far) is at When I Grow Up, I Want to be a Vet. [image] Fun. :) i want to be a vet, veterinary voices, when i grow up nonadult false When I Grow Up... text blog i want to be a vet,veterinary voices,when i grow up 811 0 0.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 Veterinary Voices 0 5958809 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_I-Lost-a-Poodle/blog/5915981/30809.html One of my resolutions this year is to return to a healthy weight.  I get discouraged when I see before and after pictures that go with weight loss success stories... "I used to look like THIS! and in the time it took you to move your eyes to the other side of the magazine page, I lost a gazillion pounds, found a cuter t-shirt, and now I look like THIS!" So, I wasn't going to write about it at all.  Losing weight is a pretty emotional, personal thing.  But when has that stopped me from sharing anything?  Ha!  But since I am sharing, I will not play the "instant change" trick on you.  This is hard stuff. It took me till mid-February to lose a couple ounces.  I was discouraged. About the same time, I met a super cute gecko who weighed a couple ounces.  Gary was a complete being!  I had lost an entire gecko!  A few weeks later and I had lost SEVERAL geckos!  Woo!   Nevermind before and after (and NO there will be no pictures!  Haha!)  We all live in the NOW.  Even if you are not losing weight, you are striving to be healthy NOW.  You are trying and succeeding and trying another new thing NOW.  Life is not a snapshot one day and a second snapshot several months later.  It is much richer and deeper and moment by moment than that. So I will tell you after several months of really watching what I eat, becoming more active, being encouraged by Real Life friends and family also on the same journey and the online encouragement of Dr. Ernie Ward , I lost a Poodle.  A small Poodle to be sure, but an entire Poodle. [image] In fact, Ernie Nelson is the smallest Poodle I know, but he would be sad if you said his weight was not incredibly important.  His weight is one of the most endearing things about him!  It is super important! Then I lost the amount of weight that my friend Ike the Poodle weighs!  Still a small Poodle, but Ike too is Very Important.  This was another milestone!  Woo! Several weeks later, and I am proud to say I have lost the same amount of weight as the Biggest Poodle I Personally Know Well weighs!  Woo!  Can you believe it??  The Biggest Poodle I Personally Know Well is our own Miniature Poodle, Noodle the Poodle.  Still, another whole Poodle! [image] I am using the Weight Watcher online system, which has been so helpful.  However, with Weight Watchers, you reach milestones and earn stars on your chart in 5 and 10% and 5 and 10 pound increments.  That seems a little arbitrary, don't you think? Next, I am going for medium sized Poodle mix and by the end of the year... STANDARD POODLE!  WOO!!! Then I will maintain my healthy habits and quit tying everything in my life to pets... (Just kidding about the second part!) One of my resolutions this year is to return to a healthy weight.  I get discouraged when I see before and after pictures that go with weight loss success stories... "I used to look like THIS! and in the time it took you to move your eyes to the other side of the magazine page, I lost a gazillion pounds, found a cuter t-shirt, and now I look like THIS!" So, I wasn't going to write about it at all.  Losing weight is a pretty emotional, personal thing.  But when has that stopped me from sharing anything?  Ha!  But since I am sharing, I will not play the "instant change" trick on you.  This is hard stuff. It took me till mid-February to lose a couple ounces.  I was discouraged. About the same time, I met a super cute gecko who weighed a couple ounces.  Gary was a complete being!  I had lost an entire gecko!  A few weeks later and I had lost SEVERAL geckos!  Woo!   Nevermind before and after (and NO there will be no pictures!  Haha!)  We all live in the NOW.  Even if you are not losing weight, you are striving to be healthy NOW.  You are trying and succeeding and trying another new thing NOW.  Life is not a snapshot one day and a second snapshot several months later.  It is much richer and deeper and moment by moment than that. So I will tell you after several months of really watching what I eat, becoming more active, being encouraged by Real Life friends and family also on the same journey and the online encouragement of Dr. Ernie Ward , I lost a Poodle.  A small Poodle to be sure, but an entire Poodle. [image] In fact, Ernie Nelson is the smallest Poodle I know, but he would be sad if you said his weight was not incredibly important.  His weight is one of the most endearing things about him!  It is super important! Then I lost the amount of weight that my friend Ike the Poodle weighs!  Still a small Poodle, but Ike too is Very Important.  This was another milestone!  Woo! Several weeks later, and I am proud to say I have lost the same amount of weight as the Biggest Poodle I Personally Know Well weighs!  Woo!  Can you believe it??  The Biggest Poodle I Personally Know Well is our own Miniature Poodle, Noodle the Poodle.  Still, another whole Poodle! [image] I am using the Weight Watcher online system, which has been so helpful.  However, with Weight Watchers, you reach milestones and earn stars on your chart in 5 and 10% and 5 and 10 pound increments.  That seems a little arbitrary, don't you think? Next, I am going for medium sized Poodle mix and by the end of the year... STANDARD POODLE!  WOO!!! Then I will maintain my healthy habits and quit tying everything in my life to pets... (Just kidding about the second part!) Fri, 30 Mar 2012 03:13:08 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_I-Lost-a-Poodle/blog/5915981/30809.html Finch93 2012-03-30T03:13:08Z Veterinary Community One of my resolutions this year is to return to a healthy weight.  I get discouraged when I see before and after pictures that go with weight loss success stories... "I used to look like THIS! and in the time it took you to move your eyes to the other side of the magazine page, I lost a gazillion pounds, found a cuter t-shirt, and now I look like THIS!" So, I wasn't going to write about it at all.  Losing weight is a pretty emotional, personal thing.  But when has that stopped me from sharing anything?  Ha!  But since I am sharing, I will not play the "instant change" trick on you.  This is hard stuff. It took me till mid-February to lose a couple ounces.  I was discouraged. About the same time, I met a super cute gecko who weighed a couple ounces.  Gary was a complete being!  I had lost an entire gecko!  A few weeks later and I had lost SEVERAL geckos!  Woo!   Nevermind before and after (and NO there will be no pictures!  Haha!)  We all live in the NOW.  Even if you are not losing weight, you are striving to be healthy NOW.  You are trying and succeeding and trying another new thing NOW.  Life is not a snapshot one day and a second snapshot several months later.  It is much richer and deeper and moment by moment than that. So I will tell you after several months of really watching what I eat, becoming more active, being encouraged by Real Life friends and family also on the same journey and the online encouragement of Dr. Ernie Ward , I lost a Poodle.  A small Poodle to be sure, but an entire Poodle. [image] In fact, Ernie Nelson is the smallest Poodle I know, but he would be sad if you said his weight was not incredibly important.  His weight is one of the most endearing things about him!  It is super important! Then I lost the amount of weight that my friend Ike the Poodle weighs!  Still a small Poodle, but Ike too is Very Important.  This was another milestone!  Woo! Several weeks later, and I am proud to say I have lost the same amount of weight as the Biggest Poodle I Personally Know Well weighs!  Woo!  Can you believe it??  The Biggest Poodle I Personally Know Well is our own Miniature Poodle, Noodle the Poodle.  Still, another whole Poodle! [image] I am using the Weight Watcher online system, which has been so helpful.  However, with Weight Watchers, you reach milestones and earn stars on your chart in 5 and 10% and 5 and 10 pound increments.  That seems a little arbitrary, don't you think? Next, I am going for medium sized Poodle mix and by the end of the year... STANDARD POODLE!  WOO!!! Then I will maintain my healthy habits and quit tying everything in my life to pets... (Just kidding about the second part!) nonadult false I Lost a Poodle! text blog 1248 1 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 5915981 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_A-Client-Tells-Ten-People/blog/5700506/30809.html In veterinary medicine, much of our business is based on word of mouth. I love that. I love my clients and their pets. So many of them are family and friends and friends of family and family of friends. And the “strangers” are people who love pets, and so I love them too. I do not think everything we have been taught about word of mouth business is true. See if you agree. See if this applies to your veterinary practice as well. A satisfied client tells four people. A dissatisfied client tells ten people. Or so they say. So don’t torque them off. Or so they say. [image] Let’s think through this. I believe that this model falls apart a bit if your veterinary team is doing a consistently excellent job, if pets are well cared for as are their people, if medicine is being practiced honestly and well. Consider these possible situations: 1) A patient receives routine (albeit awesome and amazing) wellness care. Is your client really going to call four friends and say “You would not believe the care Max received today! He had his wellness exam and…well, that’s my whole story”? Probably not. But if a friend or family member asks if they know a good vet hospital in town, they will probably say how much they trust their vet. 2) A patient receives excellent non-routine care. Now they are calling friends. They have an exciting story of life-saving and compassion in which you are the hero. 3) A client leaves less than satisfied. Being a great team, you follow up and discover and fix the issue. If they tell others, you are still the good guy. In my mind, if you are truly an excellent veterinary team providing consistently excellent care and discovering and fixing issues as they arise, that is the end of the story. That may be shocking to hear after hearing for years and years that you should be scared to screw up because ten people will tell ten people and soon the whole world will hate you. So, no, don’t screw up, and if you do, own up and fix it, but do it because you are awesome, not because you are scared someone may say you are unawesome. Which brings us to our final situation: 4) A dissatisfied client tells ten people. Who do we have left? You have provided excellent routine and non-routine care. When you have not or the client has perceived that you have not, you have followed up and fixed the issue and restored a good relationship. What we have left are the clients you do not want. In my professional life, I have personally only “fired” two clients, both for extreme, unrepentant rudeness to my teammates. I like and can work with almost anyone. When I call clients out on poor behavior (also very rare – maybe five times in my career), we can almost always come back around to a healthy working relationship. One of the two clients I fired used a racial slur to address the person at the front desk. The other was very mean (not crabby – I love crabby, not rude – I can do rude, but MEAN) to another person at the front desk. I gave both a chance to apologize, and when they would not, asked them to find another veterinary team with which to work. Both situations were resolved well, I thought, as did they, I assume, as I did not hear from either of them again. But what if these dissatisfied clients HAD decided to tell ten friends? What if Ms. Racial Slur or Mr. Meany Pants told ten friends with equally inappropriate habits not to come to our veterinary hospital and their friends told ten friends? Do you know what I think would happen? Eventually, everyone who enjoyed yelling racial slurs or other mean things at people who were trying to help them would know that they were NOT a good match for our hospital, nor us for them. And then, everyone wins. Even Mr. Meany Pants. [image] This was also published 1/9/12 as my weekly article for Life with Dogs.  The comment section has very thoughtful perspectives from people in industries other than veterinary medicine as well at thoughts from the veterinary client perspective. An excellent response article addressing how the internet affects word of mouth reviews, Word of Mouth Advertising, Social Media and Dissatisfied Clients, was published by Lorie A. Huston, DVM on her website Social Media Savvy Pets 1/9/12. Yesterday was a busy day.  :) Oh!  And about the hat... Reassociating Super Cute Green Hats with Only Happy Things on Riley and James OK, that is all. In veterinary medicine, much of our business is based on word of mouth. I love that. I love my clients and their pets. So many of them are family and friends and friends of family and family of friends. And the “strangers” are people who love pets, and so I love them too. I do not think everything we have been taught about word of mouth business is true. See if you agree. See if this applies to your veterinary practice as well. A satisfied client tells four people. A dissatisfied client tells ten people. Or so they say. So don’t torque them off. Or so they say. [image] Let’s think through this. I believe that this model falls apart a bit if your veterinary team is doing a consistently excellent job, if pets are well cared for as are their people, if medicine is being practiced honestly and well. Consider these possible situations: 1) A patient receives routine (albeit awesome and amazing) wellness care. Is your client really going to call four friends and say “You would not believe the care Max received today! He had his wellness exam and…well, that’s my whole story”? Probably not. But if a friend or family member asks if they know a good vet hospital in town, they will probably say how much they trust their vet. 2) A patient receives excellent non-routine care. Now they are calling friends. They have an exciting story of life-saving and compassion in which you are the hero. 3) A client leaves less than satisfied. Being a great team, you follow up and discover and fix the issue. If they tell others, you are still the good guy. In my mind, if you are truly an excellent veterinary team providing consistently excellent care and discovering and fixing issues as they arise, that is the end of the story. That may be shocking to hear after hearing for years and years that you should be scared to screw up because ten people will tell ten people and soon the whole world will hate you. So, no, don’t screw up, and if you do, own up and fix it, but do it because you are awesome, not because you are scared someone may say you are unawesome. Which brings us to our final situation: 4) A dissatisfied client tells ten people. Who do we have left? You have provided excellent routine and non-routine care. When you have not or the client has perceived that you have not, you have followed up and fixed the issue and restored a good relationship. What we have left are the clients you do not want. In my professional life, I have personally only “fired” two clients, both for extreme, unrepentant rudeness to my teammates. I like and can work with almost anyone. When I call clients out on poor behavior (also very rare – maybe five times in my career), we can almost always come back around to a healthy working relationship. One of the two clients I fired used a racial slur to address the person at the front desk. The other was very mean (not crabby – I love crabby, not rude – I can do rude, but MEAN) to another person at the front desk. I gave both a chance to apologize, and when they would not, asked them to find another veterinary team with which to work. Both situations were resolved well, I thought, as did they, I assume, as I did not hear from either of them again. But what if these dissatisfied clients HAD decided to tell ten friends? What if Ms. Racial Slur or Mr. Meany Pants told ten friends with equally inappropriate habits not to come to our veterinary hospital and their friends told ten friends? Do you know what I think would happen? Eventually, everyone who enjoyed yelling racial slurs or other mean things at people who were trying to help them would know that they were NOT a good match for our hospital, nor us for them. And then, everyone wins. Even Mr. Meany Pants. [image] This was also published 1/9/12 as my weekly article for Life with Dogs.  