Why I love My Cat Doctor Team – Part One

I’ve been a veterinarian for 32 years, and a Cat Doctor for 22 years. One of the many positives of founding my own practice, The Cat Doctor & Friends, is getting to choose the team I work with. I’ve been taking stock of my life lately – yes, late middle age can do that to you – and I realized I’ve never had a more amazing team. I decided to describe their jobs, so my team members can be fully appreciated by clients for the wonders they are. Based on seven consecutive years of “Best of SCV” awards, most of my clients must already know, but I decided to go ahead with this love letter to my team.
I’ll start with my receptionists. A better name would be client service multitasking superheroes. I’ve often said being a veterinary receptionist is the hardest job in a veterinary hospital. Both Dr. Carlie Linger and I worked as veterinary receptionists, assistants and technicians, before becoming Cat Doctors, so we know. As a receptionist, you are greeting clients, and their cats, preparing charts and exam rooms, making appointments, answering questions, creating invoices and taking payments. In my opinion, their most challenging task is answering our very busy phones. They all have years of on the job training in helping clients decide how urgently their kitty needs to be seen. For example, they all know that signs of sudden blindness in an older cat is a true emergency, as that may indicate hypertension (elevated blood pressure). If treated immediately, the cat’s vision is often restored. They also spring to attention if they’re told a male cat (neutered or not) is straining in his litter-box. An obstructed urethra becomes life threatening very quickly. I’m lucky to have receptionists who have worked with me for many years. I think my most senior receptionist can almost read my mind! They all greet clients with a friendly smile, and I love how they rush to open the clinic’s door for an overburdened client.
Our veterinary assistants are super hardworking miracle workers, who juggle multiple tasks, ranging from keeping our patients, boarders and hospital clean and comfortable, to administering doctor prescribed medications and food, running lab tests, taking radiographs (x-rays) and assisting our doctors and registered veterinary technicians. All while finding the time to spoon feed a kitten some baby-food to help distract him from the momentary discomfort of a blood-test, or cleaning a cat’s soiled carrier and adding a soft, clean towel or fresh “pee-pad” to make a patient’s ride home more pleasant. Simply put, they rock!
Look for the continuation of this article in the next issue of The Magazine of Santa Clarita.
If you have questions or need to schedule an appointment, please call 661-259-5288 or go to our website, www.catdoctor.com for a virtual tour and the ability to request an appointment online. We are located at 26055 Bouquet Canyon Road between Magic Mountain Parkway and Cinema Drive.