Published by Ontario Veterinary College (519) 824-4120, Ext. 54401

March 20, 2007

New Book Teaches Graduates How to Grow Their Careers

Helping would-be and fledgling veterinarians leap ever-higher career hurdles is the goal of a new textbook co-authored by U of G clinical studies professor John Tait.

Tait describes the book as a “one-stop resource for all entry-level and early career issues,” including establishing and running a veterinary practice, addressing financial, legal and ethical issues, finding alternative career paths and achieving a work-life balance.

The First Bite: A Comprehensive Guide to Establishing and Growing Your Career in Veterinary Medicine was released this year by Pandora Press in Kitchener. Under a sponsorship arrangement, Tait and his co-author – lawyer and veterinarian Brian Ausman – have given copies to almost 500 senior DVM students in the Ontario Veterinary College, the Atlantic Veterinary College and the Western College of Veterinary Medicine.

Sponsors for publishing and distributing the 560-page hardcover book were Hill’s Pet Nutrition Canada, Pfizer Animal Health and Scotiabank.

Besides Tait and Ausman, various contributors from across Canada wrote the book’s chapters, including Prof. David Waltner-Toews, Population Medicine, Prof. Brigitte Brisson, Clinical Studies, and Danielle Richardson, an OVC resident in small animal internal medicine.

Tait says the book is intended to address questions commonly posed by students nearing graduation. The First Bite also emphasizes what he calls the non-clinical aspects of running a practice, from business and litigation issues to stress management and compassion fatigue. “Coping skills and management skills have really come to the forefront,” says Tait, who helped design the Art of Veterinary Medicine courses offered to DVM students at U of G.

Formerly director of the Veterinary Teaching Hospital, he now teaches business, finance and practice management courses part time in OVC. He completed his DVM at Guelph and has practiced and taught in Canada and the United States. As a certified financial planner, Tait consults with small-business medical professionals and is managing partner of a group of Toronto-area veterinary practices.

A member of the board of directors of the National Commission on Veterinary Economic Issues and the American Animal Hospital Association, Tait will become the AAHA’s second Canadian president in 2009.