veterinary technician

medical technologist

client services coordinator

accounts receivable clerk

veterinary assistant

Veterinary Specialty Center

What is the best part of working at the company?
The vet technicians, many of the veterinarians, and supporting staff are so hard-working and team-oriented. 

What is the most stressful part about working at the company?
The management was adversarial, made very little effort to accommodate requests for work-life balance, and were overall poor communicators. In terms of facilities, certain areas were not compliant with standards of sterility and employee comfort/safety. It very much felt like I was a body and nothing more. 

What is the work environment and culture like at the company?
The people who did the hard labor were incredible. Management and ownership, while paying lip-service to a family-like culture, lost sight of that vision, putting profitability over employee satisfaction. So many people were simply burnt out. Many times, it appeared to me that diagnostics and treatments were over-utilized in the pursuit of relentless growth. It's an industry where the emotional state of pet owners was viewed as a financial opportunity. I'm not a clinician, but it's clear that when an animal is going to die, there's no need to do treatments and diagnostics that will not truly result in the pet's well-being. It's exploitative of clients and employees alike. 

What is a typical day like for you at the company?
Long and stressful hours, feeling like a body in an assembly line. I do want to emphasize that the people on the front-line were supportive, though. It's the only thing that got me through the day during my time with the company.

My coworkers are amazing. It’s been extremely busy with maybe a 30 min break or no break at all. Understaffed because admin and management can’t keep employees. HR and hospital director are uncaring, unknowable, stubborn people who will talk down to you. Covid was not well managed by director or HR. Owners have good hearts but not knowledgeable to run a huge hospital. Management (throughout hospital), head of HR, and director need outside replacement. Insurance is not worth it, useless benefits, bad pto package, and over worked. 
Co workers and a great social worker are your best support. We’re over worked with no pay raise. Unable to keep employees and trouble hiring new. No care about employee burnout, just money in their pocket. Triage levels are ignored by doctors. We used to be the best and great medicine, now we’re not staffed to practice this great medicine. Over crowding patients is decreasing quality patient care. Management, owners, and admin care about volume. Great values and goals, but sadly it’sa sinking ship unless there is some kind of replacements for management. 

A typical day depends on which shift you're on. Overnights, my job is to check-in/check-out clients, go over estimates with clients, run bloodwork for both in house and outpatient techs, restock ICU, handle euthanasias w/paperwork, walking the in-patient dogs, taking X-rays, restraining animals for various techs and doctors for many types of procedures, doing HBOT treatments and the occasional TPR for more than busy technicians. The tech assistant position is very hands-on and for the fast learner who loves helping sick animals and/or have the itch to become a vet tech. The hardest part of this job would most likely be the first few months. Training is all over the place at the moment and it might be a bit overwhelming but if you can grasp the simple tasks the rest will fall into place quickly. The best part of the job would be the experience that you gain. As with any job, the atmosphere changes depending on the people you work with but every tech and doctor here are more than happy to teach whether it be hands-on or a lengthy story. This job requires a ton out of you but it is totally worth it!

Being an animal specialty hospital and ER there is always a million things going in a day. Clients come the VSC with their pets because they are very sick or injured which immediately heightens their stress and emotions. The hardest part was seeing so many hurt and sick pets and watching their owners struggle with decisions on what to do vs what they could financially afford. When a pet is life a family member people will do whatever it takes to help them get better. As someone at the front desk, you are the face of the hospital and the first thing people see when they come in so it was important to stay upbeat, friendly, and inviting. The doctors  and technicians are amazing at what they do and it truly is incredible medicine! Seeing patients after days/weeks/months in treatment finally getting to go home is beyond rewarding! Working at VSC taught me patience and empathy and how to handle pressure and a fast paced work place.

The pay is very good, management  kills good hearted employees. They are understaffed and overwork the employees  they have. Patient care is not first in managements eyes. On call bonuses are very good but they expect it. You are made to feel guilty if you say No to a request and then considered not a team player. The workplace is very clique. This is from team to team. Management  does nothing. The medicine is great and this group excels at it. Don't forget the free lunches to boost spirits ( if you can get a chance to eat). You will learn so much but will regret it by how you are treated. I watched ppl change and realize their transgressions and do better. They were still treated horribly. Lazy employees  are put on pedestals hard working employees walked over. Always a high turnover for a reason. Higher ups need to actually see what is going on instead of viewing with blinders on . Raises are very few and far between. Good luck and may the odds be ever in your favor.

