The Vet Tech Cafe's Podcast

Caffeinators, you've been asking for him for years, and we were finally able to have Walter Brown come by the Vet Tech Cafe! We recently had lunch with him at IVECCS and had a long discussion about axolotls there, so we talked about his love of exotics, and tarantulas in particular. We also talked about content creation and how all of that came to be for him, which is a wild story. He's also very passionate about bringing veterinary medicine to inner city schools as a career option, so we talked about all that too! We covered so much ground in this one, and this could easily turn into a series of episodes. Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, you know we strive each year to sit down with the sitting President of NAVTA, so buckle up because here we go! Beckie Mossor recently came by to tell us what NAVTA is working on, talk about their recent demographic survey, and also talk a bit about National Vet Tech Week, which has morphed a bit over the last several years. We also talked about another project she's heavily involved in, the Veterinary Industry Giving Tree. As always, it was wonderful to chat with her and see what she, and NAVTA, are up to! Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, can you believe it's time to kick off Year 7 of the Vet Tech Cafe?! And you know what that means, our annual check in with Liz Hughston! This is an important one, as she's "retiring" from vet med. She'll still be active in some areas, but has already began scaling back in many others, and will continue to do so. So we talked about retirement from vet med and what that looks like, and also the dissolution of the National Veterinary Professionals Union, and the difficulty there. She thinks this might be her last episode with us, but we'll try to convince her to come back next year to see how retirement is actually going! Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Welcome to the Taproom!  Today's topics: Jeff is back to work!  And we tackle the topic of Vet Tech Week.  Thank you all for your feedback on National Vet Tech Week.  We tried to go through all your comments and comment on them with our thoughts.  Let's keep the conversation going as we move in to Vet Tech Week.   Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, you know we love to talk about veterinary technicians doing awesome things, and this episode with Sara Hunt is no different! We talk about her VTS in Diagnostic Imaging and how she's using that to perform ultrasounds! She actually started long before the VTS(DI) existed, but is now putting her title to good use! She takes us through training academies to perform ultrasounds, the inception of her Academy, and how she utilizes her training in her role. It's a fascinating discussion we know you'll enjoy! Show Links: https://avtdi.org/ Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, we are going to the South Side of Chicago to Fly the W for this episode and talk about all things shelter medicine. Carla Hubbs is the supervising veterinary technician of animal care and control in a very large, open intake municipal animal care and control facility. We talked about unique challenges and perceptions of shelter medicine she wishes her non-shelter colleagues were aware of, some of the unique situations she's worked with, and of course public perception as well. We covered A LOT of really important shelter medicine ground in this one, as well as Carla's committee work to help get title protection in the State of Illinois. Don't miss it! Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, you know we talk about mental health. A lot. For this episode, Dr. Marie Holowaychuk reached out to us to talk about her book and mental health and well being in our space and this episode is not to be missed. We must say it comes with a trigger warning that we do discuss, albeit very briefly, suicide, so if you are struggling please reach out via *988 or another resource. Through this episode, we spend a lot of time looking at mental health and research among the veterinary technician community and burnout specifically, and how do we start to turn these ever-important conversations into actions that can generate results. A lot to unpack in this one!   Show Links: https://988lifeline.org/ https://acompassionatecalling.com/ https://revivingvetmed.com/ https://marieholowaychuk.com/   Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Dave and Jeff at IVECCS in San Diego!  Recap of our conference experience.  We loved seeing all our caffeinators... too many to mention.  We've got some great guests lined up from networking this past week that we're very excited to talk to.  Were you at IVECCS?  We'd love to hear how your experience was! Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, do you like cats? That's a dumb question! This episode is all cats, all the time! Caitlin Dutcher-Lundy reached out to us a while back and this turned in to an awesome episode! Caitlin is THE FIRST VTS-CP(Feline) to have successfully applied and passed the examination, and we talked about the process and pathway, and also all the cool things her hospital does-SPOILER ALERT, her hospital sees dogs but that whole area is separate from the cats to keep stress to a minimum. This was a fascinating discussion that brought up a lot to think about when it comes to hospital logistics! Show Links:  Where to become a cat friendly veterinary professional.  https://catvets.com/cat-friendly/certificate-program/    https://icatcare.org/ https://catvets.com/ Join the Feline Veterinary Technician Unite! Facebook group    Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

