#47: Vet Tech Appreciation Week
Shelter medicine is its own brand of veterinary care. Most of the patients are one-time visitors, getting a quick medical evaluation and a few vaccines, maybe a spay/neuter, before hitting the adoption floor and going home to a new loving family.
As our services grew, HAWS’ SNIP clinic added pets from local rescues to our list of clients, plus we’ve offered vaccine clinics and sterilization surgeries to the pets of Waukesha County residents in need. Again, these are mostly single-visit clients. Now we’ve been able to add pet wellness services to the general public, offering routine check-ups and even some urgent care to all pets in our community.
The sheer volume of pets that go through HAWS SNIP/veterinary clinic is mind-boggling, keeping our staff very busy.
The glue that holds the system together, though, is the hard-working vet techs! This team does scheduling, surgical prep and assistance, dental cleanings, recovery monitoring, follow-up care, and more. And did we mention the messes they clean up? Surgery, blood draws, IVs and vaccines are not always tidy procedures.
The animals staying at HAWS are in great medical condition due to the attention and compassion of our vet techs. The vet techs are all in pretty good shape, too, with all the running around they do!