Careers in Veterinary Medicine Beyond a DVM

There are more than 450 staff members at the UC Davis veterinary hospital, none of whom  veterinarians. Many rewarding careers in animal care exist as technicians and other support staff, with room for growth. These are the unsung heroes of veterinary medicine.

Jody Nugent-Deal

Passing Along Decades of Experience

The average career length of a veterinary technician is about six years,” said Jody Nugent-Deal, a long-time registered veterinary technician (RVT) at UC Davis. “It’s a shame to see so many talented technicians leave the profession. I want them to realize that there are many avenues they can pursue to improve and lengthen their careers, especially at a place as large as our hospital with so many positions available.”

Throughout her 27 years at UC Davis, Nugent-Deal has improved her career prospects in several ways, touching many areas of the hospital. Currently, she is the hospital’s technician trainer, helping technicians be well prepared  for their jobs.

After many years of working in private practice, Nugent-Deal was encouraged by her boss to seek better opportunities for her career than he could offer at his small clinic. She landed at UC Davis in 1999 as a technician in the Companion Exotic Animal Medicine and Surgery Service. She enjoyed working with exotics and wanted to expand the scope of her profession.

Registered veterinary technicians have the opportunity to achieve a veterinary technician specialist (VTS) credential through various academies approved by the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America (NAVTA). Only about 1% of all RVTs hold a VTS credential.

In 2008, there was not an academy for exotics care, so Nugent-Deal and a colleague developed a NAVTA-approved program for RVTs to earn a VTS certificate in exotic animal medicine. Their program became an official subset of the Academy of Veterinary Technicians in Clinical Practice, and they became its charter members. As exotics care is a niche aspect of veterinary medicine, there are still only 18 VTSs in exotics nationwide, all of whom work in academic teaching hospitals or exotic specialty clinics.

While working with exotics, Nugent-Deal developed a special interest in anesthesia and transferred to the Anesthesia Service to become its lead technician in 2009, also earning a VTS in anesthesia that year. She ended her 15 years with that service as its supervisor in 2023. Along the way, Nugent-Deal served as president (and several other positions) of the Academy of Veterinary Technicians in Anesthesia and Analgesia.

Outside of UC Davis, she lectures at prominent national veterinary conferences, writes textbook chapters, and teaches veterinary technician classes at local community colleges.

“Moving into the technician trainer role in 2023 seemed like a natural career move,” said Nugent-Deal.

In her latest role, her responsibilities include organizing continuing education programs and building training programs and modules to keep technicians up to date on the latest in procedures.

“We’re establishing a comprehensive training program for all technicians to be on the same page and for all to be top-notch in their careers,” Nugent-Deal said. “It’s very rewarding to build quality training for staff to provide the best patient care and have successful and satisfying careers.”

John Kirby

Reflections on a Career Helping Others

Growing up in the Santa Cruz mountains, John Kirby was always around animals, be it his dogs, the wildlife surrounding him, or at the nearby horse ranch where he worked. One of his father’s close friends was the late Dr. Gerald Heagerty, DVM ’64, who showed Kirby behind-the-scenes activities at his clinic. This was where his first thoughts about a career in veterinary medicine began.

“I knew I wanted to work in medicine,” said Kirby. “And I particularly enjoyed the challenge of figuring out what might be wrong with a patient that can’t tell you the problem. That spoke to me.”

While studying animal science at UC Davis as an undergraduate, Kirby realized that being a veterinary technician was going to be his best way of accomplishing his career goals. After a few years working in smaller clinics, Kirby wanted to explore more diverse and challenging aspects of his career. He was able to get an entry-level animal health technician position at UC Davis.

“I started cleaning cages and progressed to a ward technician on graveyard shift,” Kirby said.

Kirby’s hard work and dedication led to a transfer to the ICU, where Dr. Larry Cowgill recognized his proficiency and asked Kirby to transfer to the Hemodialysis and Blood Purification Unit. He spent the next 20 years helping Cowgill treat animals with acute kidney injuries. In those early days of hemodialysis, there were less than 10 veterinary hospitals nationwide to offer the treatment (UC Davis was the only one in California), and all were based on Cowgill’s pioneering of the specialty. Kirby also supported Cowgill’s research on improving the art of providing hemodialysis and other emerging extracorporeal therapies, such as plasma exchange and stem cell therapy, to companion animals.

In 2020, Kirby was promoted to supervisor of the Small Animal Internal Medicine and Nutrition Services. After 30 years of working at UC Davis, he still enjoys the challenges of determining animals’ conditions without them being able to tell you.

“John brings a positive, can-do attitude to the hospital,” said Dr. Jonathan Dear, co-chief of the Small Animal Internal Medicine Service. “He’s a problem solver and is never afraid to step in and get his hands dirty. Throughout his tenure here, he is ever calm and collected.”

Kirby says the most rewarding aspect of his job is helping to teach the DVM students, as well as the scholars that come from across the globe, about hemodialysis.

