From Vet Tech to Startup Leader: Culture & Creative Solutions

Today's guest on Vet Life Reimagined is Charlotte Weir, who is passionate about helping veterinary businesses grow in a way that’s smart, sustainable, and meaningful. With more than a decade of experience in roles like Advisor, VP, and Founder, she’s built her career on creating thoughtful business plans and growth strategies that work in the real world.

She was employee #1 at Petwell Partners, leading operations and integrations, growing a modest setup into a family of 52 practices known for quality veterinary care. 

Charlotte then co-founded, with the same founders of Petwell, Roo, a Texas-based venture providing a central platform for relief work.

Charlotte is also a hands-on founder and co-owner of 2525 Sunset Veterinarians, where she’s dedicated to making every visit a positive experience for pets and their people. In this episode, Charlotte shares her career journey as well as 

•  amazing tips for understanding the DNA of your team and practice, 
• the best-in-class way to successfully bring in relief veterinarians and technicians to enhance your practice, and 
• how as a leader you can bring support and fun to your team. 

Resources:

• Episode on YouTube
• Roo website
• 2525 Sunset Veterinarians practice website

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Ready, Vet, Go is a 7-month practical mentorship program with a supportive community to help you build skills and confidence. 

Enrollment for the October cohort closes Friday, September 12, 2025. Use code SPRINKLE for 10% off at readyvetgo.co  

Transcript

Charlotte Weir: [00:00:00] People ask me like, what, what do you do? Or How did you grow? Or, I'm like, guys, like I'm a tech. I'm a crazy cat lady. I love my Sphinx and I have horses and I'm a technician who cares for the field, who happens to build businesses.

Megan Sprinkle: Welcome to Vet Life Reimagined. My guest today has built her career on spotting the little moments of opportunity, listening deeply, and turning them into meaningful change. Charlotte Weir started as a veterinary technician, moved into management and went on to help launch veterinary startups that have changed the way practices operate.

Including Petwell Partners and the Relief platform, Roo. She's a leader who understands the DNA of a team and a practice, and she knows how to build trust, keep culture intact, and still create growth. In this conversation, Charlotte shares how to recognize leadership traits in yourself and others, and the best in class way to bring relief veterinarians into your practice without disrupting your team and why [00:01:00] understanding your practice's ecosystem is key to sustainable success. We'll also talk about her creative solutions like building a nap room for her team and how technology and AI are shaping her vision for the future of veterinary medicine.

This episode is full of ideas and insights you can take straight back to your own team and apply for your own career journey. Let's get to the conversation with Charlotte Weir.

Welcome to Charlotte. I'm very excited to have you on Vet Life Reimagined. I love that you are bringing a background in, you know, veterinary management business. Well, and we'll be able to talk about all of that. But I love to start with the question, when did you know you were interested in veterinary medicine?

Charlotte Weir: I am sure you probably get this answer like all the time, but I am obsessed with animals as a child. I was that child like out in the garden catching mice, putting 'em in my pockets, like awkwardly bringing them in my house.

, Snakes in the bathtub, like you [00:02:00] name it, like I brought every creature into the home. And so that extended out into adulthood. And then I followed a science track through college. So that just really kind of extended , into the, a adult years. 

Megan Sprinkle: I'm sure your family loved that. Um, they were not a fan.

Well, You started, , as a veterinary technician around the age of 20, so that would've been somewhere around college, maybe after college. How did you end up discovering, you know, an opportunity to start as a veterinary technician? 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah, so that's kind of funny. Um, I entered as a CSR, um, it was just the position that was open at the local vet practice, and I was pre-vet undergrad and I met with the veterinarian and I was just, I was a science geek, like I'm not even gonna lie.

Like I was all in it and I was throwing out all this terminology that I was learning and I was geeking out and she was just like, wait a second. Do you want to be a tech? Like this is like, you're kind of in [00:03:00] this. And I was like, yes. if you would train me, that would be amazing. I would love that. Um, and so she hired me on as a, a technician right away.

, She actually called me a quarter tech, , because obviously I was like young and just super, uh, unknowledgeable about anything. , But really bubbly, really liked people. And she's like, I'll train you to be a room tech. Don't break anything. Um, and, you know, just be nice to the clients and obviously would teach me restraint and, you know, vaccination protocols, et cetera.

, But yeah, , that's exactly how I got into it as a vet tech, like right off the bat. 

Megan Sprinkle: Yeah. And if I remember correctly, that was a general practice. Uh, did you enjoy that? I happen to know you jump into emergency medicine, so, , were you looking for something a little bit different? What kind of led you to start, you know, looking at different options within veterinary medicine?

Charlotte Weir: For sure. I loved it. I think the practice was interesting because we were the only practice for like, you know, 30, 45 minutes, [00:04:00] you know, out in like a small town. So we saw everything, we saw emergencies, , and you know, you just kind of handled it all, whether it was a. Goat, a chicken, a dog, a cat.

