Caitlyn Cochran
Harvest
Summary
Lead surgical veterinary assistant with 8 years of veterinary experience, now primarily working to perform anesthetic induction, monitor patients under anesthesia, and assist the veterinarian in soft tissue surgeries or dental procedures. Proficient in helping to deliver excellent preventive care, maintain accurate medical records, and working to make sure that clients remain as educated as possible in keeping their pets healthy and happy.
Overview
7
7
years of professional experience
Work History
Lead Surgical Veterinary Assistant
Green Cove Pet Hospital
Huntsville, AL
07.2024 - Current
- Assist veterinarians with general physical examinations, vaccinations, and sample collection
- Maintain cleanliness and organization of examination rooms and surgical areas for optimal safety standards.
- Maintain cleaning and upkeep of surgical instruments, surgical equipment and surgical suite.
- Educate pet owners on proper care practices, fostering a supportive environment for pet health improvement.
- Perform surgical and dental check-ins. This includes discussing any anesthetic risk for the particular patient, what the specific procedure entails, and gathering a history on the patient from the client prior to anesthesia
- Discharge patients to the clients by discussing post-operative care and instructions
- Preparing patients for procedures under anesthesia including gathering vital signs, placing an intravenous catheter, setting up any necessary equipment, and preparing paperwork for monitoring under anesthesia
- Monitoring patients under anesthesia and assisting the veterinarian in surgical or dental procedures when needed (including scrubbing in when needed)
- Scaling, assisting in charting, and performing dental radiographs during dental procedures.
- Assist the veterinarian in completing medical records for patients, including surgical reports
- Working with a co-lead veterinary assistant in facilitating communication between staff members and performing onboarding training for any new employees
Veterinary Assistant
Green Cove Pet Hosptial
Huntsville, AL
02.2020 - 07.2024
- Assist veterinarians with general physical examinations, vaccinations, and sample collection.
- Maintain cleanliness and organization of examination rooms and surgical areas for optimal safety standards.
- Educate pet owners on proper care, fostering a supportive environment for pet health improvement.
- Gather patient history from the client and present it to the veterinarian prior to appointments
- Working with the veterinarian to complete medical records for patients
- Assist the lead surgical veterinary technician with preparations for surgeries or dental procedures
Animal Care Attendant
Green Cove Pet Hospital
Huntsville, AL
11.2018 - 02.2020
- Provide daily animal care for all boarding animals, including feeding and grooming upon request. For canine boarders, supervised time in an outside yard. For cats, supervised time in the cat boarding suite.
- Monitor animal health and behavior, reporting concerns to veterinary staff efficiently.
- Maintain clean and organized living conditions for boarding animals, ensuring compliance with safety standards.
- Assist in restraint of animals for sample collections, examinations, and treatments.
- Administer any necessary medications to boarding animals.
- Assist in supervising and exercising hospitalized patients under the supervision of a medical staff member.
- Check in any boarding animals and discuss their needs, feeding instructions, behaviors, etc. with clients prior to dropping off for boarding stay.
- Clean, maintain and stock all areas of the hospital.
Education
Associate of Applied Science - Veterinary Technology
Jefferson State Community College
Birmingham, Alabama, AL05-2026
Bachelor of Science - Animal Science
Auburn University
Auburn, AL05-2018
Skills
- Client communication
- Sample collection
- Patient restraint
- Intubation
- Intravenous catheter placement
- Euthanasia assistance
- Medication administration
- Employee onboarding
- Monitoring patients under anesthesia/anesthetic induction
- Dental scaling, charting, and radiographs
- Assist in soft tissue surgeries/preparing the patient aseptically for soft tissue surgery
Timeline
Lead Surgical Veterinary Assistant
Green Cove Pet Hospital
07.2024 - Current
Veterinary Assistant
Green Cove Pet Hosptial
02.2020 - 07.2024
Animal Care Attendant
Green Cove Pet Hospital
11.2018 - 02.2020
Associate of Applied Science - Veterinary Technology
Jefferson State Community College
Bachelor of Science - Animal Science
Auburn University