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Early Career DVM Mentorship Program

PACKS: Personalized, Autonomous Career + Knowledge Support for Early-Career Doctors.

PACKS is our comprehensive training and mentorship program that empowers early-career doctors. Through PACKS, you’ll build advanced clinical, surgical, and technical expertise, strengthen your leadership and business skills, and gain access to career guidance and wellbeing resources to support your success.

Designed by veterinarians, PACKS isn’t a one-size-fits-all virtual program or short-term bootcamp. It’s a personalized experience where you’ll partner directly with a mentor-doctor to co-create a development plan tailored to your individual goals, interests, and career aspirations.

If you’re preparing to graduate from veterinary school or have recently graduated, we’d love to connect and explore how PACKS can support your next step in veterinary medicine.

Ready to get started?

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WHO IS YOUR MENTOR-DOCTOR?

Vetco Total Care PACKS mentor-doctors bring deep clinical, surgical and leadership experience and complete a six-month training program to be the very best mentors they can be. Being a PACKS mentor is voluntary, and each mentor-doctor who signs up is fully committed to your success, growth and wellbeing.

PACKS Early Career Veterniarian Mentorship Program at Vetco Total Care

Meet PACKS Mentors

These are just a few of our amazing PACKS mentor-doctors. One of them could be your next mentor!

Dr. Hannah Mitchell with a dog named Babar
I want to mentor new graduates because: I started working for Petco right after graduating vet school – I was excited and terrified. I was given an amazing mentor and had a wonderful support system that helped me grow as a doctor and develop my career. I love to teach, encourage, and support others going through what I went through. I know being a new veterinarian is scary, any change is scary- but it is a necessity for growth. I would be honored to help develop new veterinarians and pass on the skills and knowledge my mentors gave to me! The best advice a mentor gave me: One of my first medical directors told me "Mistakes are the world's most brutal teacher." This could not be truer. We are all human, but it is important how we handle these mistakes. Being able to learn and grow from a mistake is vital. If you get me talking about MY DOG I may never stop!

Dr. Hannah Mitchell

Dr. Abigail Pagel crouching down hugging a basset hound
I want to mentor new graduates because: I love veterinary medicine, and I love teaching. Vet medicine is a wonderful way to change the world, and I want to be a part of that. I have always had a great support system that has helped me become the vet I am and continues to help me grow, and I want to pass that on. I know I can affect the future of the veterinary field by helping new veterinarians grow into the best vets they can be. And the people I mentor help me to grow, too! The best advice a mentor gave me: You can't ever know everything in veterinary medicine. The best thing to do is know where to look in order to find out what the next step is. Your job is to get the best history you can, do the best exam you can, and recommend the best diagnostics and treatment you can. That has definitely helped my work-life balance. If you get me talking about PARASITES, OR CHARLIE BROWN I may never stop!

Dr. Abigail Pagel

Got questions? Email us at talent@petco.com.

Click here to download a PDF about the PACKS Early Career Veterinary Mentorship program you can print and share.

Still a vet school student? We offer externships

Join Dr. Mitchell for a virtual hospital tour

Better Together

Meet our amazing partner organizations and affiliates who make veterinary medicine a better place for all.

LVMA: Latinx Veterinary Medical Association

LMVA

We are a proud sponsor of Latinx VMA, which empowers Latinx professionals in veterinary medicine and support the next generation of Latinx veterinarians.

RACE: Registry of Approved Continuing Education, a service of the AAVSB

RACE

Petco + Vetco Total Care publish RACE-approved CE-credit courses. We also offer full time doctors CE stipends up to $3500 annually.

Pride MC: The LGBTQ+ Veterinary Medical Community

Pride VMC

We are a proud sponsor and supporter of Pride VMC and their mission to create a better world for the LGBTQIA+ veterinary community.

Gender Identity Bill of Rights

Gender Identity Bill of Rights

We stand as a signatory of the Gender Identity Bill of Rights (GIBOR), which outlines the baseline rights needed for transgender, non-binary and gender non-conforming people to thrive in the veterinary profession.

Penn Foster

Penn Foster

We sponsor fully-funded Veterinary Technician Associate degrees for our employees, and Veterinary Assistant & Practice Mangement certificates.

NAVTA: National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America

NATVA

Penn Foster Vet Tech Students are part of the NATVA student chapter, the governing body of the Approved Veterinary Assistant (AVA) programs, helping delineate tasks between veterinary assistants and Credentialed Veterinary Technicians.

VMA: Veterinary Medical Association Executives

VMAE

We are a proud member of the VMAE which provides effective leadership within the veterinary profession.

Merck / MentorVet

Merck sponsors free MentorVet Lift memberships and access to other MentorVet programs for our early career veterinarians.

Petco Love

Petco Love, a national nonprofit, improves the lives of pets and their people. With nearly $380M invested, we’re creating a lifesaving nation.

Journey for Teams

We proudly sponsor Journey for Teams to help veterinary workplaces incorporate diversity, equity and inclusion.

Group of smiling veterinary staff posing indoors.
Smiling veterinary team standing together indoors.
Veterinary staff comforting dog wearing cone.
Vet holding cat in clinic setting.

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Petco stylist holding a dog before brushing its teeth

Our Commitment to People, Pets and Planet

We believe the passion for pets is universal. To better serve our diverse customers across our 1,500 Pet Care Centers, 250+ Vetco Total Care hospitals and 1700+ weekly Vetco vaccination clinics, we are intentional about bringing the skillsets and experiences that help us meet the needs of all pets and pet parents. From attracting bilingual talent needed to serve multicultural market segments to leveraging a variety of perspectives to help us innovate in a competitive and changing industry, we know diversity and inclusion are critical business drivers to help Petco meet the needs of all pet families.

  • Planet

    • Began transitioning in-store habitats from fluorescent to LED bulbs, resulting in energy savings.
    • Reduced energy usage by more than 4 million kWh through our lighting curtailment program.
    • In 2024, our recycling initiatives diverted nearly 400 tons of plastic from landfills.
  • People

    • Provided career or skills-related training to 98% of all employees.
    • Sponsored more than 150 scholarships through our Petco/Penn Foster Scholarship Program and Latinx Veterinary Medical Association.
    • Nearly 600,000 hours of training delivered to pet care center partners.
    • Over 40% of General Manager and District General Manager positions filled by internal promotions.
  • Pets

    • Reunited more than 100,000 pets with their pet parents through Petco Love Lost.
    • Helped save nearly 7 million animals through adoptions in Petco pet care centers
    • Distributed more than 3.2 million free vaccines to pets via Petco Love.
    • Invested nearly $410 million in lifesaving animal welfare work.
    • Helped more than 4,000 animal welfare partners.
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Current Petco Partners

Current Partners can explore internal opportunities by logging into Workday.

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