The comment section has very thoughtful perspectives from people in industries other than veterinary medicine as well at thoughts from the veterinary client perspective. An excellent response article addressing how the internet affects word of mouth reviews, Word of Mouth Advertising, Social Media and Dissatisfied Clients, was published by Lorie A. Huston, DVM on her website Social Media Savvy Pets 1/9/12. Yesterday was a busy day.  :) Oh!  And about the hat... Reassociating Super Cute Green Hats with Only Happy Things on Riley and James OK, that is all. Mon, 09 Jan 2012 20:28:06 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_A-Client-Tells-Ten-People/blog/5700506/30809.html Finch93 2012-01-09T20:28:06Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community In veterinary medicine, much of our business is based on word of mouth. I love that. I love my clients and their pets. So many of them are family and friends and friends of family and family of friends. And the “strangers” are people who love pets, and so I love them too. I do not think everything we have been taught about word of mouth business is true. See if you agree. See if this applies to your veterinary practice as well. A satisfied client tells four people. A dissatisfied client tells ten people. Or so they say. So don’t torque them off. Or so they say. [image] Let’s think through this. I believe that this model falls apart a bit if your veterinary team is doing a consistently excellent job, if pets are well cared for as are their people, if medicine is being practiced honestly and well. Consider these possible situations: 1) A patient receives routine (albeit awesome and amazing) wellness care. Is your client really going to call four friends and say “You would not believe the care Max received today! He had his wellness exam and…well, that’s my whole story”? Probably not. But if a friend or family member asks if they know a good vet hospital in town, they will probably say how much they trust their vet. 2) A patient receives excellent non-routine care. Now they are calling friends. They have an exciting story of life-saving and compassion in which you are the hero. 3) A client leaves less than satisfied. Being a great team, you follow up and discover and fix the issue. If they tell others, you are still the good guy. In my mind, if you are truly an excellent veterinary team providing consistently excellent care and discovering and fixing issues as they arise, that is the end of the story. That may be shocking to hear after hearing for years and years that you should be scared to screw up because ten people will tell ten people and soon the whole world will hate you. So, no, don’t screw up, and if you do, own up and fix it, but do it because you are awesome, not because you are scared someone may say you are unawesome. Which brings us to our final situation: 4) A dissatisfied client tells ten people. Who do we have left? You have provided excellent routine and non-routine care. When you have not or the client has perceived that you have not, you have followed up and fixed the issue and restored a good relationship. What we have left are the clients you do not want. In my professional life, I have personally only “fired” two clients, both for extreme, unrepentant rudeness to my teammates. I like and can work with almost anyone. When I call clients out on poor behavior (also very rare – maybe five times in my career), we can almost always come back around to a healthy working relationship. One of the two clients I fired used a racial slur to address the person at the front desk. The other was very mean (not crabby – I love crabby, not rude – I can do rude, but MEAN) to another person at the front desk. I gave both a chance to apologize, and when they would not, asked them to find another veterinary team with which to work. Both situations were resolved well, I thought, as did they, I assume, as I did not hear from either of them again. But what if these dissatisfied clients HAD decided to tell ten friends? What if Ms. Racial Slur or Mr. Meany Pants told ten friends with equally inappropriate habits not to come to our veterinary hospital and their friends told ten friends? Do you know what I think would happen? Eventually, everyone who enjoyed yelling racial slurs or other mean things at people who were trying to help them would know that they were NOT a good match for our hospital, nor us for them. And then, everyone wins. Even Mr. Meany Pants. [image] This was also published 1/9/12 as my weekly article for Life with Dogs.  The comment section has very thoughtful perspectives from people in industries other than veterinary medicine as well at thoughts from the veterinary client perspective. An excellent response article addressing how the internet affects word of mouth reviews, Word of Mouth Advertising, Social Media and Dissatisfied Clients, was published by Lorie A. Huston, DVM on her website Social Media Savvy Pets 1/9/12. Yesterday was a busy day.  :) Oh!  And about the hat... Reassociating Super Cute Green Hats with Only Happy Things on Riley and James OK, that is all. veterinary voices nonadult false A Client Tells Ten People text blog veterinary voices 2414 20 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 Veterinary Voices 0 5700506 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Compassion-Fatigue/blog/5499517/30809.html Sometimes it lasts in love... …and sometimes you have a pet.   I first heard the term “compassion fatigue” at a lecture by veterinary oncologist Greg Ogilvie a few months ago.  I was having trouble differentiating the term from “burn out” until I read up on both and realized I am most likely  struggling with both.   “Compassion Fatigue symptoms are normal displays of chronic stress resulting from the care giving work we choose to do.”  from Compassion Fatigue Awareness Project ©   This is directly related to giving compassion away and allowing yourself to become exhausted.  It is a narrow term that describes the possible effects of caring without adequately replenishing personal reserves.  Compassion fatigue is a condition that affects caregivers such as nurses, doctors, clergy, veterinary team members…   burn out – “exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation usually as a result of prolonged stress or frustration” – from Merriam-Webster dictionary   This is a more general term describing the exhaustion caused by normal day-to-day work-related stresses.  Burn out can affect anyone.   I have already been "running on empty."  This week I had several euthanasia appointments, a few euthanasia consultations and more clients with pets who have recently passed away who I am trying to help transition from “I have an older pet who needs very involved care” to “I miss my friend.”  That has been my year too.  And the year of a very good friend.  And now, as of this morning, that has “officially” become the year of another very good friend.  Pet loss and sadness.  It isn’t like we didn’t know how the stories would end.  It isn’t like we didn’t know this would be a very significant portion of our careers.   In my ever-faltering attempt to be a positive influence, I said to my team at work after a particularly sad day this past week, “And THAT is how God answers prayer.”   But do you know what?  Sometimes it is.   And do you know what else?  Things are probably going to get better.  They almost always do. [image] I am trying to prioritize my own physical and emotional health better from here out.  Any tips from the pros (YOU) for coming through and (even better) avoiding compassion fatigue and burn out are sure welcome. Sometimes it lasts in love... …and sometimes you have a pet.   I first heard the term “compassion fatigue” at a lecture by veterinary oncologist Greg Ogilvie a few months ago.  I was having trouble differentiating the term from “burn out” until I read up on both and realized I am most likely  struggling with both.   “Compassion Fatigue symptoms are normal displays of chronic stress resulting from the care giving work we choose to do.”  from Compassion Fatigue Awareness Project ©   This is directly related to giving compassion away and allowing yourself to become exhausted.  It is a narrow term that describes the possible effects of caring without adequately replenishing personal reserves.  Compassion fatigue is a condition that affects caregivers such as nurses, doctors, clergy, veterinary team members…   burn out – “exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation usually as a result of prolonged stress or frustration” – from Merriam-Webster dictionary   This is a more general term describing the exhaustion caused by normal day-to-day work-related stresses.  Burn out can affect anyone.   I have already been "running on empty."  This week I had several euthanasia appointments, a few euthanasia consultations and more clients with pets who have recently passed away who I am trying to help transition from “I have an older pet who needs very involved care” to “I miss my friend.”  That has been my year too.  And the year of a very good friend.  And now, as of this morning, that has “officially” become the year of another very good friend.  Pet loss and sadness.  It isn’t like we didn’t know how the stories would end.  It isn’t like we didn’t know this would be a very significant portion of our careers.   In my ever-faltering attempt to be a positive influence, I said to my team at work after a particularly sad day this past week, “And THAT is how God answers prayer.”   But do you know what?  Sometimes it is.   And do you know what else?  Things are probably going to get better.  They almost always do. [image] I am trying to prioritize my own physical and emotional health better from here out.  Any tips from the pros (YOU) for coming through and (even better) avoiding compassion fatigue and burn out are sure welcome. Mon, 21 Nov 2011 23:22:32 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Compassion-Fatigue/blog/5499517/30809.html Finch93 2011-11-21T23:22:32Z Veterinary Community Sometimes it lasts in love... …and sometimes you have a pet.   I first heard the term “compassion fatigue” at a lecture by veterinary oncologist Greg Ogilvie a few months ago.  I was having trouble differentiating the term from “burn out” until I read up on both and realized I am most likely  struggling with both.   “Compassion Fatigue symptoms are normal displays of chronic stress resulting from the care giving work we choose to do.”  from Compassion Fatigue Awareness Project ©   This is directly related to giving compassion away and allowing yourself to become exhausted.  It is a narrow term that describes the possible effects of caring without adequately replenishing personal reserves.  Compassion fatigue is a condition that affects caregivers such as nurses, doctors, clergy, veterinary team members…   burn out – “exhaustion of physical or emotional strength or motivation usually as a result of prolonged stress or frustration” – from Merriam-Webster dictionary   This is a more general term describing the exhaustion caused by normal day-to-day work-related stresses.  Burn out can affect anyone.   I have already been "running on empty."  This week I had several euthanasia appointments, a few euthanasia consultations and more clients with pets who have recently passed away who I am trying to help transition from “I have an older pet who needs very involved care” to “I miss my friend.”  That has been my year too.  And the year of a very good friend.  And now, as of this morning, that has “officially” become the year of another very good friend.  Pet loss and sadness.  It isn’t like we didn’t know how the stories would end.  It isn’t like we didn’t know this would be a very significant portion of our careers.   In my ever-faltering attempt to be a positive influence, I said to my team at work after a particularly sad day this past week, “And THAT is how God answers prayer.”   But do you know what?  Sometimes it is.   And do you know what else?  Things are probably going to get better.  They almost always do. [image] I am trying to prioritize my own physical and emotional health better from here out.  Any tips from the pros (YOU) for coming through and (even better) avoiding compassion fatigue and burn out are sure welcome. burn, compassion, fatigue, loss, out, pet nonadult false Compassion Fatigue text blog burn,compassion,fatigue,loss,out,pet 1128 10 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 5499517 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Blogathon-2011/blog/5443115/30809.html The third annual Pawcurious Blogathon starts this coming Saturday at 1:00 pm Central Time! Blogathon is an online event to raise money for animal charities started by veterinarian Jessical Vogelsang (Dr. V) in 2009 on her website Pawcurious.  In 2010, eight others (including four veterinarians) joined her, and this year is the third annual Blogathon. Dr. V is raising money for a large animal sanctuary near San Diego called Lions, Tigers and Bears. Eight (so far) Omaha bloggers are raising money for the Nebraska Humane Society.  Su Smith (whose husband is a veterinarian) and her grade school students are raising money for dogs affected by the recent Texas wildfires.   [image]Recently Rescued Pups at Nebraska Humane Society Blogathon 2011 is from 1:00 pm Saturday, November 12. 2011 until noon Sunday, November 13. 2011 Central Time. Can I participate? Yes, of course! How? If you have a blog, veterinary or other, and an animal related cause you would like to support, join us on Saturday and Sunday to blog hourly to raise money for your chosen cause.  Feel free to blog more or less often, or participate in the "sane" hours of the Blogathon. If you have a blog and would like to support a cause already being sponsored,  jump in with the project you would like to support!  Last year, I was still figuring all of this out, and loved Dr. V's idea of helping a little boy get his therapy dog (which he is getting in March 2012 - woo!), so this is the option I chose. Let me know you are participating! Do I Have Time to Prepare if this is the First I Have Heard of Blogathon? Last year I bought some Diet Coke and chocolate right before Blogathon started and made stuff up as I went.  So, yes. What Should I Blog About? The cause you are supporting...pets...your thoughts on things you think...videos...photos...links to the cause you are supporting or other Blogathon participants' websites and the causes they are supporting or other stuff... My blogging style is a bit random, so I made sure to link to the donation site at the end of every post last year to help focus myself.  I will be doing that again this year! Do You Have Links From Last Year I Can Check Out? Yes, and if you follow those links, they will bring you to more information! Blogathon 2010 on Pawcurious Blogathon 2010 on Riley and James Oh no, I do not have a blog!  Do I need to sit on the curb and watch everyone go by? No, of course not! Offer to write a guest blog post in advance for any participating blogger you think may need a 3 am coffee break. Comment on the participating blogs.  You would not believe how encouraging support and participation are when bloggers are thinking "What was I thinking?" and "What did I get myself into?" and "I am so tired!" and "Is this making a difference?" See if bloggers need pictures that you have taken.  We are ALWAYS looking for great pictures, and they make posts more fun to read.  Also, your pets are super cute. I am specifically looking for pictures of clocks "on the hour" to post each hour, so if you take a neat clock picture that I can use, let me know! You are crazy!  I am not staying up all night! That is not a question!  But you do have a good point.  You can still help! Promote the Blogathon through facebook and twitter and other social media sites. Tell your friends and family, and clients if you think they would be interested. Support the cause or causes that you love.  Make donations during the Blogathon or even later in honor of "The Pawcurious Blogathon." Learn about the groups highlighted during Blogathon that sound interesting. Get to know the participating bloggers.  I have gotten to know some really neat vets and "normal people" through last year's Blogathon. Do the awesome things you are already doing to help organizations helping animals...give, volunteer, support. Contact me here or at the Riley and James website or through my personal e-mail finch at rileyandjames dot com if you have questions or want to participate! Thanks all!  I know this is different from my normal dvm360 post, but Blogathon was so fun last year, and I met so many neat pet lovers and veterinarians that I thought veterinarians and technicians and other team members might like to know about it! [image] The third annual Pawcurious Blogathon starts this coming Saturday at 1:00 pm Central Time! Blogathon is an online event to raise money for animal charities started by veterinarian Jessical Vogelsang (Dr. V) in 2009 on her website Pawcurious.  