Dr. Brittany Koether Talks about the Life of a Recent Graduate

Dr. Brittany Koether is originally from Connecticut. She attended undergraduate school at the University of Connecticut, went to Oklahoma State Veterinary School (2015 graduate), and now is an associate veterinarian at EQuiVET Medicine in Ohio. Her interview took place at her home in Ohio with her German Shepherd puppy Kahlua bouncing around the screen and tugging at Brittany’s sleeve the entire time. Dr. Koether always wanted to be a vet; she grew up with police dogs in the house and started working in a small animal practice as a teenager. While at the University of Connecticut she had her first formal introduction to large animals while working in the livestock barn. She wound up heading to California to ride with equine veterinarian Dr. Joe Dowd, who Brittany describes as a strong mentor, and fell in love with the athleticism of horses. She had the opportunity to hotwalk horses for Bob Baffert, including being “dragged around” by Mr. Charlie, while others looked on. She educated herself on horse breeds and various horse disciplines. Dr. Koether really took the time to absorb all the horse knowledge she could, from the vets, the trainers, and of course the horses themselves. Dr. Koether described getting into Vet School as a task in itself; she had good recommendations, good experience, and not the best GPA. When she was accepted into Oklahoma State she had no idea where Oklahoma even was on the map! Arriving initially as a fast talking new englander, leaving as a seasoned veterinarian with a slightly slower pace of speaking. Getting through classes in vet school was also a challenge, but she really relied on the extracurricular activities in leadership and organized medicine throughout school. Knowing she wanted to go into the equine world, she geared her school toward internships, wound up at an internship in North Carolina and then went directly into practice. Her current role as an ambulatory veterinarian in Ohio was also something unpredictable, as she applied for the job on a whim, but then completely fell in love with the practice and most importantly her team. We talked about challenges and Dr. Koether had a big challenge during her last year of school and starting her internship. She did not initially pass the NAVLE (the veterinary licensing exam) so she was a doctor, but unable to get licensed right off the bat. Brittany says starting a competitive internship after not succeeding on NAVLE completely consumed her mind. In addition to the stress of sleepless nights, the intern life of always being on call, and learning so much new information, Brittany has the added demand of needing to study for NAVLE. She overcame this emotional hurdle by surrounding herself with positive people, friends and mentors; and she did something for HERSELF nearly every day - starting with a quick workout. She passed the NAVLE and finished her internship year, even after her intern-mate left the internship within a couple of months. Brittany says: "It's better to have a team around you", with respect to getting through tough times. She also relies on asking those around her what they would do and talking it out. The near future for Dr. Koether includes staying at EQuiVET Medicine in Ohio and developing more as an associate. She hopes Dr. McFadden and her team continue to grow together; she loves having that team to rely on. Down the road, Brittany sees herself in a practice ownership position. She is also involved in a telemedicine company, Televet, focused on improving the client-patient relationship. When asked to define High Performance, Dr. Koether thinks of athletics; your mindset is primary, actual performance is secondary to that. It all begins and ends in what you think about and how you approach a challenge.