Roo is the leading online veterinary relief services platform. We connect quality veterinarians, veterinary technicians, and assistants in search of freelance work with exceptional animal hospitals looking to fill short-term personnel needs.
What is relief work?
Beyond our platform, Roo aims to empower a community of smart, trustworthy, agile, and resilient veterinary professionals who value freedom, flexibility, and work-life balance.
Roo helps veterinarians find great hospitals to work at, matching skilled doctors with shifts in need of coverage. As a relief veterinarian with Roo, you'll start by creating a profile, which only takes a few minutes. Then, you can conveniently browse available relief shifts in your area and select shifts when and where you want to work. After working a shift, rate your experience to let other relief veterinarians know how it went. You'll then get paid within two business days.
Roo aims to provide full transparency of all our hospitals to ensure the best possible matching and make every shift a success. Relief veterinarians and hospitals have profiles that provide key information and user-submitted ratings. Our website and app enable you to search hospital shift opportunities by location/distance, shift/appointment type, support staff availability, and skill sets required. We also provide dynamic pricing, compensating you accordingly for your market and the type of work performed.
It's easy, quick, and convenient. Your time is valuable, and Roo is here to give you your time back.
A relief veterinarian (sometimes called a locum tenens veterinarian) is a freelance contract professional who fills in for veterinarians when they are sick, vacationing, or out on leave, like a substitute teacher for the animal healthcare industry. Veterinary relief professionals ensure animal hospitals can continue to remain productive and service the same number of pets and clients while allowing their full-time staff to take time off, aiding their work-life balance as well. Sometimes, during busy periods, animal hospitals may employ relief vets to help lighten the load on their staff, reducing burnout.
Traditionally, relief workers have had to manage their own hospital relationships, accounting, taxes, travel, and insurance, but Roo handles almost all of this for our veterinarians, making relief work easier and more accessible for all.
Roo puts you in control of your schedule, giving you the freedom to create flexible work hours and the work-life balance that's best for you. Our website and app provide a variety of hospital relief shift opportunities, allowing you to work where you want, when you want.
Additionally, the nature of relief work allows you to explore new clinics and specialties without committing long-term for a unique learning experience, to keep your skills sharp, or just to break out of your routine. If you end up finding a hospital you love, Roo can help you get full-time placement.
Ultimately, we aim to empower veterinarians so you have a better work schedule, a community full of other professionals to learn from and network with, and other support vehicles that will improve your quality of life.
Roo offers a variety of shifts, specialties, and appointment types, all of which will be visible on the shift post and hospital profile before you book your shifts.
Shifts/hospitals are searchable by the following specialties: small animal, exotic animal, shelter/non-profit, and emergency/specialty.
Shifts are also searchable by the following appointment types: mostly well, mostly un-well, emergency, surgery expected.
We may adjust or add to these categories as we continue to improve our product for you.
Yes! Even if you're employed full-time, you can always pick up relief shifts to earn extra money. Relief work is also a great way to try out other hospitals to see if they're a better fit and learn from other doctors. Or, you could become a travel vet, practicing on the road anywhere you're licensed by picking up relief shifts wherever Roo is available.
You never know what you'll find, and Roo is free to join with no membership fees and no penalties for inactivity so you have nothing to lose!
Signing up to become a Roo relief veterinarian is as easy as clicking this link and creating a profile. Join now and start finding relief vet jobs near you!
Roo currently provides veterinary relief services in these states and metro areas, and we are constantly expanding. Don't see your area in our coverage? Let us know we should bring Roo to your area by signing up.
Roo is completely free for veterinarians. There's absolutely no cost to join, and there are no monthly fees. You'll only make money with Roo.
As part of our orientation process, we will ask to validate your license(s) in any state(s) in which you intend to provide relief work. There may be additional documentation required depending on the state and their requirements.
Roo has created a helpful veterinary licensing requirements resource for our users detailing the DVM licensing process for every state where Roo provides service and more. Many states offer temporary licenses and relief licenses, which can be helpful if you want to become a travel vet and pick up shifts as you visit new places.
Once you have created a profile, a member of the Roo Team will be in touch with you to arrange an orientation meeting. After this meeting, you should be approved within 24 hours. If you don't hear from us, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our support team. Once your profile is approved, you can begin booking relief shifts right away.