Like you just kind of did what you had to do. And I think it was a little bit, you know, like old school. Uh, but I have, you know, crazy respect for old school and just doing what you can do to help that animal to the best of your abilities. And I learned a lot there. But it really drove me to want to learn more, , and get into emergency and internal.

And so that's kind of what my curiosity is. Uh, never satisfied. And so that's really what pushed me into getting into a little bit higher level medicine. 

Megan Sprinkle: Awesome. Well, do you wanna share just a little bit about that journey, 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah, for sure. And so I jumped in and did some emergency and then branched off and did internal ultrasound, worked with a veterinarian. Her name was Dr. Jane Toomey. Dr. Toomey is phenomenal. Um, Cornell grad, just diplomat, uh, internist. I learned a lot [00:05:00] from her. that was just like probably one of the most exceptional positions in my career.

Just learning the level of professionalism and communication, and I think learning from her that, Diagnostics aren't treatment. I think that statement stuck with me because when you're working in sort of like those like really contentious moments with a really sick pet and an owner and you're sort of waiting for that answer, and they're probably dumping a lot of those finances into sort of finding that answer, just watching how she handled those.

Tense moments and her communication style and her poise , I really mirrored that communication style as a technician and growing and, and then later on bringing that into like my management style and how to deescalate situations and.

Also just understanding the reality of the situation. Just had a lot of respect for how she delivered hard news because quite frankly, by the time they got to internal it, it typically wasn't, you know, super [00:06:00] bright, , future for that pet, unfortunately. And so just watching how she handled that was just like wonderful learning experience for myself.

And then went on to, did some shelter med, which was. Amazing, having great impact there. , You really learn to be resourceful as a technician. Um, you're typically on by yourself and you're treating, you know, a general population of like a hundred plus. , And then obviously you're limiting transmission of disease, et cetera.

So your PPE has to be on point. , And you're, you're sort of restraining for yourself and you're doing diagnostics on your own. . It's definitely you sort of jump in the deep end, , , but you really learn to sort of communicate well, , with the animals, , and sort of kind of learn to draw little lines of communication with each other and like, Hey, have to do this, but we're gonna work together.

So I learned, , no matter the technology that's available, you can find quality of care, standard of care, . So it was cool to just learn the realm as a tech.[00:07:00] 

Megan Sprinkle: Yeah, I think you did really get a, diverse experience in veterinary medicine and in different types of situations, different types of maybe clients or, or pet situations too that's gonna be really interesting to curate into a lot of what is about to come. And you mentioned you were pre-vet. , In college.

Mm-hmm. And then, you know, you didn't end up going to vet school. Do you mind sharing a little bit? Was there something that was like, no, I, I see myself more this direction. Like what helped with that decision? 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. , Tufts waitlisted me. Just like never gonna get in.

I started into, when I moved over to shelter, I actually fell into management , and I think naturally I fell into leadership. I was playing soccer and sports team Captain . And so I think falling into leadership and management and shelter med, I found that like I could have an, [00:08:00] an impact on a team .

And so I always supported vets as a technician, right? That. Sort of like delicate dance, especially like in the, it like literally is a dance where you're sort of like handling, like the preoperative and then the induction, and then you're in the surgical suite and then you're certainly doing a dance for sterility, et cetera.

You're on a vent and so there's all these things, but is a very coordinated dance. You're trying to do it in a time limit and have precise and then get them. Off postoperative recovery, et cetera. And so all of this. And so having that relationship with veterinarians and having their trust also in making sure that you exactly what needs to be done correctly, um, was really important.

And I think what I found in leadership, I had the opportunity to support veterinarians in a different way, , beyond just servicing as a technician and really help have a better quality of life in not only employing and training and mentoring technicians. To the quality [00:09:00] they're seeking, but also their quality of life in managing departments.

And then moving on to manage a practice in, in Houston, Houston, Texas. So that's sort of how I decided to perhaps pivot going off to vet school myself. And I saw this like world where I could move and win and sort of go entrepreneurial. Path, and it was not an anticipated switch in any way , but it just sort of happened.

It wasn't planned.

Megan Sprinkle: A lot of things in life end up not being planned, so that that is completely fair. I think this is a good time to ask because I think there's an, there's often the situation where veterinary technicians get put into management situations.

And it doesn't go as wonderfully as you're describing. So do you wanna share maybe some of your observations , you made a facial expression, so do you mind sharing a little bit about maybe. Where's [00:10:00] the success? Like how do I know if that's right for me?

Feel free to bring it back to yourself too, and, and how you really realized that that was where you wanted to go. 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah, no, I think that's like a really pertinent point. I think for me, I get more excited about others' success as a focal point than my own. And I think if you're gonna get into leadership.

