Pinnacle Veterinary Group

10/30/2026

We ran into our friends, Lauren and Sophie, last night at the Roller Mill Pet Costume Contest.

10/30/2026

Only 1 day left to enter our pet costume contest!

10/29/2026

Sadie

10/29/2026

Last night was our staff pumpkin painting party. Comment on your favorite!

10/24/2026

It's been a lot of fun learning about our staff this week. I hope you all enjoyed playing along!
And closing out our Vet Tech and Staff Appreciation Week, here are the matches of the truths to the associated technician! Did you get them right?

Melissa:
3. Once upon a time I was a CrossFit addict and my favorite WOD (workout of the day) was Murph (as prescribed). So a buddy and I did it three times consecutively, with no break, on the same day. Just for fun. It ended up being a total of 6 miles running, 300 pull-ups, 600 push-ups, and 900 squats.
6. I helped with an Orangutan c-section
10. I live in a small town and my horse Victor loved going for a ride through the McDonald’s drive-thru for a pack of apples and a coffee for me

Stephanie:
9. I once was on a boat that sank and we had to crawl through pluff mud and walk through the woods back to our car
11.When I’m not working, I’m helping my significant other build our house on our own
5. I’m not a runner, but I enjoy obstacle course races and just completed my second tough mudder (after a ten year gap)

Karlee:
1. I have a twin, so there’s two of me out there
7. I could spend an entire day watching Netflix and not feel guilty about it.
12. I enjoy building LEGOs, and I can spend hours putting a set together

Lies:
2. I am originally from Alaska and once while kayaking had an orca surface right next to me and swim with me for 30 minutes
4. My photo album on my phone has hardly any pet pictures
8. I am on a national committee that oversees the regulation of breeding domestic horses with zebras

10/23/2026

Don’t forget to check back tonight for the answers about our LVTs truths and lies!

As we close out Veterinary Technician and Staff Appreciation week here at Pinnacle, I want to again say thank you to all of our staff for the amazing job they do every day. Every single role is vital and there is no one position that is more important than another.

With that said, this IS officially National Veterinary Technician Week and I want to take this time to highlight the Veterinary Technician profession.

An interesting fact: Did you know that Veterinary Technicians have title protection in South Carolina? This means that it is illegal to refer to anyone who is not licensed as a “technician.” This went into effect in 2023 after years of effort by those who care most about this profession. Our very own Melissa was integral in developing and passing title protection for techs in South Carolina.

Because title protection is so recent, many clinics, shelters, and other business will still refer to assistants as “technicians,” so it is important that you always clarify and understand who is working with your pet. While some assistants may have gone through certification programs, many (I’d wager that most) are trained on the job. This means that most assistants may not have gone through a standardized training program. This is not at all meant to diminish an assistant’s importance. In fact, some of the most technically skilled people I’ve worked with over my 30+ years in the veterinary industry were assistants. However, assistants do not have the educational background or the continuing education requirements of a licensed technician. And this is where LVTs stand out.

Technicians who have chosen to go through the process of becoming licensed and maintaining their licenses are held to a higher standard. Just like veterinarians, they must obtain several hours of approved continuing education each year. Their foundational education as well as this continuing education makes them uniquely qualified to educate clients, identify specific illnesses and injuries in animals, safely monitor patients under anesthesia (and respond appropriately if there is a complication), and perform certain procedures.

If I could help everyone understand one thing and one thing only about LVTs, it’s that these are highly educated, credentialed, and licensed veterinary PROFESSIONALS. As a veterinarian, they are my colleagues and I lean on them heavily in everything I do at work every day.

We are extremely lucky at Pinnacle to have 3 talented LVTs. They make an enormous difference in the care we are able to provide. So, to our Licensed Veterinary Technicians, Melissa, LVT, VTS (ECC), Stephanie, LVT, and Karlee, LVT, I want to say…

THANK YOU FOR EVERYTHING YOU DO EVERY DAY!
You are amazing.

Finally, I want to leave you with this video (which may as well be a documentary) about how valuable vet techs are to veterinarians. Enjoy!

This video is dedicated to all of the veterinary technicians out th...

10/23/2026

CSR answers are here! Were you able to guess who went with which truths and which were the lies? Read below to see if you got them right!
Amy’s truths:
1. I am obsessed with Dachshunds
4. I share a birthday with my twin sons
7. I love skunks and want one as a pet
Cynthia’s truths:
2. I was adopted out of foster care while in high school. Now, I advocate for change in the foster care system both on a state and national level
3. I have given a speech on capitol hill and even met a former vice president
5. I love to crochet! I now have 126 skeins of yarn. I even have some stuffed in my car console just in case I get an urge to crochet
Lies:
6. I once caught Santa in my living room when I was little and was sleeping by the Christmas tree. When he saw me he asked me to dance with him so I danced with Santa
8. I once faced down a wolf in the woods

10/22/2026

River

10/22/2026

Next up: Our LVTs!!! Same criteria as yesterday. Try to guess which three truths go to each team member and which claims never really happened. This is between Melissa, Stephanie, and, Karlee. Don't forget to check out last Sunday's Facebook post or https://pinnacleveterinarygroup.com/our-team/ for possible helpful clues!

1. I have a twin, so there’s two of me out there
2. I am originally from Alaska and once while kayaking had an orca surface right next to me and swim with me for 30 minutes
3. Once upon a time I was a CrossFit addict and my favorite WOD (workout of the day) was Murph (as prescribed). So a buddy and I did it three times consecutively, with no break, on the same day. Just for fun. It ended up being a total of 6 miles running, 300 pull-ups, 600 push-ups, and 900 squats.
4. My photo album on my phone has hardly any pet pictures
5. I’m not a runner, but I enjoy obstacle course races and just completed my second tough mudder (after a ten year gap)
6. I helped with an Orangutan c-section
7. I could spend an entire day watching Netflix and not feel guilty about it.
8. I am on a national committee that oversees the regulation of breeding domestic horses with zebras
9. I once was on a boat that sank and we had to crawl through pluff mud and walk through the woods back to our car
10. I live in a small town and my horse Victor loved going for a ride through the McDonald’s drive-thru for a pack of apples and a coffee for me
11. When I’m not working, I’m helping my significant other build our house on our own
12. I enjoy building LEGOs, and I can spend hours putting a set together

Our TeamAn emphasis on self-care, continuing education, mentoring, life-work balance, and the ability to offer best practices in every aspect of modern medicine are essential for those providing patient care in today’s stressful and fast-paced culture. Veterinary medicine can be very stressful and...