Roo aims to ensure quality professionals are on the platform, and we take pride in knowing every veterinarian who will be representing Roo. As such, we want to hear from you before we approve your profile. We also have to ensure that you’re licensed to practice.
While we don’t require you to have personal liability insurance to work Roo shifts, it is highly recommended. Thankfully, Roo has teamed with the AVMA to offer PLIT plans that are affordable and convenient.
Since relief vets are independent contractors, neither Roo nor the hospital is responsible if something goes wrong during a shift. This means it’s up to you to make sure you’re covered. Having your own personal liability and workers comp plans will ensure you’re prepared.
We’ve set up Roo so that you can be paid out fast! You can input your bank account information when you set up your profile, and all payments will be direct deposited into this account.
Once you complete a relief shift and rate the hospital, we trigger your payment to be processed in as little as 2 business days (NOTE: How long your payment takes to make its way into your account depends on your bank and their processing times).
The compensation for each Roo shift is determined by our dynamic pricing model, which accounts for location, type of work performed, demand/urgency, and other factors. The total amount each shift pays is displayed when browsing and selecting shifts, so payment will always be transparent when booking shifts.
At Roo, we pride ourselves on our transparency. Therefore, we recently released our average veterinarian payment data so you can get an idea of what Roo vet shifts tend to pay. However, the best way to see exactly what a shift will pay is to simply browse shifts on the Roo app or online platform. We're always transparent about our pricing, and we'll let you know exactly what you'll get paid up front.
Roo offers a number of ways for you to earn even more, including through our promoted Boosted Shifts, which provide higher pay in exchange for high-demand shifts or shifts that need to be filled urgently.
We also offer various promotional rewards to relief vets who are active on our platform. Details for specific promotions and other offers will be emailed to you, so be sure to subscribe to our Roo email notifications to be eligible. Progress towards any promotions you're participating in will be automatically tracked in your Roo app.
At Roo, our goal is to make relief work easy for veterinarians, and that includes providing significant help with your taxes as an independent contractor. Our article on how to file taxes as a relief vet is a great place to start.
Roo's platform automatically keeps track of your hours and earnings to help you file your taxes each year. When you first sign up, our tax center will automatically issue a W-9. If your earnings add up to over $600 in a single year, Roo will provide a single 1099 form that covers all relief income you earned through our platform for the calendar year. We even track your mileage for you, which can be applied as a tax write-off.
Additionally, we have a partnership with Fit Money CPA to support you with any tax needs that go beyond our expertise.
We’ve gone to great lengths to help you find exactly what you’re looking for cheetah-fast in the nation’s largest relief network! When you first log in to our website or mobile app, you'll land on our map search page. You can simply click "Shifts" to return to this screen at any time.
Enter your address, city, or zip code to find something nearby. You can also use the date filters to select a range of dates or set specific dates when you’re available. There are so many more filters to choose from to help you find that Goldilocks shift that’s “just right.”
Once you see a shift that looks like a match, smash that "Request” button. This lets the hospital know you're interested. They'll have up to 72 hours to “Confirm” your shift request, which makes it official. We’ll send you an email to let you know.
You can request up to 3 shifts on the same date to increase your odds of getting confirmed. The first hospital to say yes wins, and we’ll automatically remove any overlapping requests to ensure you don’t get double booked.
Then, all that’s left is to do what you do best: help pets and earn more!
No, Roo does not have any monthly requirements or minimum number of shifts/hours you need to pick up to stay active. Freedom and flexibility are our core values, and you are free to build your schedule however you like. Complete just one shift or as many as you want — it’s up to you! With Roo, you define your own work-life balance.
Roo has no penalties of any kind for inactivity or taking time off. In fact, we encourage it. Work as much or as little as you like. Take a vacation or just some personal time, enjoy a long parental leave if you're welcoming a new child into the world, or simply take a break from it all. Whenever you're ready to return, Roo will be right here waiting for you.
Every Roo shift will indicate what kind of work you'll be doing and if there will be another doctor on site for full transparency before you book anything. We'll let you know if surgery is expected, what types of surgery might be included, even how many appointments you can expect to fulfill during your shift. You can even filter shifts by specific types of work you wish to perform. We want every shift to be a perfect fit for both doctor and hospital, and this starts with letting you know what to expect.