“I have always felt thankful to be a part of the teaching process,” said Kirby. “It’s fulfilling seeing that ‘gotcha moment’ when the students realize the connection between what they’ve learned in a laboratory or textbook and applying it hands-on for the first time.”

Kirby noted how humbling it is when former students tell him that they have taught their staff what he taught them.

“It makes me reflect on the years and years of coaching throughout my career and how many patients have benefited from that.”

Gabe Gil

Earning a Horse’s Trust Through Decades of Care

As early as he can remember, Gabe Gil has been around horses and had a passion for them. As a small child in Mexico, he would help his family working with equines as field and transport animals. At 15, Gil worked at a horse racing farm—breeding, training, and even racing the horses. That is when his passion for them truly began. However, obligations with his education and family would delay Gil’s ability to make the animals his career.

For the next 20 years, Gil worked as a mechanic and owned a landscaping business, but he longed to work with horses again someday. That day finally came when a friend and neighbor he met through landscaping told him there was a job opening where he worked at the UC Davis veterinary hospital. It came at a time when Gil’s growing family needed the job stability and benefits that UC Davis offered.

Gil started at UC Davis working nights and weekends as support staff at the Large Animal Hospital’s ICU and neonatal ICU. After five years, his work ethic was  recognized, and Gil was encouraged to apply for the coordinator position with the Equine Surgery and Lameness Service. This meant an opportunity to work a weekday shift and have more responsibility helping the service with daily appointments.

He now works as an animal health technician with the service, handling horses during lameness evaluations, facilitating imaging appointments, preparing patients for surgery, and assisting with just about any other role needed. When issues arise outside Gil’s service area, he is often asked to help, as his experience with horses is trusted throughout the hospital.  “Gabe is an exceptional horse handler who consistently demonstrates confidence, skill, and sound judgment around horses,” said Sarah Blasczynski, a manager of the Large Animal Hospital. “He is dependable, highly knowledgeable about his service and large animal clinical operations in general. Gabe can always be counted on to step up during emergency situations, providing calm, efficient support whenever it’s needed.”

According to Gil, the most rewarding part of his 19 years at UC Davis is working with such a diverse group of clients, students, faculty, residents, and staff. When it comes to the students, he enjoys his primary role with them—teaching safety around horses.

“Knowing where to position yourself near a horse is important,” said Gil. “But teaching students where not to be is even more important. Many of them have never been near a horse, so they let their guard down. I want them to be as safe as possible for their rewarding, long careers ahead of them.”

Gil’s relationship with clients has made a lasting impression on most of them. He may be the closest thing the hospital has to a “horse whisperer,” and the trust he builds with horses shines through.

“When I hand over my horses to Gabe, my faith and trust in him assures me they’re in great hands,” said Nancy Gamble, owner of Rancho Centurion in the Napa Valley and a long-time hospital client.

Gamble thinks so much of Gil that she personally thanked him in the credits to their movie “Centurion: The Dancing Stallion” for his years of caring for her late horse Centurion and so many other horses she continues to bring to UC Davis.

“Gabe was part of our team, part of our love connection with Centurion,” Gamble said. “Beyond his professionalism, the love, tenderness, passion, and heart that Gabe had for Centurion—and all my horses—told me I never had to worry when they’re with Gabe.”

Raffi Miranda

A Pathway to a Career Goal

Throughout his academic career, Raffi Miranda was always a non-traditional student, studying part-time while in community college and completing an Animal Science degree at UC Davis. So, it’s not out of the ordinary for him to be on a non-traditional path to veterinary school.

“I worked in small animal patient care at two private practices for three years after college,” said Miranda. “I wanted to work as an animal health technician for a while to see if I really wanted veterinary medicine to be my career.”

Miranda continues his path toward veterinary school by gaining experience in large animal care. Five years ago, he joined the Large Animal Hospital and has proven to be a valuable member of the team. Following technician roles with the Equine Critical Care and Equine Internal Medicine Services, he is now a supervisor in large animal critical care.

“If I am fortunate enough to be accepted to veterinary school, I know what I’ve learned at UC Davis will propel me to be successful,” said Miranda.

In the meantime, he enjoys his career at the hospital and being a go-to person who can be relied on when questions or difficult situations arise.

As a supervisor, some of his responsibilities include guiding students through unfamiliar procedures and training new technicians.

“I like seeing the student’s excitement after successfully placing a catheter for the first time,” Miranda said. “I’m patient as a supervisor and teacher, so I think I have a good temperament for my job.”

Transitioning to a supervisor role was concerning at first because Miranda did not want to be taken away from patient care duties, but he quickly realized there was still plenty of “on the clinic floor” time.

“Raffi is the epitome of a compassionate caregiver and teacher,” said Harmony Lindberg, hospital clinical operations administrator. “His calm, patient demeanor is invaluable to both our patients and students, allowing those in his care to learn and heal to the maximum benefit.”

One of Miranda’s favorite aspects of his job is helping clinicians work up patients and teaching his team how to best support the veterinarians, especially during critical situations in which he thrives.

“Working together with a team to accomplish complex cases is inspiring,” he said. “That only occurs at a place like UC Davis.”