In 2010, eight others (including four veterinarians) joined her, and this year is the third annual Blogathon. Dr. V is raising money for a large animal sanctuary near San Diego called Lions, Tigers and Bears. Eight (so far) Omaha bloggers are raising money for the Nebraska Humane Society.  Su Smith (whose husband is a veterinarian) and her grade school students are raising money for dogs affected by the recent Texas wildfires.   [image]Recently Rescued Pups at Nebraska Humane Society Blogathon 2011 is from 1:00 pm Saturday, November 12. 2011 until noon Sunday, November 13. 2011 Central Time. Can I participate? Yes, of course! How? If you have a blog, veterinary or other, and an animal related cause you would like to support, join us on Saturday and Sunday to blog hourly to raise money for your chosen cause.  Feel free to blog more or less often, or participate in the "sane" hours of the Blogathon. If you have a blog and would like to support a cause already being sponsored,  jump in with the project you would like to support!  Last year, I was still figuring all of this out, and loved Dr. V's idea of helping a little boy get his therapy dog (which he is getting in March 2012 - woo!), so this is the option I chose. Let me know you are participating! Do I Have Time to Prepare if this is the First I Have Heard of Blogathon? Last year I bought some Diet Coke and chocolate right before Blogathon started and made stuff up as I went.  So, yes. What Should I Blog About? The cause you are supporting...pets...your thoughts on things you think...videos...photos...links to the cause you are supporting or other Blogathon participants' websites and the causes they are supporting or other stuff... My blogging style is a bit random, so I made sure to link to the donation site at the end of every post last year to help focus myself.  I will be doing that again this year! Do You Have Links From Last Year I Can Check Out? Yes, and if you follow those links, they will bring you to more information! Blogathon 2010 on Pawcurious Blogathon 2010 on Riley and James Oh no, I do not have a blog!  Do I need to sit on the curb and watch everyone go by? No, of course not! Offer to write a guest blog post in advance for any participating blogger you think may need a 3 am coffee break. Comment on the participating blogs.  You would not believe how encouraging support and participation are when bloggers are thinking "What was I thinking?" and "What did I get myself into?" and "I am so tired!" and "Is this making a difference?" See if bloggers need pictures that you have taken.  We are ALWAYS looking for great pictures, and they make posts more fun to read.  Also, your pets are super cute. I am specifically looking for pictures of clocks "on the hour" to post each hour, so if you take a neat clock picture that I can use, let me know! You are crazy!  I am not staying up all night! That is not a question!  But you do have a good point.  You can still help! Promote the Blogathon through facebook and twitter and other social media sites. Tell your friends and family, and clients if you think they would be interested. Support the cause or causes that you love.  Make donations during the Blogathon or even later in honor of "The Pawcurious Blogathon." Learn about the groups highlighted during Blogathon that sound interesting. Get to know the participating bloggers.  I have gotten to know some really neat vets and "normal people" through last year's Blogathon. Do the awesome things you are already doing to help organizations helping animals...give, volunteer, support. Contact me here or at the Riley and James website or through my personal e-mail finch at rileyandjames dot com if you have questions or want to participate! Thanks all!  I know this is different from my normal dvm360 post, but Blogathon was so fun last year, and I met so many neat pet lovers and veterinarians that I thought veterinarians and technicians and other team members might like to know about it! [image] Mon, 07 Nov 2011 03:56:18 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Blogathon-2011/blog/5443115/30809.html Finch93 2011-11-07T03:56:18Z Veterinary Community The third annual Pawcurious Blogathon starts this coming Saturday at 1:00 pm Central Time! Blogathon is an online event to raise money for animal charities started by veterinarian Jessical Vogelsang (Dr. V) in 2009 on her website Pawcurious.  In 2010, eight others (including four veterinarians) joined her, and this year is the third annual Blogathon. Dr. V is raising money for a large animal sanctuary near San Diego called Lions, Tigers and Bears. Eight (so far) Omaha bloggers are raising money for the Nebraska Humane Society.  Su Smith (whose husband is a veterinarian) and her grade school students are raising money for dogs affected by the recent Texas wildfires.   [image]Recently Rescued Pups at Nebraska Humane Society Blogathon 2011 is from 1:00 pm Saturday, November 12. 2011 until noon Sunday, November 13. 2011 Central Time. Can I participate? Yes, of course! How? If you have a blog, veterinary or other, and an animal related cause you would like to support, join us on Saturday and Sunday to blog hourly to raise money for your chosen cause.  Feel free to blog more or less often, or participate in the "sane" hours of the Blogathon. If you have a blog and would like to support a cause already being sponsored,  jump in with the project you would like to support!  Last year, I was still figuring all of this out, and loved Dr. V's idea of helping a little boy get his therapy dog (which he is getting in March 2012 - woo!), so this is the option I chose. Let me know you are participating! Do I Have Time to Prepare if this is the First I Have Heard of Blogathon? Last year I bought some Diet Coke and chocolate right before Blogathon started and made stuff up as I went.  So, yes. What Should I Blog About? The cause you are supporting...pets...your thoughts on things you think...videos...photos...links to the cause you are supporting or other Blogathon participants' websites and the causes they are supporting or other stuff... My blogging style is a bit random, so I made sure to link to the donation site at the end of every post last year to help focus myself.  I will be doing that again this year! Do You Have Links From Last Year I Can Check Out? Yes, and if you follow those links, they will bring you to more information! Blogathon 2010 on Pawcurious Blogathon 2010 on Riley and James Oh no, I do not have a blog!  Do I need to sit on the curb and watch everyone go by? No, of course not! Offer to write a guest blog post in advance for any participating blogger you think may need a 3 am coffee break. Comment on the participating blogs.  You would not believe how encouraging support and participation are when bloggers are thinking "What was I thinking?" and "What did I get myself into?" and "I am so tired!" and "Is this making a difference?" See if bloggers need pictures that you have taken.  We are ALWAYS looking for great pictures, and they make posts more fun to read.  Also, your pets are super cute. I am specifically looking for pictures of clocks "on the hour" to post each hour, so if you take a neat clock picture that I can use, let me know! You are crazy!  I am not staying up all night! That is not a question!  But you do have a good point.  You can still help! Promote the Blogathon through facebook and twitter and other social media sites. Tell your friends and family, and clients if you think they would be interested. Support the cause or causes that you love.  Make donations during the Blogathon or even later in honor of "The Pawcurious Blogathon." Learn about the groups highlighted during Blogathon that sound interesting. Get to know the participating bloggers.  I have gotten to know some really neat vets and "normal people" through last year's Blogathon. Do the awesome things you are already doing to help organizations helping animals...give, volunteer, support. Contact me here or at the Riley and James website or through my personal e-mail finch at rileyandjames dot com if you have questions or want to participate! Thanks all!  I know this is different from my normal dvm360 post, but Blogathon was so fun last year, and I met so many neat pet lovers and veterinarians that I thought veterinarians and technicians and other team members might like to know about it! [image] blogathon, pawcurious nonadult false Blogathon 2011 text blog blogathon,pawcurious 995 10 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 5443115 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Unpacking-from-CVC/blog/5187645/30809.html Russ and I were planning a trip to New York City for our friends' wedding.  A big, scary city is big and scary enough without a big, scary hurricaine coming too.  Right after New York, we were heading to Central Veterinary Conference in Kansas City. Thursday... Russ called me at work.  "We can't go!  Irene is coming!" he said. "I will see you when I get home from the trip!" I said.  I can be a jerk like that. When I got home from work that night, we agreed that we could not miss Debbie and Chuck's wedding.  We had been looking forward to this NYC/KC trip for months.  We called the bride and groom and told them we would be there.  I completely wore out my Central Veterinary Conference (CVC) itinerary choosing and rechoosing classes for CVC. [image]At one point, I had five classes planned for one hour. One of the two aspects of CVC I was most excited about was spending time with my vet tech friend, Erika.  We were going to happy hour at the Melting Pot on Sunday night.  Also, Erika had checked with the CVC bosses, and they would let us go to tech or vet sessions together on Monday.  Yay. The other aspect of CVC I was most excited about was meeting three of the editors of dvm360 - Jessica (dvm360), Kristi (Veterinary Economics) and Kerry (Firstline), also on  Sunday evening.  We were going to talk about the new dvm360 iPad app.  I really just wanted to be where they were for an hour, and if we talked about the iPad app (which is GREAT, btw), that was fine with me. If you knew how much I love Erika (and the Melting Pot) I could better explain how equally awesome meeting the dvm360 editors was going to be.  I had been looking forward to meeting them someday for over a year.  These women are smart, successful leaders in the veterinary writing profession, and I was finally going to meet them  in person! Friday... We drove to KC.  We had to take the pretty route because of all the recent flooding. [image]Iowa Wind Farm on the drive to KC Russ and I sat in the KC airport waiting for our flight to New York.  To our left were flashing "Welcome to KC CVC Veterinary Teams!" signs.  To our right were televisions showing the worst of Hurricaine Irene and predicting doom for NYC and other eastern US cities.  I looked at Russ.  "We could just stay..." I said.  "No, you were right," he said, "and...our plane is boarding!"  We flew off to meet our friends and Irene. Saturday... Both airports, the entire NYC subway, most NYC cabs and most businesses announced they would be closed on Sunday.  Mandatory evacuation was scheduled by noon on Sunday for low-lying areas of NYC.  We were in Brooklyn, so we were (probably) in a safe part of town. Our Sunday morning flight out of town was rescheduled for Monday night (Thank you Delta!)  We called parents and (sadly) e-mailed editors and Erika-Friend.  We secured our hotel room for another night.  They even charged us the much lower than normal wedding rate they had charged us for the first two nights after a (nice) request from Russ.  (Thank you Sheraton Hotel in Brooklyn!)  We called our KC hotel and told them we would be a day and several hours late, and they said "Don't worry about it.  Stay safe."  (Thank you Downtown Kansas City Marriott!) We went to a convenience store to buy storm snacks.  I took a picture of The Statue of Liberty on the wall of the store. [image]My First View of the Statue of Liberty Fellow line dwellers giggled.  "It's our first time here." I said.  "I really wanted to see it."  I do not often generalize, but I will say that even in emergency preparation mode, with a hurricaine coming, which is as unknown to a New Yorker as it is to an Omahan, New Yorkers are kind. We went to the wedding at Debbie and Chuck's church.  Everything about the wedding was beautiful. [image]Sunday's church service is cancelled. Saturday's wedding is not! Sunday... I woke up at 4:00 am to what sounded like a really bad Nebraska thunderstorm.  It came and went pretty quickly. Russ and I walked around Brooklyn.  "NYC is not crowded.  It's empty!"  I said.  "Ha!" Russ said.  We spent time with Chuck and Debbie's families and their other friends, which we would not have otherwise been able to do.  Twice we had paused, and twice we had decided to move ahead.  When all is said and done, I am so grateful we were able to be with Chuck and Debbie for their wedding.  It will always be one of my very best memories.   [image]Chuck, Debbie, me, Russ Monday... Russ and I walked around some more.  Chuck and Debbie flew off to their honeymoon.  We flew to KC.  We checked into our hotel super late at night and fell right asleep. Tuesday... I went to a series of four morning cat lectures by Andrew Specht, DVM, DACVIM.  They were so good.  We left before they could start taking down the CVC banners and balloons. [image]Balloons at CVC We drove the three hours to Omaha and picked the girls up from Grandma and Papa's.  They had all had a good time.  They loved the NYC keychains and snowglobes we brought, though they had actually asked for keychain snowglobes.  ("Do those exist?" I had asked.  "I don't know," they had said.) I opened my email Tuesday right before we crashed for the night and saw this note from Jessica from Tuesday morning..."Are you still in KC?  Kerry and I are back at work but Kristi is still there and might be able to meet you!"  I cried. I still have not unpacked everything.  I hate that figure of speech, but I suppose it fits. Russ and I were planning a trip to New York City for our friends' wedding.  A big, scary city is big and scary enough without a big, scary hurricaine coming too.  Right after New York, we were heading to Central Veterinary Conference in Kansas City. Thursday... Russ called me at work.  "We can't go!  Irene is coming!" he said. "I will see you when I get home from the trip!" I said.  I can be a jerk like that. When I got home from work that night, we agreed that we could not miss Debbie and Chuck's wedding.  We had been looking forward to this NYC/KC trip for months.  We called the bride and groom and told them we would be there.  I completely wore out my Central Veterinary Conference (CVC) itinerary choosing and rechoosing classes for CVC. [image]At one point, I had five classes planned for one hour. One of the two aspects of CVC I was most excited about was spending time with my vet tech friend, Erika.  We were going to happy hour at the Melting Pot on Sunday night.  Also, Erika had checked with the CVC bosses, and they would let us go to tech or vet sessions together on Monday.  Yay. The other aspect of CVC I was most excited about was meeting three of the editors of dvm360 - Jessica (dvm360), Kristi (Veterinary Economics) and Kerry (Firstline), also on  Sunday evening.  We were going to talk about the new dvm360 iPad app.  I really just wanted to be where they were for an hour, and if we talked about the iPad app (which is GREAT, btw), that was fine with me. If you knew how much I love Erika (and the Melting Pot) I could better explain how equally awesome meeting the dvm360 editors was going to be.  I had been looking forward to meeting them someday for over a year.  These women are smart, successful leaders in the veterinary writing profession, and I was finally going to meet them  in person! Friday... We drove to KC.  We had to take the pretty route because of all the recent flooding. [image]Iowa Wind Farm on the drive to KC Russ and I sat in the KC airport waiting for our flight to New York.  To our left were flashing "Welcome to KC CVC Veterinary Teams!" signs.  To our right were televisions showing the worst of Hurricaine Irene and predicting doom for NYC and other eastern US cities.  I looked at Russ.  "We could just stay..." I said.  "No, you were right," he said, "and...our plane is boarding!"  We flew off to meet our friends and Irene. Saturday... Both airports, the entire NYC subway, most NYC cabs and most businesses announced they would be closed on Sunday.  Mandatory evacuation was scheduled by noon on Sunday for low-lying areas of NYC.  We were in Brooklyn, so we were (probably) in a safe part of town. Our Sunday morning flight out of town was rescheduled for Monday night (Thank you Delta!)  We called parents and (sadly) e-mailed editors and Erika-Friend.  We secured our hotel room for another night.  They even charged us the much lower than normal wedding rate they had charged us for the first two nights after a (nice) request from Russ.  (Thank you Sheraton Hotel in Brooklyn!)  We called our KC hotel and told them we would be a day and several hours late, and they said "Don't worry about it.  Stay safe."  (Thank you Downtown Kansas City Marriott!) We went to a convenience store to buy storm snacks.  I took a picture of The Statue of Liberty on the wall of the store. [image]My First View of the Statue of Liberty Fellow line dwellers giggled.  "It's our first time here." I said.  "I really wanted to see it."  I do not often generalize, but I will say that even in emergency preparation mode, with a hurricaine coming, which is as unknown to a New Yorker as it is to an Omahan, New Yorkers are kind. We went to the wedding at Debbie and Chuck's church.  Everything about the wedding was beautiful. [image]Sunday's church service is cancelled. Saturday's wedding is not! Sunday... I woke up at 4:00 am to what sounded like a really bad Nebraska thunderstorm.  It came and went pretty quickly. Russ and I walked around Brooklyn.  "NYC is not crowded.  It's empty!"  I said.  "Ha!" Russ said.  We spent time with Chuck and Debbie's families and their other friends, which we would not have otherwise been able to do.  Twice we had paused, and twice we had decided to move ahead.  When all is said and done, I am so grateful we were able to be with Chuck and Debbie for their wedding.  It will always be one of my very best memories.   [image]Chuck, Debbie, me, Russ Monday... Russ and I walked around some more.  Chuck and Debbie flew off to their honeymoon.  We flew to KC.  We checked into our hotel super late at night and fell right asleep. Tuesday... I went to a series of four morning cat lectures by Andrew Specht, DVM, DACVIM.  They were so good.  We left before they could start taking down the CVC banners and balloons. [image]Balloons at CVC We drove the three hours to Omaha and picked the girls up from Grandma and Papa's.  They had all had a good time.  They loved the NYC keychains and snowglobes we brought, though they had actually asked for keychain snowglobes.  ("Do those exist?" I had asked.  "I don't know," they had said.) I opened my email Tuesday right before we crashed for the night and saw this note from Jessica from Tuesday morning..."Are you still in KC?  Kerry and I are back at work but Kristi is still there and might be able to meet you!"  I cried. I still have not unpacked everything.  I hate that figure of speech, but I suppose it fits. Sat, 12 May 2012 00:52:50 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Unpacking-from-CVC/blog/5187645/30809.html Finch93 2011-09-26T18:06:43Z CVC Group Veterinary Community Russ and I were planning a trip to New York City for our friends' wedding.  A big, scary city is big and scary enough without a big, scary hurricaine coming too.  Right after New York, we were heading to Central Veterinary Conference in Kansas City. Thursday... Russ called me at work.  "We can't go!  Irene is coming!" he said. "I will see you when I get home from the trip!" I said.  I can be a jerk like that. When I got home from work that night, we agreed that we could not miss Debbie and Chuck's wedding.  We had been looking forward to this NYC/KC trip for months.  We called the bride and groom and told them we would be there.  I completely wore out my Central Veterinary Conference (CVC) itinerary choosing and rechoosing classes for CVC. [image]At one point, I had five classes planned for one hour. One of the two aspects of CVC I was most excited about was spending time with my vet tech friend, Erika.  We were going to happy hour at the Melting Pot on Sunday night.  Also, Erika had checked with the CVC bosses, and they would let us go to tech or vet sessions together on Monday.  Yay. The other aspect of CVC I was most excited about was meeting three of the editors of dvm360 - Jessica (dvm360), Kristi (Veterinary Economics) and Kerry (Firstline), also on  Sunday evening.  We were going to talk about the new dvm360 iPad app.  I really just wanted to be where they were for an hour, and if we talked about the iPad app (which is GREAT, btw), that was fine with me. If you knew how much I love Erika (and the Melting Pot) I could better explain how equally awesome meeting the dvm360 editors was going to be.  I had been looking forward to meeting them someday for over a year.  These women are smart, successful leaders in the veterinary writing profession, and I was finally going to meet them  in person! Friday... We drove to KC.  We had to take the pretty route because of all the recent flooding. [image]Iowa Wind Farm on the drive to KC Russ and I sat in the KC airport waiting for our flight to New York.  To our left were flashing "Welcome to KC CVC Veterinary Teams!" signs.  To our right were televisions showing the worst of Hurricaine Irene and predicting doom for NYC and other eastern US cities.  I looked at Russ.  "We could just stay..." I said.  "No, you were right," he said, "and...our plane is boarding!"  We flew off to meet our friends and Irene. Saturday... Both airports, the entire NYC subway, most NYC cabs and most businesses announced they would be closed on Sunday.  Mandatory evacuation was scheduled by noon on Sunday for low-lying areas of NYC.  We were in Brooklyn, so we were (probably) in a safe part of town. Our Sunday morning flight out of town was rescheduled for Monday night (Thank you Delta!)  We called parents and (sadly) e-mailed editors and Erika-Friend.  We secured our hotel room for another night.  They even charged us the much lower than normal wedding rate they had charged us for the first two nights after a (nice) request from Russ.  (Thank you Sheraton Hotel in Brooklyn!)  We called our KC hotel and told them we would be a day and several hours late, and they said "Don't worry about it.  Stay safe."  (Thank you Downtown Kansas City Marriott!) We went to a convenience store to buy storm snacks.  I took a picture of The Statue of Liberty on the wall of the store. [image]My First View of the Statue of Liberty Fellow line dwellers giggled.  "It's our first time here." I said.  "I really wanted to see it."  I do not often generalize, but I will say that even in emergency preparation mode, with a hurricaine coming, which is as unknown to a New Yorker as it is to an Omahan, New Yorkers are kind. We went to the wedding at Debbie and Chuck's church.  Everything about the wedding was beautiful. [image]Sunday's church service is cancelled. Saturday's wedding is not! Sunday... I woke up at 4:00 am to what sounded like a really bad Nebraska thunderstorm.  It came and went pretty quickly. Russ and I walked around Brooklyn.  "NYC is not crowded.  It's empty!"  I said.  "Ha!" Russ said.  We spent time with Chuck and Debbie's families and their other friends, which we would not have otherwise been able to do.  Twice we had paused, and twice we had decided to move ahead.  When all is said and done, I am so grateful we were able to be with Chuck and Debbie for their wedding.  It will always be one of my very best memories.   [image]Chuck, Debbie, me, Russ Monday... Russ and I walked around some more.  Chuck and Debbie flew off to their honeymoon.  We flew to KC.  We checked into our hotel super late at night and fell right asleep. Tuesday... I went to a series of four morning cat lectures by Andrew Specht, DVM, DACVIM.  They were so good.  We left before they could start taking down the CVC banners and balloons. [image]Balloons at CVC We drove the three hours to Omaha and picked the girls up from Grandma and Papa's.  They had all had a good time.  They loved the NYC keychains and snowglobes we brought, though they had actually asked for keychain snowglobes.  ("Do those exist?" I had asked.  "I don't know," they had said.) I opened my email Tuesday right before we crashed for the night and saw this note from Jessica from Tuesday morning..."Are you still in KC?  Kerry and I are back at work but Kristi is still there and might be able to meet you!"  I cried. I still have not unpacked everything.  I hate that figure of speech, but I suppose it fits. central, city, conference, cvc, cvc group, irene, kansas, new, veterinary, york nonadult false Unpacking from CVC text blog central,city,conference,cvc,cvc group,irene,kansas,new,veterinary,york 1147 10 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 1 CVC Group 0 5187645 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_I-Hate-Being-a-Vet/blog/4955135/30809.html  [image]At 2:30 am it finally hits me why my left thumb is so sore.  Nine and a half hours earlier, I failed to revive a dog with emergency treatment and CPR.  I also failed to save him with aggressive surgical, medical and supportive care during the preceeding several days.  The chest compressions of my final attempt to save Dog must have hyperextended my thumb.  My only two comforts are that Dog no longer hurts and my thumb does.  I fall into a troubled sleep. Very recently, I had given two talks, one to grade schoolers and one to middle schoolers about how great it is to be a vet.  At the time, I had just started Dog’s treatment, his prognosis still had a sliver of hope in it, and if I had read about his case in a journal article, it really would have made a great story.  I feel like a big liar, and to children no less.  Right now, I hate my career. I wake up wondering how Dog’s family is doing. I stay awake a second night going over and over every detail of Dog’s case, deciding at every remembered step that I would not have made different decisions on Dog’s behalf.  I would not have wanted the family to make different decisions.  We needed to give Dog every possible chance.  Every time my husband asks why I am crying/scowling/staring off (and at one point freaking out when I am in the sun, not the shade, at an outdoor concert), I say “I need to have been able to save him.”  I am pretty sure that is not even a valid sentence structure. Sometimes, being a vet sucks. It is not as if I have a choice.  I could have no easier chosen a different career than I could have chosen to be right handed.  I mean, I could have forced myself, but I hear that messes people up pretty badly. And really, even now, I do not want to be anywhere else than in the middle of grief for a dog I just met and who is technically a “patient” but is really a friend I fell for hard and fought for hard, and a family that is technically a “client” but really a team of fellow pet lovers who also loved Dog – but as a family member, and for years and years, not days.  If this week is rough for me, it sucks many times over for them and will for a long time. I don’t know why this has stuck with me for all this time, but another veterinarian once told me that unless I could rein in my “personality weakness” of letting sad cases hit me so hard, “You will never be a successful veterinarian.” It was a great little pep talk (ha!) but honestly, I believe the opposite is true.  I can no more let go of my empathy than I could have chosen a different career.  If I did not feel such rage and despair and hopelessness at not being able to save a Dog I really, really, really wanted to save, THEN I would concede his point, and truly, I would not be a successful veterinarian. As it is, my career is a part of me I cannot separate from myself.  Good or bad, I cannot care less than I do, or give myself a “healthy emotional distance,” even if I did want to, which I do not.  This week sucks, and I do not know when I will be able to say I love being a vet again, but I will.  And if I did not hate it now, that would be a serious red flag to me, and I would do everything I could to reconnect emotionally. There are wonderful veterinarians who are much more emotionally even keeled than I.  It is not a requirement of the profession to be a big cry baby sap.  In fact, I do need to check myself when families need my support; they do not need me pushing them out of the way for the Kleenex box.  It is just that empathy is such a big part of MY veterinary career, that if losing patients were to “get easier” as some older veterinarians promise, trying to be comforting, I would know that I had lost a part of myself, and would hang up my jacket and stethoscope. I have normal range of motion in my thumb and just a small, persistent ache.  I really hope next week is better than this week – how could it not be?  I hope the hearts of Dog’s family members heal over time.  I know that though it will be a long road, their hearts will heal, almost completely.  I really hope that my thumb does not heal, but it is already feeling better.  Dang it. [image] also published on Life With Dogs, reprinted with permission from Neil.  [image]At 2:30 am it finally hits me why my left thumb is so sore.  Nine and a half hours earlier, I failed to revive a dog with emergency treatment and CPR.  I also failed to save him with aggressive surgical, medical and supportive care during the preceeding several days.  The chest compressions of my final attempt to save Dog must have hyperextended my thumb.  My only two comforts are that Dog no longer hurts and my thumb does.  I fall into a troubled sleep. Very recently, I had given two talks, one to grade schoolers and one to middle schoolers about how great it is to be a vet.  At the time, I had just started Dog’s treatment, his prognosis still had a sliver of hope in it, and if I had read about his case in a journal article, it really would have made a great story.  I feel like a big liar, and to children no less.  Right now, I hate my career. I wake up wondering how Dog’s family is doing. I stay awake a second night going over and over every detail of Dog’s case, deciding at every remembered step that I would not have made different decisions on Dog’s behalf.  I would not have wanted the family to make different decisions.  We needed to give Dog every possible chance.  Every time my husband asks why I am crying/scowling/staring off (and at one point freaking out when I am in the sun, not the shade, at an outdoor concert), I say “I need to have been able to save him.”  I am pretty sure that is not even a valid sentence structure. Sometimes, being a vet sucks. It is not as if I have a choice.  I could have no easier chosen a different career than I could have chosen to be right handed.  I mean, I could have forced myself, but I hear that messes people up pretty badly. And really, even now, I do not want to be anywhere else than in the middle of grief for a dog I just met and who is technically a “patient” but is really a friend I fell for hard and fought for hard, and a family that is technically a “client” but really a team of fellow pet lovers who also loved Dog – but as a family member, and for years and years, not days.  If this week is rough for me, it sucks many times over for them and will for a long time. I don’t know why this has stuck with me for all this time, but another veterinarian once told me that unless I could rein in my “personality weakness” of letting sad cases hit me so hard, “You will never be a successful veterinarian.” It was a great little pep talk (ha!) but honestly, I believe the opposite is true.  I can no more let go of my empathy than I could have chosen a different career.  If I did not feel such rage and despair and hopelessness at not being able to save a Dog I really, really, really wanted to save, THEN I would concede his point, and truly, I would not be a successful veterinarian. As it is, my career is a part of me I cannot separate from myself.  Good or bad, I cannot care less than I do, or give myself a “healthy emotional distance,” even if I did want to, which I do not.  This week sucks, and I do not know when I will be able to say I love being a vet again, but I will.  And if I did not hate it now, that would be a serious red flag to me, and I would do everything I could to reconnect emotionally. There are wonderful veterinarians who are much more emotionally even keeled than I.  It is not a requirement of the profession to be a big cry baby sap.  In fact, I do need to check myself when families need my support; they do not need me pushing them out of the way for the Kleenex box.  It is just that empathy is such a big part of MY veterinary career, that if losing patients were to “get easier” as some older veterinarians promise, trying to be comforting, I would know that I had lost a part of myself, and would hang up my jacket and stethoscope. I have normal range of motion in my thumb and just a small, persistent ache.  I really hope next week is better than this week – how could it not be?  I hope the hearts of Dog’s family members heal over time.  I know that though it will be a long road, their hearts will heal, almost completely.  I really hope that my thumb does not heal, but it is already feeling better.  Dang it. [image] also published on Life With Dogs, reprinted with permission from Neil. Mon, 25 Jul 2011 19:33:25 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_I-Hate-Being-a-Vet/blog/4955135/30809.html Finch93 2011-07-25T19:33:25Z Veterinary Community  [image]At 2:30 am it finally hits me why my left thumb is so sore.  