You can now cancel shifts quickly and easily using the Roo platform, and we’ll notify the hospital. To cancel a shift, please find the shift you’d like to cancel in the Roo mobile app or online platform and use the “cancel shift” link.
Keep in mind, canceling can leave the hospital without a vet for the day, which can create problems for the hospital and hurt client relationships. Therefore, we limit the number of cancellations allowed over a 30-day period or within 4 days of an upcoming shift.
If something comes up and you need to cancel a shift that's within 4 days, please reach out to customer support for help.
Prior to your shift, the hospital may contact you at least 24 hours in advance regarding any details you should know. You can also chat with the hospital in advance of your shift using the Roo app if you have any questions.
You're welcome to contact Roo at any time by email at hello@roo.vet, or you can call us at 1-833-Roo-Vets. You can also use this link to reach out to our amazing Customer Support team.
You can also use the Roo Chat feature in our app to contact us directly as well. We look forward to speaking with you.
Roo helps veterinary technicians and assistants find great hospitals to work at, matching skilled techs and assistants with relief shifts in need of coverage. As a vet tech or veterinary assistant with Roo, you start by creating a profile, which only takes a few minutes. Then, once you're approved, you can conveniently browse available relief shifts in your area and select shifts when and where you want to work. After working a shift, rate your experience to let other relief techs know how it went. You'll then get paid within two business days.
Roo aims to provide full transparency of all our hospitals to ensure the best possible matching and make every shift a success. Relief techs and hospitals have profiles that provide key information and user-submitted ratings. Our website and app enable you to search hospital shift opportunities by location/distance, and skill sets required. We also provide dynamic pricing, compensating you accordingly for your market and the type of work performed.
It's easy, quick, and convenient. Your time is valuable, and Roo is here to give you your time back.
A relief veterinary technician (sometimes called a locum tenens technician) is a freelance contract professional who fills in for technicians when they're sick, vacationing, or out on leave — like a substitute teacher for the animal healthcare industry. Veterinary relief professionals ensure animal hospitals can continue to remain productive and service the same number of pets and clients while allowing their full-time staff to take time off, aiding their work-life balance as well. Sometimes, during busy periods, animal hospitals may employ relief techs to help lighten the load on their staff, reducing burnout.
Traditionally, relief workers have had to manage their own hospital relationships, accounting, taxes, travel, and insurance, but Roo handles almost all of this for our technicians and assistants, making relief work easier and more accessible for all.
Roo is a great way to earn more doing what you do best by picking up additional technician shifts when it fits your schedule. Our website and app provide a variety of hospital relief shift opportunities, allowing you to work where you want, when you want.
Additionally, the nature of relief work allows you to explore new clinics and specialties without committing long-term for a unique learning experience, to keep your skills sharp, or just to break out of your routine. If you end up finding a hospital you love, Roo can help you get full-time placement.
Ultimately, we aim to empower technicians so you have a better work schedule, a community full of other professionals to learn from and network with, and other support vehicles that will improve your quality of life.
Yes! Even if you're employed full-time, you can always pick up relief shifts to earn extra money. Relief work is also a great way to try out other hospitals to see if they're a better fit and learn from other doctors. Or, you could become a travel tech, practicing on the road and picking up relief shifts wherever Roo is available.
You never know what you'll find, and Roo is free to join with no membership fees and no penalties for inactivity so you have nothing to lose!
Signing up to become a Roo relief veterinary technician or assistant is as easy as clicking this link and creating a profile. Join now and start finding relief vet jobs near you!
*Technicians must have at least 5 years experience to join.
Roo currently provides veterinary relief services in these states and metro areas, and we are constantly expanding. Don't see your area in our coverage? Let us know we should bring Roo to your area by signing up.
Roo is completely free for technicians and veterinary assistants. There's absolutely no cost to join, and there are no monthly fees. You'll only make money with Roo.
Once you have created a profile, our Roo Tech Coordinators will be in touch with you to arrange a virtual onboarding call. After this meeting, you should be approved within 24 hours. If you don't hear from us, please don’t hesitate to reach out to our support team. Once your profile is approved, you can begin booking relief shifts right away.
Roo aims to ensure quality professionals are on our platform. We want to hear from you before we approve your profile. If licenses/registrations are required to practice in your state, we'll verify those during this call.