As Dave and Jeff prepare for IVECCS they had one final Taproom before heading to San Diego!  What are your thoughts on Space vs. Ocean?  Which is scarier?   We've got a lot of great guests coming up in the next couple months!   HiVE Anaheim: https://navc.com/hive/vet-nurse-and-tech/ Illinois Veterinary Technicians: https://www.isvma.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/08/ISVMA-Title-Infographic-7.25-10.pdf Union organization shutdown: https://news.vin.com/default.aspx?pid=210&catId=617&Id=12798538

Caffeinators, are you ready to laugh and hear cool stories?! We recently had Chelsey Vanetten over at the Vet Tech Cafe, and she is a VTS in Anesthesia and Analgesia. She told us all about anesthetizing fish, researching large mouth bass, and how she utilizes her knowledge and expertise to elevate anesthesia in veterinary practices in which she provides relief services, and training and education. This is an incredibly fun episode you don't want to miss! Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Been a while since we had a taproom!  We're retiring our "state of the profession" quiestion for all our guests, but we had to let it go out with one last hurrah.  We talk about respect, patient:tech ratios, and surviving in the field.    

Caffeinators, does anyone on your leadership team have an advanced, non-veterinary, degree in something to do with leadership? If not, we highly recommend listening to this episode with Amanda Kriesel. She has a Master's degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology, and did her thesis on OTJ veterinary technicians. This made for a fascinating discussion about leadership. She is also very active with the Minnesota Association of Veterinary Technicians and worked with her group to recently get title protection in their state. We cover a lot of ground in this one, and there are some other really raw emotions in this one, so make sure to give it a listen! Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, do you know what benefits you receive? Do you understand there are various federal and state protections you're entitled to? Do you understand your benefits package or know where to find the information in your employee handbook? Do you even have one of those? In this episode of the Vet Tech Cafe, we sat down with Andrea Crabtree Wood who is a CVPM and has several HR certifications as well, to talk all things employee benefits. Oh, and if you're provided a benefit for work and are not allowed to use it, you can't be retaliated against either. There's a lot to unpack in this one, but a lot of really valuable information.    Show Links: https://www.pawsitiveleaders.com/ http://www.furpawsconsulting.com/ Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe

Caffeinators, this is a HEAVY episode. But it is one you ABSOLUTELY need to tune in to. You may remember our episode with Kelly Foltz from 2023 where she touched on the idea of futile care and has since been involved in researching this topic (link below). In this most recent discussion we try to define and label this idea, which proves to be very tricky and as yet is still undecided. But the fact remains, as evidenced by her research, we all have, or will, experience futile care in veterinary medicine. That "why are we doing this" patient. This episode starts that discussion and hopefully many more because we need to be preparing all future veterinarians and credentialed technicians for this. We need to learn to identify it, talk about it, and develop steps to mitigate it because it is not going away. DO NOT miss this episode. Show Links: The first paper by Peterson et al focused on clinicians: https://avmajournals.avma.org/view/journals/javma/260/12/javma.22.01.0033.xml   The paper I co-authored focused on technicians: https://avmajournals.avma.org/view/journals/javma/263/4/javma.24.10.0659.xml; published this year.   Today's Veterinary Practice article, may be more accessible than the research papers: https://todaysveterinarypractice.com/practice-management/recognizing-futile-care-in-veterinary-medicine/   Hastings Center For Bioethics article by Dr. Peterson and Dr. Boyd: https://www.thehastingscenter.org/veterinarians-often-provide-futile-care-doing-so-comes-at-a-cost/   Marie Holowaychuk blog post: https://marieholowaychuk.com/2022/08/03/futile-care-and-the-impact-on-wellbeing-in-veterinary-medicine/   Practical Bioethics from 2023: https://www.practicalbioethics.org/whats-new/three-definitions-of-medical-futility-and-how-to-balance-them/   Human paper from 2005: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/16159066/   AMA paper from 2007: https://journalofethics.ama-assn.org/article/medical-futility-legal-and-ethical-analysis/2007-05 Our Links: Check out our sponsor https://betterhelp.com/vettechcafe for 10% off your first month of therapy Follow us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/vettechcafe Follow us on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/vettechcafepodcast Follow us on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/vet-tech-cafe Like and Subscribe on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCMDTKdfOaqSW0Mv3Uoi33qg Our website: https://www.vettechcafe.com/ Vet Tech Cafe Merch: https://www.vettechcafe.com/merch If you would like to help us cover our podcast expenses, we'd appreciate any support you give through Patreon. We do this podcast and our YouTube channel content to support the veterinary technicians out there and do not expect anything in return! We thank you for all you do. 🐾 Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/vettechcafe