What is it Like to be a Veterinarian? with Dr. Greer of CheckOut Veterinary

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey, thirty six thirteen ten Wiba and ask the experts,
brought to you by Checkout Veterinary. Of course, the website
checkout vet dot com. That's checkout vet dot com. Great
website to learn all about checkout Veterinary, the different services,
learn about the doctors, and of course learn about their
drive in drive out vet service, those great bay doors,

(00:22):
how it works. As a matter of fact, I know,
doctor Greer. They redesigned the website a little while ago
and it's just really really nice, great, great way to
learn more about checkout Veterinary online. Checkout vet dot com.
That's checkout vet dot com. Don't forget your first visit
is free. That exam is free at checkout Veterinary. Obviously,
testing and other things those there are fees associated with

(00:44):
that if if they are needed. But again that first
visit and that exam is free. A great thing about
the website is things are spelled out in black and white,
make it very clear for you to understand what exactly
things cost and kind of a kind of a range
for certain procedures and medications and other things. Speaking of
checkout vet two the hours Monday through Wednesday and Friday
through Sunday nine and nine am until five pm. That means,

(01:06):
of course they're open on weekends and if you're wondering
about Thursdays, check in Vet is open Monday through Friday.
That includes obviously like seven days a week. And doctor
Greer of course recognized as the Veteran of the Year
by Veterinarian of the Year by the Westminster Kennel Club.

Speaker 2 (01:21):
Doctor, how are you doing today?

Speaker 3 (01:24):
I'm doing great, thank you. And we've got some big
things coming up. We've got Marshall open Monday through Friday
in Marshall, and we have two three new doctors that
we've hired, so they'll be coming on board so that'll
give us hours on Thursdays, we're going to have a
bit longer hours in the evening one night a week.
So there's some very good changes coming that'll make it

(01:44):
easier for our people to get in.

Speaker 1 (01:47):
It's like when the better better, the best becomes better,
which is yeah, it seems like a yeah, that is
that is really exciting. And now this week we're going
to talk about what it's like to be a veterinarian.
Is it was something that in doctor I you know
you and I get a chance to talk for a
half hour each week, and I've absolutely loved picking your

(02:08):
mind and get getting some insight of you know, of
pet care and what it's you know, kind of what
the experience is like for for patients and pets at
checkout Veterinary. But I don't think we've really talked a
lot about what it's like to be a to be
a VET, and before we kind of get into the
day to day stuff for a veterinarian, I want to
ask a little bit about you, doctor, why you know,

(02:30):
how long have you been a VET, and kind of
what was it that made you decide this is something
that I want to devote my life to.

Speaker 3 (02:37):
Well, I've been a vet almost forty four years, so
that means seven years before that I had to make
a decision to go to veterinary school. I love science.
I've always had fun in science and high school, junior high,
in high school, I've enjoyed it, and I knew I
wanted to do something with medicine, but frankly, and I
don't like sick people, so I decided that veterinary medicine

(02:58):
is better. I did work at a human hospital for
summer's drawing blood on patience I was that vampire that
used to come to your hospital room and draw blood,
and you know, I'd see patients that were sick and
I'd be like, Nope, nope, this isn't this isn't my bag.
But love medicine. If I had been born in the
sixteen hundreds, I probably would have been burned at the
stake because I'm you know, probably would have been classified
as a witch back then. So it's a, you know,

(03:20):
kind of an interesting place to be. But practicing medicine
is really fun and I think it's the best job
in the world. I'm absolutely elated that this has been
my career. I've never thought about it being a job.
I've always thought of it as a lifestyle, a career.
I love it, love it, And if we have kids
that are coming into the field, are interested in coming
into the field. I know there's a few people out
there that are discouraging him because of the length of

(03:43):
time it takes to be in school and the cost
of the loans. But I'll tell you, the loan repayment
isn't impossible when you get paid well as a new graduate,
and the people who are graduating now are amazing young people.
So we really have a lot of fun mentoring them.
So we'd love to have anybody that thinks they might
want to go to veterinary school come pay us a visit,