Veterinary technicians are all awesome, but many technicians have different skill sets and technical ability. Roo's Tech Tiers help us highlight what skills you have to the hospitals we work with.
We use a 1 - 4 system with a Tier 1 Tech including veterinary assistants and newer technicians while Tier 4 Techs are Specialty/ER technicians with highly-specialized skill sets and experience. During your orientation process, we'll place you in the tier that's right for you, and you can advance to the next tier if you acquire the skills and experience required.
Check out this article to learn more about our Tech Tiers and how you can level up and earn more!
We’ve set up Roo so that you can be paid out fast! You can input your bank account information when you set up your profile, and all payments will be direct deposited into this account.
Once you complete a relief shift and rate the hospital, we trigger your payment to be processed in as little as 2 business days (NOTE: How long your payment takes to make its way into your account depends on your bank and their processing times).
The compensation for each Roo shift is determined by our dynamic pricing model, which accounts for location, technician tier, type of work performed, demand/urgency, and other factors. The total amount each shift pays is displayed when browsing and selecting shifts, so payment will always be transparent when booking shifts.
An average veterinary technician salary is hard to estimate as this can vary substantially between regions. At Roo, we pride ourselves on our transparency, and therefore, we do not want to provide any information that could be misleading or subject to change.
Roo offers a number of ways for you to earn even more, including through our promoted Boosted Shifts, which provide higher pay in exchange for high-demand shifts or shifts that need to be filled urgently.
We also offer various promotional rewards to relief techs who are active on our platform. Details for specific promotions and other offers will be emailed to you, so be sure to subscribe to our Roo email notifications to be eligible. Progress towards any promotions you're participating in will be automatically tracked in your Roo app.
At Roo, our goal is to make relief work easy for technicians, and that includes providing significant help with your taxes as an independent contractor. Our article on how to file taxes as a relief tech is a great place to start.
Roo's platform automatically keeps track of your hours and earnings to help you file your taxes each year. When you first sign up, our tax center will automatically issue a W-9. If your earnings add up to over $600 in a single year, Roo will email you a single 1099 form that covers all relief income you earned through our platform for the calendar year. We even track your mileage for you, which can be applied as a tax write-off.
Additionally, we have a partnership with Fit Money CPA to support you with any tax needs that go beyond our expertise.
We’ve gone to great lengths to help you find exactly what you’re looking for cheetah-fast in the nation’s largest relief network! When you first log in to our website or mobile app, you'll land on our map search page. You can simply click "Shifts" to return to this screen at any time.
Enter your address, city, or zip code to find something nearby. You can also use the date filters to select a range of dates or set specific dates when you’re available. There are so many more filters to choose from to help you find that Goldilocks shift that’s “just right.”
Once you see a shift that looks like a match, smash that "Request” button. This lets the hospital know you're interested. They'll have up to 72 hours to “Confirm” your shift request, which makes it official. We’ll send you an email to let you know.
You can request up to 3 shifts on the same date to increase your odds of getting confirmed. The first hospital to say yes wins, and we’ll automatically remove any overlapping requests to ensure you don’t get double booked.
Then, all that’s left is to do what you do best: help pets and earn more!
No, Roo does not have any monthly requirements or minimum number of shifts/hours you need to pick up to stay active. Freedom and flexibility are our core values, and you are free to build your schedule however you like. Complete just one shift or as many as you want — it’s up to you! With Roo, you define your own work-life balance.
Roo has no penalties of any kind for inactivity or taking time off. In fact, we encourage it. Work as much or as little as you like. Take a vacation or just some personal time, enjoy a long parental leave if you're welcoming a new child into the world, or simply take a break from it all. Whenever you're ready to return, Roo will be right here waiting for you.
You can now cancel shifts quickly and easily using the Roo platform, and we’ll notify the hospital. To cancel a shift, please find the shift you’d like to cancel in the Roo mobile app or online platform and use the “cancel shift” link.
Keep in mind, canceling can leave the hospital without a vet for the day, which can create problems for the hospital and hurt client relationships. Therefore, we limit the number of cancellations allowed over a 30-day period or within 4 days of an upcoming shift.
If something comes up and you need to cancel a shift that's within 4 days, please reach out to customer support for help.