You should be excited about others succeeding. That should be a motivating factor for you. Of course, we all want our own success. Like yes. Like I'm not gonna sit here and be like, oh, like I don't want to. We all do. That's innate, right? But if I sit here and think like, what excites me to day is watching a team succeed.

It's goal setting, and then moving that team, that goal is a unit. And building that team, having intentional conversations, mentoring, what sort of graduate those levels, taking those [00:11:00] steps. My leadership is about that investment. It's about that mentorship being motivated to do so. So if you're person that likes to take that intentional time and have those conversations, you should follow a management path Person, person who's more excited about title or pay associated might not be the motivating factors to get into leadership. Those come with it. , But they're not gonna keep you motivated long term and you won't be successful long term. It's really like you succeeding and your team succeed.

And, , that's what I found with sort of building leaders and sort of identifying my organizations that I work with now who have those like leadership traits and characteristics. , And they're fun. , And I kind of like leaders that are like.

Wild like me, just this little, scattered energy, it's really just like grit and [00:12:00] determination. You pull them in and give them a lane and.

Motivation and the motivating factor to unite people, their leaders, but if for themselves, then they're individual contributors. That's okay. , every organization needs that too. There's lanes for everyone. But I think to be successful, just sort of know what motive, that's what you go after.

But I, I have seen where people sort of are like. You've been a tech for five years, good luck. And the tech's like crap. And like, I get it. , They know everything and they know all the clients and you know the protocol, but not the management part.

The, that's the execution checklist part. The management part is about the motivating intention. The culture, that's the stuff keeps you up at night. Task management. We actually have AI that can do that right now, but, but leadership is about people and It's [00:13:00] different.

Megan Sprinkle: Yes. And you can grow and develop in other ways, , outside of management, right? , So it's good to understand like how to identify what direction works for you.

You mentioned Houston, so you moved, you went somewhere a little warmer. And, you also mentioned entrepreneurship, , and in Houston is where you met Petwell, that's where Petwell was founded. So do you mind sharing that story, how you got introduced to this company and got pulled in really early in the process .

To help build this company. 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. Petwell, um, so this was my first veterinary startup and I had just moved to Houston a year and a half ago, packed up my Mustang with my dog and my cat literally moved down with nothing like air mattress, granola bars, like nothing, like literally nothing.

And I was like, gonna make it on my own type thing, single lady's vibe, right? Like, just gonna make [00:14:00] it. , And I had been approached by a recruiter, , Christie o Ferrell, uh, love Christy. Hi Christie. And Christy had said like, these are recruiting for an ops leader. They're looking at doing construction and little, that moment unconsolidated, and was like, Ooh, Christie.

Like, I don't, I don't know that, you know, that's not like my vibe. But she said no. Like they're really cool. Their vision's cool. So I met with the co-founders, and I really liked their vision and mission and I think what was really important, Like if the pitch had been like profit, profit, you know, pets for profit or something along those lines, like, I probably would've been like, no, I'm good guys. Good luck. You know, like it was very much about really looking to unite a group of practices and so to leverage those practices and gave that empowerment.

To our techs and our vets and sort of how that sisterhood of practices [00:15:00] going in local areas, metro areas to support each other. I love that. I was like, yes, now we're talking team terms. Now we're talking like sportsy. And I get excited 'cause like, you know, here's the captain over here. so I said, sign me up.

And I had never, obviously I had never done a startup, never jumped in blindly to it didn't exist. And quite frankly, as so naive, even know, it was risky. I just thought it'd be fun. Here we go, blindly dive into Petwell partners and acquired the first practice, which, um, definitely needed a lot of TLC, uh, facility side.

And so we did some, um, evacuation of some var who had resided in the ceiling for quite a long time. And, uh, we had. And found a lovely home outside of the facility and uh, we had sort of spiced it up and brought in veterinarians that we know and love and really lifted the practice. And then that one grew to like [00:16:00] 56 across the US over like seven, eight year span.

And during that time felt such a cool team. I mean the practice managers across Houston. I think I had like 13 practices in the Houston area just. The bonds we built as a team were just so fun. We had a blast and, and through these acquisitions and integrations and running these practices, I think what was the coolest thing is what Pet Well did was every practice ran.

Its its own unique ecosystem. So although we acquired a practice, it remained its own identity and not just like in the falsehood, like, oh, be, be yourself, stay, you know, stay yourself type thing. But like truly, they ran as their own. Ecosystem and we were able to understand their own client base, their own facility needs, and then address that market to that client base, understand function within their team, their skillset, market that team, that [00:17:00] skillset, and then address those pets to the best of our ability.

 . And then the coolest part is we all referred to each other. So it was just this awesome referral unit and I would have these monthly new practice manager lunches that were just like, I mean, it was just like a sorority club, like so much fun. Like , I just think back and I'll say just, I never wanted it to end.

