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D r . A S H L E Y Veterinary life beyond the exam room✨
→ senior pets • raising girls • career pivots
Sharing what I know + figuring out the rest
♡ insta:

10/24/2026

I’m starting to think this is a coordinated effort between my furry & human kiddos 🤔🫠🫣

10/21/2026

The higher your degree, the more important your humility becomes. 🤍

I’ve seen what happens when ego enters medicine. People stop asking questions. They hesitate to speak up. Mistakes go unaddressed, and ultimately, patients can suffer.

One of the greatest lessons I’ve learned in medical leadership is that psychological safety and accountability must coexist.

We need environments where everyone, regardless of title, feels empowered to ask questions, share concerns, and advocate for patients.

But here’s the other side of that conversation:

How we speak up matters just as much as our willingness to do it.

There’s a difference between challenging an idea and challenging someone’s competence.

A few things I encourage every medical team to practice:

Lead with curiosity, not assumptions.
Instead of “Why would you do that?” try “Can you walk me through your thinking?”

Make suggestions collaborative.
“I noticed something. Would you be open to another perspective?”

Normalize questions at every level.
Whether you’re a new grad, an experienced veterinarian, or a credentialed veterinary technician, no one knows everything.

Respond to concerns with appreciation, not defensiveness.
A simple “Thank you for catching that” can change the culture of an entire team.

Address mistakes without humiliation.
Accountability means learning, improving, and protecting patients. It doesn’t require shame.

And most importantly, never let your title make you unteachable.

Some of my greatest lessons as a new veterinarian came from experienced veterinary technicians who had knowledge I didn’t yet possess.

Their experience didn’t diminish my education. It made me a better doctor.

As leaders, our responsibility isn’t to be the smartest person in the room. It’s to create an environment where the collective knowledge of the team can shine.

Speak up with courage. Listen with humility. Correct with kindness, and always put the patient first.

That’s how we build better teams, better leaders, and better medicine. 🤍

MedicalLeadership

A little extra ‘Just Checking’ love for our veterinary technicians this week.Your skills, compassion, and dedication des...
10/21/2026

A little extra ‘Just Checking’ love for our veterinary technicians this week.

Your skills, compassion, and dedication deserve to be recognized, respected, and supported... and not just this week, but every week!

Happy National Veterinary Technician Week! 🤍

10/20/2026

Different coffee orders. Different credentials. One team. 💪

Veterinary technicians do SO much more than hold animals and cuddle puppies & kittens (although that’s a pretty great perk of our job 😉).

Credentialed veterinary technicians are educated medical professionals who complete formal training, typically earning a degree in veterinary technology, and meet credentialing requirements. From anesthesia and patient monitoring to nursing care and emergency medicine, their knowledge and skills are essential to veterinary medicine.

And here’s something we wish more people understood: their education, credentials, and professional titles deserve recognition AND protection.

We’re proud that North Carolina took an important step in 2023, passing legislation protecting the veterinary technician title. Now we’d love to see meaningful, consistent title protection across all 50 states.

As veterinarians, we know we couldn’t do what we do without our veterinary technicians. Different roles, different expertise, and one incredible team working toward the same goal: better care for our patients.

Happy National Veterinary Technician Week to the incredible techs who keep veterinary medicine running. You deserve the recognition, respect, and professional protection you’ve worked so hard for!

My best mentor as a new grad veterinarian was a vet tech, and I’ll never forget the day she saved my b***y during a STAT...
10/18/2026

My best mentor as a new grad veterinarian was a vet tech, and I’ll never forget the day she saved my b***y during a STAT.

I had the degree, the education, and the knowledge, but when the adrenaline hit, my hands froze.

My vet tech didn’t judge me or push me aside. She physically guided me through what needed to be done.

Her confidence and experience taught me something no textbook ever could.

Being the doctor doesn’t mean you’re the only expert in the room.

Veterinary technicians are the nurses of veterinary medicine. Their years on the floor, clinical judgment, ability to anticipate patient needs, and instincts built through experience are invaluable.

