Surprise! dvm360's has decided that we will be occasionally releasing bonus episodes of the Vet Blast Podcast presented by dvm360 to give listeners an extra episode a week. This week's, and very first ever, bonus episode will feature none other than our host Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, chief veterinary officer at dvm360. 

In this episode, Christman will highlight his 8 best tips that can veterinary professionals can use to help grow themselves on social media. Throughout the episode, Christman will give advice on each tip, explain how being yourself will make you stand out on social media, best practices for what to post, and more. 

Tip number 3, perseverance. Now you know this isn't for everyone out there. This is it can be challenging to build an audience and to establish influence in this space, especially, you know, pet parents space, but perseverance matters, and what, what are those things? Well, I kind of divide it into four sections, time allotment. Please give yourself the time to do it. I tend to use Sundays for me to kind of storyboard a little bit and prepare a little bit about what I'm going to do. But you're going to need the time because it, it takes time almost treat it like a job.If you're going to start out with it too, you're going to be able to, you have to dedicate the time to curate content and cultivating a community. 

You're going to not only just going to cultivate you're going to foster it. You're going to nurture it. It's like a garden, you know, like if you don't add water to your flowers, it's going to start to die off. The same thing with your followers, if you don't continue to feed them with content that they're going to love and enjoy, they're going to start to unfollow and not feel that energy across the screen.

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This bonus episode of The Vet Blast Podcast presented by dvm360 features our very own Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, to discuss best social media practices.

Building public influence through social media

Usually, when posed with the question of why some Americans are living paycheck to paycheck, a lot of people assume it’s because those people are living above their means or spending money irresponsibly. Although that might be true for some people, I have found that is not always the case or that living beyond someone’s means is a result of some other cause.

In fact, with veterinarians, associates, and practice owners, there are several probable root causes for why they are having a hard time saving money. The amount people are spending on their lifestyle may be the symptom and not the illness. We have found that sometimes the real problem is underneath; it’s in the way they direct money.

Some people believe that having more income will solve their problems, only to find out that as their income increases, saving money proves consistently difficult.

I’ve had many conversations that start with, “I don’t understand. My income has gone up over 20% in the past year, but I can’t seem to save any more money than I did before. Why is that?” In short, 3 main reasons I see veterinarians living paycheck to paycheck are:

A lack of clear boundaries on how they spend money daily or weekly

Imbalanced priorities on how they are paying off their debts

Not giving attention to their spending habits or how much money they make relative to their spending habits (similar to living beyond their means, but spending more than someone makes is a symptom of the real illness: the mindset or belief that knowing what’s going on with their income and expenses hurts them more than not knowing)

The reality is that when these things are ignored, the effects will be felt. We can run from knowing the consequences of our decisions, but consequences will come nonetheless. So let’s review how to get over these hurdles if you find yourself doing one of or all these things.

First, let’s start with a lack of clear boundaries on how much someone spends daily or weekly.

Human behavior is such that we eat all the food on our plate when we have a meal. If the food is there to consume, my mind is going to reasonably assume that the food is safe to eat.

When a mortgage company approves someone for a house costing $600,000, some people assume it means that’s how much they can afford. After all, the mortgage company wouldn’t approve them for more than they can handle, right?

Because this is the case with human behavior, we find that the easiest way to slow down someone’s spending is to not allow all their income into their checking account. We make sure money is sent to another account that is not commingled with their checking account, which is money meant to cover their lifestyle expenses. This is like not allowing all the food to reach their plate, and money can be out of sight and therefore out of mind. Spending habits change dramatically when people see they have $1000 in their checking account vs the scenario where they have $10,000.

Second, when it comes to people who have an imbalanced approach to paying off debt, veterinarians often throw a lot of their income at their debt without any plan or time frame of when they expect the debt to be gone. The “get it gone immediately” mentality takes their focus off saving money for their “unplanned expenses” and life opportunities that may come up. For example, think of the scenario in which you pay off all your student loans but are newly engaged. Now there is no money available for the wedding. When someone asks me whether they should save money or pay off debt, my answer is always the same: Find balance and create a reasonable plan that builds control.