I'm not gonna lie. Like it, one of the coolest things I think I've ever done in my career and, and it wasn't anything I did the most part, was it was everything my teams did. In particular, everyone just worked so hard for the same common mission and that was just like we wanted to provide pets the same we wanted for our pet at home.

And I think that's like very simplistic way to say, we wanna care for something well., you know, so Petwell did that. . It was really cool to build. So that, that's how [00:18:00] Petwell started and, and the teams we recruited were very much centered around that. 

Megan Sprinkle: Now, were the founders, did they have veterinary backgrounds or were you kind of like the only one when it was the three of you at the very beginning?

Yeah. 

Charlotte Weir: Well, I flew solo on that. They, they're amazing. I learned a lot from them. They learned a lot from me. W e shared that. So it only was a journey that I i'll always value, for sure.

Megan Sprinkle: Well, you mentioned being a curious person and loving to learn and so I mean, I think entrepreneurship is one constant learning journey, so that makes sense that the, you were thriving in that scenario. I, and I'm curious, what do you think were some of the keys to building trust with the hospitals to. You know, acquire them along the way because I think building trust is, is really hard.

I think I almost wonder if [00:19:00] it's getting harder in today's time. So what, what do you think are some of the keys to, to building trust? 

Charlotte Weir: Well, I think just being like really authentic to who you are. I don't dress it up. I mean, like I'm a tech, like people ask me like, what? What do you do or how did you grow? I'm like, guys, like I'm a tech, I'm a crazy cat lady.

I love my Sphinx and I have horses that I'm a tech, like I'm a technician who cares for the field, who happens to build businesses, right. And vet med that are supportive of doing the vets and techs in the field. I think like building trust is about being authentic to who you are, your style. Being very unapologetic in that as well.

Staying true to yourself and others around you. Very active listener. When I'm introduced to whether it's a new practice, a new person, I ask questions. I have [00:20:00] noticed in making any statement about your business circumstances. If I have been to your practice, that is, uh, very. Presumptuous and arrogant of me to stand and make any statement.

So definitely active listening. , coming into my practice here that I own an offer today in Houston and making assumptions and sort of crashing in culture. Culture that I've worked really hard to build and not ask appropriate questions or, or have the intense conversations to maybe uncover whys.

There's always a why. I'm sure no one makes just a, , assumption or guess, or, you know, decision on a whim when it comes to practice management and I, I think when you're building trust, especially during. Integration period or an operational change. Really, honestly, any change management, it's always that [00:21:00] transparency.

So don't avoid the intentional conversations. I always make time for them. It's an hour block. It's not done in less than an hour. So I set the time aside and we leave having that transparency like. I'm also big on buckets, by the way. Huge bucket fan. What's Megan's bucket?

And what's our shared bucket? And I let the holder name their buckets because I wanna know what's off limits. And if that's your bucket I will respect that bucket. And then the shared bucket is usually where I like to. Build trust because I wanna understand how I can work with you, Megan, build trust so that you can see that I have vested interests, your best interest.

So it's, it's a process. Trust is earned. It's not a given. And so I, I build it. 

Megan Sprinkle: Yeah. , On that note, and since this model was also one where you, you let the hospital still [00:22:00] maintain a lot of its identity and culture. That was the business model. I've seen you, in a couple of different articles, talk about the DNA of A team or the DNA of A practice and I love that phrasing of it. Do you mind speaking to that, how you see that and, and how you can identify the DNA of a team or a DNA of of the practice? 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. I kind of evaluate each practice as its own living, breathing organism, its own ecosystem, Every single practice is different and it's different at different stages in its growth. And what I've learned is every addition and every subtraction changes your ecosystem. And so again, going back to change management, whenever I look at a practice in its current state, major state, I'm making a calculation on that sort of.

Result of an addition or [00:23:00] subtraction, because that ecosystem is going to be impacted by any addition or subtraction that you make. And I evaluate it for what it is today. And so these ecosystems that you build are very fragile. You have a facility that's sort of designed and specified in a certain way, right?

You have limitations, call it the number of rooms. Surgical availability, your surgical suite, the equipment. You have your team, your number of staff members, um, skill sets, available doctors, skill sets available. So you have these limiting factors. And then you have like your client base, all of this sort of like your living ecosystem and each practice that blend creates your practice.

Don't try to make your practice someone else's practice. I never look across the street at Animal Medical Center. I love their practice. I can see them right out my window right now. They're a [00:24:00] beautiful practice. We work super well together. I would never want to try to make two five Sunset Vet, that's animal Medical.

I refer to Animal Medical for what they do best. They kick over to us for what we do best. I like to grow practices for who they are and sort of celebrate who they are and , what we're able to offer today. And then through change management, understand what we're able to offer in the future and what that looks like and how we can evolve through that.

