McAfee Animal Hospital Employee Spotlight: Victoria Wrigley

McAfee Animal Hospital Employee Spotlight: Victoria Wrigley

Victoria Wrigley works as a receptionist at McAfee Animal Hospital. Her love for animals began when she was young, and she always knew working with animals was her dream job.  She was able to find that dream job when she began working at McAfee Animal Hospital.

“My parents were clients at McAfee probably 10 years ago with my brother's chameleon, and we adopted a kitten from them that I still have today. I knew right at that point, I wanted to work in the animal field,” Wrigley said.

Wrigley had a friend working at McAfee Animal Hospital that had knowledge of her desire to work with animals. Her friend suggested she apply for the open receptionist position, and everything else fell into place. 

“I thought that position would be amazing because I wanted to be in the animal field, but I didn't feel like I was fit to be a technician, per se,” Wrigley said. “I went in, I filled out an application, and I had an interview almost right then and there.”

Since being hired, Wrigley has spent two years ensuring everything behind the scenes is organized and prepared for the clients. This job consists of more than just checking clients in and out.

“In the morning, we come in, count the money and get everything prepared for the day. Then we open at 7:45 or so and check in for surgeries until 9:00. At 9:00 we start seeing our appointments, and then the telephones turn on,” Wrigley said. “We start answering phone calls for sick pets or medication refills, so we schedule the appointment and we put in for the medication refills. Throughout the day, we are checking in appointments, checking out appointments, filing, and dealing with prescription requests.”

Wrigley explained that she did not have any background working in the veterinary field prior to working at McAfee Animal Hospital. Being excited to learn how this completely different field of work shows the dedication she has. Although she has held her position for two years, she is still learning new things every day. 

“I did not have any background in the veterinary field. I had mainly retail jobs and worked a lot in customer service, but the whole online forum is completely different for me,” Wrigley said. “In the beginning, it was like jumping into a completely different career path, so it took me a little bit to get the computer and learn how to navigate. To this day, I'm still learning. I still have questions and I've been there for two years now.”

Along with all of the technical aspects of the job, Wrigley and the staff of McAfee Animal Hospital work to accommodate medical emergencies for any animal that may need medical attention. Wrigley explained how many people overlook the importance of an emergency animal hospital being in the area.

“I definitely think that there are a lot of people who don't realize how important this job is. A lot of the time you don't realize how important vet care is because it is still a medical emergency. We see emergencies and have to accommodate those, and then, of course, people are very thankful that you're able to get their pets in to be seen because they're sickly,” Wrigley said.

When asked about her favorite part of her job, Wrigley struggled to choose just one thing. She spoke about being able to help exotic animals, seeing the happiness on a client’s face after adopting a new pet, and being able to interact with thankful pet owners after their pet has been treated. 

“Seeing the exotic animals that come in because a lot of the time the exotic ones are new for us. To me, that is probably one of the best parts. Seeing the clients that come in and they've got either a new dog that they just adopted and seeing how happy they are is probably my favorite part,” Wrigley said. “Also when a client does bring in a sick patient, and the doctors are able to treat that patient and how thankful the owners are when they're leaving. Being able to help and seeing a happy client always makes me happy.”

Being able to make connections with clients and being the cause of a smile is one of the many perks of Wrigley’s career. She enjoys being a receptionist and wishes to remain in this field of work for the foreseeable future. 

“I would love to stay in the field, and so far, that is my plan. I don't know about becoming a technician. I would love to be able to do that, but I feel like I fit in better receptionist-wise.  I would like to see myself in this field going forward,” Wrigley said.

For more information on McAfee Animal Hospital, please visit their website at mcafeeah.com.