(04:03):
come spend a day with us. We do require a
few things. They have to wear clothes, toe shoes, no jeans,
and they have to eat before they come, because I've
had too many kids pass out. I mean, they're so
excited to come in they skip breakfast and then they
get kind of woozy. I'm like, no, no, no, you have
to have a granola bar before we start. So, you know,
simple things like that. But we would invite any young

(04:23):
person that thinks, well, old person too, that thinks they
might want to go into the field because it is
such an amazing field to be in, and I would
love to have people have that opportunity to see upfront
what it's really like to be in a veterinary practice.
The other cool thing about being a veterinarian is there's
a million careers you can do with it. It can
be pharmaceuticals, it can be food nutrition, it can be

(04:45):
product development, it can be researched. I mean, there's just
a huge number of career choices. If you have that
veterinary degree.

Speaker 1 (04:53):
What about for folks As we talked this morning with
doctor Marty Greer of check Out Veterinary, and I was
a little surprised the other week when you had mentioned
that that there is a there is a shortage of
veterinarians and it can be quite a quite a short
to find the right veat for for the clinic. And
I know when it comes to putting together that team
out check Out, at Checkout Veterinary, you really work hard

(05:14):
to find the right vets. And also, folks, you know
the texts and the managers, I mean, these are these
are people that have that all have a real passion
for what they do. And there's there's other roles at
a veterinary clinic aside from from being the doctor, isn't
there right?

Speaker 3 (05:32):
We have managers, we have veterinary assistance, we have veterinary technicians. Now,
a technician is a two year degree in most states.
In Wisconsin, it's a two year degree and there's actually
a bet tech school in Madison. There's a vet school
in Madison, So you can do a two year degree
if you don't want to do the full seven or
eight years of undergrad and then veterinary school. If that's
not in your future because of the length of time

(05:52):
in school, or it's not your academic preference. You know,
we have lots of other career choices, but it is
the most amazing job. I mean, it's absolutely cool. So
there are lots of options, and a lot of people
start off as a veterinary assistant or a vet tech
and then they go on to veterinary school. A lot
of people find that career path. But if you just
want to be with animals, if you just love animals,

(06:14):
and of course you have to love the people that
come with them because they don't come by themselves on
their own credit cards, you still have options for things
that we can have.

Speaker 2 (06:22):
You do.

Speaker 3 (06:22):
We have, you know, people that enter the phones, and
people that help in the exam rooms, and people that
happen surgery, managers, all kinds of things. So it's it's
really a fun career and lots of different options. I'm
very fortunate to have great managers at all the practices
we have. We own four practices all together, one in
La Mayra and then the one in Marshall and the
two and some prairie. I have amazing managers and incredible doctors,

(06:45):
wonderful staff. We're really blessed to have that team around
us that really keep things rolling because I can't do
this by myself, and as you know, I travel a bit,
so I can't be everywhere. I can't be at all
four locations in on the road, so I really have
to rely on very good people and we've been blessed
with those.

Speaker 1 (07:03):
And it's through hard work, I know, and I know
you and I have talked off the air about, you know,
the amount of work that goes into finding those those
right people at the clinics. And it's a great day
speaking of getting to know the right people to start
that relationship.

Speaker 2 (07:18):
If you're looking looking.

Speaker 1 (07:19):
For a really really cool place, if you haven't checked
out check out Veterinary yet for you and your pet,
definitely check them out online.

Speaker 2 (07:26):
Checkout vet dot com. Great data.

Speaker 1 (07:27):
Stop on in there right at twenty seven to ten
Prairie Leaks Drive and Sun Prairie Super convenient right off
the highway, right near the interstate. No matter where you are,
checkout VET. It's in a perfect convenient location for you. Again,
they're right at twenty seven to ten Prairie Lakes Drive.
You can learn more online check out vet dot com.
That's checkout vet dot com. We'll ask the doctor a
little bit about what the day is like for a veterinarian,

(07:48):
what goes on at the clinic day in and day out.
Look at the details on the doctor from the doctor
on that next in the meantime, Yeah, but to the
website yet, head on over check out vet dot com.

Speaker 2 (07:57):
That's check out vet dot com.