And I think it's just really important to sort of like take into account when you're growing a practice. I see time and time again as either through acquisition or change management coming in and trying to sort of drive a practice through. Pricing or implementing equipment. Equipment that's dusty.

Clients balk on the pricing changes. It's not who they are. Understand your practice's DNA [00:25:00] for who they are today. Know your client base, their wants and needs, their price points. They're willing to pay, drive to that. What are they asking for? Feed their needs, and grow your practice there.

, But don't try to be something you're not. And it has been like a really important revelation for myself as I grew these practices through pet Well, was understanding like each unlock for that practice was different from every practice.

Megan Sprinkle: Since I tend to focus a lot on individual development, do you see personal development in a similar way? 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah, I do. , I think every individual is fairly unique, , and how they can sort of progress and especially in the environment they're in. I think in managing people, it's really important to put the right person in the right place. I've watched amazing employees fail [00:26:00] because they're in the wrong position, not because they're bad employees; they're literally just in the wrong position. And then I've seen we've pivoted them to the right position and they've just blown it outta the water. But I think again, that falls back to leadership responsibility, is putting the right people in the right places.

Megan Sprinkle: And recognizing if they're not in the right place and, and not necessarily jumping straight to, okay, you just deserve to be off the bus. It, it could just be they're in the wrong seat. Yeah, 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. Like, and just like acknowledge that it does these doomsday scenarios, Megan. Like they don't have to happen.

Leadership doesn't have to be this. Crazy march you up to the big boss office or something like that's not leadership. Leadership is transparency, communication. Like annual reviews, don't even get me started. Shouldn't exist. Teams should know because you're having weekly conversations.

Not about like, Hey Char, you're doing a great job, kiddo, but it really the good, the [00:27:00] bad, bad, the ugly. I mean my team at 2 5, 2 5. Every week we talk about the good, the bad, the ugly, the good is our successes for the week before the bad's, what that maybe we could have done better and the went really wrong that we did not see coming that maybe we could prep for.

And some of those are just funny. Like we left the floor mats out in the rain and they got destroyed. I mean, it's laughable. This should be fun. So. Yeah, 

Megan Sprinkle: that's a very good perspective and I've heard you say fun a lot, so , I'll go ahead and say it 'cause I just thought it was cool.

I was gonna save it for later when we talked a little bit more about your current practice, but you, I mean, also bringing in what you are talking about in your listening skills and how to, you know, understand what the need is of the team and the practice. The example that I just thought was so cool is you noticed that your team.

Enjoyed sleeping on their lunch break. [00:28:00] And so you created a nap room and I just think this is so cool. We need to talk about this because I am sure there are many practices who need a nap room. So do you wanna go ahead and share about that one? 'cause I just thought that was such a cool story. 

Charlotte Weir: Funny you brought that up.

I was giving a tour of the practice, and she popped in. I was like, oh my gosh. Like, yeah, come see the practice. And I was like, look in my nap room. And she's just like, like, I think really intrigued, slash terrified that like an owner's celebrating a nap room.

And I just like, oh. I got shy because I like saw her physical response and she's like, I'm so sorry. I had that response and I was like, no, it's okay. I go because I think like, um, I think it's weird, right? Like it's weird, but we have a nap room because my team's like really tired and they eat and usually like if you.

I notice a lot of the teams will go nap in their cars. Houston it's like 105, five degrees. So [00:29:00] I noticed they were napping in their cars and so I built a nap room. So we have like futon jaded out and we have the AC cranking and they have a little board that they sign out their little nap room and just, and they come back, refresh.

And so anyway, yeah, like it works. 

Megan Sprinkle: Well, it's very insightful because even if it's not necessarily a, a nap room, there's. A lot of people that I think, could benefit from a quiet room, where it is just a room off the main, where it's quiet and you can decompress, because I mean, what we do is, is a hard job.

. We can love it right when we are appropriately, maintained. , And sometimes it really is just, I, I need five minutes in a quiet room and I, I just, again, to me it really stood out as one, you were noticing something that was important to your team and you did something creative about it that to some people may seem weird, but [00:30:00] how beneficial I think it could be.

So, I just wanted to pull that out 'cause it stood out to me so. And, then somehow on top of running a practice, you also have another job, which, we'll, we can back up just a little bit. So, Petwell was acquired after six plus years?

Six, eight ish. Somewhere around there. 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. We sold to NVA think year eight. But during that time, we started Roo, so, pivoted over to Roo to start that, uh, because we saw operational need there. 

Megan Sprinkle: So were these, are these the same founders? I didn't make the that connection. 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. So the conversations came about in that, I mean, we noticed that we were having trouble getting relief for our teams and the other agencies were wonderful, all of them, it was difficult to manage the multiple locations.