Third, ignoring money has consequences. Sometimes it’s in the form of stress from the cost of an unexpected flat tire or in the life-altering realization that a lack of planning puts us in a position where our financial goals become impossibilities. If you find yourself ignoring these things and steering yourself away from truly understanding how you’re managing your money or what path you’re on, please show yourself some compassion. Realize that no one learns this stuff without intention. You’re not alone if you feel discouraged or overwhelmed. Take one step at a time.

Securities products and advisory services offered through Park Avenue Securities LLC (PAS), member FINRA, SIPC. OSJ: 4200 West Cypress Street, Suite 700, Tampa, FL 33607, 813-289-3632. PAS is a wholly owned subsidiary of The Guardian Life Insurance Company of America (Guardian), New York, NY. The individuals associated with Florida Veterinary Advisors do not maintain specialized licenses or qualifications for the financial services provided to veterinary professionals. Florida Veterinary Advisors is not registered in any state or with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission as a Registered Investment Advisor. Florida Veterinary Advisors is not an affiliate or subsidiary of PAS or Guardian. 2024-179488 Exp 8/26

Articles

Discover the hidden financial pitfalls causing paycheck-to-paycheck living and how to overcome them

Reasons you might be living paycheck to paycheck

Researchers from the University of Liège (ULiège) in Liège, Belgium, have published a study that amplifies existing knowledge on malignant catarrhal fever (MCF), a highly lethal and infectious peripheral T cell lymphoma that affects ruminants.

 The disease has become a serious threat to the commercial bison industry in the past few years, and continues to be a significant problem in farmed deer operation.

 The recent study delves deeper into what causes cattle to develop MCF.

MCF primarily affects farm animals like domestic cattle, water buffalos, Bali cattle, American bison, and deer. Occasionally, but rarely, it affects swine, and has been recorded in captive ruminants within diverse zoological collections. It is a systemic lymphoproliferative disease of artiodactyls that is caused by alcelaphine gammaherpesvirus 1 (AlHV-1)—a ruminant virus. Usually fatal, the disease is especially lethal in species like bison and certain deer species, with it being capable of infecting extensive animal populations. In cattle, however, MCF tends to occur sporadically and generally only affects single animals. Primary carriers of MCF are wildebeest and domestic sheep, which are asymptomatic to the virus.

In 2013, researchers from the same university published a study that revealed that MCF only develops if the AlHV-1 virus can maintain a latent state of replicating its viral genome in CD8+ T lymphocytes without generating viral particles. In the recent study, published on August 1, 2024, the ULiège research team found that the AIHV-1 virus leads to major transcriptomic and epigenomic changes in CD8+T lymphocytes in cattle. Specifically, an AIHV-1 infection causes an oligoclonal expansion of these CD8+T cells.

“In this new study, we used high-throughput sequencing approaches on CD8+ T lymphocytes from sick cattle, compared with healthy animals," Benjamin Dewals, researcher at Fundamental and Applied Research for Animals and Health Research Unit (FARAH) and professor in the department of Infectious and Parasitic Diseases at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at ULiège, said in a news release.

“We were able to characterize the T lymphocyte repertoire [TCR sequencing] as well as the expression of cellular and viral genes specifically regulated during infection.”

From the sequencing, researchers found A10, a viral gene coding for a protein, which shows involvement in the intracellular signaling of infected cells, according to the news release. “This protein turned out to be essential for the development of the disease without affecting viral replication in cell culture", Meijiao Gong, PhD student at ULiège and co-author of the article, explained in the release.

 “In addition, we have shown that phosphorylation of A10 alters the phenotype of T lymphocytes, causing their proliferation and the development of MCF."

The results from the study offer a detailed account of how CD8+ T cells are reprogrammed during an AlHV-1 infection. The research also identifies A10 as an essential factor in MCF development. These findings not only develop existing knowledge on how herpesviruses induce malignant lymphoproliferation, but allows for new perspectives surrounding its infection mechanism, according to ULiège.

The findings of the research also have further implications for the protection of cattle health. "This study represents a significant step forward in our understanding of malignant catarrhal fever and offers hope for the development of a vaccine capable of protecting cattle against this devastating disease," Dewals said in the release.

