Have License, Will Travel: Life as a Traveling Veterinarian with IndeVets

In 2016, fresh out of vet school, I moved to Colorado for an internship. This position was only for a year, then the plan was to move back to my home state after the internship was complete. This was the first time I was away from home for an extended period—I had grown up in Minnesota and stayed in the state for undergraduate and veterinary school. I fell in love with the mountains and lifestyle, and when my internship was ending, decided to stay in Colorado instead of moving back to Minnesota, as I had originally planned.

How I became an IndeVet

After years of working at various GP clinics near Denver, I was feeling stuck and missing variety. I joined IndeVets looking for more flexibility, and for the opportunity to explore and help at a variety of clinics in Colorado. I really enjoy seeing how different clinics run, and working with clients and staff of diverse backgrounds, so being an IndeVet offered me the opportunity to switch up my routine.

Combining work with my love of travel as a traveling veterinarian

As much as I loved Colorado, I was starting to miss home. While I didn’t want to move back full time, I did want to be able to go home more often. IndeVets helped me to get licensed in a second state, and to occasionally work for a few weeks at a time in Minnesota. By this time, the travel bug was starting to bite, and a friend of mine from my internship reached out. She was now a practice manager at a clinic in Alaska, and they needed help throughout the year to provide veterinary care in an area with a frequent veterinary shortage. That conversation helped spark what’s now our Travel Associate IndeVet program — an optional opportunity for Associate IndeVets to take short-term assignments in new cities and clinical settings as traveling veterinarians, with IndeVets handling licensing, travel, and lodging. I’ll admit, I wondered about the logistics and cost at first. But the assignment came with a per diem and reimbursed travel on top of my regular pay, so the trip paid for itself while I kept earning. That took the financial guesswork out of it entirely.

I recently completed my first travel assignment, and it was even better than expected.

Support at all stages

IndeVets coordinated seamlessly with the Alaska clinics to do the following:

• Put together a work schedule
• Set up lodging
• Coordinate the rental car and flights
• Obtain my licensing promptly

My amazing team at IndeVets checked in with me throughout my time in Alaska, and made sure I knew they were available if I had any questions or concerns, or needed assistance with anything.

Experiencing new clinics

While the basics of vet med are the same everywhere, every clinic does things a little differently, and the needs and resources of the community can vary. For example, there are fewer veterinary specialists in Alaska. Clients also have differing expectations around cost and level of care, so spectrum-of-care conversations were especially important on some of the more challenging cases.

One of my favorite patients and cases was a dog that we were managing with outpatient care for benign prostatic hyperplasia that was severe enough that it led to urinary outflow obstruction. Hospitalization at an ER for an indwelling urinary catheter, close monitoring, and fluids was not an option for various reasons, so I was working along with a great team of local veterinarians to manage and hand off the case daily for outpatient care until the pet was healthy enough to not need daily interventions. I really enjoyed the teamwork and camaraderie among the veterinarians and staff. The primary clinic where I was working is also Fear Free certified, as are all IndeVets, so it was a great fit overall.

Exploring new areas: Palmer, Big Lake, and Anchorage, Alaska

Alaska is a dream for people like me who love being outside. In fact, after my plane landed and I picked up my rental car, my first stop was to pick up bear spray so I could immediately go off on a few small hikes around a lake and to a waterfall. It was quite rainy during my trip, but the sun came out enough for me to enjoy some lovely time outside in the mountains, near waterways, and overlooking glaciers.

When it was raining or I wanted more rest or leisure, I made sure to check out the local dining establishments and breweries – my favorite restaurant was an Italian place called Nonna’s Osteria, and my favorite brewery was Bleeding Heart.

You can’t bring bear spray on a plane, so on my last day, I dropped off my bear spray with a friend for safe keeping until I return, and then was off to the Alaska Native Heritage Center. I love to learn about local history and culture, so this was a fantastic way to finish my trip. The guided tour of the traditional native Alaskan dwellings was the highlight.

I also experienced the midnight sun for the first time, which meant I had even more daylight to be out enjoying the mountains and scenery. Being on a red-eye flight where you are chasing daylight the entire way was quite the experience as well.

Being part of the Travel Associate IndeVet Program has allowed to combine my love of travel with my passion for veterinary medicine, and I never had to trade away the steady salary and schedule that drew me to IndeVets in the first place. I’m really looking forward to returning this fall to work with these teams again and do more exploring as a traveling veterinarian.

If you’re interested in learning more about what it’s like to be an IndeVet, you can join our monthly webinar where practicing doctors from our team will be on-hand to answer any questions you may have.