Are you a knowledgeable and confident equine vet, ready to make your mark in a growing practice?
Can you bring individuality, communication and a human side to your clinical expertise?
Are you looking for a role where you are supported and valued as an essential part of a forward looking team?
Is your work as an equine performance vet driven by a desire to improve human-horse harmony?
If so, read on as we're looking for someone a little bit special…
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About Espinar Equine
Espinar Equine was founded in 2018 by Emiliano Espinar as a one man ambulatory operation with the goal of providing excellent lameness and performance care for horses. Since then the practice has developed into a small team with a support office. It’s a start, but now we’re on a mission to create a centre of excellence for ambulatory equine soundness/lameness in Newbury and the surrounding counties by 2028, offering diagnostics and orthopaedic services. To get there, we are going to need some outstanding and ambitious new team mates who would be excited to help us grow this practice a whole lot more!
Espinar Equine is a specialised veterinary practice with a goal of improving human-horse harmony through focusing on equine lameness, performance issues, and musculoskeletal conditions. The practice offers a range of services, including lameness workups, gait analysis, regenerative medicine, shockwave therapy, and diagnostic imaging. We also perform pre-purchase examinations and offer consultations, second opinions, and export health certification. We emphasise a methodical, collaborative approach to equine care, serving both performance and leisure horses across various disciplines.
We are a values-led team and have come to understand that when we work with people who share our values, things go really well. Our values are: clinical excellence, integrity, honesty, respect, growth and learning. We also approach challenging situations with good humour and empathy.
We're a friendly team who are proud to be a little bit different in how we do things. We create solutions to fit us and how we work, rather than just following the norm. We started as a one-vet ambulatory service, and we don’t want to lose that connected and nimble vibe as we grow. So, we work hard but also value creating a work environment that fits the shape of both our work and home lives. To this end we are flexible and make time for team lunches and time off.
We want the practice to grow and do well so that it can ‘give back’ both to the people who work here and to our clients. We have a friendly, personal, laid-back relationship with
our clients, offering a point of difference unmatched by larger practices. Being independent and having a small team allows us to set our own vision of success.
As honesty is one of our core values, we must admit that being a small team does mean that we are still working to improve in the areas where we don't yet excel. We're currently creating new processes and foundations to improve our client communications and how we delegate and share tasks among us. We are innovating to create the centre of excellence we are aiming for. Crucially, we always support our team and don't tolerate rude clients or bad debtors.
If you really want to know what it’s like to work for us, here's what our practice manager, Mel Mckernan, has to say:
"I’ve been here since the beginning (when I was asked to help design a website for Emiliano’s new solo venture). From those early days, I've been given incredible opportunities to grow, starting as a receptionist, moving up to practice manager, and eventually qualifying as an equine veterinary nurse. Emiliano has been incredibly supportive every step of the way, and it’s truly a pleasure to work here and be part of such a wonderful, positive team. We genuinely enjoy the work we do, even on busy days when there are extra visits to squeeze in, and caffeine becomes our best friend! The challenges we face only make us stronger together. I love our group lunches and the conversations we share, and I admire how the practice continues to evolve and adapt. It’s rewarding to see the impact we can make (even as a small independent practice) like when we host our client education evenings."
About The Job
As an associate veterinarian, your primary responsibility will be to provide exceptional care to our clients' horses. You will spend your days offering first-opinion general practice services, with opportunities to engage in more specialised cases as you grow in the role.
While we cover a broad geographical area, 90% of our work occurs within a 45-minute drive from our Newbury base. We also handle vettings further afield and provide emergency care. It is therefore vital that you be based within our area of coverage or are willing to relocate close to our office base in Newbury.
We take pride in the strong relationships we've built with our clients, and we expect you to foster and maintain these connections. You’ll offer practical advice to clients with the goal of maintaining long-term relationships and keeping their horses healthy and happy. You’ll work collaboratively with the office team to coordinate client visits and manage inquiries via text or WhatsApp
Accurate record-keeping, proficiency with IT, and adherence to our systems and processes are essential to ensure smooth invoicing and operations.
You’ll also need to be comfortable working independently and confident in handling emergencies, such as wounds or colic, as well as performing vettings.
You need to be confident in a range of procedures, from upper airway endoscopies and gastroscopies to intra-articular injections, along with routine visits for vaccinations and dental care. Additionally, you will need to perform or assist in surgical procedures, such as field general anaesthesia castrations and simple standing surgeries like enucleations.
Additionally the role will require the following aptitudes:
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Ability to recognise when cases can be handled ‘in-house’ and when to refer to the local hospitals for further or more specialised advice such as MRI or CT.
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Ability to be tidy and organised, taking responsibility for replenishing your car stock or communicating with the office for ordering and equipment requirements.
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Ability to complete admin tasks promptly (like notes and insurance claims etc) and liaise with the office to ensure tasks which require a vet’s input are processed on time.
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About You
You are an equine vet with a minimum of two years’ experience. You’ve become confident in your clinical ability, able to handle most of your own cases independently. (It’s absolutely fine if this isn’t the case all the time, there’s still a lot of learning to do when you’re early in your career.) You’ll have good communication skills, both with clients and other team members. This largely means you are good at managing the expectations of your clients and team mates and letting people know what’s going on with your cases. These skills are both verbal and written.
You enjoy working as part of a small team and are excited about learning and developing further knowledge of lameness and performance. You’re also ready to be an integral part of our expanding practice. This is really important, we’re looking for someone who gets what we’re doing and buys into the vision we have. To that end, ideally you'll be open to staying with us for the long haul and relish the opportunity to take on more responsibility in the team as the practice expands. This might be by developing leadership skills or by developing into a more specialised clinical team mate.
As an experienced equine vet you already understand the routine nature of the work and are happy spending long periods of time out on the road by yourself, enjoying a good podcast or audiobook between visits. You can manage your own time well, are punctual and well presented.
Through your time working with horses you've developed a preference for lameness cases and are able to offer excellent preventive advice as well as treatment. You have an interest in equine performance and working with owners who have a close bond with their animals and care about their health. You're knowledgeable and curious, always on the quest for answers or solutions. You have a willingness to explain and educate in a practical non-condescending way. You approach problem solving with a mindset of determination and positivity, and in general you are a friendly person to spend time with.
We value getting together and we factor in time for team lunches and other social events gatherings. As we grow, we want to retain this bond amongst the team so we are looking for someone who wants to be part of a team that spends time together when possible too. We place huge importance on our team culture and it is vital that any new member is invested in helping us to have a safe and enabling culture too. We live and work by our values, and expect the same from everyone on our team.
Qualifications and Essential Experience Required
MRCVS
2 years experience in an equine veterinary role
Desirable Experience and Other Skills
Some experience with diagnostic imaging
Digital literacy using AI and willingness to embrace new technologies for reporting, diagnostics
Communication skills
High integrity
Salary/Benefits
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An approximate salary range of £40,000 - £60,000, based on experience and other requirements.
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Company Vehicle
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Payment of professional membership fees, such as BEVA, and professional insurance.
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CPD supported to fit both individual & practice growth aims.
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Visa sponsorship if required.
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We offer a flexible work-life balance, with minimal on-call rotations (1 in 4) and 25 days of annual leave plus Bank Holidays.
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Highly supportive environment. Supported by a ISELP certified member.
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Cycle scheme
What’s The Next Step?
Please apply directly to Office@espinarequine.co.uk, including a cover letter explaining why you would be a good addition to our team.