A typical day at work consists of urine, feces, blood, vomit, corpses, and lots of cleaning of said bodily fluids. You will be on your feet for long periods of time and usually, it's busy enough to make bathroom breaks a low priority. Patient care is the most important thing and this company puts patient care first. We're paid higher wages than most in this field and receive exceptional benefits as well as bonus'. I've learned how to communicate with a team while working here and how to manage my time efficiently. Management is usually fair. The workplace culture varies by department, most departments get along well together, however, some departments have a shark eating fish mentality: those who are the big sharks will sometimes see the new fish and go after them for a while. It's not like that in every department though, a lot of them try to get along with one another from the get-go. The hardest part of this job is saying goodbye to patients you've seen all week as they pass away. The best part of the job is definitely the animals and people you'll meet.

3 porters in total, I was one of them, 1shift porter and I worked as team, we helped each other carrying out the garbage etc. the 2nd shift porter did absolutely nothing but pretend to clean the guest rooms and walk around with the broom. Keeping in mind the 2nd shift porter is a male, he never wanted to help us out carrying the super heavy bags. He would say ,” do it yourself and if you break your back the hospital will pay for it”. Also, when merchandise came us porter females had to carry the really heavy boxes and he would NEVER help us which is pretty bad since it was a team job but of course he was always considered right. He would complain to management that us (females) never did anything which is a lie since we cleaned all the departments including some guest rooms. And Sadly he was always justified and there was always favoritism since he always brings food to everyone to buy people.

VSC is a specialty clinic for pets. They don't administer shots, spay or neuter, or any routine procedures. Patients have to be referred to VSC by their regular vet. The administer chemo, kidney transplants, hip replacements, many torn ACL repairs, and other more extreme procedures that regular vets aren't comfortable doing. I aboslutely love animals, so watching a very sick or hurt pet come in one day, and leave a few days later knowing they would be okay was very touching for me. I watched the doctors at this clinic perform miracles, and am so glad I was there to witness it. The hardest part of my job was when pets didn't make it, and I was in charge of presenting the owners with a bill (sometimes thousands of dollars) and trying to get them to pay. I also had to sit with them sometimes while they cried and accepted their loss.

If you are willing to give 110% and accept that your social life comes second to your job, this hospital would be a great match. At VSC, you will have the opportunity to learn from incredible technicians and doctors. You will be challenged mentally as well as physically. Be prepared to work long shifts with little to no breaks. You will definitely have confidence that the patients are getting the best care possible and the clients are getting their money's worth. Management acknowledges achievements and hard work, but on the flip side, they do have the expectation that work comes first -which may or may not be a negative for you. 

Overall, the company cares about your wellbeing. I think management struggles with understanding the life of someone making an hourly <$20 wage when preaching work:life. They do their best and they are SIGNIFICANTLY better than most veterinary practices, but they do have room for improvement. VSC is an extremely large clinic; that doesn't stop it from having its niches and individual departments. The good thing is if you don't feel that you fit in one niche, you can just talk to your manager and find a different place. You aren't ever at a dead end. 

It's hard to explain. I love coming to work every day. I work long hours and I work hard, but I don't foresee looking for another job anytime soon. I've been doing this for a decade and this is the best place I've found.

Top Job Titles	Average Salary
Veterinary technician 5 salaries reported	$28.00 per hour
Medical technologist 4 salaries reported	$31.00 per hour
Client services coordinator 4 salaries reported	$18.50 per hour
Accounts receivable clerk 3 salaries reported	$20.00 per hour
Veterinary assistant 3 salaries reported	$17.33 per hour

Working at Veterinary Specialty Center: Company Overview and Reviews

Veterinary Specialty Center

Veterinary Specialty Center Ratings

Popular jobs at Veterinary Specialty Center

Salary Satisfaction

Job Seeker Tools

Employer Tools

Browse

Stay Connected