ASG

Residency + Internships at Animal Specialty Group.

Veterinary medicine makes great leaps forward every year as advances in technology make materials and procedures more feasible for use in pets. As pets become an even more integral part of the family, owners demand the very best treatment for their furry family members. Specialists in veterinary medicine are needed now more than ever before.

The explosion of veterinary specialists has caused a shift in the post-graduate education of veterinarians. Because of the high demand for specialists, but fixed numbers of university internship and residency positions, specialty practices around the country have started their own internship and residency programs. For more than 15 years, Animal Specialty Group has accepted the challenge, responsibility, and honor of providing post-graduate education for our colleagues interested in specialization. We offer a 1-year rotating internship, 1-year specialty internships in surgery, internal medicine, neurology and emergency/critical care, and a 3-year surgery residency.

ASG interns and residents are selected through the Veterinary Internship and Residency Matching Program administered by the American Association of Veterinary Clinicians. Veterinarians interested in applying for the matching program can access the internship and residency matching program website in mid-October. Our internship and residency programs begin at the end of June the following year.

Applicants must be qualified for licensure in the state of California and a temporary or permanent license must be obtained prior to the start date of the program. Interns and residents are employed veterinarians, and receive benefits including paid vacation, CE, licensure and liability insurance, subsidized medical insurance and a uniform allowance.

Top-of-the-Line Internship Program

The first hospital in California to be accredited by AAHA as a specialty hospital, ASG is well suited to offer internships, including a general 1-year rotating internship as well as 1-year specialty internships in surgery, emergency/critical care, internal medicine and neurology. Interns are supervised by our specialty staff, which includes 4 board-certified surgeons, 4 board-certified internists (one of whom is double-boarded, ACVIM and ACVECC), 1 board-certified neurologist, 1 board-certified radiologist, a board-eligible oncologist (medical and radiation oncology), and a certified canine rehabilitation therapist.

Our 12,000 square foot, state-of-the-art facility houses 10 exam rooms, 2 operating rooms, and an isolation room, as well as a separate office space for interns, staff doctor offices, and a conference room for rounds and lectures. ASG is fully equipped with the latest in medical and surgical instrumentation (see sidebar for a partial list).

ASG veterinarians treat a wide variety of cases. Surgery cases include orthopedics (including hip and elbow replacement), neurosurgery, soft tissue and general surgery, and oncologic surgery. Our internists, who have special interests in cardiology, immune-mediated disease and endocrinology, see all medicine cases. Our neurologist has special interests in encephalitis, neurosurgery (both intracranial and spinal cord), and seizure disorders.

Interns present cases with diagnostic and therapeutic plans during daily clinical rounds. Weekly teaching rounds (alternating journal club, surgery, medicine, critical care, neurology and radiology) are designed to formally teach interns. Monthly lectures by senior clinicians and monthly SCVMA presentations are also important parts of the teaching program.

You can read more about our rotating and specialty internships in the column to the right.

Rotating Internship

The 1-year rotating internship is designed to enhance and augment the experience of veterinary school, or years in private practice. Whether you just graduated, or have been practicing for a while, there is more to learn, a next step to be taken. Interns are hand-picked from a large pool of applicants every year. These applicants are often the top performers in their classes at veterinary school, and are the individuals actively seeking further education to become exceptional clinicians or to go on to specialize in an area of interest.

Our interns rotate through the core areas of medicine, surgery, neurology, oncology, and emergency/critical care, working directly with board-certified specialists. They attend daily clinical rounds, see office appointments, manage surgical and medical cases, and participate in surgery, radiology, anesthesia, and special procedures.

Through their daily activities and weekly educational rounds, and with the 24 hour a day, 7 day a week support of our specialists, these young doctors quickly outpace their classmates in their knowledge base, clinical skills, and diagnostic prowess. Our specialists will guide you and help you choose topics for further exploration. We encourage our interns to prepare manuscripts for publication

Residency at ASG

Surgery Residency: The ASG surgery residency is an in-depth, intensive 3-year program designed to train the resident to become a fully competent small animal surgeon and meet the requirements of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons for board certification.

Surgery residents rotate through the clinical services of 4 board-certified surgeons, developing clinical skills, knowledge, and state-of-the-art surgical proficiency in soft tissue surgery, orthopedics (including joint replacement surgeries), neurosurgery, and oncologic surgery.

Residents develop and implement a research project, present the results at a national meeting, and complete a manuscript for publication in a refereed journal.