Speaker 1 (07:58):
More of our conversation with doctor Marty Greer of Checkout
Veterinary next here on thirteen ten Wi B A eight
forty six thirteen ten WI b A and ask the
experts with Checkout Veterinary. Talking of course this morning with
doctor Marty Greer of Checkout Veterinary. The website checkout vet
dot com. That's checkout vet dot com. Greaty to start

(08:20):
that relationship. Telephone number six oh eight three one eight
sixty seven hundred. That's six oh eight three one eight
sixty seven hundred. And talking with doctor Greer this week
about what it's like to be be a VET and
what it takes to get into that field and what
a rewarding field that is. Let's talk doctor about kind
of what uh kind of what goes on in a
vet clinic, maybe things that we don't always see as

(08:41):
as patients and pet parents. I know, there's there's obviously
the stuff that that we see up front, but there's
there's a lot of you're talking like managers on things.
There's a lot that goes on in the clinic day
in and day out for a veterinarian, isn't it isn't there?

Speaker 3 (08:56):
Oh yeah, Oh yeah, it's still a business. You know,
we still have to have all the moving parts of
HR and finance and all the stuff that goes with
running a business. Though that comes as a little bit
of a shock to people, like it doesn't just happen
by itself. But really, the veterinary clinic is interesting because,
first of all, it's not the only career in veterinary medicine.
It's the one that's most obvious to most people. But

(09:17):
no two days are over the same. You think you
have a schedule, you think you're going to have surgery
in the morning and appointments in the afternoon, and then
all kinds of things are happening and changing, and so
you have to kind of we even dive and adjust
to what's happening. Because when sick patients happen, or injured
patients happen. We have to adjust. There's not a way
that you can say, well, I'm sorry, you can only
get sick on Thursdays. So it's really important that people

(09:40):
know that there's a lot of flexibility, which is good.
It keeps us from ever having boredom. It keeps us
from having two days ever the same again, because everything
is different. So we do surgery, we do dentistries, we
do surgeries. I mean, veterinarians are kind of like the
jack of all trades. We do dermatology and ophthalmology and
internal medicine and surgery and dentistry, and of course then

(10:04):
wellness and vaccines and dewarmings and preventive care. All those
things fall to us because we don't have Although there
are specialists, you don't go to a specialist for everything.
They typically start with your primary care veterinarians and if
it's something that requires an advanced surgical procedure and ophthalmologists,
we have those available. We have them in specialized practices

(10:26):
in Wisconsin, and we have them at the Veterinary School.
So we have places that we can refer clients too
if they have something that's sick, but in general, veterinarians
handle about ninety five to ninety eight percent of all
the things that happen to your pet, So it kind
of gives you an idea of we don't have one
area of specialization. We do all the species. I can

(10:48):
do all the species I don't, but you can. So
I can do everything from chickens and turkeys to fish,
so small animal dogs and cats, to rabbits, to cows,
to horses, to goats and sheep. So we are qualified
to do all that. We're qualified to do zoo animals.
So if you have an area of interest, if you
want to marine medicine, you can you know, you can
go into that field. So that's what makes it really

(11:09):
cool is that there's so many options available to you
as a veterinarian cause of that tech, that you can
develop those areas of specialization and really, you know, thrive.
We in the Lamira practice do a lot of work
with breeders because we have a lot of purpose bread dogs.
So it's important people know that you can go to
a breeder and get a dog that's predictable, reliable, healthy,

(11:30):
health tested, all those things. But you can go to
the shelter you can go to the We have lots
of choices and we work with all of them, so
it makes it a really interesting career.

Speaker 1 (11:39):
It is pretty amazing. I was going to ask you too,
doctor about continuing education. I know one of the things
that for folks that you had mentioned earlier, you travel
a bit, and one of the things you often are
traveling to are sometimes things people don't think about. Are
you know, learning about pet nutrition and kind of latest there.
And we were talking a month or two ago about
some of the techno logical advancements in medical and medicine

(12:03):
other things there is just like with human medicine, pat
medicine is advancing every single day, and you got to
keep on top of that stuff, don't you.