Nine and a half hours earlier, I failed to revive a dog with emergency treatment and CPR.  I also failed to save him with aggressive surgical, medical and supportive care during the preceeding several days.  The chest compressions of my final attempt to save Dog must have hyperextended my thumb.  My only two comforts are that Dog no longer hurts and my thumb does.  I fall into a troubled sleep. Very recently, I had given two talks, one to grade schoolers and one to middle schoolers about how great it is to be a vet.  At the time, I had just started Dog’s treatment, his prognosis still had a sliver of hope in it, and if I had read about his case in a journal article, it really would have made a great story.  I feel like a big liar, and to children no less.  Right now, I hate my career. I wake up wondering how Dog’s family is doing. I stay awake a second night going over and over every detail of Dog’s case, deciding at every remembered step that I would not have made different decisions on Dog’s behalf.  I would not have wanted the family to make different decisions.  We needed to give Dog every possible chance.  Every time my husband asks why I am crying/scowling/staring off (and at one point freaking out when I am in the sun, not the shade, at an outdoor concert), I say “I need to have been able to save him.”  I am pretty sure that is not even a valid sentence structure. Sometimes, being a vet sucks. It is not as if I have a choice.  I could have no easier chosen a different career than I could have chosen to be right handed.  I mean, I could have forced myself, but I hear that messes people up pretty badly. And really, even now, I do not want to be anywhere else than in the middle of grief for a dog I just met and who is technically a “patient” but is really a friend I fell for hard and fought for hard, and a family that is technically a “client” but really a team of fellow pet lovers who also loved Dog – but as a family member, and for years and years, not days.  If this week is rough for me, it sucks many times over for them and will for a long time. I don’t know why this has stuck with me for all this time, but another veterinarian once told me that unless I could rein in my “personality weakness” of letting sad cases hit me so hard, “You will never be a successful veterinarian.” It was a great little pep talk (ha!) but honestly, I believe the opposite is true.  I can no more let go of my empathy than I could have chosen a different career.  If I did not feel such rage and despair and hopelessness at not being able to save a Dog I really, really, really wanted to save, THEN I would concede his point, and truly, I would not be a successful veterinarian. As it is, my career is a part of me I cannot separate from myself.  Good or bad, I cannot care less than I do, or give myself a “healthy emotional distance,” even if I did want to, which I do not.  This week sucks, and I do not know when I will be able to say I love being a vet again, but I will.  And if I did not hate it now, that would be a serious red flag to me, and I would do everything I could to reconnect emotionally. There are wonderful veterinarians who are much more emotionally even keeled than I.  It is not a requirement of the profession to be a big cry baby sap.  In fact, I do need to check myself when families need my support; they do not need me pushing them out of the way for the Kleenex box.  It is just that empathy is such a big part of MY veterinary career, that if losing patients were to “get easier” as some older veterinarians promise, trying to be comforting, I would know that I had lost a part of myself, and would hang up my jacket and stethoscope. I have normal range of motion in my thumb and just a small, persistent ache.  I really hope next week is better than this week – how could it not be?  I hope the hearts of Dog’s family members heal over time.  I know that though it will be a long road, their hearts will heal, almost completely.  I really hope that my thumb does not heal, but it is already feeling better.  Dang it. [image] also published on Life With Dogs, reprinted with permission from Neil. nonadult false I Hate Being a Vet. text blog 5401 22 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 0 4955135 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Shawn-Finch-DVMjpg/photo/14112840/30809.html Tue, 07 Jun 2011 03:31:21 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Shawn-Finch-DVMjpg/photo/14112840/30809.html Finch93 2011-06-07T03:31:21Z Veterinary Community nonadult false Shawn Finch, DVM.jpg photo 215 0 0.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 0 14112840 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Social-Media-for-Vets/blog/3583718/30809.html Social Media for Veterinary Professionals Online Community, Reputation and Brand Management by Brenda Tassava, CVPM, CVJ Five Stars! ✩✩✩✩✩ [image] Brenda Tassava is the Director of Operations for Broad Ripple Veterinary Management Solutions and practice manager for TWO veterinary practices and a dog-training facility and a daycare for fellow veterinary team members (How cool is that??)  in Indianapolis.  I received the book in the mail as a gift from Brenda today.  (Thank you Brenda!)  I read it from cover to cover this afternoon. I love this book!  I LOVE resources written especially for veterinary professionals, but I really think this book could have been called Social Media, as it is a great resource for any individual or business trying to start or progress in social media. I have until now avoided reading any social media books as it seems by the very nature of social media that by the time a book is published, it would be outdated, not because of outdated content, but because social media changes so quickly.  This book acknowledges and overcomes this problem by describing concepts and ideas, not specific details on how <twitter> works right now, because all of us who use <twitter> know that it will change tomorrow. This book is a quick, fun read.  I only paused to jump up at page 22 to grab my notebook and pen when I realized I should be writing down all of the great things I was learning! My circles seem to consist mainly of pet lovers/experts and social media lovers/experts (with huge areas of overlap!) so please read this book, and then tell me what you think!   If you are a veterinary professional on the internet (which you obviously are! :)) you NEED this book.  You will love it, and you will greatly benefit from its contents. Bunny Trails: I will make sure I am following on facebook and twitter all of the veterinary professionals listed in the resourses sections of the book.  Since I started using twitter, one of my strange (and super fun and rewarding) habits has been "collecting" veterinarians.   I am also trying to figure out how to help my veterinary hospital thrive on facebook and have been observing other awesome hospitals as they do just that.  It will be fun to “meet” some new veterinary teams from Brenda’s lists. I have four pages of action points written down after my first read through of the book.  I will keep you posted on how I apply what I have learned and am learning from Social Media for Veterinary Professionals.  I am excited to get started…I may even give Four Square another try! Social Media for Veterinary Professionals Online Community, Reputation and Brand Management by Brenda Tassava, CVPM, CVJ Five Stars! ✩✩✩✩✩ [image] Brenda Tassava is the Director of Operations for Broad Ripple Veterinary Management Solutions and practice manager for TWO veterinary practices and a dog-training facility and a daycare for fellow veterinary team members (How cool is that??)  in Indianapolis.  I received the book in the mail as a gift from Brenda today.  (Thank you Brenda!)  I read it from cover to cover this afternoon. I love this book!  I LOVE resources written especially for veterinary professionals, but I really think this book could have been called Social Media, as it is a great resource for any individual or business trying to start or progress in social media. I have until now avoided reading any social media books as it seems by the very nature of social media that by the time a book is published, it would be outdated, not because of outdated content, but because social media changes so quickly.  This book acknowledges and overcomes this problem by describing concepts and ideas, not specific details on how <twitter> works right now, because all of us who use <twitter> know that it will change tomorrow. This book is a quick, fun read.  I only paused to jump up at page 22 to grab my notebook and pen when I realized I should be writing down all of the great things I was learning! My circles seem to consist mainly of pet lovers/experts and social media lovers/experts (with huge areas of overlap!) so please read this book, and then tell me what you think!   If you are a veterinary professional on the internet (which you obviously are! :)) you NEED this book.  You will love it, and you will greatly benefit from its contents. Bunny Trails: I will make sure I am following on facebook and twitter all of the veterinary professionals listed in the resourses sections of the book.  Since I started using twitter, one of my strange (and super fun and rewarding) habits has been "collecting" veterinarians.   I am also trying to figure out how to help my veterinary hospital thrive on facebook and have been observing other awesome hospitals as they do just that.  It will be fun to “meet” some new veterinary teams from Brenda’s lists. I have four pages of action points written down after my first read through of the book.  I will keep you posted on how I apply what I have learned and am learning from Social Media for Veterinary Professionals.  I am excited to get started…I may even give Four Square another try! Sat, 07 May 2011 12:22:35 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Social-Media-for-Vets/blog/3583718/30809.html Finch93 2011-05-07T12:22:35Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community Social Media for Veterinary Professionals Online Community, Reputation and Brand Management by Brenda Tassava, CVPM, CVJ Five Stars! ✩✩✩✩✩ [image] Brenda Tassava is the Director of Operations for Broad Ripple Veterinary Management Solutions and practice manager for TWO veterinary practices and a dog-training facility and a daycare for fellow veterinary team members (How cool is that??)  in Indianapolis.  I received the book in the mail as a gift from Brenda today.  (Thank you Brenda!)  I read it from cover to cover this afternoon. I love this book!  I LOVE resources written especially for veterinary professionals, but I really think this book could have been called Social Media, as it is a great resource for any individual or business trying to start or progress in social media. I have until now avoided reading any social media books as it seems by the very nature of social media that by the time a book is published, it would be outdated, not because of outdated content, but because social media changes so quickly.  This book acknowledges and overcomes this problem by describing concepts and ideas, not specific details on how <twitter> works right now, because all of us who use <twitter> know that it will change tomorrow. This book is a quick, fun read.  I only paused to jump up at page 22 to grab my notebook and pen when I realized I should be writing down all of the great things I was learning! My circles seem to consist mainly of pet lovers/experts and social media lovers/experts (with huge areas of overlap!) so please read this book, and then tell me what you think!   If you are a veterinary professional on the internet (which you obviously are! :)) you NEED this book.  You will love it, and you will greatly benefit from its contents. Bunny Trails: I will make sure I am following on facebook and twitter all of the veterinary professionals listed in the resourses sections of the book.  Since I started using twitter, one of my strange (and super fun and rewarding) habits has been "collecting" veterinarians.   I am also trying to figure out how to help my veterinary hospital thrive on facebook and have been observing other awesome hospitals as they do just that.  It will be fun to “meet” some new veterinary teams from Brenda’s lists. I have four pages of action points written down after my first read through of the book.  I will keep you posted on how I apply what I have learned and am learning from Social Media for Veterinary Professionals.  I am excited to get started…I may even give Four Square another try! facebook, media, social, tassava, twitter, veterinary, veterinary voices nonadult false Social Media for Vets text blog facebook,media,social,tassava,twitter,veterinary,veterinary voices 1992 0 0.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 Veterinary Voices 0 3583718 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Do-Pets-Mourn/blog/3412921/30809.html Yes, of course they do! I tend to anthropomorphize, and I am highly (not excessively, highly!) emotional.  I realize that I am not unbiased.  So instead of just saying "yes," I wanted to also share this sort-of-a-scientific-case-but-more-of-an-intriguing-story... Joy the Puppy has a built-in stress barometer... When Joy was a pup, she had a mild case of localized juvenile demodicosis that manifested as periocular alopecia.  It came and went pretty quickly and quietly, with no discomfort to Joy.  I treated it with "benign neglect" and she did great.  She had no symptoms for over a year. When Ebony Dog passed away last month, the disease came back with a vengeance.  Joy moped around the house.  That is, she had decreased energy levels and was much less active than usual.  She circled on the bed that she and Ebony had shared, finally flopping down every night with a deep sigh and her chin on the floor at the edge of the bed.  She would come to a complete stop during walks with Noodle the Poodle and look around as if confused.  For her whole life, walks had always been the three of them:  Joy, Ebony and Noodle.  Most telling of all, the area around both of Joy's eyes went completely alopecic again. Here is Joy in all her shiny gorgeousness... [image]   Here is Joy at the worst of her recent bout of demodicosis... [image] And here, I believe, is the reason for the stress that has caused this most recent flare-up... She and Ebony were so close... [image] In fact, Joy wanted to be Ebony when she grew up... [image] Joy the Puppy is mourning the loss of her friend Ebony Dog. I saw it with Wuzzy Rat when Fuzzy Rat passed away... [image] (She had no hair to let fall out as an outward sign of her mourning - ha!)  I have seen it with other personal pets.  I have seen it with clients' pets.  This is the first time I have seen it with such clear physical manifestations.  Have you seen this with pets you have known?  The mourning, I mean? My Prescribed Treatment for Joy: Routine cleaning with dilute chlorhexidine, topical 2.5% benzoyl peroxide, extra attention, extra love, extra walks and extra empathy.*  Her stress levels are going down, her immune system is becoming strong again, her demodicosis is going back into remission and her hair is growing back.  That is to say...her heart is healing. *I miss her too Joy.  We're going to be ok though Puppy, I promise. [image] Yes, of course they do! I tend to anthropomorphize, and I am highly (not excessively, highly!) emotional.  I realize that I am not unbiased.  So instead of just saying "yes," I wanted to also share this sort-of-a-scientific-case-but-more-of-an-intriguing-story... Joy the Puppy has a built-in stress barometer... When Joy was a pup, she had a mild case of localized juvenile demodicosis that manifested as periocular alopecia.  It came and went pretty quickly and quietly, with no discomfort to Joy.  I treated it with "benign neglect" and she did great.  She had no symptoms for over a year. When Ebony Dog passed away last month, the disease came back with a vengeance.  Joy moped around the house.  That is, she had decreased energy levels and was much less active than usual.  She circled on the bed that she and Ebony had shared, finally flopping down every night with a deep sigh and her chin on the floor at the edge of the bed.  She would come to a complete stop during walks with Noodle the Poodle and look around as if confused.  For her whole life, walks had always been the three of them:  Joy, Ebony and Noodle.  Most telling of all, the area around both of Joy's eyes went completely alopecic again. Here is Joy in all her shiny gorgeousness... [image]   Here is Joy at the worst of her recent bout of demodicosis... [image] And here, I believe, is the reason for the stress that has caused this most recent flare-up... She and Ebony were so close... [image] In fact, Joy wanted to be Ebony when she grew up... [image] Joy the Puppy is mourning the loss of her friend Ebony Dog. I saw it with Wuzzy Rat when Fuzzy Rat passed away... [image] (She had no hair to let fall out as an outward sign of her mourning - ha!)  