I found myself emailing a lot, you know. [00:31:00] Texting, like you're, you're sort of managing multiple agencies. , and you're just trying to maintain all of it. Right? And of, I had a master spreadsheet and David and David .

They're the ones who are like, Hey, we wanna chat through this. And so. Started sort of like working with them on that. And you know, year six they're kind of like, look, we're gonna go for this. And you know, ru Roo started and I moved over to Roo to head that out with our CEO, um, Lisa, who, and we kicked off Roo and we started in, in Houston, Texas.

And the goal was to basically return empowerment. Back to vets and techs control over their schedule and also obviously address sort of the bottleneck, relief, for hospitals and that platform, just supporting that connectivity, right, that easy access to vets and techs as well.

So we kicked off and it has just gone wild in the best of ways. [00:32:00] 

Megan Sprinkle: Well, you launched in probably the ideal time in 2019, which was the pandemic, when people remember. So yeah, I, I think that, I mean, peak time for I think the, the time of relief work for sure. 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah. It, um, it really took off. And the coolest thing about Roo is like, it's such a passion project for me, uh, mainly because like watching it grow just.

So organically and everyone sort of be like, oh, wow, is that easy? Like just the, it's like the aha moment. Um, whether it's a vet who's, you know, enrolling or a technician or even a hospital and they see the template format for posting. Like, they're just like, what's the catch? And I'm like, this is a crazy part.

Like, there, there isn't, and they're just. Still, like the apprehension is crazy. And then watching them use it, you're just like, you're waiting for them to be like. Gosh, yeah, [00:33:00] no, this is like super simple. And I'm like, yeah, for the people. By the people, 'cause we were you, like we were literally in your shoes.

And so we built it.

Megan Sprinkle: I like how even early on you were thinking veterinarians and veterinary technicians. So I just wanna emphasize that for anyone who's thinking about that, role as well as veterinary technician roles for relief work. So I think that was very, very forward thinking.  The need was there, but you guys, you know.

You went for it. And I think some of it is you just jump in sometimes and, again, it was fantastic timing and you're right. It, it seems so perfect. I think for a lot of the challenges. And I, I was just talking with a friend yesterday, but she's in France and she has a startup that she's trying to work on, but entrepreneurship, you know, you need to have a little extra work on the side to finance yourself. And so she was like, well, you know, I have this [00:34:00] one month contract, but then I don't have anything, so I gotta go find a contract. And I said, well, don't you have relief work?

And she's like. What's that? I was like, oh my goodness, this is so perfect. This is exactly what you need. So yeah, hopefully it, you know, grows into these other countries because I, I, it's not just a US thing. , I think this is, is an issue across the board, but I know we've talked about Yes, it, I mean, it was perfect in the pandemic times is like, we needed people like crazy and I, I think it's, it's lightened up a little bit as cost of care has gotten higher, we're seeing slightly fewer, uh, patients coming into the practice.

What are you seeing with the evolution of relief work? And not that I, I don't think it's going away, but what do you think is the evolution of it from your very central perspective? 

Charlotte Weir: Yeah, I mean, I think like relief work is changing, in just a mindset. I think [00:35:00] previously, well, we'll start with vets. Vets, I think were a little bit apprehensive because relief might have felt, sporadic or maybe not sustainable. You'd have to sort of like generate your own leads, right? You'd have to go out and sort of like advertise yourself and then maintain your own schedule.

And how would you compare that to full-time employment with like a loss of health and then, you know, license and all of these benefits that come along with full-time employment and then oh, taxation, because now you're a 10 99. Contractor, like what does that look like? And so relief may not have even felt like an option, quite frankly, as like a sustainable practicing medicine professionally. It felt more like a, uh, I'll just take here and there. Maybe like an interim thing, like I'll do this short term, or I think the shift now, which I think is amazing is you can do this, like, this is actually like a huge opportunity where you can be an entrepreneur yourself. You have [00:36:00] full, full control and you have now the ability, and I will pitch Roo a little bit here 'cause it's helpful, , with Roo that you don't have to worry about doing any of that because you have a platform that maintains your schedule, that you how to do all of your taxes.

That gives you access to our resources. And the next part is you have full control. You're booking the shifts when you want, where you want for the pay. Like it's full empowerment. And I think that just like wasn't available before and I think it was a lack of connectivity.

 It's at your fingertips, it's on your cell phone, in our app, or on a laptop. It's anywhere that there's internet and whether it's Roo, whether it's a competitor, having that flexibility, that connectivity, it's just changed for veterinarians. On the flip side, same thing. Hospitals seeing shift from not just using relief as like a, I hate the term "necessary evil," hurts my heart a little, but I hear it [00:37:00] a lot and I get it like I do. I get it. Our clients, it's difficult to, obviously to relieve veterinarians. They wanna see the associate veterinarian. I understand that confidence and trust in what our veterinarians build as myself. I totally understand. But we're seeing workers are using relief to grow their practice.

