veterinary technician

veterinarian

veterinary internal medicine specialist

veterinary criticalist

veterinary surgeon

Ethos-Veterinary-Health

I loved the work I did and my coworkers, but management is terrible.

This was my introduction to the veterinary field and it was my favorite job yet. I loved interacting with the animals and the difference I made. You need to have sympathy while also maintaining a healthy healthy separation so you don't get emotionally burnt out. There are days where you see a lot of death and cases that will break your heart, and there are days that bring so much joy and hope. I found a lot of purpose knowing that I had a positive impact on the animals' and owners' lives, even if it was just making the worst day of their life a little more bearable. There will be days that the clinic is over capacity and everyone is pushed to their limits. Not everyone handles stress well and clients will occasionally yell at you, so an understanding of de-escalation while staying calm and professional is a must.

The doctors at VESH are  incredibly knowledgeable and kind. You need a good sense of medical terminology and an understanding of when clinical staff can or can't talk, but once you've learned this communication is easy. You could tell that everyone really cared about the work they did. There is a fair amount of gossip throughout the hospital, but this is fairly standard in healthcare settings. There is a very high turnover rate, and the training process needs to be improved, so it can be frustrating when people don't follow procedure or get contradicting answers from management.

I loved what I did, but I left because of management. There is a huge divide between clinical/reception employees and management at VESH. As I mentioned, management is very inconsistent about standard processes and often contradict themselves. Management only works during business hours, and their time is split between both locations, so they're only available about 20 hours per week. This does not work for a hospital that is open 24/7, especially when most of the situations that require management occur at night or on weekends. The clinic was always understaffed and employees were constantly expected to do more than they possibly could. This meant that we often had long wait times and would have to turn people away, which resulted in us facing more unhappy clients. There was a suggestion box that management would respond to in the monthly newsletter, but they would not include overly negative submissions and they'd normally respond "We'll look into that!" without actually making any changes.

Management also had a lot of double standards when it came to policies and scheduling. Some people were allowed to have set schedules, agreed on days that they would never be scheduled, or would work only early shifts or only late shifts. This was extremely frustrating for other employees who would get bounced back and forth between early and late shifts and had to work every weekend. When I asked about having a set day that I'm never scheduled or only working early shifts I was told that they don't do that. The schedule would also only be posted one week in advance.

I left because the unpredictable back-and-forth schedule was impacting my health, the pay was not enough given MA's cost of living, and management did not show me the same respect they showed others. I asked what growth opportunities I had at VESH to further my career and was told there weren't any besides becoming a vet or vet tech. I gave my two week notice and was ignored by management the remainder of my time. The manager and my supervisor never even acknowledged my letter of resignation and were always at the other location the rest of the days I worked. The way management responded to my resignation was incredibly unprofessional.

Let me just say this. It’s been a few years since I worked there, but the experience as a whole is still incredibly haunting. 

From the get go things seemed a bit sketchy. I was hired almost on the spot. I had some experience from a family run practice, so it wasn’t like I was going in with nothing. I was also doing an online vet tech program. I did everything I could to try and succeed while I was there. However, it felt as though I was the only one trying. I was constantly being given different directions. They state in their job as they’re eager to train, but that was a joke. I was barely trained- they showed me how to clock in and out, nothing else. When I had a question, I was made to feel stupid for asking. I gave up holidays, weekends, and time with my child I was promised from the interview I could have. The trip to wolburn was exciting and interesting; but that’s about it. Literally on my 90 day they let me go, and it was one of the most awkward and horrible mornings I’ve ever had. When I came in the office that morning everyone was silent and didn’t say hello or good morning. Which in hindsight; they KNEW. The fact that other staff members KNEW I was being let go before I did. As if it was office gossip. I felt so hollow and uncomfortable. It was three weeks before Christmas. The conversation was basically “you’re an at will employee and we can no longer put in the time to train you”... ok? When did you bother training me In the first place? I was so distraught. The clinical manager reached over to me and said “well... at least you’ll have one check for Christmas!” Which may have been one of the most time deaf responses I’ve ever heard. Luckily I landed on my feet and found a job in a different office- one that’s actually well managed and puts time into their employees. I saw another person who worked for the office a few months later- when I asked if they remembered me, they said “kind of, but honestly the turn over rates so high at that place it’s impossible to keep up.” DO NOT TRUST THIS PLACE OR INVEST ANY OF YOUR TIME INTO IT. They’ll use you while they can then throw you away.