Want to learn more about cattle and other livestock animals? Make sure to register for our upcoming Fetch Kansas City conference, where we will be offering tracks on bovine medicine, swine medicine, and more with expert faculty. Join us from August 23-25, 2024, in Kansas City, Missouri for 3 days of learning, networking, and fun! Register 

New progress in research into malignant catarrhal fever in cattle. News release. Liège Université. July 29, 2024. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

https://www.news.uliege.be/cms/c_19842709/en/new-progress-in-research-into-malignant-catarrhal-fever-in-cattle

Lear AS. Malignant catarrhal fever in animals. Merck Veterinary Manual. February 2022. Accessed August 8 2024. 

https://www.merckvetmanual.com/generalized-conditions/malignant-catarrhal-fever/malignant-catarrhal-fever-in-animals

Gong M, Myster F, Azouz A, et al. Unraveling Clonal CD8 T cell expansion and identification of essential factors in γ-herpesvirus-induced lymphomagenesis. 

Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

A study on what causes malignant catarrhal fever in ruminants may offer hope for the development of a vaccine against this infectious peripheral T cell lymphoma disease

New research uncovers infection mechanism behind deadly disease in cattle 

Hill’s Pet Nutrition, a provider of pet nutrition, is investing $1 million in the College of Veterinary Medicine in Kansas State University (KSU) with an endowed small animal clinical nutrition professorship. The investment will be dispersed over the course of 5 years and will endorse the hiring of a distinguished faculty member who will teach essential small animal nutrition courses and lead research in the field, according to a news release.

The Hill's Pet Nutrition Clinical Nutrition Professorship aims to help veterinary students with their educational journey and advance veterinary nutritional science. "The new endowed professorship builds on the legacy of an exemplary veterinary medicine program Kansas State University is already known for," Jolle Kirpensteijn, DVM, PhD, DACVS, DECVS, chief veterinary officer at Hill's global, said in the release.

"It's important that vet students receive comprehensive education in pet nutrition, which will be a critical aspect of promoting lifelong overall health in pets. We look forward to a continued partnership to create a future generation of veterinarians, fully knowledgeable and confident in making nutritional recommendations."

The professorship is expected to improve the college’s ability to provide innovative pet nutrition research and education, according to the company. The appointed professor will be tasked with creating and teaching courses that encompass all facets of small animal nutrition, ranging from fundamental dietary needs to advanced therapeutic nutrition strategies. They will also spearhead research efforts focused on enhancing nutritional practices and creating new dietary solutions for common and complex health issues in small animals. According to Hill’s,

 this research will benefit the academic community and have practical applications in veterinary practices worldwide.

"This professorship will enhance our educational capacity in small animal nutrition, strengthening the preparation of our graduates for success in any role they take in veterinary medicine," Bonnie Rush, DVM, MS, DACVIM, Hodes family dean of the college, said in the release.

 "We are grateful to Hill's Pet Nutrition for their generosity, support and vision for supporting veterinary medical education at Kansas State University. Our partnership has provided tangible several benefits for our students and for clients of the Hill's Pet Health and Nutrition Center in the Veterinary Health Center, and will continue to do so grow with the establishment of this new professorship."

Collaboration between KSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine and Hill’s Pet Nutrition has a strong standing history, with Hill’s donating $2.4 million to install the Pet Health and Nutrition Center at KSU in 2018, according to a release.

 The sponsorship was the largest corporate gift in the history of KSU’s College of Veterinary Medicine and allowed for the college’s Mosier Hall to be renovated with 16,000 sq ft of new space for clinical training, classroom teaching, and research.

 Currently, the center acts as a primary care clinic for both the community and beyond within the college.

"Hill's Pet Nutrition's investment in Kansas State University's College of Veterinary Medicine is a testament to the company's unwavering commitment to pet health and well-being," said John Hazlin, president and CEO of Hill's, in the release.

 "By supporting the education and development of future veterinarians, Hill's is helping to ensure that pets receive the best possible care throughout their lives."

Hill’s Pet Nutrition invests in Kansas State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine with $1 million endowed clinical nutrition professorship. News release. Hill’s Pet Nutrition. August 8, 2024. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

https://prnmedia.prnewswire.com/news-releases/hills-pet-nutrition-invests-in-kansas-state-universitys-college-of-veterinary-medicine-with-1-million-endowed-clinical-nutrition-professorship-302217363.html

Hill’s Pet Nutrition commits major donation for new Pet Health & Nutrition Center at Kansas State University. News release. Kansas State University. November 26, 2018. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

https://www.k-state.edu/media/newsreleases/2018-11/hillspet112618.html

The Clinical Nutrition Professorship aims to help veterinary students with their educational journey and advance veterinary nutritional science 

KSU College of Veterinary Medicine receives $1 million for clinical nutrition professorship 

Blue Buffalo, the company behind BLUE pet food and treats, announced a new partnership with Best Friends Animal Society (BFAS), an animal welfare group promoting no-kill policies in their shelters across the country. Blue Buffalo will donate more than 500,000 lb. of natural food and treats for animals at 6 BFAS shelters.

