Full-Time

Emergency Veterinarian – Lead Doctor

Seattle, WA

Posted on 7/2/2025

Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG ER)

Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG ER)

1,001-5,000 employees

After-hours emergency veterinary care provider

Compensation Overview

$250k - $350k/yr

Seattle, WA, USA

In Person

Category
Medical, Clinical & Veterinary (1)
Requirements
  • Have earned a DVM, VMD, or equivalent degree.
  • A minimum of 2-3 years of ER experience.
  • 1 year leadership experience preferred, but not required.
  • Flexible to work a combination of clinical and administrative shifts depending on hospital needs.
  • Top-tier customer satisfaction and hospital revenue production while at VEG.
  • Trained in emergency surgery/endoscopy, preferred but not required.
  • Extensive experience with managing critical cases.
  • Available to work at a rotation of various shifts to include days, swings and overnight shifts, weekends and holidays.
  • Willingness to support doctors and perform administrative tasks during off hours (ie. doctor callouts, addressing customer complaints, schedules, preparing for meetings, etc.)
  • Is fulfilled by helping others & providing mentorship while leading a team of rockstar Emergency Veterinarians
Responsibilities
  • Medical Excellence Mentorship: Coach fellow doctors on medical excellence and doctoring the VEG Way.
  • Coach fellow doctors on providing all three dimensions of the customer experience.
  • Support fellow doctors through their assigned growth and development plans.
  • Initiate team huddles and provide motivational encouragement to the team.
  • Recognize your people for small medical & cultural wins.
  • Show appreciation for consistent performance of the VEG spikes.
  • Establish a rapport with all staff to maintain VEG culture.
  • Promote a culture of inclusivity and equitable treatment ensuring an environment free of discrimination and harassment for all VEGgies and customers. Be a steward in promoting awareness and proactively managing unconscious bias.
  • Medical Processes and Initiatives: Execute patient safety initiatives as determined by local leadership.
  • Provide basic Cubex maintenance and cycle counts.
  • Create doctor schedules to include managing leave requests and posting the schedule at least two months in advance.
  • Assist MD when coverage is needed due to callouts or schedule changes.
  • Address customer complaints related to medical concerns.
  • Medical Strategy: Work as interim MD as needed when MD is on leave or opening a new VEG hospital.
  • Lead monthly doctor meetings and M&M rounds, with support from the MD.
  • Support MD strategy for doctor recruitment marketing, sourcing, candidate experience, and succession planning across the hospital.
  • Consistently educates full staff on needs of individual rDVMs.
  • Continually encourages staff to perfect the VEG Spikes.
  • Depending on the hospital needs and level of experience, may own the NERD training program if a teaching hospital, perform all NERD MD job duties (Goal setting, written feedback on assignments, 1:1 monthly coaching, engage entire doctor team in training).
  • Other Duties: Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
Desired Qualifications
  • Have earned a DVM, VMD, or equivalent degree.
  • A minimum of 2-3 years of ER experience.
  • 1 year leadership experience preferred, but not required.
  • Flexible to work a combination of clinical and administrative shifts depending on hospital needs.
  • Top-tier customer satisfaction and hospital revenue production while at VEG.
  • Trained in emergency surgery/endoscopy, preferred but not required.
  • Extensive experience with managing critical cases.
  • Available to work at a rotation of various shifts to include days, swings and overnight shifts, weekends and holidays.
  • Willingness to support doctors and perform administrative tasks during off hours (ie. doctor callouts, addressing customer complaints, schedules, preparing for meetings, etc.)
  • Is fulfilled by helping others & providing mentorship while leading a team of rockstar Emergency Veterinarians
Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG ER)

Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG ER)

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VEG ER provides after-hours emergency veterinary care, operating during nights, weekends, and holidays when ordinary animal hospitals are closed. It serves as an extension of primary veterinary practices, collaborating with regular veterinarians to ensure continuous, urgent care for pets. Pet owners access immediate emergency consultations, treatments, and procedures, with VEG ER handling high‑stress cases when regular clinics are unavailable. The service model centers on rapid response and close partnership with referring vets rather than standing alone, and revenue comes from fees for emergency consultations and procedures. The team is led by Dr. David Bessler, who aims to transform emergency veterinary medicine through a holistic and openly collaborative approach. The goal is to fill the after-hours care gap by providing reliable, high-quality emergency services that integrate with primary care providers.