Prior to your shift, the hospital may contact you at least 24 hours in advance regarding any details you should know. You can also chat with the hospital in advance of your shift using the Roo app if you have any questions.
You're welcome to contact Roo at any time by email at hello@roo.vet, or you can call us at 1-833-Roo-Vets. You can also use this link to reach out to our amazing Customer Support team.
You can also use the Roo Chat feature in our app to contact us directly as well. We look forward to speaking with you.
Roo is an easy-to-use veterinary relief services platform offering quick access to a premium talent pool of veterinarians, technicians, and veterinary assistants in your area for all your short and long-term staffing needs. Our goal is to make the process of filling relief shifts as simple and efficient as possible to save you time and take work off your plate.
How you use Roo is up to you, whether you need part-time relief coverage to stay productive or are looking to try out and hire new full-time vets and technicians.
Roo aims to staff dependable, quality, compassionate vets and techs who will provide exceptional service to your clients and contribute to a positive client-hospital bond. We strive to make every shift a success.
Additionally, our Roo University Program gives hospitals unprecedented access to first through fourth year veterinary students and recent graduates for externship placement and staffing.
We created Roo because we saw a dire need for work-life balance in the veterinary healthcare industry. We hope that by forging better connections between animal hospitals and veterinary professionals we can empower both and reduce staff burnout industrywide. Financially, we believe our platform will help generate additional revenue for the hospitals we serve.
On top of providing a simple matching process, we foster a community of quality professionals with clear communication, integrity, and transparency. Through cultivating these relationships, we hope our relief vets and techs will find full-time employment at the hospital that's the perfect fit for for them.
Signing up for Roo is as simple as creating a free profile and telling us a little bit about your hospital. Next, we'll schedule a site walkthrough with a member of our team. Then, you're all set to begin posting shifts.
Using Roo is easy, quick, and convenient. Simply post the shifts you need filled on our platform, and we'll connect you with vets and techs in your area.
We'll ask a few questions about the shift so we can provide full transparency to our relief staff, and you'll have a chance to review the full profiles of any interested veterinarians or technicians to provide this same transparency to you before you commit. Finally, you confirm the shift, and after the shift's completed, you rate your vet/tech's performance to let other hospitals know how it went.
If you wish to save even more time, you can choose our Instant Book feature to bypass the profile review process and automatically book either the first vet/tech who requests the shift or any vet/tech you've worked with before that you've rated 4-stars or higher. We're all about making your life easier.
Yes, you will need a separate account for each hospital location, but accounts are free and there are no monthly fees so it costs nothing to have additional profiles.
If you have many locations, email hello@roo.vet to ask about setting up an Enterprise Account, which provides a number of benefits and can help you manage multiple hospital locations in one convenient place.
Roo's Enterprise program helps large corporate animal hospital groups efficiently manage all their locations at the hospital, regional/area, and national level with ease.
You'll be assigned a designated Roo Account Lead to manage your account and support all your veterinary relief and staffing needs in addition to providing a number of other services. We'll automatically provide billing documentation and analytics across all locations so you can assess individual hospital financials and performance at a glance.
To learn more or join our enterprise program, please email hello@roo.vet.
Roo is completely free to join, and there are no monthly fees. You'll only pay for shifts you confirm. It's free to post as many shifts as you like as often or as little as you like. Whatever works best for your hospital and your needs works great for us!
Roo offers three payment options: credit card (preferred method), bank account/ACH withdrawal, and manual invoicing. You can add your banking information when you create your account. With manual invoicing, we require payment within 30 days of the shift. You can access a .pdf copy of each invoice in your hospital account at any time for accurate bookkeeping. You can also update your payment method at any time, and we're always willing to work with our hospitals to create a method that works for you.
Roo relief shifts are priced using dynamic pricing meaning the price will change based on a number of factors, including the state and metro area in which your animal hospital is located, the type of hospital (emergency, general practice, etc.), the type of veterinary work being performed, and if any special procedures are being requested.
Transparency is important to us, and Roo will always let you know what the shift will cost you before it's posted, and you will see the final price before you confirm any shift.
Roo takes care of all payroll taxes. It's just one of the many ways Roo makes life easier for hospitals and practice managers.
With Roo, posting a shift is fast and easy. Simply log in, and you'll see options to add a new vet or tech shift immediately on your dashboard. Then, answer a few short questions about the shift, click "Save Shift," and you're all set.