Speaker 3 (12:12):
Oh yeah, when I graduated from bed school, there wasn't
even ultrasound for pets. So we have ultrasound, we have
set scans, we have MRIs, we have all kinds of
advanced imaging, we have all kinds of advanced treatments. We
can do chemotherapy on patients, we can do advanced surgical procedures.
So there's a lot of things that have changed, and yes,
so you have to keep up. We do have continuing
education requirements. I was on the Veterinary Examining Board for

(12:33):
seven years a few years ago, which gave me insights
into how other people practice and the kind of education
that we need to keep up with. Three weeks ago
we went to France to see the Royal Canaan factory
and understand what the Royal Canan products are, what their
new advancements are. So there's always something happening, something new,
something really interesting. As we were getting ready for this,

(12:54):
I was talking to my husband about next week, there's
two meetings that we can go to in the evening
that teach us about the new pancreas, pancreous medication, the
new probiotics. So you know, I'm pretty much a CE junkie. Yeah,
and encourage my staff to do the same as I
want them to stay on the cutting edge of all
that's new, and we want to make sure that you
are not excluded from any of those new advancements just

(13:17):
because you go to a small practice instead of going
to you know, corporation practice or going to a referral center.
I want my staff to be very well informed on
all what's new.

Speaker 1 (13:28):
Dog This Morning with doctor Marty Greer of checkout Veterinary online.
Checkout vet dot com. That's checkout vet dot com. Great
website to learn more about. Checkout veterinary what makes them
so unique? I'll learn more about their clinics. They've also
got a listing of different services. They got a price
list all online as well. Speaking of costs, don't forget
that first visit to checkout veterinary. It is free. That

(13:49):
exam is free. Mentioned learning more about taking care of
your pat The website checkout vet dot com is a
fantastic resource. And I wanted to talk to you about
doctor ask you a little bit about professional organizations. And
I know Westminster is a big one. We talk about
you have been recognized as Veterinarian of the Year from
Westminster Kennel Club. There's other groups as well as kind

(14:11):
of along those same lines of continuing education other things.
There's also organizations that you you know, you'll refer people
to or from time to time bring up, you know,
certain certain websites or other things. I'm staying interconnected with
with other other organizations, other groups is really important to
what you do as well.

Speaker 2 (14:30):
Isn't it?

Speaker 3 (14:32):
Absolutely? And we have lots of organizations in veterinary medicine
that go into specialties. We have lots of resources, so
it's great. We have an American Veterinary Medical Association, we
have a Wisconsin Veterinary Medical Association. And then we have breeding,
you know breeders, which is stereogenology. We have dermatology, we
have behavior. I think the behavior piece is really interesting.
I've taken a lot of course work in behavior, and

(14:53):
there's an American Association of Veterinary Behaviorists. So if people
are having concerns about their dog or cat's behavior, we
have people that are specialists in that, so you can
go to that website and find information. So there's so
many resources out there that if you just take a look,
you know, don't just go to Facebook because that's really

(15:15):
not your best medical source of information. Go to the
websites that are specially a specialty for those particular kinds
of skills that you're looking for based on what your
pets needs are. So there's almost a group for everything.
I mean, if you're raising backyard chickens, there's a group
for that. If you're raising sheep and goats, we've got
all those all those things that we have for choices.

(15:36):
There's some really great organizations and resources out there, so
be selective in what you look for. What to google
first may not be the best source of information.

Speaker 2 (15:46):
Dog's Morning with Doctor Marty Greave.

Speaker 1 (15:47):
Checkout Veterinarian the website checkout vet dot com. That's check
out vet dot com. Doctors are like from like a
doctor's perspective, like a mistake. You often see folks when
they bring their pet to the into a clinic that
that you know something that like any like really good
advice to either ways to prepare their pet or ways
to bring their pet into the clinic, and you know

(16:09):
things that maybe pet owners may not be aware of
but can really really help when it comes to having
a really good visit to the to the clinic.

Speaker 3 (16:19):
Well, I'd say, first of all, make sure that they're
on a leash or in a carrier if it's a cat,
so that they are protected and they're protected from other
pets that are in the clinic. And the lobby and
check out. We don't have that, but it check in
and at Marshall of course we have those regular waiting
rooms lobbies. Secondly is don't wait too long to come
in if your pet isn't feeling well, don't wait until

(16:40):
they're really really stick. Come in when you have the
early assignment there's something going on, because it's much easier
for us to make a diagnosis, develop a treatment plan,
and get that pet health turned around if you haven't
waited till the very end. Third is if they have anxiety,
we do have medications that we can send with you
prior to the visit. Even if we have seen you
for a bit, we can get some medication for you