“At Best Friends, we believe that pets belong in loving homes where they are cared for and fed like family, not in shelters,” Julie Castle, CEO of Best Friends Animal Society, said in a news release.

 “We are committed to saving the lives of the more than 4.7 million pets that enter shelters each year in the US, and we are thrilled and deeply grateful to partner with Blue Buffalo to provide essential nutrition to the cats and dogs in our care.”

Blue Buffalo’s relationship with BFAS dates back to 2021, when they served as the founding partner of the shelter group’s Northwest Arkansas Best Friends Resource Center in Bentonville. This is in addition to the volunteer efforts of Blue Buffalo employees at various BFAS locations.

 BFAS joins Stray Rescue of Saint Louis in Missouri and the Helen Woodward Animal Center in Rancho Santa Fe, California, as Blue Buffalo partners working towards giving pets a second chance as part of their Adoption All-Stars program.

“Blue Buffalo was founded on the belief that pets are family—we love them like family, so we feed them like family,” Liz Mascolo, president of Blue Buffalo North America, said about the partnership.

 “We are honored to play a role in the lifesaving work of Best Friends Animal Society by nourishing dogs and cats with BLUE’s superior nutrition in their moment of need, so they’re healthy and thriving when they go to forever homes.”

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA) estimates that 920,000 shelter animals are euthanized each year in US shelters. The number has seen consistent annual decline since 2011, when the ASPCA approximates 2.6 million cats and dogs were euthanized in US shelters.

 BFAS notes that as recently as 2016, the number was as high as 1.5 million cats and dogs euthanized because of insufficient community support or resources in shelters.

Best Friends Animal Society began in 1984, with the opening of Best Friends Animal Sanctuary in southern Utah. Since then, BFAS has expanded, opening lifesaving centers in Salt Lake City, Los Angeles, New York City, Houston, and Northwest Arkansas. They’ve also grown their Best Friends Network, partnering with thousands of public and private shelters, rescue groups, spay/neuter organizations, and other animal welfare groups across the country.

 BFAS has made it their goal to make the country no-kill by 2025.

Blue Buffalo named official pet food & treats partner of Best Friends Animal Society. News release. Blue Buffalo. August 1, 2024. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20240801345110/en

Blue Buffalo. Meet our adoption all-stars. Blue Buffalo. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

https://bluebuffalo.com/why-choose-blue/giving-back/blue-pet-adoption-all-stars/

ASPCA. Pet statistics. ASPCA. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

https://www.aspca.org/helping-people-pets/shelter-intake-and-surrender/pet-statistics

Best Friends. Locations. Best Friends. Accessed August 8, 2024. 

Blue Buffalo will make an annual donation of 500,000 lb. of BLUE food and treats to the animal welfare group’s no-kill shelters 

Pet food company partners with Best Friends Animal Society 

Within the past few years, there has been tremendous growth within the veterinary industry of professionals making the shift from a traditional career in veterinary medicine to relief work. With the flexibility of making your own schedule, traveling anywhere to work and seeing new places, and becoming your own boss, it can be an easy choice to make the switch to relief medicine.

During his lecture at the Fetch dvm360 conference in Nashville, Tennessee, Andrew Findlaytor, DVM, senior director of veterinary strategy and services for Roo Vets, based in San Francisco, California, explained in depth what the fuss is all about in relief medicine, and how professionals interested in this line of work can smoothly integrate into it.

A survey conducted and distributed by the Veterinary Information Network data collection portal from May 11-30, 2023, explored relief and mobile veterinarians’ experiences related to their current job and examined why the veterinarians decided to pursue these types of careers. The survey collected 444 responses from 125 veterinarians in mobile practice and 240 from relief veterinarians. The most-reported reasons for switching to mobile or relief work included issues with administration at their hospital, the culture, the schedule, or personal feelings about the work. Once they switched to a relief or mobile role, the respondents reported they were satisfied with their work-life balance and availability for their children and other family members.