There are many underlying issues within this hospital. The biggest being the questionable turn around time and the amount of people being let go for unspecified reasons with no specific situations. They present to be a kind and excepting environment but it is all a front. Most of the individuals you work with on a daily basis are kind individuals (if they decide they like you), however individuals higher up are not (they seem nice but are putting up a front). The flow in this hospital is horrible and puts support staff in a bad position constantly. It creates massive tension between all support staff as the day progresses. You feel like you always need to protect yourself and are not given the opportunity to give patients the proper patient care that "you will get written up for" if you don't do. Triage patients are constantly put on the back burner for Doctor exams again putting all support staff in a bad position. If you want to proceed and still apply to this job have confidence in yourself and your skills. Use this as a learning opportunity. There is a lot to learn due to the size and specialties of this hospital, but be warned you will be put in many situations that will be extremely uncomfortable and when you ask for support or bring up the need for a change to advocate for your patients, the change and support won't be seen. Also be prepared to never leave on time (usually an hour late) and constantly feel awful leaving the next shift with an excessive amount of treatments and triages that still need to be seen.

I was so excited when I finally got this job due to my love of animals and background in customer service. Everything in the beginning sounded and looked great, everything appeared to be exactly what I wanted and was looking for in a workplace. I was thrilled to work for a seemingly well established veterinary hospital!

Upon being hired, I was greeted with the most disorganized training I've ever had. No one knew what was going on, I kept getting thrown into queues I was not trained on and left to figure it out alone. Supervisors are the least helpful people in the building, and quite frankly are not fit to be supervisors. Compared to any place I've worked before, I've never seen such poor management. They wonder why people continue to leave, or interview and never come back.

There is no job security - people have disappeared left and right, either fired or they quit. I feel anxiety about my job security daily. 

Metrics don't make sense; supervisors can't tell you what one or the other mean or how it breaks down, only that you need to work on it.

Breaks are incredibly short and randomly spaced out. I can go for four hours with one ten minute break, which is quite frankly not even long enough to clear your mind.

Your coworkers will rarely speak to you, you will feel like you're alone through most of this. 

It's a busy work environment, which I thrive in, but lack of management and zero rewards for the hard work you do makes this job feel lacking in all aspects. If you like animals and customer service, there are much better options out there. I feel as if I were tricked into working here by promises of what I needed and wanted, none of which ever happened. 

The only enjoyable part of this is being able to help clients and their pets. 

Keep looking and don't look back unless you're happy working in a miserable, exhausting and cold feeling environment.

I believe that any job can be your dream job, as long as you love the company you work with. Let me say that I couldn't ask for a better facility, team and work family than VSH North County (part of ETHOS). I have worked at many vet hospitals over the years, and was just about to leave the field entirely when I found VSH. The people here are amazing - passionate about veterinary medicine, knowledgeable, and really fun to work with. Everyone cares about each other in a way that I have never seen at any other job, and surprisingly (for a vet hospital) the drama is almost non-existent. The hospital itself has brand new facilities, including a new MRI, and we are at the leading edge of veterinary medicine across the board - almost all of our doctors are board certified, and many are active participants in new studies and research (we just enrolled our first hemangiosarcoma ePUSH study patient - yay!).

If you are passionate about veterinary medicine, and feel like you want to be part of something bigger than the typical 9-5 of a day practice, this might be the perfect fit for you. It never gets boring. Ever. We are ER and specialty only, meaning we get to see the most interesting cases, only. In addition to that, our hospital is growing, thus the opportunities for growth are ALWAYS there. There are constantly new positions opening up, and the company takes notice of your interests and works with you in helping you build your career towards wherever you want to take it. Being that ETHOS is such a big company, the possibilities are endless.

At the end of the day, I can honestly say that I love my job. Not everyone can say that.