(17:02):
so that their visit is less stressful. And if they're
less stressed, you're less dressed, and vice versa. So there's
several medications that we frequently prescribe for pets. It may
be tresed and it may be fulactine, it may be
a preslam, it may be gaba pen And we please
don't go to the cabinet and give their you just
go start taking stuff of your own and giving it
to your pets because you have to make sure that

(17:23):
you have the right drug in the right dose for
that particular condition. But there are definitely things that we
can do to help your pets, especially the cats. Cats
don't like being carriers. Cats don't like traveling in the car,
So anything we can do to make it easier for
them is best. There are some pheromones, which are hormones
that they only get through inhaling them smelling them. So
we have Adaptol for dogs, we have feel Away for cats.

(17:44):
Those are helpful, but sometimes you need more than that.
We don't recommend any of the CBD based products because
at this point we don't have any research and there's
no FDA approved products along those lines. So please talk
to your veterinary professional about a pharmaceutical that we know
is reliable. We know is what the dose is, we
know it's the source of the medication, so we can
help your pet have the best visit possible. Because I

(18:06):
don't want to wrestle with your cat and I don't
want to have struggles with your dog. I want this
to be as easy on them and as easy on
you as at all possible. It's possible to make that happen.

Speaker 1 (18:17):
Nobody likes, obviously, the anxiety. Nobody likes being bit, and
I know pets don't like. I obviously don't like getting
in that story.

Speaker 2 (18:24):
Are there is?

Speaker 1 (18:25):
When we're talking this morning with doctor Marty Greer, one
of the questions Doctor, I think a lot of folks
wonder is like being established as a patient.

Speaker 2 (18:33):
That does mean something, right.

Speaker 3 (18:36):
Oh, absolutely, And it's been a struggle for people. During COVID,
a lot of the clinics changed to curbside and cut
back on the number of appointments, the number of hours
that they were offering client visits. We never closed our
doors to anybody. We had them open during the entire thing,
so at least one person could come in with the PET.
I feel like the PET really needed to have you
along with them, And I think there's probably a few

(18:57):
places that are still reluctant to have people come through
the door. Pets come with people. That's just the way
it is. You need to be there for their support.
We need your information about their history, their health concerns,
all the things that are going on. So I think
it's important that we identify that that's the case. But
it has been sometimes hard to keep the number of
appointments available that we need to get people through the door.

(19:19):
So we've been in a position that we have started
because we've got our new hires, We've got for new
doctors coming or hired and coming, we have new staff,
additional staff, so we are now in the availability for capacity.
So if your pet has been established with us, great,
If you have a new pet, even better. And if
you're new to us, and that's lovely too, because we're

(19:41):
more than happy to get you through the door. Get
your pets care the need that they that they have.
You know, whether it's a wellness visit for vaccines and
blood work, or whether it's your pet is sick or injured,
needs a surgical procedure, whatever it happens to be Spain,
neuter dentistry, lump removal, whatever, don't be afraid to call
us because we're going to make a comment to figure
out a way to get you in. It may not

(20:02):
be the exact time that you asked for, but we
will figure out a way to get you through the
door because to me, it's really important that we have
that availability for established and for new clients.

Speaker 1 (20:12):
Guys do amazing work, that is for sure, and it's
a great day to start that relationship with the folks
and the doctors at checkout Veterinary again. You can pick
up phone gem McCall six so eight three one eight
sixty seven hundred. That's three one eight sixty seven hundred.
Go online the website checkout vet dot com that's all
one word. Check out vet dot com. All the information

(20:32):
up on the website. It is a really nice website.
If you haven't had a chance to check that out,
head on over to check out vet dot com. And
of course they're right at twenty seven to ten Prayer
Lakes driving Sun Prairie. Super convenient, great data. Start that relationship,
as we talked this morning with doctor Greer, doctor Safe Travels.
Thank you so much for joining us and we'll do
it all again.

Speaker 2 (20:50):
Real soon chat.

Speaker 3 (20:52):
Wait, thank you, thank you.

Speaker 1 (20:54):
And again that website, check out vet dot com. That's
check out vet dot com. Vicky McKenna comes your way
next here thirteen ten w I b e