This month we're celebrating not one but two members who have been nominated for going above and beyond at their practice. Stuart Altoft and Antonia Milner from Summerleaze Equine Vets were put forward as part of a thank you to the entire team for their support to a vet as she transitioned back into an ambulatory role after 25 years working in the charity sector.
Let's get to know them
Now Clinical Directors at Summerleaze, neither Antonia nor Stuart planned on joining the equine profession when they first went to vet school, despite both being relatively horsey.
Antonia's initial plans were certainly quite different. She went to vet school hoping to reduce world hunger by working as a goat vet to reduce disease among goat populations so they could serve as a sustainable food source. Her plans changed however when during her degree she got married and had a baby. Her love of horses and enjoyment of her equine placements inspired her to instead step into the equine profession and despite not being her long-term dream, she hasn't looked back since.
Stuart worked in a mixed practice after university but always wanted to do more with his equine patients, which similarly to July's winner Deirdre, inspired him to pursue a career in equine and gave him his first role as an ambulatory vet at a hospital. Fast forward and Stuart became one of the founders of Summerleaze Equine Vets.
Building a supportive environment
It's clear from their nomination that both Antonia and Stuart have been successful in building a very supportive, friendly environment where anyone can feel welcome. When asked what advice they would give to others to do the same Antonia said "Listen to people. People aren't always as loud as you think they'll be when something is wrong or they're upset about something. It's having the understanding that if someone's asking a quiet question, that question could actually be their shout for help. We don't all scream and shout and say actually the world's ending, so that question could be that actually they're really nervous and they're floundering."
For those team members who are experiencing a change, be that being newly qualified or moving jobs, both Antonia and Stuart stress the importance of not underestimating your abilities. "It's surprising how much people think "Oh I'm a little bit nervous about that" and then actually when you ask them how they would do it they give the perfect answer!" said Stuart. "We've found that asking them how they would do it instead of just giving the answer really boosts confidence. So never be afraid to just ask somebody to step in with you or just run it through if you're feeling a bit nervous".
The Summerleaze team also enjoys a lot of fun group activities which help bond them together and blow off some steam from the day job, including celebrating each other's birthdays, having fish and chips on the beach, bingo nights and even weekends away to Cornwall.
Best thing about being an equine vet
For Antonia it's the clients. She loves seeing the journey clients take with their horses from getting a mare in foal with an embryo to the first foal on the ground and seeing their relationship grow as the horse progresses in its life. She's grateful to have "a phenomenally supportive network of clients" that she would call friends, and feels very privileged to be able to share in their story.
A big part of Stuart's job is welfare work which he finds particularly rewarding. He loves the variety of his cases, from dentistry to lameness work with everything from Shire Horses to Miniature Shetlands.
Favourite BEVA member benefit
Stuart most regularly benefits from the BEVApod and Journal podcast episodes which often accompany him on long days in the car, whilst Antonia loves the BEVA Trust Education and Welfare Clinics, through which she's been able to enhance her skills and meet other vets.
The full chat
Get the full story by listening to our BEVApod episode chatting to Antonia and Stuart, including words of wisdom for young vets and even their story about a friendly giant ridgeback turtle who decided to join their team day out to the beach!
Everyone at BEVA would like to say congratulations again to Antonia and Stuart for being chosen as our August members of the month! If you know someone who you think deserves some recognition then let us know and they could be our next winner! Nominate them today.