The shift will then be posted publicly, visible to vets or techs who will have the option to "Request" you shift. You'll be notified whenever anyone requests one of your posted shifts, giving you the opportunity to review the profile of the requesting vet or tech and decide if you want to work with them. If it feels like a good match for you, it will be your decision to "Confirm" the vet or tech you wish to work your shift to make it official.
That's all there is to it! Once a shift is confirmed, you'll be able to chat with your Roo Vet/Tech within the Roo app to sort out any details ahead of time.
To give you the best chances of your shift being filled, we've found it's best to post a shift 60 to 90 days in advance.
However, this is not a requirement, and shifts can be filled much faster and with much shorter notice if needed. We have a variety of tools available to help you find coverage fast, especially if you're in a pinch. We want to be an amazing partner to you and support your hospital's needs.
If you need to fill a shift with short notice, Roo has a number of tools to help you quickly get the relief support you need.
We can make any shift a Boosted Shift, which provides additional financial incentives to encourage our relief vets and techs to pick up the shift.
Need coverage urgently? The Roo SOS feature allows you to get immediate visibility from our community of vets or techs in your area with financial incentives to ensure the shift gets filled as quickly as possible. If the shift is posted early in the day, you may even be able to get it filled same day!
There is no minimum number of shifts you need to post.
It's free to post as many shifts as you like, and you're free to offer shifts as often or as infrequently as you like. Freedom and flexibility are our core values, and you're always free to use our service however best fits your needs.
With Roo, you choose the veterinarians and technicians you want to work with, and they choose you. Therefore, the best way to ensure your shifts get filled is to receive high ratings from the relief vets and techs working shifts at your hospital, which will come naturally from creating a positive work experience. Our blog post on how to become a 5-star animal hospital is a great starting point for some helpful tips.
You can also use your profile to highlight what makes your hospital unique, enticing vets and techs to pick up shifts as many of our relief professionals are looking for diverse and unique experiences.
The Roo app will also make suggestions to help optimize your shift postings and increase their chances of being filled. Generally, shifts have the best chances of being filled if they're between 6 to 8 hours in length and posted 60 to 90 days ahead of the shift date.
Additionally, Roo's Boosted Shifts feature allows hospitals to create a financial incentive for veterinarians and technicians to pick up your shifts.
If you need additional support, are amazing Account Managers are here to help your hospital meet your needs. Reach out to your local representative to get even more help filling shifts with personalized support.
Roo is devoted to providing veterinary relief staff of the highest quality that you can depend on to provide exceptional care.
First and foremost, all our relief professionals are fully licensed in the state(s) in which they fulfill shifts, and we review their qualifications during our onboarding process, and conduct background checks. The work history and experience of all our professionals will be available for your review in their profiles.
Additionally, if you need veterinarians who are DEA registered, you can make this a requirement when you post a shift so you can be certain you're getting the qualified support you need.
Our aim is to make every shift a success for our hospitals and your clients, and this begins with selecting only the top veterinarians and technicians to represent Roo and your hospital.
Our relief veterinarians and technicians are independent contractors, and therefore, we recommend they carry their own liability and workers comp insurance. This is not the responsibility of the hospital, yet another way Roo makes life easier for you.
YES! This is encouraged. We welcome the opportunity for Roo vets or vet techs to transition to full-time placements at hospitals, especially if you already had great experiences working together.
Roo can be a great way to find vets and techs in your area if you're looking for new hires. Feel free to use Roo as part of your job application process to try out new candidates for a shift or two. We just ask that you please notify Roo and pay a placement fee for this referral service.
Our Roo Uni externships program can also connect your hospital with veterinary students looking for externships and eventual career placement (more info in the Externships tab).
Ultimately, Roo is a veterinary staffing solutions company, and we are happy to help serve your hospital however works best for you.
You are under no obligation to confirm a vet or vet tech who requests a shift at your hospital. If they have never worked with you before, you can view each user’s profile as well as their average ratings from other hospitals before you decide to confirm them.
Additionally, if you have any issues before, during, or after a shift, please bring them to our attention by reaching out to our support team.