I have seen it with other personal pets.  I have seen it with clients' pets.  This is the first time I have seen it with such clear physical manifestations.  Have you seen this with pets you have known?  The mourning, I mean? My Prescribed Treatment for Joy: Routine cleaning with dilute chlorhexidine, topical 2.5% benzoyl peroxide, extra attention, extra love, extra walks and extra empathy.*  Her stress levels are going down, her immune system is becoming strong again, her demodicosis is going back into remission and her hair is growing back.  That is to say...her heart is healing. *I miss her too Joy.  We're going to be ok though Puppy, I promise. [image] Sat, 26 Mar 2011 07:04:04 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Do-Pets-Mourn/blog/3412921/30809.html Finch93 2011-03-26T07:04:04Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community Yes, of course they do! I tend to anthropomorphize, and I am highly (not excessively, highly!) emotional.  I realize that I am not unbiased.  So instead of just saying "yes," I wanted to also share this sort-of-a-scientific-case-but-more-of-an-intriguing-story... Joy the Puppy has a built-in stress barometer... When Joy was a pup, she had a mild case of localized juvenile demodicosis that manifested as periocular alopecia.  It came and went pretty quickly and quietly, with no discomfort to Joy.  I treated it with "benign neglect" and she did great.  She had no symptoms for over a year. When Ebony Dog passed away last month, the disease came back with a vengeance.  Joy moped around the house.  That is, she had decreased energy levels and was much less active than usual.  She circled on the bed that she and Ebony had shared, finally flopping down every night with a deep sigh and her chin on the floor at the edge of the bed.  She would come to a complete stop during walks with Noodle the Poodle and look around as if confused.  For her whole life, walks had always been the three of them:  Joy, Ebony and Noodle.  Most telling of all, the area around both of Joy's eyes went completely alopecic again. Here is Joy in all her shiny gorgeousness... [image]   Here is Joy at the worst of her recent bout of demodicosis... [image] And here, I believe, is the reason for the stress that has caused this most recent flare-up... She and Ebony were so close... [image] In fact, Joy wanted to be Ebony when she grew up... [image] Joy the Puppy is mourning the loss of her friend Ebony Dog. I saw it with Wuzzy Rat when Fuzzy Rat passed away... [image] (She had no hair to let fall out as an outward sign of her mourning - ha!)  I have seen it with other personal pets.  I have seen it with clients' pets.  This is the first time I have seen it with such clear physical manifestations.  Have you seen this with pets you have known?  The mourning, I mean? My Prescribed Treatment for Joy: Routine cleaning with dilute chlorhexidine, topical 2.5% benzoyl peroxide, extra attention, extra love, extra walks and extra empathy.*  Her stress levels are going down, her immune system is becoming strong again, her demodicosis is going back into remission and her hair is growing back.  That is to say...her heart is healing. *I miss her too Joy.  We're going to be ok though Puppy, I promise. [image] joy, loss, pet, puppy, the, veterinary voices nonadult false Do Pets Mourn? text blog joy,loss,pet,puppy,the,veterinary voices 1571 2 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 0 Veterinary Voices 0 3412921 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_A-Dramatic-Wellness-Exam/blog/3315151/30809.html   This essay was meant to remind vets how EXCITING preventative care is because so many spectacular things get accomplished during what to us is a routine wellness exam.  This is by far the dorkiest article I have written for veterinarians, and also my favorite.  Most of the rest of the articles I have written for veterinarians are being gathered and posted together on the Riley and James website. Next time your patient needs “just an exam” or “just preventative care” I hope you think of this and smile. A Dramatic Wellness Exam You have seen this case countless times, as have I.  Your Pet Nurse hands you a medical file and yawns.  “Wellness visit, Doc.”  You see the pet, sigh and move on to the next. It seems like it’s been forever since you actually saved a life. Or has it? Imagine the same case with the drama I believe it deserves. Your Pet Nurse runs out of the exam room and shouts, “DOC! I can not find one thing wrong with this cat!” You gasp and grab her shoulders. “Did you check the molars?”  So moved she cannot speak, she nods, and you both stare together into the future at Kitty curled on a sunny ledge, healthy and happy, thanks to years of incredible health care from the amazing combination of her wonderful family and your wonderful medical team. You hand her a tissue, and she hands you the medical record. You swing open the door and yell, “You love cats! I love cats too!”  You all join hands and jump up and down as you celebrate this great coincidence. You turn your attention to the gorgeous cat on the table and perform a thorough exam. This cat is completely healthy! “What food are you feeding her?” you ask.  “That food is entirely balanced and contains TAURINE!” They had no idea they were preventing the horrendous heart conditions you describe! Together, you review the intestinal parasites you intend to prevent. When you get to the descriptions of children with ocular larval migrans and hookworm infections, Dad faints dead away. Holding a vaccine behind your back, you announce, “Kitty is up to date on everything except for the most horrendous, uniformly fatal neurological disease that has ever existed!” At this, Mother and children begin to weep. Dad regains consciousness and lowers his face into his hands.  “But wait!” you whisper. “With this fifth teaspoon of liquid, I can provide complete protection!”  You raise the syringe above your head and the fluorescent lights shine through it, creating beautiful pink patterns on the walls of the room. Kitty heads home with her eternally grateful family, protected from a myriad of unspeakable diseases.  They have an arsenal of medications that will shield her from the worst of the parasites to which she could be exposed. You have discussed cat care and provided resources to learn even more. She will be vigilantly protected from the Scary, Scary Outdoors. Her family agrees to meet you again in six months for another celebration of health and prevention, and six months after that…this could go on indefinitely! Once again, you have preserved the life of a pet. You are protecting children and enriching families.  You are doing it with limited resources, and doing it well. You are amazing.  You are a Pet Saver. You are the Veterinarian.     This essay was meant to remind vets how EXCITING preventative care is because so many spectacular things get accomplished during what to us is a routine wellness exam.  This is by far the dorkiest article I have written for veterinarians, and also my favorite.  Most of the rest of the articles I have written for veterinarians are being gathered and posted together on the Riley and James website. Next time your patient needs “just an exam” or “just preventative care” I hope you think of this and smile. A Dramatic Wellness Exam You have seen this case countless times, as have I.  Your Pet Nurse hands you a medical file and yawns.  “Wellness visit, Doc.”  You see the pet, sigh and move on to the next. It seems like it’s been forever since you actually saved a life. Or has it? Imagine the same case with the drama I believe it deserves. Your Pet Nurse runs out of the exam room and shouts, “DOC! I can not find one thing wrong with this cat!” You gasp and grab her shoulders. “Did you check the molars?”  So moved she cannot speak, she nods, and you both stare together into the future at Kitty curled on a sunny ledge, healthy and happy, thanks to years of incredible health care from the amazing combination of her wonderful family and your wonderful medical team. You hand her a tissue, and she hands you the medical record. You swing open the door and yell, “You love cats! I love cats too!”  You all join hands and jump up and down as you celebrate this great coincidence. You turn your attention to the gorgeous cat on the table and perform a thorough exam. This cat is completely healthy! “What food are you feeding her?” you ask.  “That food is entirely balanced and contains TAURINE!” They had no idea they were preventing the horrendous heart conditions you describe! Together, you review the intestinal parasites you intend to prevent. When you get to the descriptions of children with ocular larval migrans and hookworm infections, Dad faints dead away. Holding a vaccine behind your back, you announce, “Kitty is up to date on everything except for the most horrendous, uniformly fatal neurological disease that has ever existed!” At this, Mother and children begin to weep. Dad regains consciousness and lowers his face into his hands.  “But wait!” you whisper. “With this fifth teaspoon of liquid, I can provide complete protection!”  You raise the syringe above your head and the fluorescent lights shine through it, creating beautiful pink patterns on the walls of the room. Kitty heads home with her eternally grateful family, protected from a myriad of unspeakable diseases.  They have an arsenal of medications that will shield her from the worst of the parasites to which she could be exposed. You have discussed cat care and provided resources to learn even more. She will be vigilantly protected from the Scary, Scary Outdoors. Her family agrees to meet you again in six months for another celebration of health and prevention, and six months after that…this could go on indefinitely! Once again, you have preserved the life of a pet. You are protecting children and enriching families.  You are doing it with limited resources, and doing it well. You are amazing.  You are a Pet Saver. You are the Veterinarian.   Tue, 15 Feb 2011 22:00:17 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_A-Dramatic-Wellness-Exam/blog/3315151/30809.html Finch93 2011-02-15T22:00:17Z Veterinary Community   This essay was meant to remind vets how EXCITING preventative care is because so many spectacular things get accomplished during what to us is a routine wellness exam.  This is by far the dorkiest article I have written for veterinarians, and also my favorite.  Most of the rest of the articles I have written for veterinarians are being gathered and posted together on the Riley and James website. Next time your patient needs “just an exam” or “just preventative care” I hope you think of this and smile. A Dramatic Wellness Exam You have seen this case countless times, as have I.  Your Pet Nurse hands you a medical file and yawns.  “Wellness visit, Doc.”  You see the pet, sigh and move on to the next. It seems like it’s been forever since you actually saved a life. Or has it? Imagine the same case with the drama I believe it deserves. Your Pet Nurse runs out of the exam room and shouts, “DOC! I can not find one thing wrong with this cat!” You gasp and grab her shoulders. “Did you check the molars?”  So moved she cannot speak, she nods, and you both stare together into the future at Kitty curled on a sunny ledge, healthy and happy, thanks to years of incredible health care from the amazing combination of her wonderful family and your wonderful medical team. You hand her a tissue, and she hands you the medical record. You swing open the door and yell, “You love cats! I love cats too!”  You all join hands and jump up and down as you celebrate this great coincidence. You turn your attention to the gorgeous cat on the table and perform a thorough exam. This cat is completely healthy! “What food are you feeding her?” you ask.  “That food is entirely balanced and contains TAURINE!” They had no idea they were preventing the horrendous heart conditions you describe! Together, you review the intestinal parasites you intend to prevent. When you get to the descriptions of children with ocular larval migrans and hookworm infections, Dad faints dead away. Holding a vaccine behind your back, you announce, “Kitty is up to date on everything except for the most horrendous, uniformly fatal neurological disease that has ever existed!” At this, Mother and children begin to weep. Dad regains consciousness and lowers his face into his hands.  “But wait!” you whisper. “With this fifth teaspoon of liquid, I can provide complete protection!”  You raise the syringe above your head and the fluorescent lights shine through it, creating beautiful pink patterns on the walls of the room. Kitty heads home with her eternally grateful family, protected from a myriad of unspeakable diseases.  They have an arsenal of medications that will shield her from the worst of the parasites to which she could be exposed. You have discussed cat care and provided resources to learn even more. She will be vigilantly protected from the Scary, Scary Outdoors. Her family agrees to meet you again in six months for another celebration of health and prevention, and six months after that…this could go on indefinitely! Once again, you have preserved the life of a pet. You are protecting children and enriching families.  You are doing it with limited resources, and doing it well. You are amazing.  You are a Pet Saver. You are the Veterinarian.   nonadult false A Dramatic Wellness Exam text blog 1578 11 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 0 3315151 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Season-of-Joy-the-Puppy/blog/3066253/30809.html Two winters ago, clients of mine found a man dressed in several layers of badly worn clothing wandering up and down the dog food aisles of Petsmart with a tiny, emaciated black puppy in his arms.  He was saying to himself that he could not afford dog food. The young couple asked the man about his puppy.  He said he needed someone to take her because he did not have any money to care for her.  They asked if he would take twenty dollars for her (which they had brought with them to spend at Petsmart, but probably not quite like that), and he did.  They brought her to my hospital to be examined.  Other than her very thin body condition, I found no other physical problems.  They did not know if they were adopting or rescuing…they just saw a puppy in need and a man in distress and sort of swooped. [image] Two days later, Layla came home to live with us, and after much name-trying, we renamed her Joy Layla Finch.  The name Joy was suggested by the daughter of Joy King, who had been our very dear friend and had recently passed away.  We also named her in honor of our other dear friends’ newborn daughter whose twin sister had just passed away. The conversation with Joy King’s daughter went something like this: “Are you sure your Mom would not mind having a dog named after her?” “This puppy is so happy, like Mom was, and has such gorgeous black hair, like Mom did…Not only would she not mind, she would be honored!” Joy…what an odd thing to name our new puppy during what was such a sad season for so many friends we loved.  She has more than lived up to her name. When I first met Joy, I was so angry at the man who had almost let her starve to death that I could not see straight.  My friend Janelle said, “He did take her to where he knew she would get help.”  That statement stopped me in my tracks. Having probably very little even for himself, the man who first owned Joy did everything he could for her, and maybe the reason he held on to her as long as he did was because he did not want to give up his puppy. I feel as though I owe him an apology and a thank you, though I have never met him.  So I will write one here, and though he will almost certainly never see it, I hope it serves as a reminder to myself to let my first reaction be one of compassion, not one of judgment. I also hope God blesses Joy’s original owner beyond what I can even imagine.  In what must have been such a difficult season in his own life, he looked past himself and reached out with love and compassion to care for a tiny, helpless, goofy puppy who needed him.     To the Original Owner of Joy the Puppy, Thank you so much for the gift of Joy.  She has been a wonderful addition to our family, so gentle and playful with our kids, and fitting right in with our other two dogs.  She is loved and warm and fed.  I pray that you are as well. I will keep an eye out for you and try to make sure that you are. If you had been in a different season of life, with a home and resources to take care of the both of you, would you still have her with you?  I bet you miss her.  I can not tell you how much I appreciate you giving her up so that she could have a healthy life.  