Company Size

1,001-5,000

Company Stage

Late Stage VC

Total Funding

$100M

Headquarters

White Plains, New York

Founded

2014

Simplify Jobs

Simplify's Take

What believers are saying

  • Geographic expansion into Wisconsin, Washington, Texas demonstrates scalable unit economics across markets.
  • Blood bank program at Falls Church location opens new revenue stream beyond standard emergency services.
  • $150M tier-one funding from Sequoia, D1 Capital, Fidelity enables accelerated expansion beyond 24 hospitals.

What critics are saying

  • National veterinarian shortage of 10,000+ positions forces understaffing, service delays, customer defection within 12 months.
  • BluePearl captures 25% more after-hours share in Seattle, San Antonio via superior specialist staffing.
  • Banfield's 1,000+ Mars-owned 24/7 urgent care locations fragment primary vet referral pipeline, cutting 30% case volume.

What makes Veterinary Emergency Group (VEG ER) unique

  • 24/7/365 specialized emergency-only model fills critical after-hours care gap competitors ignore.
  • NERD early-career DVM pipeline and VEG Cares philanthropy build brand loyalty and talent.
  • Open floor plan hospitals with pet-owner participation create superior customer experience versus traditional ERs.

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Benefits

Health Insurance

Dental Insurance

Vision Insurance

401(k) Company Match

Paid Parental Leave

Unlimited Paid Time Off

Flexible Work Hours

Generous employee pet discount

Company News

Madison Reporter
Aug 5th, 2025
Veterinary Emergency Group plans VEG Cares 5K fundraiser in Watertown

VEG partners with the nonprofit Veterinary Care Foundation through its VEG Cares program.

Channel 3000
Jul 5th, 2024
Veterinary Emergency Group to open first Wisconsin location

MADISON, Wis. - Veterinary Emergency Group announced Friday it will open its first 24/7/365 pet emergency hospital in Wisconsin on Monday, July 8.

PR Newswire
Jun 19th, 2024
Protecting Your Coworkers When They'Re Animals - Literally

Pet Toxicology Experts Warn of Dangers During Take Your Dog to Work DayMINNEAPOLIS, June 19, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The advantages of taking your dog to work are well known. For the employee, it relieves stress, helps build the human/animal bond, can reduce doggy daycare costs and can help develop new friendships in the office. For employers, it improves morale and helps with employee hiring and retention. Without careful supervision, however, your dog's visit to your office can also lead to a trip to the pet emergency hospital.While Pippa, a basset hound from Georgia, normally enjoys hanging out in the classroom, a sneak visit to the school bathroom led to an emergency trip to the veterinary hospital."National Take Your Dog to Work Day is on June 21 this year," said Dr. Renee Schmid, a senior veterinary toxicologist and director of Veterinary Medicine at Pet Poison Helpline. "Before you walk Fido through your office doors, however, be sure you're prepared

Chicago Tribune
Oct 31st, 2023
Naperville business roundup: 24/7 emergency vet to open; Elgin Clock Repair to wind down; McDonald's on Diehl Road to close

Veterinary Emergency Group, which has three other Chicago-area locations, is ready to open its latest spot at 3204 S. Route 59.

Patch
Aug 16th, 2023
Dogs Can Help With Canine Blood Demand At Falls Church Pet Hospital

Veterinary Emergency Group, a pet ER located at 7500 Leesburg Pike Suite 11 in Falls Church, announced the launch of its blood bank program.

INACTIVE