To ensure each Roo shift is a success, please try to contact your relief veterinarian or technician at least 24 hours before their shift using the Chat Feature in the Roo app. We recommend you let them know a bit about what to expect during their shift and any other relevant hospital information.
Please have a staff member ready to receive the vet or tech and show them around before the day begins as well as provide support throughout the day.
If you have any issues with any of our relief veterinarians or technicians, please bring them to our attention at your earliest convenience. You can reach out to our support team using this link or call 1-833-Roo-Vets if you need immediate help.
Connect with the next generation of vets through Roo Uni — our externship matching service! Posting an externship works just like posting a Roo relief shift except externship postings don't expire. They'll continue to be available to students until you manually deactivate the post, allowing you to connect with multiple students without duplicating your work.
Like with Roo relief shifts, veterinary students will request your externship, and your hospital will make the final decision to confirm them. We'll notify you when a student is interested and put you in touch with them so you can discuss any details and goals ahead of the externship.
We encourage our hospitals to give their students an active, hands-on learning experience and pair students with doctors who are interested in mentorship.
Like an internship but shorter! Current veterinary students will shadow doctors and help out at your hospitals to get practical experience. The average externship is around 2 - 6 weeks, but you’ll determine the official length, terms, and any pay with your student.
Veterinary students enjoy externships because it allows them to get valuable experience practicing their skills. It's also a great opportunity for them to connect with mentors and begin building their network. If they have a positive experience, they'll share it with their classmates, potentially boosting your recruiting efforts at their entire vet school!
Roo Uni Externships are a free Roo feature for hospitals. What you pay is entirely between you and your student extern, Roo does not take a cut.
Some externships are paid and others are not, depending on your hospital's policies. If you choose to offer paid externships, any costs will be paid directly to your student extern. Additionally, some universities do not allow students to be paid if they are receiving school credit for their externship.
Please check with the student requesting the externship for further information on their school’s policy or reach out to us with any questions at RooUni@roo.vet. We strongly recommend hosting paid externships if you can as they are much more attractive to students.
Everywhere! Since students are not licensed yet, they can come from veterinary colleges anywhere in the United States.
Students are encouraged by universities to try out-of-state externships to expose them to new practices and new places.
Some hospitals offer lodging, a travel stipend, meals, and cover other student expenses. It's up to your hospital to decide what benefits, if any, you wish to offer to your student extern(s). Please keep in mind any benefits you can offer will make your externship more attractive to students.
As with our relief vets and vet techs, Roo provides profiles on each of our students for your hospital to choose from. The final decision on externship placement will always be made by your hospital.
We strongly encourage all hospitals to give students an ACTIVE experience. However, the amount of hands-on training a student receives is up to you.
We strongly recommend discussing training expectations with students ahead of time. For some hospitals, training may include observation, learning to draw blood, and other technical applications. Other hospitals may allow students to be deeply involved in surgical procedures, patient management, and even allow them to perform advanced clinical skills. We encourage you to gauge the experience level and knowledge of each student to help guide their clinical experience.
Most veterinary externships last one to two weeks but can extend to a maximum of six weeks. Hospitals can recommend a specific duration as they see fit, but ultimately, it will need to fit into the student’s schedule.
You'll agree on the official dates and timing of your externship ahead of time with your student. You'll also be able to adjust the timing of the externship as part of the confirmation step in case changes are necessary following any conversations with your student extern.
Externships are offered year-round at many schools, and summer externships are often requested with short notice. A small number of universities begin to schedule externships in October for the following calendar year.
We recommend students carry their own student liability policy but do not require it. Host hospitals assume all liability for students. If hospitals want students to sign a liability waiver, they must provide their own waiver. The AVMA has excellent information on students and liability found here.
Roo Uni is a first-of-its-kind veterinary externship matching service, giving vet med students agency to choose their ideal opportunity from a multitude of options.
We know finding veterinary clinics with externships can be a tough and grueling process with few resources available for students. That's why the vets at Roo were inspired to leverage our vast network of hospitals to create a new and exciting resource for veterinary students.
We've assembled the largest ever searchable database of exceptional veterinary clinics across the country who wish to offer mentorship experiences to the next generation of veterinarians. With Roo Uni, externship placement is made easy with more options than ever before, and all of it is completely free to both hospitals and students.