Findlaytor shared his personal experiences as a relief veterinarian. For example, he has used the freedom the work allows to travel with friends. He explained to attendees how he would use the flexibility of relief scheduling to work as much as he could handle and then use the money to take a trip to Japan, even extending his vacation for a week. In a traditional veterinary setting, he might not have had personal time off or the extra money from working more hours.

Findlaytor also explained to attendees that relief work is a great way to network, learn from other veterinary professionals, and balance your experience. Traveling to different hospitals opens you up to all new veterinary professionals who do procedures in different ways, or clinics that have the latest equipment, or some you have never used. This can create a learning opportunity for a relief veterinarian to continuously improve and advance their skills.

“I can choose to balance my experience. I like medium stress, I like to work emergencies, and I could never be a full-on nightworker. I could never work overnights all the time. Doing relief gives me the option to say, ‘I am going to work general practice the majority of the time and work at least 1 day in urgent care a week to keep my skills fresh,’” Findlaytor said.

“A really important point [is that relief work] allows me to continue to enjoy what I do. I feel like we veterinarians always prefer to choose work. Every day when I wake up, I’m like, ‘Well, I should go to work.’ Being a relief veterinarian gives me the ability to add as much gas or as little to that so that I don’t feel like I’m being forced to be burned out,” he added.

A relief veterinarian experience will be different in every hospital, and some of a hospital’s policies may not make sense to you. For example, Findlaytor explained he once worked at a clinic that offered an early drop-off service. He was greeted by multiple patients before he was there 10 minutes, which confused and stressed him in a clinic where he had never been before and knew no one.

He later found out that the clinic did this because it was in a big commuter town. It was more convenient for pet owners to drop off their animals before work and pick them up afterward, instead of having to wait for the weekend to fit their appointment into normal business hours. Situations such as this one demonstrated to Findlaytor that it is important to understand the culture of each clinic.

Being a relief veterinarian can also be stressful because you are walking into a clinic full of people you have never met, who may be close colleagues and not be welcoming to someone new. Findlaytor told attendees that the best way to begin the day is to get there early and introduce yourself to everyone. Giving yourself time in the morning to get to know the others can help you build rapport and figure out your next steps for the day, maybe ask for a tour, and begin work.

“Each day is a clean slate and a fresh start. Think of it this way: I am in an exam room, and there’s a 1-year-old Labrador retriever just standing in there. If I don’t say anything, the dog is probably going to get tense. If I make weird moves, the dog’s going to get nervous. We all instinctively know what to do: We take a knee, pet the dog, and say, ‘Hey, it’s nice to meet you.’ Now, [the dog is] tail wagging, happy, everything’s great,” he explained.

“People are the same; there’s no difference there. Normally, it takes months to build trust and a flow inside a practice [as] people get to know each other. As relief veterinarians, we must do it in the first 10 minutes of getting to know each other. So, starting on the right foot with a big smile and saying, ‘Hey, nice to meet you. I’m Dr Fin. How’s your day? How’s your week been?’ is a really good start,” said Findlaytor.

Findlaytor also said asking for a buddy in the clinic for the day could be extremely helpful. Having to wander around looking for supplies, asking everyone and anyone how to work certain things, or even how to present estimates to clients can hurt workflow for yourself and the team. Having a dedicated person to help you gives you one person to talk to and answer your questions to maintain the flow of the clinic and give you inside scoops on clients, which team members can help best with certain procedures, and more. Integrating yourself into the clinic casually and subtly will ensure your success there.

Although there are clear benefits to becoming a relief veterinarian, this career path may not be the best fit for everyone. Understanding the advantages and comparing them with the disadvantages can help determine if this is the career for you. Findlaytor closed his lecture by reminding the audience that the veterinary community is in this profession together to save the lives of animals, no matter what the career path looks like.

Findlaytor A. Making sense of relief: what’s the fuss about, and how do I play a part? Presented at: Fetch dvm360 conference; May 17, 2024; Nashville, TN.

Kogan LR, Rishniw M. Relief and mobile veterinary careers may offer a path towards improved quality of life. J Am Vet Med Assoc. 2023;262(2):209-215.doi:10.2460/javma.23.07.0422

As relief medicine continues to rise in popularity, what is the big fuss about it?