New Faces

New Faces Don’t be surprised if a new face greets you and your companion animal on your next scheduled visit to the Hixson-Lied Small Animal Hospital. Summer is the time when interns and residents in the small animal hospital complete their training programs and move onto their professional careers.

These “House Officer” programs provide in-depth training in the various areas of veterinary specialty practice. “Our programs strive to prepare trainees for active careers in academia or specialty practice and for certification by the appropriate specialty college,” said Dr. Dan Grooms, the Dr. Stephen G. Juelsgaard Dean of Veterinary Medicine. A rotating small animal internship is a one-year program after the intern has received their Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) degree. Interns spend 25 weeks in Emergency and Critical Care followed by additional weeks in the Hixson-Lied Small Animal Hospital’s specialty areas.

After completing a small animal rotating internship, individuals may elect to do a three-year residency program in a specific specialization. Most specialties within the Hixson-Lied Small Animal Hospital have residents spread out over the three years.

So not every face you will see in the hospital will be new to you and your pet.