Like an internship but shorter! Current veterinary students will shadow doctors and help out at animal hospitals to get practical experience. The average externship is around 2 - 6 weeks, but you’ll determine the official length, terms, and any pay with your hospital.
The amount of hands-on training you can receive varies from state to state and is ultimately the decision of the animal hospital. We strongly recommend discussing expectations with your hospital ahead of time.
For some, training may include observations, learning to draw blood, and other technical applications. Other clinics may allow students to be deeply involved in surgical procedures, patient management, and even allow them to perform advanced clinical skills. We strongly encourage all our clinics to give students an ACTIVE experience.
Signing up is as easy as clicking this link and following the steps to create your own profile. From there, you'll be able to browse all the externships we have available at veterinary clinics across the country.
Roo’s externship program is available to first through fourth year veterinary students who are currently enrolled in veterinary school or recent graduates who are not yet licensed and otherwise unable to practice veterinary medicine.
Your veterinary program does not have to be through an AVMA accredited university as foreign students are eligible to apply for Roo externships as well.
No, Roo only offers externships to DVM students at this time.
We screen all our animal hospitals to ensure all our externships being offered are at outstanding hospitals who want to provide a positive mentorship experience. We require our hospitals hold a positive reputation within the veterinary community to host externships. Additionally, we meet with hospital administrators to make sure they're interested in mentoring and will provide a productive learning experience.
We encourage all our clinics to offer as much hands-on training as they are able to.
Roo aims to provide a variety of unique learning experiences for students to explore everything the field of veterinary medicine has to offer.
Students can choose from clinics whose focus is general practice, emergency, urgent care, surgery, dentistry, exotics, physical therapy/acupuncture, business management, and more. We encourage you to use these short externship experiences to try something new.
Roo currently offers externships at clinics in 30 states, and we're constantly expanding!
This is your opportunity to learn new skills and broaden your horizons. We strongly recommend using this experience to travel to new cities and new practices that excite you. These early years when you're not bound to any state by a license may be your best opportunity to travel as a vet and experience veterinary medicine across the country.
Roo Uni Externships are a free Roo feature for students and hospitals. What you're paid is entirely between you and the host hospital, and Roo does not take a cut.
Some externships are paid and others are not depending on the host hospital and their policies. Each Roo Uni externship posting will outline the compensation provided so you know what to expect. Additionally, you'll have an opportunity to discuss any compensation with your host hospital before you commit.
Some universities do not allow students to be paid if they are receiving school credit for the externship, so it's best to check with your university for further information.
You can always reach out to us with any questions at RooUni@roo.vet.
Some host hospitals may provide a stipend for accommodation/travel, and you will be able to see this information in the externship posting as well. If anything is ever unclear, feel free to ask the hospital for further details.
On average, veterinary externships last one to two weeks but can extend to a maximum of six weeks.
As the student, it's up to you to determine how long you'd like your externship to last. Hospitals can recommend a specific duration, but ultimately, it is up to you and will have to fit your schedule.
Externships are offered year-round on an ongoing basis, and we are constantly adding more and updating our offerings. Some of our premier externships in popular travel destinations or prestigious cities are competitive, so we recommend applying as soon as possible.
We strongly encourage all students to carry their own liability insurance. Luckily, the AVMA has a complimentary, easy-to-access insurance policy for students. We also recommend consulting with your university or faculty to find out what policies are available through your school.
Absolutely! Roo was first created as a relief staffing service to help veterinarians find jobs at hospitals in their area. We recommend new grads have at least six months of strong clinical experience before venturing out into the world of relief, and we can help you find employment as soon as you're licensed.
Working as a relief veterinarian is a great way to begin your veterinary career as it allows you to create your own schedule and try out a wide variety of clinics and shift types to see what you enjoy best.
We encourage our vets to find full-time work through our app, and the experiences you have and connections you make working at different hospitals will help you find the full-time position that's a perfect fit for you. As a bonus, you may even earn more working relief shifts than you can full-time, and our app does not differentiate pay based on experience.
To register as a veterinarian click here or email hello@roo.vet to ask about converting your student account to a vet account.
Want to earn money while helping spread the word about Roo University? Current students are welcome to become Roo Uni Ambassadors, a paid position for students willing to help coordinate events and get the word out on campus about everything Roo can offer, acting as a first point of contact for our brand. Visit our career page and apply to learn more.