If things have turned around for you, and there is room in your life for a puppy again, I will do everything I can to help make that happen. Forgive me for being so angry initially that she was such a skinny thing.  I know that when you ran out of puppy food, you shared your own food with her, and probably gave up a meal or two at least, so the little bottomless pit would not have to.  She had the cutest little bug eyes-I would have held on to her until the last possible moment too, if I had been in your place.  I will remember that the next time I am getting worked up to judge someone who is probably doing the best that they can. Be proud of your dog.  She turned out great.  She started off so cute and grew up to be gorgeous.  If you hadn’t protected her from the streets of Omaha in her first few bitter cold weeks, she may not have survived.  If you hadn’t taught her a person’s love right from the start, it would have taken us years.  Thank you so much. If this does not reach you directly, I will try to thank you indirectly every way that I am able. Sincerely, Shawn Finch, DVM     Two winters ago, clients of mine found a man dressed in several layers of badly worn clothing wandering up and down the dog food aisles of Petsmart with a tiny, emaciated black puppy in his arms.  He was saying to himself that he could not afford dog food. The young couple asked the man about his puppy.  He said he needed someone to take her because he did not have any money to care for her.  They asked if he would take twenty dollars for her (which they had brought with them to spend at Petsmart, but probably not quite like that), and he did.  They brought her to my hospital to be examined.  Other than her very thin body condition, I found no other physical problems.  They did not know if they were adopting or rescuing…they just saw a puppy in need and a man in distress and sort of swooped. [image] Two days later, Layla came home to live with us, and after much name-trying, we renamed her Joy Layla Finch.  The name Joy was suggested by the daughter of Joy King, who had been our very dear friend and had recently passed away.  We also named her in honor of our other dear friends’ newborn daughter whose twin sister had just passed away. The conversation with Joy King’s daughter went something like this: “Are you sure your Mom would not mind having a dog named after her?” “This puppy is so happy, like Mom was, and has such gorgeous black hair, like Mom did…Not only would she not mind, she would be honored!” Joy…what an odd thing to name our new puppy during what was such a sad season for so many friends we loved.  She has more than lived up to her name. When I first met Joy, I was so angry at the man who had almost let her starve to death that I could not see straight.  My friend Janelle said, “He did take her to where he knew she would get help.”  That statement stopped me in my tracks. Having probably very little even for himself, the man who first owned Joy did everything he could for her, and maybe the reason he held on to her as long as he did was because he did not want to give up his puppy. I feel as though I owe him an apology and a thank you, though I have never met him.  So I will write one here, and though he will almost certainly never see it, I hope it serves as a reminder to myself to let my first reaction be one of compassion, not one of judgment. I also hope God blesses Joy’s original owner beyond what I can even imagine.  In what must have been such a difficult season in his own life, he looked past himself and reached out with love and compassion to care for a tiny, helpless, goofy puppy who needed him.     To the Original Owner of Joy the Puppy, Thank you so much for the gift of Joy.  She has been a wonderful addition to our family, so gentle and playful with our kids, and fitting right in with our other two dogs.  She is loved and warm and fed.  I pray that you are as well. I will keep an eye out for you and try to make sure that you are. If you had been in a different season of life, with a home and resources to take care of the both of you, would you still have her with you?  I bet you miss her.  I can not tell you how much I appreciate you giving her up so that she could have a healthy life.  If things have turned around for you, and there is room in your life for a puppy again, I will do everything I can to help make that happen. Forgive me for being so angry initially that she was such a skinny thing.  I know that when you ran out of puppy food, you shared your own food with her, and probably gave up a meal or two at least, so the little bottomless pit would not have to.  She had the cutest little bug eyes-I would have held on to her until the last possible moment too, if I had been in your place.  I will remember that the next time I am getting worked up to judge someone who is probably doing the best that they can. Be proud of your dog.  She turned out great.  She started off so cute and grew up to be gorgeous.  If you hadn’t protected her from the streets of Omaha in her first few bitter cold weeks, she may not have survived.  If you hadn’t taught her a person’s love right from the start, it would have taken us years.  Thank you so much. If this does not reach you directly, I will try to thank you indirectly every way that I am able. Sincerely, Shawn Finch, DVM     Tue, 07 Dec 2010 00:51:42 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Season-of-Joy-the-Puppy/blog/3066253/30809.html Finch93 2010-12-07T00:51:42Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community Two winters ago, clients of mine found a man dressed in several layers of badly worn clothing wandering up and down the dog food aisles of Petsmart with a tiny, emaciated black puppy in his arms.  He was saying to himself that he could not afford dog food. The young couple asked the man about his puppy.  He said he needed someone to take her because he did not have any money to care for her.  They asked if he would take twenty dollars for her (which they had brought with them to spend at Petsmart, but probably not quite like that), and he did.  They brought her to my hospital to be examined.  Other than her very thin body condition, I found no other physical problems.  They did not know if they were adopting or rescuing…they just saw a puppy in need and a man in distress and sort of swooped. [image] Two days later, Layla came home to live with us, and after much name-trying, we renamed her Joy Layla Finch.  The name Joy was suggested by the daughter of Joy King, who had been our very dear friend and had recently passed away.  We also named her in honor of our other dear friends’ newborn daughter whose twin sister had just passed away. The conversation with Joy King’s daughter went something like this: “Are you sure your Mom would not mind having a dog named after her?” “This puppy is so happy, like Mom was, and has such gorgeous black hair, like Mom did…Not only would she not mind, she would be honored!” Joy…what an odd thing to name our new puppy during what was such a sad season for so many friends we loved.  She has more than lived up to her name. When I first met Joy, I was so angry at the man who had almost let her starve to death that I could not see straight.  My friend Janelle said, “He did take her to where he knew she would get help.”  That statement stopped me in my tracks. Having probably very little even for himself, the man who first owned Joy did everything he could for her, and maybe the reason he held on to her as long as he did was because he did not want to give up his puppy. I feel as though I owe him an apology and a thank you, though I have never met him.  So I will write one here, and though he will almost certainly never see it, I hope it serves as a reminder to myself to let my first reaction be one of compassion, not one of judgment. I also hope God blesses Joy’s original owner beyond what I can even imagine.  In what must have been such a difficult season in his own life, he looked past himself and reached out with love and compassion to care for a tiny, helpless, goofy puppy who needed him.     To the Original Owner of Joy the Puppy, Thank you so much for the gift of Joy.  She has been a wonderful addition to our family, so gentle and playful with our kids, and fitting right in with our other two dogs.  She is loved and warm and fed.  I pray that you are as well. I will keep an eye out for you and try to make sure that you are. If you had been in a different season of life, with a home and resources to take care of the both of you, would you still have her with you?  I bet you miss her.  I can not tell you how much I appreciate you giving her up so that she could have a healthy life.  If things have turned around for you, and there is room in your life for a puppy again, I will do everything I can to help make that happen. Forgive me for being so angry initially that she was such a skinny thing.  I know that when you ran out of puppy food, you shared your own food with her, and probably gave up a meal or two at least, so the little bottomless pit would not have to.  She had the cutest little bug eyes-I would have held on to her until the last possible moment too, if I had been in your place.  I will remember that the next time I am getting worked up to judge someone who is probably doing the best that they can. Be proud of your dog.  She turned out great.  She started off so cute and grew up to be gorgeous.  If you hadn’t protected her from the streets of Omaha in her first few bitter cold weeks, she may not have survived.  If you hadn’t taught her a person’s love right from the start, it would have taken us years.  Thank you so much. If this does not reach you directly, I will try to thank you indirectly every way that I am able. Sincerely, Shawn Finch, DVM     joy, omaha, puppy, the, veterinary voices nonadult false Season of Joy (the Puppy) text blog joy,omaha,puppy,the,veterinary voices 1581 2 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 Veterinary Voices 0 3066253 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Conflict-Resolution/blog/2694770/30809.html   Conflict Resolution within the Veterinary Team:  Facilitating an Atmosphere of Respect Many people working together in a high-stress environment and a relatively small space will inevitably create some conflict between coworkers.  As pet health care providers, we are in no way immune to conflict, and if unchecked or dealt with poorly, conflict can distract us from our primary goal of maintaining and restoring the health of pets. Ideally, team members will be able to develop the skills to handle conflict with each other respectfully and in a way that each person feels as though he or she is valued and that a resolution has been reached.  As a team leader, you may be called on sometimes to facilitate this process or even help team members learn to become proficient at it.  But what do you do if your team members are not doing the things that to be done to resolve conflicts among themselves? [image] Max the Cat and Joy the Puppy practice conflict resolution Setting a Mood of Mutual Respect Make sure that each team member knows how much you value him or her and the other team members.  Talk about them behind their back.  You could call it reverse gossip.  Say things like “Can you believe how proficient Jeni* is at dental procedures?  I feel like I have the assistance of three pet nurses when we are working together.”  Talk about them right to their faces as well!  “Wow, you and Erika are awesome at holding birds for avian exams.  I never even worry about being bitten or not being thorough enough when I am working with one of you!”  Encouraging One-on-One Conflict Resolution If you let even one of your own personal frustrations with a coworker be said out loud, you open a door for your coworkers to turn to you for commiseration when they are frustrated.  If you have a conflict with a teammate, set a great example.  Talk with them privately and respectfully about whatever needs to be resolved, and do not involve the rest of the team.  Shifting the Balance to a Positive Work Environment When you consistently build up your team members directly and to each other, and handle conflicts with which you are personally involved privately and respectfully, you will be building the groundwork for an upward, positive spiral.  If a team member knows you respect the person with whom they have a conflict, this will have a two-fold positive effect.  First of all, this will color the lens through which they see the conflict.  “Wow, Maynard sure is being difficult, but Doc has so much good to say about him, maybe I am not interpreting the situation completely accurately.”  And secondly, they will know they will have no company with you in bad-mouthing the person with whom they are having a conflict. When to Intervene What if someone has a legitimate concern?  Implementing the first two techniques (setting a mood of mutual respect and encouraging one-on-one conflict resolution) will separate the “wheat” (important complaints) from the “chaff” (unimportant complaints).  You will tend to get less squabbly stuff, and just get the big important stuff.  “I know you really respect Rhonda, and she does a wonderful job, but as team leader, I thought you should know that she just punched Troy for distracting her, and he is unconscious.  Will you help us resolve this situation?”  Now is the time to step in!  You will get far fewer small things to deal with and just the issues that really require intervention! Achieving Conflict Resolution Proficiency as a Team As team members practice resolving conflicts with each other, they will become proficient at it. Their first reaction will no longer be to run to you, because working through things together will have become a habit, one at which they are very skilled.  They will learn from your example that gossip is damaging, saying nice things to someone or about them builds up the whole team, conflicts should be resolved one on one and confidentially, and that you are a strong leader who can be trusted to step in when needed.  *Names have not been changed to protect anyone, but they have been used with permission.  Also, as far as I know, Rhonda has never punched anyone.     Conflict Resolution within the Veterinary Team:  Facilitating an Atmosphere of Respect Many people working together in a high-stress environment and a relatively small space will inevitably create some conflict between coworkers.  As pet health care providers, we are in no way immune to conflict, and if unchecked or dealt with poorly, conflict can distract us from our primary goal of maintaining and restoring the health of pets. Ideally, team members will be able to develop the skills to handle conflict with each other respectfully and in a way that each person feels as though he or she is valued and that a resolution has been reached.  As a team leader, you may be called on sometimes to facilitate this process or even help team members learn to become proficient at it.  But what do you do if your team members are not doing the things that to be done to resolve conflicts among themselves? [image] Max the Cat and Joy the Puppy practice conflict resolution Setting a Mood of Mutual Respect Make sure that each team member knows how much you value him or her and the other team members.  Talk about them behind their back.  You could call it reverse gossip.  Say things like “Can you believe how proficient Jeni* is at dental procedures?  I feel like I have the assistance of three pet nurses when we are working together.”  Talk about them right to their faces as well!  “Wow, you and Erika are awesome at holding birds for avian exams.  I never even worry about being bitten or not being thorough enough when I am working with one of you!”  Encouraging One-on-One Conflict Resolution If you let even one of your own personal frustrations with a coworker be said out loud, you open a door for your coworkers to turn to you for commiseration when they are frustrated.  If you have a conflict with a teammate, set a great example.  Talk with them privately and respectfully about whatever needs to be resolved, and do not involve the rest of the team.  Shifting the Balance to a Positive Work Environment When you consistently build up your team members directly and to each other, and handle conflicts with which you are personally involved privately and respectfully, you will be building the groundwork for an upward, positive spiral.  If a team member knows you respect the person with whom they have a conflict, this will have a two-fold positive effect.  First of all, this will color the lens through which they see the conflict.  “Wow, Maynard sure is being difficult, but Doc has so much good to say about him, maybe I am not interpreting the situation completely accurately.”  And secondly, they will know they will have no company with you in bad-mouthing the person with whom they are having a conflict. When to Intervene What if someone has a legitimate concern?  