Ep 17: Dr Susan Little

My guest on today’s show is cat vet extraordinaire, Dr Susan Little. Susan received her DVM from Ontario Veterinary College, Guelph and has been in feline practice since 1990, achieving board certification in Feline Practice in 1997. She is part owner of two feline speciality practices in Ottawa and is a board member/Past President (2015) of the American Assoc. of Feline Practitioners, Dr Little also serves on the board of the International Council for Veterinary Assessment (the dudes that set the NAVLE). Susan is undoubtedly one of the hardest working speakers on the veterinary circuit, her Airmiles collection is only outweighed by her risk of DVT, such is the time she spends travelling globally to educate us all. But all of her hard work has paid dividends in the form of huge recognition from her peers with accolades including from the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association Small Animal Practitioner Award (2010), the NAVC Small Animal Speaker of the Year Award (2013), and the International Society of Feline Medicine/Hill's Pet Nutrition Award for outstanding contributions to feline medicine (2013). Finally, it would be rude not to mention the two books Susan has edited and co-authored: First up, The Cat: Clinical Medicine and Management, and also August’s Consultations in Feline Internal Medicine. Now, just before we jump into the episode, I just wanted to drop a quick word from our show sponsor which today is the VetX Graduate Mentoring community. If you are a practice owner and want to offer your new vets a greater level of support so they grow faster and stay longer with your practice, then jump onto my website drdavenicol.com/vetx-grad and learn how we are helping graduates across the world thrive in practices just like yours. The class is open for global entry now so check it out. This was my first time spending time with Susan one on one and I hope it will not be my last, she was a riot from start to finish giving generously with both time and knowledge. But what struck me the most was her passion and enthusiasm for both veterinary medicine and life in general. So without further ado, it is my great pleasure to bring you my conversation with the amazing, Dr Susan Little. In the show we cover: 1. Susan’s Oyster Fetish 2. The really dull, but (probably) authentic reasons she became a vet. 3. Her views on the current (poor) "State Of The Veterinary Union”. 4. The tough points in her career and the tools she uses to maintain her state of mind and performance. 5. Why she loves checklists and thinks we should use them way more in veterinary medicine. 6. Life auditing and how to say no. 7. Multiple tips she has for all clinics to improve their feline experience (at no or little cost. Follow Susan at @catvetsusan on twitter, Instagram and Facebook.