Vetisco
Location
Wales | United Kingdom
Job description
A mixed vet role with a great work-life balance? No really! How about a 4-day week, working 9-5 with a fantastic, supportive team, and over six weeks’ annual leave?
Chaseview Vets is an independent mixed practice that has been caring for the animals of the beautiful Wye Valley for over a century. In that time, we have grown to be a progressive practice with an amazing 11-vet team and superb facilities, enabling us to provide high-quality care from lambing to laparoscopy and orthopaedics. We believe the key to our success is providing a happy environment for our team with plenty of support, opportunities for clinical progression and an excellent work-life balance.
We all work well together and are always happy to share our knowledge and experience. As a VetGDP and nurse training practice, support is at the heart of everything we do, so we will always make time to help each other out, whether that’s to discuss a tricky case or scrub in to assist with surgery. If you have a particular area of interest or want to take on a certificate, we will do all we can to support you. If you’re looking towards the future, there is also the potential for long-term partnership options.
“I started working at Chaseview 4.5 years ago. You will not find a practice with a better ethos and team, with the partners ensuring a very fair work-life balance. The practice has supported me with anything I have wanted to pursue in the veterinary field and are always keen for us to continue our learning and development. There isn't a better mixed practice to work at which is why I am still here.” James MRCVS
About our team
Nigel joined the practice in 1989 and became Director when the three stalwarts retired. He is mortified to have changed from ‘the young man’ to ‘the old codger’ but pleased that he is surrounded by a fantastic team that means he can do as little work as possible. When he does turn up, he enjoys orthopaedic surgery and interfering with all aspects of mixed practice while moaning about how much better it was in the old days before we had all this fantastic new equipment.
Will joined the practice in 2016 as a new grad and completed his CertAVP, focused on small animal medicine, in 2020. He also enjoys all surgery, including orthopaedics, and recently took the step to become a Director in 2023. Having bought a house in Ross on Wye, Will is usually busy attempting DIY projects (with varying levels of success) or hurting himself on his mountain bike.
Kate qualified from Bristol last century, in 1999 to be precise, but is not quite as ancient as Nigel. Chaseview was her first job, and she loved it so much that she’s still here! Now that she has handed the Director reins over to Will, Kate is often found in theatre, where she is happiest elbow-deep in complex procedures like BOAS, orthopaedics including TTAs, laryngeal tie-backs and PDAs.
James joined us as a new grad in 2019. Having been brought up on a farm, he enjoys all aspects of mixed practice and has a particular interest in dentistry. James can light up any room with his smile and has quite a reputation for making excellent plum jam. He also enjoys making cider, but trust me, don't ask to try it!
Before joining us in 2003, Claire spent five years working at Worcestershire Equine Hospital, where she gained her GPCert (EM). She has now completed her CertAVP in Equine Medicine and is our go-to vet for any equine questions.
Sophie C loves large animal work, with a particular fondness for sheep and goats. She is a regular at our farmer talks and is determined to grow our large animal caseload. Despite her limited general knowledge, she is always up for a good pub quiz and isn’t bad at answering the animal questions.
Hannah also joined us as a new grad and has enjoyed getting stuck into all aspects of mixed work. She is a member of the local Young Farmers Club and gets involved in various competitions, including stock judging and tug of war, along with enjoying the social side.
Sophie G graduated in 2022 and joined us recently after relocating from Gloucestershire, she must like it here as she is already buying a house. She’s Welsh, but we try not to hold that against her.
Steph and Kate, our recent graduates, are the team's newest members. They have such enthusiasm for all aspects of the job and are off to a flying start with the support of the whole team, including the mentorship of our three VetGDP Advisors.
We have an experienced nursing team of 9 RVNS, 2 SVNs and 1 ANA, and our brilliant reception team who keep everything running smoothly. Our fantastic Practice Manager Nadine, is passionate about looking after us all. She always checks in to ensure we’re all okay or shoos us out of the building when it’s time to head home.
About the practice
Our caseload is approx. 70% small animal and 30% farm and equine. Our large animal work comprises beef, sheep and some dairy, with no routine TB testing, only small numbers of premovement tests and some regular equine work. We also look after smallholders with sheep, goats, donkeys and alpacas.
We are really proud of our modern purpose-built premises and continually invest in our facilities, including plans to install CT within the next 12-18 months. We are an ISFM Gold Standard Cat-Friendly and Fear-Free practice with separate dog and cat wards and waiting rooms. We have all the diagnostic equipment you could ever need for medical workups and the facilities for everything from routine surgery and dental imaging to more advanced procedures such as TTA and Z-Lig cruciate repairs, tiebacks, lap spays, and PDAs. We also have extensive rehab facilities, including therapeutic laser therapy, stem cell therapy, stance analyser, and hydrotherapy on site. If you have a particular interest in this area, there is enormous potential to develop your skills. We also have an on-site lambing room, stables, stocks and paddock for the large animal side.
About the role
One of our lovely vets, Freddie, is relocating, so we are looking for a full-time mixed vet, ideally with some experience. We are also happy to consider a purely small animal vet or support a particular species bias and are happy to chat about the options available.
Our vets work a 4-day week (9-5). We schedule our days so that three vets consult each morning, plus a fourth vet free to see any emergencies or go out on farm visits. We also have one vet operating and one on dentals daily, so there is always someone on hand to help our new grads or less experienced vets.
We provide our own out-of-hours, which is shared between the whole team. We have a 2 nd on-call system in place, so there is always support available, and we also have an RVN on-call to assist and help look after any inpatients. Our OOHs rota is just 1:8 weekends, which includes Saturday morning consults (9 - 11.30 am). The 1:8 weeknight on-call has a later consult slot, which finishes at 6 pm, so you’ll still be out the door at a reasonable time.
Outside of work
We love raising money for good causes, and this year, we’ve set the goal of raising £5,000 for Hereford & Worcester Animal Rescue. We have planned fundraising events for each month of 2024, and January’s Cake sale was a fantastic way to get us started; not only did we raise over £750, but we also got to sample some of the delicious bakes! Our upcoming events include hosting an outdoor cinema night at the practice with dogs welcome too, and in August, Will is heading off to the Alps to take on the challenge of climbing the Matterhorn.
We’re a really friendly bunch that genuinely enjoys spending time together. There’s always something going on outside of work, and everyone’s invited, whether we’re off to the pub at the end of the week, enjoying Bonfire night celebrations or heading for a weekend away in Devon.
Ross on Wye is a market town set in the stunning Wye Valley, one of the most beautiful parts of the UK and a great place to live and work. There are many outdoor activities on the doorstep, including mountain biking, climbing, canoeing, paddle boarding, rowing, wild swimming, and fabulous walks in the countryside. There are excellent travel links, with easy motorway access to Cardiff, Bristol, and Birmingham for a spot of shopping or nightlife.
The package
If you love being a mixed vet and are looking for a fun, friendly and supportive team but also want time to enjoy life outside of work, then look no further. Call us for an informal chat, or apply now.
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