Excellent Opportunity!

    Bring your talents to our team!  Consider something exciting! Our accredited AAHA hospital is located on picturesque Whidbey Island, which is on Puget Sound, approximately 90 miles north of Seattle. Whidbey Island is the largest island in the continental United States & receives only one half the rainfall of Seattle. We are the gateway to the Olympic and Cascade Mountains and the San Juan's Islands.  Yet we are only a 90 minute drive from both Seattle and Vancouver, BC.  The Best Friend's Veterinary Center was awarded Veterinary Economics' "Hospital of the Month Award."  Click on the following hyperlinks to  Learn about the Oak Harbor and Whidbey area.  or  Beautiful Deception Pass is only 8 miles away.

    It is our people providing quality, caring, professional service that has made us successful. We have staff meetings and doctor meetings every other week. Your ideas are valued!

    We are especially proud of our staff: Drs. Eric Anderson, Erica Syring, and Crystal Brazle. Our licensed veterinary technicians are  Pia, Jaimie, Peggy and Julie.  Nurse assistants include  JP, Mallory and Sarah. Ken Merrel is our Hospital Administrator and Cheryl is our office manager.  Our receptionists are Chris, Mallory, Samantha and Amy. Animal attendants Megan, Brittany and Ashley complete our team! Dr. Anderson has been voted the "Best Veterinarian on Whidbey" by the Whidbey News Times readership poll.  He  is also an adjunct professor at Washington State University and assists the university by training   Best Friend's has had over 30 veterinary student externs. They have come to us from Cornell, Minnesota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, Georgia, Washington, and even as far away as Japan. They really keep us on our toes!  Each year we sponsor our Doctors and LVT's to attend continuing education to further our always changing veterinary field. 

The Best Friend's Veterinary Center is invests in BOTH people and instruments.

For diagnostic and imaging equipment we use

• Completely chartless environment with computer SOAP-ing.
• Digital Radiographs with a 300 MA 125 KVP generator which is powerful enough for the largest dogs but precise enough to  x-ray a canary. All radiographs are referred to Board Certified Radiologists at Animal Medical Imaging.
• Digital Dental Radiographs
• Laptop GE Logiq E Tec Color Flow Doppler Ultrasound.
• Nikon phase contrast microscope with high resolution digital capture and video display.
• Use of MRI at  local hospital.
• Member of Veterinary Information Network (VIN) with fast DSL connections on 17 computers.
• Idexx Laser-Cyte cell counter, Vet Test blood chemistry, electrolyte machine and a electronic urine chemistry reader and numerous CITE© tests for "in house" use & Idexx labs next morning service.
• Teaching head otoscope and stethoscopes
• Electronic digital stethoscope by Littman
• Electronic gram scales.

For surgery

• First and most importantly a experienced well trained staff.
• Extensive pain management including  epidurals and local blocks.
• Pre-surgical blood screening and IV catheters are required for most patients safety.
• CO2 Laser with Super pulse and scanner. Used extensively on all surgeries.
• Two digital Lifewindow patient monitors with Capnography (CO₂ monitoring), Blood pressure, EKG, temperature and pulse oximetry.
• Circulating warm water pads under your pet on hydraulic V tables, warmed IV fluid infusion pumps and post op Bair Hugger patient warming system are used on all pets to prevent post operative hypothermia
•  Dr. Anderson completed Certification in  Tibia Plateau Leveling Operation (TPLO) for knee reconstruction in  June 2002 by Slocum.  He also has had post doctoral training in orthopedics at the Ohio State University.
• Complete nitrogen driven ASIF bone plating equipment including Hall drills for back surgery.
• Pediatric anesthesia machines with Sevoflurane and Isoflurane vaporizers and ventilation capable.
•  Halogen fiber optic headlamp with 2.5 x head loop for microsurgery.
• Veterinary Dinamap® blood pressure monitor
• Parker Doppler monitor used in every surgery, this insures peripheral perfusion
• Pulse oximeters for monitoring oxygen saturation.
• Operating Room lights from Human OR rooms.
• Therapy Laser emits a low frequency beam of light deep into tissues. This inhibits bacteria growth, provides pain relief and accelerates healing.

For ophthalmology

• Tonopen® applination tonometer for eye pressure measurements.
• Welch Allen Panoptic direct ophthalmoscopes.
• Direct and indirect ophthalmoscopes.
• Ophthalmic Microscope
• Delicate ocular surgical instrumentation and intraocular prostheses.

For dentistry

• Digital Dental radiography by Schick.
• Veterinary staff trained onsite by boarded Veterinary Dentist.
• Extensive dental library.
• High speed dental hand piece and Ultrasonic Scaler.
• Bone restoratives for dental extractions.
• UV Light curing source and dental restoratives.

    Would you find working with wildlife enjoyable? We also volunteer for the Non-profit Wildlife Care Clinic that cares for over 400 animals annually. We have cared for a number of seal pups, eagles, deer, loons, hawks, coyote, owls, rabbits and even a Peregrine falcon. We have a net gun, a dart gun and blow tube. We have necropsied both a Gray & a Minke whale. Dr. Anderson previously has been to Zimbabwe, Africa where he did field and course work on wildlife.   

    Our office is computerized utilizing the Impromed© veterinary software system. We have several stand alone computers and a scanner for use with Word 2007, Excel 2007, InDesign 2007, Illustrator, Visio, FrontPage, Photoshop CS3. We also have a web page on the internet at http//:www.im4pets.com. That is how you are probably viewing this.

   If you are person  who wants to work in a quality practice in a beautiful part of the country give us a call. Click here to see our references from previous staff members.

As to how Oak Harbor cost of living compares to other locals we selected the closest  city for which there is cost of living data is Bellingham.  Compare Bellingham to a city near you.  Click here to go to a cost of living calculator. 

Call our hospital administrator,  Ken Merrel at (360) 679-6796  to arrange an interview.  Veterinarian sample contract.