Pulse - January 2024 - 7

JIM BELL
JIM BELL
SCVMA PROFILE
SCVMA PROFILE
Steinhauer Honoree Loves
Her Work in Allied Industry
" I
was shocked, humbled and I started to cry. "
That was Tiffany Schusler's reaction
when she learned she is the 2024 recipient
of SCVMA's Phil Steinhauer Award.
For Tiffany, this award symbolizes the culmination of a life
built on a foundation of hard work, education, and resourcefulness.
As a single parent to her eight-year-old daughter,
Tabitha, this award means so much more than simple recognition
from an industry to which she has dedicated decades
of her life.
" The amazing thing about this, when I think about it, is
that I am so grateful to have a career participating in something
I love and being a part of these people's lives - and this
honor, which is huge....But the biggest impact for me, I think,
will be having my daughter, Tabitha, sitting there to see [the
award presentation] next year. "
Tiffany has worked in the veterinary field since she was a
teenager growing up in Orange County. She started out in
small animal medicine as a veterinary assistant, then obtained
her registered veterinary technician license in 1997 by drawing
on years of experience which enabled her to sit for the
exam and pass it.
While working in the field, education was always her ultimate
goal. She attended Cal Poly Pomona, where she earned
her bachelor's degree in animal science, and then went on to
earn her animal science master's degree in equine exercise
physiology.
" I had dreams of being able to control my own destiny. I
wanted a life with more in it. I saw education as extremely
important and a path to being able to support myself better
with more options. "
After years spent working in small animal medicine, she
combined her career with her passion for horses and moved
on to equine practices, first on the race track and then working
her way to head technician at Chino Valley Equine Hospital.
During those years, she also found time to teach a class in
clinical pathology to future technicians at Mount San Antonio
College.
Always seeking to further herself in her career, Tiffany
switched from technician work to veterinary distribution,
which she has been doing for 19 years. Since 2014, she has
been a territory manager for Patterson Veterinary Supply. She
likes to think of the company as " Amazon for veterinarians. "
" I can supply about 98 percent of what is needed in a hospital.
I can provide everything from cabinets on the walls to CT
machines....My goal is always to partner with the practice and
to help the practice from the beginning until the end. CurPULSE
JANUARY
2024
rently, I have five new builds going, which means I'm a part of
the practice from the very beginning, helping with layout and
whatever they need. At the end I can help them with finding
contacts and assistance in selling the practice. I always tell
them when we start: 'You can ask me anything. I can either
help you directly or I usually can send you to someone I trust.'
And, if I can't help them, I will let them know. "
Elizabeth Goldstone of Merck Animal Health took home
the previous Steinhauer Award and nominated Tiffany this
year. She said that Tiffany " has been a distribution partner
with me as long as I have been in animal health. She is always
so willing to partner, whenever I need her help, and she is
very active in the veterinary industry, working conferences
and other meetings. She is very committed to the field. "
An example of Tiffany's dedication to her clients and going
above and beyond is the work she recently finished on a new
7
Pulse - January 2024

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