Laurie's Blogs.

Looking back, I have to say, it’s been a tough year.

• We had to part ways with the vet that had worked as a rehab therapist for me at The Canine Fitness Centre for the last 2 year – because the Vet Association learned of her employment (which we never hid) and we were told that a vet could not work in a non-vet clinic.  It was a devastating loss to my clinic (and hard on the heart as it was not our decision to end our collaborative practice).
• So the year was fraught with meetings, letters, phone calls, and all sorts of emotion as well as longer and more work shifts for me to cover.  I only took one day off from my regular work schedule all year!
• We have also had a great deal of support staff turn-over and it has been difficult to find the right people.  It seems that we are just at an awkward size right now, and it feels like we are always training someone new!
• As well, it is amazing how owning a business is much like having a second marriage and family.  Drama that takes place in the ‘real family’ certainly has a trickle-down impact on the work-place.  And we’ve definitely had THAT go on!
• At home, things are pretty good.  Kids are doing well in school.  All humans are healthy and well.  Dogs have been mostly okay… we dealt with one surgery (partial tarsal arthrodesis) and the same dog has become epileptic this year.  We lost our 18-year-old cat and 6-year-old guinea pig (they both had good lives however), and just recently found out that we have an undetermined number of multigenerational (so we assume) shrews living in our basement!  Ewwww!
• On the teaching front, I left my teaching position with the Canine Rehab Institute.  It was an extremely difficult decision, with many factors leading up to it, but I think it was the right one and many opportunities have opened up for me:

o   This new educational website and blog have been very well received and I feel incredibly blessed and honoured to have a continued part in educating and expanding the field of canine rehab.

o   I’ve created educational products: the spinal manual therapy book and the myotome / dermatome poster.

o   I’m working on more educational products:  The Successful Practitioners in Canine Rehab book.

o   As well, I have a great teaching line up:  San Diego to the APTA combined sections meetings in January; A real holiday to Hawaii with the family to vacation and visit a new friend (and her canine rehab practice) in February; A whirlwind teaching excursion in March to teach 2 classes in Sweden and 1 in Austria; April sees me teaching in my own facility in Calgary; May will have me travelling to Montreal for the Canadian Physiotherapy Association Congress and then to Italy for the Veterinary European Physical Therapy and Rehabilitation Association conference; I will be in New Jersey in June for the wildly popular STAAR conference (www.staarconference.com); and lastly on the list (so far) is 2 teaching engagements in South Africa in July!

  So hopefully, I will see some of you along the way in 2013!

  An while its been a hard year, I think that I have laid enough of a foundation in 2012 to build a solid and successful 2013!! (And I don’t want a repeat of 2012!)

  This is my message or challenge to you – Take an inventory of your 2012 (write it down): the good AND the bad!  Not only is it therapeutic… but also you just might find that you can draw inspiration from looking at both your successes as well as the struggles that you manage to survive or overcome!

  All the best to you in 2013!

Cheers!

Laurie

Laurie@FourLeg.com