Animal Welfare Professionals

Hello all,

We are opening up a brick & mortar low-cost spay and neuter clinic in Lake Elsinore, CA. It is now fully-equipped and we have obtained our business license so our final step is finding staff. We are on the hunt for a vet who will work part-time 2-3 days a week and offer competitive pay, but want to make sure we're not missing any good resources or application avenues. Currently, our application is up on Indeed, iHire Veterinary and CVM Western jobs board. We were thinking of posting to our social media as well. 

Would welcome any thoughts or help on those who are going through or have gone through similar hiring processes! Anything we're missing or that is a "must-have" on our application?

Appreciate all of the help.

#Medicine,SurgeryandSterilization

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Lindsey Hilz
CFO
Lucky Chi Dog Rescue, Inc
CA
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My suggestion, depending on how your ad is worded, do not put competitive pay.  Put down an actual range.  What you consider competitive pay, may not be competitive to a well-qualified HQHVSN surgeon.  Also, emphasize flexibility if you can.  One thing veterinarians are craving, IMHO, is flexibility in scheduling and hours.  Emphasize a positive culture and the benefits for working there beyond helping animals.  Veterinarians do that everywhere they work, so that kind of isn't the best thing to lead with.  Are you covering malpractice insurance, licensing, etc.?  Emphasize that.  Try the ASV (Association of Shelter Veterinarians) website for posting jobs related to shelters or spay/neuter.  Good luck.

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Valerie Moser
Chief Veterinarian
Orange County Animal Services
FL
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Thank you Valerie for your advice! We really appreciate it. We have put the pay range on there and agree it's important as well as flexibility. One thing we can add are the benefits like you mentioned and I will definitely check out the ASV website. Thank you again!

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Lindsey Hilz
CFO
Lucky Chi Dog Rescue, Inc
CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-16-2025 04:31 AM
From: Valerie Moser
Subject: Hiring a VET! What are the best approaches?

My suggestion, depending on how your ad is worded, do not put competitive pay.  Put down an actual range.  What you consider competitive pay, may not be competitive to a well-qualified HQHVSN surgeon.  Also, emphasize flexibility if you can.  One thing veterinarians are craving, IMHO, is flexibility in scheduling and hours.  Emphasize a positive culture and the benefits for working there beyond helping animals.  Veterinarians do that everywhere they work, so that kind of isn't the best thing to lead with.  Are you covering malpractice insurance, licensing, etc.?  Emphasize that.  Try the ASV (Association of Shelter Veterinarians) website for posting jobs related to shelters or spay/neuter.  Good luck.

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Valerie Moser
Chief Veterinarian
Orange County Animal Services
FL
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I agree with the advice given by Dr. Moser. I would also add that you need to be clear about expectations for after-hours/emergency coverage. Consider partnering with a local ER clinic for coverage, if possible, so that your veterinarian does not have to be available 24/7 for post-op complications or other emergencies. Benefits are a big draw...so you must be competitive with benefits as well as pay...liability insurance, DEA- and state-licensing, generous CE allowance, professional memberships (State VMA, AVMA, & Association of Shelter Veterinarians) are all industry standard and demonstrate a commitment to your veterinarian and the sustainability of the organization. If you can find the money, consider offering HQHVSN training for new grads or private practice vets interested in making the switch or even a student loan repayment assistance program.

Good luck!

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Rachel Powell DVM
Director of Surgery
Greenhill Humane Society
Eugene, OR
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Thank you Rachel! It is so helpful the benefits that you and people you know have found important and we're researching them now to see about including a few in our package. 

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Lindsey Hilz
CFO
Lucky Chi Dog Rescue, Inc
CA
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Original Message:
Sent: 04-16-2025 09:07 AM
From: Rachel Powell
Subject: Hiring a VET! What are the best approaches?

I agree with the advice given by Dr. Moser. I would also add that you need to be clear about expectations for after-hours/emergency coverage. Consider partnering with a local ER clinic for coverage, if possible, so that your veterinarian does not have to be available 24/7 for post-op complications or other emergencies. Benefits are a big draw...so you must be competitive with benefits as well as pay...liability insurance, DEA- and state-licensing, generous CE allowance, professional memberships (State VMA, AVMA, & Association of Shelter Veterinarians) are all industry standard and demonstrate a commitment to your veterinarian and the sustainability of the organization. If you can find the money, consider offering HQHVSN training for new grads or private practice vets interested in making the switch or even a student loan repayment assistance program.

Good luck!

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Rachel Powell DVM
Director of Surgery
Greenhill Humane Society
Eugene, OR
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Following!

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Lisa Kitchens
Pet Central Helps!
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