I worked here for 1 year before leaving due to relocation - it had its ups and downs. In terms of pros - there is always something to learn and many of the doctors/techs are willing to teach and allow you to learn new skills. You will stay busy! There is definitely room for growth at this hospital - I honed the skills I already knew and learned how to perform new procedures/skills as well. However, many of the techs can be cliquish and most everyone talks behind everyone’s back at one point or another, Instead of addressing things to your face. In my experience, I was not treated as a member of the team or given any opportunity to use my skills/knowledge or learn new things for the first 6-7 months due to the more senior team members I worked with refusing to include or acknowledge me as a technician. Management often doesn’t know this type of treatment is going on until you bring it to their attention - or they turn a blind eye idk. There is some favoritism but it didn’t seem too out of control to me. The pay - abysmal. For a specialty hospital in Southern California to be paying a technician 17 dollars an hour is disappointing to say the least. When I asked for a raise, I was told I could get a raise now and never get one again or wait until annual reviews. This is the lowest paying specialty hospital in San Diego county - yet they charge almost 200 dollars for an exam only (in ER). That’s my only major complaint, they do not and will not pay you a living wage. Turnover rate is high due to this. 

This job was one of the most rewarding jobs I have ever done. I do want to stress that this hospital is one of the best around AS A PATIENT. While working there I was given various instructions by higher ups throughout my time there. While working as the lowest level tech, I would get instructions from higher level techs. I was instructed and taught by higher level techs how to to certain tasks. After I was taught how to complete the task, I was given instructions to complete the task by the higher level tech and after it was completed, I was informed I was not the qualified level to complete this task which was NOT what I was told by the higher level vet tech. After this, management informed me that they were terminating me for violation of policy. If something goes wrong here and you are the lower level vet tech, prepare to be the scapegoat for the higher level tech. Management does not care about its techs. What I WILL say is that these doctors that work here are amazing. Dr. Ruby is one of the most gifted Dr's I have ever met. This job was extremely rewarding but, the manager of this location ruined it for me and a lot of others who worked here. I am unsure if their wages have increased BUT, their introductory techs made minimum wage ($12.50 at the time) even overnight. It is NOT worth it if the pay has not increased. 

Working in this environment was a challenging journey marked by toxicity and favoritism. The lack of understanding for personal circumstances and constant overworking create an atmosphere where one feels undervalued and unappreciated.

The alarming instances of forgetfulness for pain medications to patients especially surgical, unkept kennels, and perpetual understaffing in the surgery team and ER especially raise ethical concerns about patient care. The inadequate pay, coupled with new hires receiving more, reflects a disregard for the loyalty of long-term employees.

The consistent price increases add financial strain, highlighting a stark imbalance between expectations and compensation. Being thrown into tasks without proper guidance, coupled with blowback when questioning processes, further compounds the stressful work environment.

While the exceptional team and dedicated doctors made the experience worthwhile, the negative aspects overshadow these positives. The lack of fairness and equal treatment, where friends of managers receive special treatment, leaves a lasting negative impression. Overall, the job fails to foster a supportive and appreciative workplace, despite the valuable lessons learned from dedicated colleagues and doctors.

During my time at this organization, I encountered several significant challenges that impacted both employee morale and overall operational effectiveness. New staff were often expected to manage front-of-hospital responsibilities independently, with little to no formal training or support. The facility appeared consistently understaffed, which placed undue pressure on existing employees and contributed to a high-stress work environment.

Compensation did not reflect the demands of the role, and employees were frequently overworked. The workplace culture often felt hostile, with interpersonal dynamics resembling unprofessional, high school-like drama. This created a divisive and unsupportive team atmosphere.

Despite promoting a commitment to mental health awareness, management practices did not reflect this in action. Many staff members experienced burnout, with limited effort made to retain or support them. Favoritism was also a concern, with certain employees receiving preferential treatment while others were subjected to disproportionate scrutiny.

I hope this feedback can contribute to future improvements in training, staff support, and workplace culture.

AVSE management and corporate does not care about you as a person or human being. They care about their clientele, money, and keeping the higher ups happy more than their employees. No matter how much effort you put in to this hospital, you are 100% replaceable to them.

Management will also change their policy’s without any consideration to their employees, because again, you don’t matter. They will say it’s due to “growing pains” and blame things on previous employees.

Regardless of the amount of hours you work in a day, even if it is 12+ hour days, your pet will not be allowed in the building unless want to pay their hospitalization fee each day you bring your pet in. This includes animals with previous ongoing medical issues. Pets are only allowed if being seen by a veterinarian that day.

Communication is also just awful. Lots of employees here are not happy, regardless of what management may say during the interview process. Save yourself some time, effort, and mental energy and go work somewhere else. They are going to appreciate you more than AVSE ever will.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Veterinary technician 3 salaries reported	$30.83 per hour
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