363 - Help! My Associate Vet is Bullying The New Grads

When a new graduate veterinarian joins your team, they bring fresh energy, curiosity, and hope for the future. But what happens when an experienced associate begins to undermine that confidence? Veterinary workplace bullying isn’t always loud or obvious, yet its impact can be devastating. Toxic behavior drives away bright new grads, damages team morale, and creates long-term retention challenges for practice leaders. In this episode of the Uncharted Veterinary Podcast, Dr. Andy Roark and Stephanie Goss dig into a tough mailbag question: “Help! My associate vet is bullying the new grads.” They unpack how leaders can recognize patterns of toxic workplace behavior, the importance of documenting incidents, and strategies for protecting new graduate veterinarians while addressing associate veterinarian conflict head-on.

Set sail with us at the Uncharted Veterinary Conference 2026, live at VMX on January 16 in Orlando. This exclusive one-day event is designed to help veterinary leaders turn ideas into action, build confidence in their next steps, and connect with a powerful community that believes in the future of vetmed. Spots are limited to keep the experience intentional and high-impact, so don’t wait, register today.

Step into leadership with the support and skills you need at the Uncharted Team Leads Summit. This one-day, interactive event is designed for veterinary supervisors and leads who want to strengthen communication, boost confidence, and guide their teams with purpose. You’ll learn how to handle team venting in healthy ways, explore practical AI tools, and shape your role so it works for you instead of the other way around. With small-group workshops, RACE-approved CE, and a community that understands the realities of leadership in vetmed, this summit is the perfect place to grow. Reserve your spot today: Team Leads Summit 2025

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Do you have something that you would love Andy and Stephanie to discuss on the podcast? If so, send us a message through the mailbag! Submit it here: unchartedvet.com/mailbag

Stephanie is a former practice manager who lives on the Olympic Peninsula in Washington State. With over 20 years of experience both on the floor and in the office, Stephanie is passionate about staff education, team culture, management and training. Stephanie loves to geek out about technology, especially Practice Management Software. She has experience as a practice manager in both private and corporate practices, ranging in size from one to seven doctors. She has experience as a consultant and trainer with AVImark software, paperlite/paperless transitions, practice management and staff training.