Episode Details

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Veterinarian, author, co-founder of Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice, and lover of all old, and grey furry friends, Dr. Mary Gardner, joins Brendan Howard in this week’s episode of The Veterinary Business Success Show. 

Dr. Mary Gardner took an untraditional route into veterinary medicine. As a self-proclaimed ‘second career’ vet, Dr. Mary Gardner started her professional career in enterprise-wide software design, implementation, and marketing. However, after nearly a decade, Mary felt the need for a change and enrolled in the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, graduating in 2008. 

After a few years of working in general practice, Dr. Mary found her niche… A love for geriatric and terminally ill pets and so in 2010, co-founded ‘Lap of Love Veterinary Hospice’ – a nationwide practice whose 120+ veterinarians provide in-home hospice, euthanasia, and end-of-life care where alongside her veterinarian duties, Mary is responsible for the invention and development company’s proprietary software.

Alongside Dr. Mary’s work as a veterinarian and co-founder, Mary is also the author of ‘It’s Never Long Enough: Treatment and Care for the Geriatric Veterinary Patient’ and a global speaker. Dr. Mary has traveled around the world speaking about geriatric medicine, assessing the quality of life, veterinary hospice, euthanasia, and caregiver burden, and in 2020 was voted VMX Small Animal Speaker of the year!

Tune in to learn more about the importance of geriatric care, why is there a lack of knowledge, and how could your veterinary practice support their clients in knowing when is the best time to say goodbye. 

Outline of this episode:

• [01:13] The episode kicks off with Brendan asking Dr. Mary about her book ‘It’s Never Long Enough: Treatment and Care for the Geriatric Veterinary Patient.’
• [04:13] Why don’t owners of geriatric patients being their pets to the vet?
• [08:13] What is the aim of Mary’s book? 
• [11:05] Is euthanasia “giving up”?
• [14:20] Mary discusses the sections of her book. 
• [15:59] How does Mary imagine her book gets used/ read?
• [18:05] Ad break – sign up for our Leaders course. 
• [19:21] The episode resumes with Brendan asking Mary about her philosophy of older pets’ values. 
• [22:06] When is it time to say goodbye?
• [26:31] Is there a lack of knowledge around pets getting old?
• [28:46] How to work out and recognize treatment for geriatric patients?
• [31:45] When Dr. Mary talks to practice owners about geriatric patients, what is her one wish?
• [34:42] The episode wraps up. 

To access the extended version of this episode, sign up to our Leaders course.  

Resources Mentioned:

• https://www.lapoflove.com/ 
• It’s Never Long Enough: A practical guide to caring for your geriatric dog

Connect with Dr. Mary:

• LinkedIn
• Instagram