There is no room for ego in veterinary medicine. Your title doesn’t put you above learning from someone else.

Respecting your tech’s expertise doesn’t make you less of a doctor. It makes you a better one.

I’ll forever be grateful for the RVT who helped scared new grad me find her confidence and, in doing so, helped shape the veterinarian and leader I became later on.

This Vet Tech Week, thank you to the veterinary nurses who mentor us, challenge us, advocate for our patients, and make us better.

To my fellow veterinarians: Listen to your techs. Learn from them. Respect their experience.

Great medicine isn’t about egos or titles. It’s about teamwork, trust, and doing what’s best for our patients.

Happy Vet Tech Week!

10/16/2026

One thing about pet grief… it sneaks up on you in the most ordinary moments. 💔

Today I picked up my dog, something I’ve done a hundred times before, but it used to be two dogs I was bringing home, not one.

It’s been 4 months without Sawyer, and sometimes the smallest reminders still hurt like it was yesterday.

Grief doesn’t follow a timeline, and loving them doesn’t stop just because they’re gone. 🤍

10/16/2026

4 months without Sawyer. ❤️‍🩹

Today I went to pick up my dog, something I’ve done countless times… except it used to be two dogs coming home with me.

It’s moments like these that remind me grief doesn’t have a timeline. Sometimes it shows up in the most ordinary parts of your day.

If you’ve lost a pet, you know. 💔

10/16/2026

4 months without Sawyer, and moments like this still break my heart.

Pet grief is hard.

Pet grief is unpredictable.

Sending you love if you are in a similar boat as me. ❤️‍🩹

SOME VERY BIG NEWS FOR OUR LITTLE GIRL. 🙌😭There are milestones you expect to celebrate as a parent, and then there are t...
10/15/2026

SOME VERY BIG NEWS FOR OUR LITTLE GIRL. 🙌😭

There are milestones you expect to celebrate as a parent, and then there are the ones you never imagined you’d have to fight so hard for.

For us, it was watching Sophie eat and drink.

Born with esophageal atresia, something as simple as swallowing has been anything but simple for our girl.

Nearly three years. More than 10 doctors, specialists, and therapists. Over 100 visits and procedures. Countless hours researching, asking questions, advocating, and wondering what the future might hold.

Two years after needing a balloon dilation to open a narrowing in her esophagus, we got the results from her latest scope.

➡️ NO RECURRENT STRICTURE. NORMAL BIOPSIES. NO MEDICATIONS. 🙌😭

Our almost-three-year-old is eating and drinking just like other kids her age.

I can’t put into words what that means.

This journey has taught us so much, but above all, patient advocacy matters.

Parents are an essential part of the care team. We’ve learned to ask questions, trust our instincts, speak up, keep pushing for answers, and we’re so grateful for the medical professionals who have listened and partnered with us along the way.

We know esophageal atresia is a lifelong journey, and there will still be monitoring and unknowns.

But today? We celebrate!

No new intervention. No medications. Just our happy, growing little girl enjoying the simple things we once worried might never be simple.

Over 100 visits and procedures later, OUR GIRL IS DOING SO GOOD.

To every family navigating a complicated medical journey: Keep asking questions. Keep advocating. And never underestimate the milestones that might look ordinary to everyone else. 🤍

10/15/2026

Forget Bloody Mary. If you really want to summon a vet mom, just yell “MOMMY, I GAVE THE DOG CHOCOLATE!” 💀👻

I will appear faster than you can say “emergency vet.” 🏃‍♀️💨

And while we’re here… your friendly neighborhood veterinarian would like to remind you that Halloween candy is for the kids, NOT the pets. Keep it in a safe place.

Chocolate can be toxic to dogs, and don’t forget about xylitol (also called birch sugar) in some sugar-free treats!

Keep those candy buckets out of paw’s reach, and if your pet gets into chocolate, call your veterinarian or animal poison control right away. Don’t wait for symptoms!

Now tell me… pet parents AND human parents, what’s the ONE sound or sentence that will have you running from across the house?! 😂👇

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