They're at stages where they're so busy on that Monday and Friday, their vets are at burnout capacity. They don't want to walk through that door Monday morning. That's not fair. It's up to leadership to acknowledge and what they're doing is really savvy leaders saying, Ooh, I see this. I know we're booking at full capacity before.

I'm gonna bring in a relief vet, so that we have additional capacity. We already know the hook. We have someone to see that. We can funnel to them. We can see the clients. The clients aren't blowing up my CSR and burning them out. 'cause then that [00:38:00] fatigue starts to crash down on your CSRs. The pets are being seen.

Yes, there's a financial benefit to that. So their P&L starts to climb. Then they have the financial resources to start to think, to add an area, and they have to prove that growth. And it's a slow entry. Their Mondays, Fridays, Saturdays, they're adding that slow entry relief, and they're using relief to grow their practice, grow that P&L also.

P&L is an artifact. You're helping your senior techs and your CSRs because, like, so to a client who wants to come through the door, who's hysterical because their pet is sick, it doesn't feel good to any of us answering the phone. Like I can guarantee that it's , it's so heartbreaking. I can't stand being up front, like when I go downstairs and cover at the desk on Saturdays.

It's like I tell my team every Saturday like y'all. Job is like the hardest job. Like it is so hard. I am not naive to that. So we think of [00:39:00] relief in like such different contexts because I think you can't keep it in one silo. It affects all facets of the practice. So we have that. And then technicians, now it's evolving where techs weren't really considered a large part of relief until recently.

Now it's freed up because you'll need that additional support staff. So we're seeing techs really enter the relief workforce and expand, and especially platforms like Roo and others supporting that. So I think that's wonderful for all of us in VetMed where you hadn't seen that funnel previously. Now that's happening.

You're seeing that evolve. So all this is culminating, we have sort of like a free funnel more in hospitals. More freedom on the vet and tech side. More opportunity for growth and development. I don't see it as a negative thing. This is all very positive. 

Megan Sprinkle: Well as an expert in, you know, the DNA of A team and a [00:40:00] practice, and you mentioned that sometimes these practices are a little bit nervous about bringing a stranger into that DNA.

, How do you help people through that? , What's the success, strategy for knowing your DNA and using relief to only enhance it and not hurt it. 

Charlotte Weir: Well, I think it's just literally inviting them into the conversation. Right. Welcoming them into your practice.

Whenever you bring a Relief veterinarian, they're part of the team. , Don't alienate a relief veterinarian coming through. We have a whole protocol for introducing relief into the practice. Number one, they're not referred to as a relief veterinarian. It is Dr.

Megan. You walk through that door, it is Dr. Megan. They're expecting you. My team expects you. They know you by name. They're anticipating you. You're assigned my very best technician for the day, and you also have an assistant for that technician. That way you're guided through.

All of your notes are entered, like you have guidance. You are fresh and into the [00:41:00] practice. You don't know where everything is in the practice. You have support and that helps guide the veterinarian through the day. On the client side, the CSRs are trained also not to refer to the veterinary as a relief veterinarian also to have some background on Dr. Megan, your skillset, your loves, your passions. I know a lot about you before you come in. Book accordingly. When we have clients calling in and we highlight those skills, and it's really important to integrate them into your practice ahead of the scheduled day, I think that drives success.

It drives success with the clients in the introduction. My texts and assistants before they go in their room. Dr. Megan, you're introduced before you walk in the room to my clients and it's always Dr. Kennedy wasn't available today. She's celebrating her doctor, you know her daughter Charlie's birthday. We have Dr.

Megan today. She has two Sphinx cats also. Your Sphinx owner is going through the roof before you walk in the room like it's just. It's about being authentic. Again, [00:42:00] it's just transparency, authenticity, and just sharing commonalities because that starts to build that trust out the gate. Otherwise, it's setting you up for failure.

The team up for failure. Clients are put on guard and yeah, it doesn't feel good. ? So that integration, building, that expectation also. 

Megan Sprinkle: That just makes me automatically feel like really good and excited. Does Roo help with that training and support that communication, or is that just something that you do in your practice?

Charlotte Weir: We modeled it after what we do in the practice, so this is something that we've sort of built here in my practice, and then we've modeled it. We have handouts that we share. But Roo supports that with all of the hospitals, all of my hospital team, when we onboard a hospital, I've, uh, two lovely team members at Roo, they onboard all and they share these tips and tricks with the hospital.

I mean, even to the point where I have my [00:43:00] relief vets coming, we have orange juice and a muffin waiting for them when they come in, we buy them lunch how hard is it to come in and be the new kid at school? That's relief, right? Like you're the new kid. So I just think again, like have some E.Q. know exactly what you're expecting of people coming in and give them a little bit of warmth to get going.