Implementing the first two techniques (setting a mood of mutual respect and encouraging one-on-one conflict resolution) will separate the “wheat” (important complaints) from the “chaff” (unimportant complaints).  You will tend to get less squabbly stuff, and just get the big important stuff.  “I know you really respect Rhonda, and she does a wonderful job, but as team leader, I thought you should know that she just punched Troy for distracting her, and he is unconscious.  Will you help us resolve this situation?”  Now is the time to step in!  You will get far fewer small things to deal with and just the issues that really require intervention! Achieving Conflict Resolution Proficiency as a Team As team members practice resolving conflicts with each other, they will become proficient at it. Their first reaction will no longer be to run to you, because working through things together will have become a habit, one at which they are very skilled.  They will learn from your example that gossip is damaging, saying nice things to someone or about them builds up the whole team, conflicts should be resolved one on one and confidentially, and that you are a strong leader who can be trusted to step in when needed.  *Names have not been changed to protect anyone, but they have been used with permission.  Also, as far as I know, Rhonda has never punched anyone.   Fri, 01 Oct 2010 03:37:42 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Conflict-Resolution/blog/2694770/30809.html Finch93 2010-10-01T03:37:42Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community   Conflict Resolution within the Veterinary Team:  Facilitating an Atmosphere of Respect Many people working together in a high-stress environment and a relatively small space will inevitably create some conflict between coworkers.  As pet health care providers, we are in no way immune to conflict, and if unchecked or dealt with poorly, conflict can distract us from our primary goal of maintaining and restoring the health of pets. Ideally, team members will be able to develop the skills to handle conflict with each other respectfully and in a way that each person feels as though he or she is valued and that a resolution has been reached.  As a team leader, you may be called on sometimes to facilitate this process or even help team members learn to become proficient at it.  But what do you do if your team members are not doing the things that to be done to resolve conflicts among themselves? [image] Max the Cat and Joy the Puppy practice conflict resolution Setting a Mood of Mutual Respect Make sure that each team member knows how much you value him or her and the other team members.  Talk about them behind their back.  You could call it reverse gossip.  Say things like “Can you believe how proficient Jeni* is at dental procedures?  I feel like I have the assistance of three pet nurses when we are working together.”  Talk about them right to their faces as well!  “Wow, you and Erika are awesome at holding birds for avian exams.  I never even worry about being bitten or not being thorough enough when I am working with one of you!”  Encouraging One-on-One Conflict Resolution If you let even one of your own personal frustrations with a coworker be said out loud, you open a door for your coworkers to turn to you for commiseration when they are frustrated.  If you have a conflict with a teammate, set a great example.  Talk with them privately and respectfully about whatever needs to be resolved, and do not involve the rest of the team.  Shifting the Balance to a Positive Work Environment When you consistently build up your team members directly and to each other, and handle conflicts with which you are personally involved privately and respectfully, you will be building the groundwork for an upward, positive spiral.  If a team member knows you respect the person with whom they have a conflict, this will have a two-fold positive effect.  First of all, this will color the lens through which they see the conflict.  “Wow, Maynard sure is being difficult, but Doc has so much good to say about him, maybe I am not interpreting the situation completely accurately.”  And secondly, they will know they will have no company with you in bad-mouthing the person with whom they are having a conflict. When to Intervene What if someone has a legitimate concern?  Implementing the first two techniques (setting a mood of mutual respect and encouraging one-on-one conflict resolution) will separate the “wheat” (important complaints) from the “chaff” (unimportant complaints).  You will tend to get less squabbly stuff, and just get the big important stuff.  “I know you really respect Rhonda, and she does a wonderful job, but as team leader, I thought you should know that she just punched Troy for distracting her, and he is unconscious.  Will you help us resolve this situation?”  Now is the time to step in!  You will get far fewer small things to deal with and just the issues that really require intervention! Achieving Conflict Resolution Proficiency as a Team As team members practice resolving conflicts with each other, they will become proficient at it. Their first reaction will no longer be to run to you, because working through things together will have become a habit, one at which they are very skilled.  They will learn from your example that gossip is damaging, saying nice things to someone or about them builds up the whole team, conflicts should be resolved one on one and confidentially, and that you are a strong leader who can be trusted to step in when needed.  *Names have not been changed to protect anyone, but they have been used with permission.  Also, as far as I know, Rhonda has never punched anyone.   conflict, leadership, resolution, veterinary voices nonadult false Conflict Resolution text blog conflict,leadership,resolution,veterinary voices 2439 11 5.0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/service/displayKickPlace.kickAction?u=24271512&as=30809 http://media.kickstatic.com/kickapps/images/30809/photos/PHOTO_13428253_30809_24271512_ap_160X120.jpg false United States NE Omaha 68106 2 Veterinary Voices 0 2694770 24271512 Member 0 http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Twitter/blog/2466765/30809.html   Writing and blogging, when I finally tried it a few years back, came easily to me.  Facebook and Skype did as well.  Twitter was difficult.  I gave up a few times.  I am so glad I did not give up entirely, as I would have missed out on so many special friendships and links to great information, in the veterinary community and world at large.  In case it is as strange to you as it was for me, here are a few starting points.  Try it.  Then try it again.  I hope you find the twitter forum as rewarding as I have! Start with a personal account.  Most of the veterinarians on twitter with whom I engage speak for themselves, not their practice.  This gives more freedom to say random, un-veterinary things.  If you want to say, “prevent heartworm disease in your pets” in one tweet, then “my dog just did the cutest thing!” then “I got some great sweet corn at the Farmer’s Market today!” no one will say, “Well that’s a weird train of thought for a veterinary professional!”  And you do not need to worry that you are representing your business. But remember that you ARE representing your business.  People DO know that you are a vet, and in a few clicks of the mouse, they can find out where you practice, if you have not bragged about it endlessly in your tweets and profile already (which I think you should, by the way.)  So… Keep it clean. Be kind.  I suppose “be kind” is also self-explanatory.  Still, twitter is much more fun if everyone is kind.  If you have a gripe about a company, send it to them in a DM (direct message).  Then when they respond, you can tweet that  - “You would not believe how quickly @GreatCompany resolved an issue for me! Thank you @GreatCompany :)”  Be twitter-kind.  Twitter has its own quirks that you would not automatically know.  Not shouting (THIS IS SHOUTING) is kind.  “Retweeting” (Repeating another’s tweet and giving them credit) is kind.  Following someone who follows you is kind.  Talking directly to others using @ followed by their twitter name is kind.  Be as good at patient confidentiality as you are in Real Life.  Do not share patient and client information without the permission of your client and your veterinary hospital leadership.  Even with blessings all around, do not share specific medical information about a specific case.  Yes: (with permission of boss and client and photographer) “How cute is my patient?? http://twitpic.com/mjpib” Even better: (less permission-getting needed) “How gorgeous is my cat?? http://twitpic.com/sh0of” Follow people you would enjoy getting to know.  When I started twitter, I followed family members and friends, veterinarians and other pet lovers and people in Omaha.  In hindsight, that was one thing I got right from the beginning. Keep tweeting till it makes sense.  My brother Dave convinced me to start twitter, because he knew I could reach a larger audience with pet preventative care information.  For several months I would open twitter, watch the time line of the people I had followed, close twitter, and sigh, “I just don’t get it.  It’s like facebook without the fun pictures.”  Dave would smile and say “Don’t give up” and I would repeat the process:  open twitter-check timeline-close twitter-sigh-gripe.  Till one day, I did get it.  “Hi how’s it going?” someone tweeted.  “Great” I tweeted back.  Hey, this was fun!  It was like waving to a neighbor, only it was ok if she was three states away…or around the world! Start a hospital twitter account.  Oo, I have not done that yet…maybe that is my next great adventure… :)     Writing and blogging, when I finally tried it a few years back, came easily to me.  Facebook and Skype did as well.  Twitter was difficult.  I gave up a few times.  I am so glad I did not give up entirely, as I would have missed out on so many special friendships and links to great information, in the veterinary community and world at large.  In case it is as strange to you as it was for me, here are a few starting points.  Try it.  Then try it again.  I hope you find the twitter forum as rewarding as I have! Start with a personal account.  Most of the veterinarians on twitter with whom I engage speak for themselves, not their practice.  This gives more freedom to say random, un-veterinary things.  If you want to say, “prevent heartworm disease in your pets” in one tweet, then “my dog just did the cutest thing!” then “I got some great sweet corn at the Farmer’s Market today!” no one will say, “Well that’s a weird train of thought for a veterinary professional!”  And you do not need to worry that you are representing your business. But remember that you ARE representing your business.  People DO know that you are a vet, and in a few clicks of the mouse, they can find out where you practice, if you have not bragged about it endlessly in your tweets and profile already (which I think you should, by the way.)  So… Keep it clean. Be kind.  I suppose “be kind” is also self-explanatory.  Still, twitter is much more fun if everyone is kind.  If you have a gripe about a company, send it to them in a DM (direct message).  Then when they respond, you can tweet that  - “You would not believe how quickly @GreatCompany resolved an issue for me! Thank you @GreatCompany :)”  Be twitter-kind.  Twitter has its own quirks that you would not automatically know.  Not shouting (THIS IS SHOUTING) is kind.  “Retweeting” (Repeating another’s tweet and giving them credit) is kind.  Following someone who follows you is kind.  Talking directly to others using @ followed by their twitter name is kind.  Be as good at patient confidentiality as you are in Real Life.  Do not share patient and client information without the permission of your client and your veterinary hospital leadership.  Even with blessings all around, do not share specific medical information about a specific case.  Yes: (with permission of boss and client and photographer) “How cute is my patient?? http://twitpic.com/mjpib” Even better: (less permission-getting needed) “How gorgeous is my cat?? http://twitpic.com/sh0of” Follow people you would enjoy getting to know.  When I started twitter, I followed family members and friends, veterinarians and other pet lovers and people in Omaha.  In hindsight, that was one thing I got right from the beginning. Keep tweeting till it makes sense.  My brother Dave convinced me to start twitter, because he knew I could reach a larger audience with pet preventative care information.  For several months I would open twitter, watch the time line of the people I had followed, close twitter, and sigh, “I just don’t get it.  It’s like facebook without the fun pictures.”  Dave would smile and say “Don’t give up” and I would repeat the process:  open twitter-check timeline-close twitter-sigh-gripe.  Till one day, I did get it.  “Hi how’s it going?” someone tweeted.  “Great” I tweeted back.  Hey, this was fun!  It was like waving to a neighbor, only it was ok if she was three states away…or around the world! Start a hospital twitter account.  Oo, I have not done that yet…maybe that is my next great adventure… :)   Sat, 17 Jul 2010 22:59:53 GMT http://veterinarycommunity.dvm360.com/_Twitter/blog/2466765/30809.html Finch93 2010-07-17T22:59:53Z Veterinary Voices Veterinary Community   Writing and blogging, when I finally tried it a few years back, came easily to me.  Facebook and Skype did as well.  Twitter was difficult.  I gave up a few times.  I am so glad I did not give up entirely, as I would have missed out on so many special friendships and links to great information, in the veterinary community and world at large.  In case it is as strange to you as it was for me, here are a few starting points.  Try it.  Then try it again.  I hope you find the twitter forum as rewarding as I have! Start with a personal account.  Most of the veterinarians on twitter with whom I engage speak for themselves, not their practice.  This gives more freedom to say random, un-veterinary things.  If you want to say, “prevent heartworm disease in your pets” in one tweet, then “my dog just did the cutest thing!” then “I got some great sweet corn at the Farmer’s Market today!” no one will say, “Well that’s a weird train of thought for a veterinary professional!”  And you do not need to worry that you are representing your business. But remember that you ARE representing your business.  People DO know that you are a vet, and in a few clicks of the mouse, they can find out where you practice, if you have not bragged about it endlessly in your tweets and profile already (which I think you should, by the way.)  So… Keep it clean. Be kind.  I suppose “be kind” is also self-explanatory.  Still, twitter is much more fun if everyone is kind.  If you have a gripe about a company, send it to them in a DM (direct message).  Then when they respond, you can tweet that  - “You would not believe how quickly @GreatCompany resolved an issue for me! Thank you @GreatCompany :)”  Be twitter-kind.  Twitter has its own quirks that you would not automatically know.  Not shouting (THIS IS SHOUTING) is kind.  “Retweeting” (Repeating another’s tweet and giving them credit) is kind.  Following someone who follows you is kind.  Talking directly to others using @ followed by their twitter name is kind.  Be as good at patient confidentiality as you are in Real Life.  Do not share patient and client information without the permission of your client and your veterinary hospital leadership.  Even with blessings all around, do not share specific medical information about a specific case.  Yes: (with permission of boss and client and photographer) “How cute is my patient?? http://twitpic.com/mjpib” Even better: (less permission-getting needed) “How gorgeous is my cat?? http://twitpic.com/sh0of” Follow people you would enjoy getting to know.  When I started twitter, I followed family members and friends, veterinarians and other pet lovers and people in Omaha.  In hindsight, that was one thing I got right from the beginning. Keep tweeting till it makes sense.  My brother Dave convinced me to start twitter, because he knew I could reach a larger audience with pet preventative care information.  For several months I would open twitter, watch the time line of the people I had followed, close twitter, and sigh, “I just don’t get it.  It’s like facebook without the fun pictures.”  Dave would smile and say “Don’t give up” and I would repeat the process:  open twitter-check timeline-close twitter-sigh-gripe.  Till one day, I did get it.  “Hi how’s it going?” someone tweeted.  “Great” I tweeted back.  Hey, this was fun!  It was like waving to a neighbor, only it was ok if she was three states away…or around the world! 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