Veterinary Surgeon

Job Description

Introduction
Our Client is an independently owned mixed veterinary practice in East Sussex looking for a Mixed Animal Veterinary Surgeon to join an established and collaborative clinical team. The practice offers a genuinely varied caseload across small animal, farm, alongside a notable zoo and exotic caseload.

The practice places a strong emphasis on teamwork, clinical freedom and supporting individuals to develop around their own strengths and interests. Standard consultations are 15 minutes, allowing vets appropriate time with both patients and clients.

Working Hours / Rota
The full-time position is based around a 4.5-day working week, with typical hours of 8am to 5pm and half days running from 8am to 1pm. A four-day week can also be considered, with further flexibility potentially available for an exceptional and highly experienced candidate.

The current OOH rota includes approximately one weekend in eight on duty and one weekend in eight providing cover, alongside a shared weekday duty/cover commitment and occasional Saturday morning surgery at around one in sixteen. Time back is provided following duty and cover weekends. Participation in the OOH rota is an essential part of the role, and candidates will need to live within approximately 30 minutes of the practice.

Role Description
The successful Veterinary Surgeon will manage a varied mixed-practice caseload encompassing consultations, diagnostics, medical cases, surgery, emergency work and ongoing patient care. Farm work includes a good proportion of smallholder clients, with a more limited dairy caseload, while the practice also sees equine work alongside a significant zoo caseload.

The caseload is estimated at approximately 60% small animal and 40% farm/equine combined. The practice is keen to work around individual strengths and interests, meaning there is scope to shape the caseload depending on experience and areas the successful candidate would like to develop.

The practice carries out its operating in-house and provides its own out-of-hours service, creating exposure to both routine and emergency cases.

Team Size
The practice currently has approximately 10 Veterinary Surgeons and 10 Veterinary Nurses, supported by dedicated administration and reception teams. The working environment is collaborative, with team members encouraged to discuss cases, ask for support where needed and contribute to a supportive clinical culture.

Practice Details & Equipment
The practice is an established independent mixed veterinary practice with the facilities required to provide its own surgical and out-of-hours services. Equipment includes digital X-ray, dental X-ray, ultrasound/scanning facilities and in-house blood-testing equipment.

All operating is carried out in-house, and the team is equipped to manage routine, emergency and inpatient cases. The breadth of the caseload is a particular feature of the practice, with companion animal, farm, equine and zoo work contributing to a varied clinical environment.

Ideal Candidate
The practice is looking for a friendly, approachable and collaborative Veterinary Surgeon with strong interpersonal skills and a genuine team-focused attitude. The successful candidate should be comfortable discussing cases with colleagues, open to asking for support when needed and willing to contribute positively to the wider team.

Previous mixed-practice experience would be welcomed but is not essential. The practice would consider a Veterinary Surgeon coming predominantly from a small-animal background who has a genuine interest in developing their mixed-practice skills, particularly where they have previous farming or agricultural experience outside of clinical practice.

This is just some of the information about the job and company, but there will be more questions. Tempus Veterinary Recruitment is happy to get those questions answered for you during the recruiting process. Tempus Veterinary Recruitment is here to make the recruiting process simple and stress free.
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