But we certainly support the hospitals and train them to that because it's really up to the hospitals to also foster relationships with the veterinarians and the technicians coming in. 

Megan Sprinkle: Yeah. I love the idea of having like a mini survey for the vet before they come in. It's like, what's your favorite drink?

What's your favorite breakfast item? And being that, interested in them and to make sure that they're comfortable and they wanna come back, 'cause I think that's it too. If you, if you create a terrible experience, that word will get out and nobody will come and help you.

Charlotte Weir: That's how I feel. I'm like, guys, like, [00:44:00] why wouldn't you wanna just like, and again, what we do is hard enough, like. We ride the emotional rollercoaster every day just by virtue of what we deal with: Disease and pets, euthanasia, and then we swing into a puppy appointment, 

Megan Sprinkle: I know we're out of time, so, while I have you here, . When you look at veterinary medicine in general, there's so much going on in veterinary medicine right now. It's pretty crazy. What, right now, are you really interested in , and what gets you still very excited about veterinary medicine of the future?

Charlotte Weir: So I think obviously like AI is super intriguing to me, just as a general tool. I mean, I know there's a lot of hesitation and I certainly respect that. But for instance, we use CoVet right now, I rolled it out, um, about a month ago and the time it's saving my team.

For note taking and the fact we can scan [00:45:00] records and the summaries it provides and the integrative ability and the summarization from previous records and diagnostics is insanity. And so tools like that entering the field and acting as like supportive mechanisms for my veterinarians and technicians, like that's exciting.

Like I'm super stoked about that.  Medical advances, obviously, like always get me stoked. I'm like a science geek. One in particular I'm like really excited about is, felycin-CA1 that came out PRN released, from Trivium Vet. They purchased Trivium Vet recently and then, and then put out the product.

, My 2-year-old Sphinx, Noah unfortunately, was diagnosed with HCM and I was absolutely heartbroken obviously. And, , he's on his. Third dose of a drug that could potentially change feline medicine. One in seven cats are affected. I mean like things like this are just. [00:46:00] Life changing, right? , For pet owners, I'm a pet owner, like I'm in the field, but like I'm cheerleading for these advances.

my team's ecstatic. We got on the early prescriber list, I was relentless to get on this list. I like sent 38 letters to PRN, . Anything. Right. And, like if it works for Noah and we can help others and we can prescribe for other, like vet med is so cool. It's just an amazing field with amazing people.

And whether it's an medical advance, whether it's AI technology, it's just the people that make it cool. And it's what we're driven to do and the things that support what we do and the fact that we support each other. And I think the more of that we can do, the better. Um, so that's what I'm excited about.

I'm excited about continuing to build that [00:47:00] community and that support. 

Megan Sprinkle: Yeah. And a huge component of leadership too, is being able to help bring in that support. 'cause a, a lot of the team is doing the day to day, right? And, and so having that advocate of bringing in the advancements and, letting them know that it's okay.

It may take us a little bit of time, but this is how we can. Figure out the challenges to get to the, the other side I think is really helpful. So I wanna thank you so much for what you're doing. I, I admire you so much for all the different startups and things that you're bringing into the industry that I think are enhancing the lives of.

The colleagues that we love so much, and also their career paths. I, I think you're opening up a lot of opportunities that to me, are very exciting for the profession. And, and so one last question that I have, and this is beyond veterinary medicine, , unless that is just what comes to your mind, but what is something that you're really, really grateful [00:48:00] for right now?

Oh 

Charlotte Weir: wow. That's a really cool question. Um. I'm just really grateful to be surrounded by people that are motivated to do better, whether it is vet med or whether it's my soccer team that I play recreational soccer with on Sunday, or it's, you know, my sister that I go ride reigning horses with.

I'm just inspired by. Others, yourself, Megan, everything that you've accomplished, everything that you do. , I'm motivated by doing better. And whether it's like one little single act of goodness or whether it's, you know, planning massive lifts. , I just think this world, it's easy to get kind of like sucked in right now into sort of like these darker and gray areas.

. But right now I think it's feeling like I'm surrounded by people that are motivated to do really [00:49:00] good things. 

Megan Sprinkle: What I loved about my conversation with Charlotte is how she turned everyday. Clinic needs like her team napping in their cars into creative ways to make work better. She's also a great example of how leadership often comes down to noticing, listening, and caring enough to act. I wanna thank you for listening.

Vet Life Reimagine keeps growing because of incredible listeners like you. A huge thank you to Dr. Kelly Cooper. I'm grateful for her friendship and for her support in making this mission possible. Her consulting and speaking also help veterinary teams not just survive, but truly thrive. A lot of listeners are not followers, so if you haven't already, please follow the show.

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