Lead Veterinarian

Wags and Walks Nashville; Nashville (TN); On-site; USD 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Wags & Walks Rescue Nashville is seeking a compassionate Veterinarian / Lead Veterinarian to provide high-quality medical care for rescue dogs and to guide veterinary systems. This in-person role in Hermitage, TN, offers full-time hours and a chance to lead medical protocols while balancing patient care with nonprofit resources.

The ideal candidate is a confident clinician, experienced in shelter and high-volume spay/neuter, able to work with Medical Director and Executive Director to ensure

Qualifications

• DVM or equivalent veterinary degree with Tennessee licensure or eligibility.
• Strong clinical experience in small-animal medicine and anesthesia.
• Ability to independently perform spay/neuter procedures.
• Experience with population health and shelter medicine is preferred.

Responsibilities

• Provide comprehensive veterinary examinations, diagnostics, treatment, and preventive care for rescue dogs.
• Perform spay/neuter procedures and other soft-tissue surgeries.
• Oversee anesthesia, analgesia, and post-operative care.
• Develop and maintain veterinary protocols and medical records.
• Lead medical intake, vaccination, parasite prevention, and infectious-disease screening.
• Collaborate with Medical Director and teams to ensure consistent, high-quality care.

Skills

Small-animal medicine

Clinical judgment

Communication skills

Team collaboration

Urgent medical management

Education

DVM or equivalent degree

Tennessee license or eligibility

Tools

DEA registration

Anesthesia knowledge

Spay/Neuter procedures

Job description

Wags & Walks Rescue Nashville is seeking a compassionate, experienced, and solutions-orientedVeterinarian / Lead Veterinarianto provide high-quality medical care to rescue dogs while helping guide the organization’s veterinary systems and protocols.

Based inHermitage, TN, this role serves as the senior clinical authority for veterinary decisions, including examinations, diagnostics, treatment, surgery, anesthesia, preventive care, infectious-disease management, and population health. The veterinarian will work closely with the Medical Director and Executive Director to develop practical medical protocols, support the veterinary and animal-care teams, and ensure excellent patient care while being thoughtful about nonprofit resources.

The ideal candidate is a confident clinician and collaborative medical leader who understands the unique demands of rescue and shelter medicine. They should be comfortable performing spay/neuter and common soft-tissue surgeries, making sound medical decisions, managing urgent cases, and balancing the needs of individual animals with overall population health and organizational sustainability.

DVM or equivalent veterinary degree and Tennessee licensure or eligibility are required.Experience in shelter, rescue, high-volume spay/neuter, community medicine, or population health is strongly preferred.

This is anin-person position in Hermitage, TN, withfull-time hours of approximately 32-40 hours per week, with potential flexibility for the right part-time candidate. Compensation is competitive and based on experience and qualifications.

This is an exciting opportunity for a veterinarian who wants to make a meaningful impact—not only by caring for individual dogs, but by helping Wags & Walks Rescue safely and sustainably save more lives.

Job Responsibilities

The Veterinarian / Lead Veterinarian will be responsible for providing high-quality veterinary care while helping establish and maintain the medical systems that support Wags & Walks Rescue’s dogs and community veterinary programs.

Key responsibilities include:

• Provide comprehensive veterinary examinations, diagnostics, treatment, preventive care, and medical management for rescue and eligible community animals.
• Perform spay/neuter procedures, common soft-tissue surgeries, dental procedures, and other appropriate veterinary services.
• Oversee anesthesia, pain management, surgical recovery, and post-operative care.
• Evaluate urgent and complex cases, provide stabilization when appropriate, and determine when emergency or specialty referral is needed.
• Develop and oversee medical intake, vaccination, parasite prevention, infectious-disease screening, isolation, quarantine, and medical-clearance protocols.
• Monitor population health and lead the medical response to infectious-disease concerns, outbreaks, and exposure events.
• Develop, review, and maintain practical veterinary protocols and SOPs covering medications, surgery, anesthesia, infectious disease, foster care, referrals, and medical escalation.
• Maintain accurate, timely, and complete medical records in accordance with veterinary standards and regulatory requirements.
• Train and support veterinary and animal-care staff while ensuring appropriate delegation and scope of responsibility.
• Serve as the senior clinical resource for medical decisions and provide clear, practical guidance to the Medical Director, Executive Director, and animal-care teams.
• Practice evidence-based, resource-conscious medicine while balancing individual patient needs, prognosis, welfare, population health, and nonprofit resources.
• Help determine when cases can be safely treated in-house versus requiring outside veterinary or specialty care.
• Depending on role structure, oversee applicable veterinary premises, controlled-substance, DEA, licensure, and regulatory responsibilities.
• Collaborate across Medical, Intake, Operations, Foster, and Adoption teams to promote consistent, safe, and efficient animal care.
• Contribute to a culture of teamwork, accountability, professionalism, and solutions-oriented problem-solving.

Qualifications

Required Qualifications

• Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) or equivalent veterinary degree.
• DEA registration
• Active Tennessee veterinary license or eligibility to obtain one.
• Strong clinical experience in small-animal medicine.
• Ability to independently perform spay/neuter procedures.
• Experience with common soft-tissue surgical procedures.
• Strong knowledge of anesthesia, analgesia, and perioperative patient care.
• Excellent clinical judgment, diagnostic skills, and decision-making abilities.
• Strong communication and interpersonal skills with the ability to work collaboratively across teams.
• Ability to maintain accurate, complete, and timely medical records.
• Ability to manage urgent medical situations and determine when referral or specialty care is appropriate.
• Willingness and legal eligibility to assume applicable veterinary regulatory and controlled-substance responsibilities, if required by the role.

Preferred Qualifications

• 3+ years of veterinary clinical experience.
• Previous experience in shelter, rescue, high-volume spay/neuter, or community veterinary medicine.
• Experience with population health, infectious-disease prevention, quarantine, and outbreak management.
• Experience supervising or mentoring veterinary and animal-care staff.
• Familiarity with controlled-substance management and veterinary premises regulatory requirements.
• USDA accreditation or willingness to obtain accreditation.
• Experience working in a nonprofit, shelter, or resource-conscious veterinary environment.

Ideal Candidate
The ideal candidate is a compassionate, confident, and highly capable veterinarian who iscalm under pressure, collaborative, low-ego, and solutions-oriented. They understand the unique challenges of rescue medicine and can balance excellent individual patient care with population health, quality of life, responsible resource use, and the organization’s mission to save more dogs.

Additional Information

At Wags & Walks Rescue Nashville, you’ll have the opportunity to build a rewarding career while making a meaningful difference in the lives of dogs in need.

We offer:

• Competitive compensationbased on experience and qualifications.
• Full-time and part-time opportunitieswith scheduling flexibility for the right candidate.
• The opportunity to practicehigh-quality, mission-driven veterinary medicinein a rescue environment.
• A collaborative, supportive team committed to excellent animal care and positive outcomes.
• The opportunity to make a direct impact onrescue, shelter, and community veterinary medicine.
• Professional growth through hands-on experience with surgery, population health, infectious-disease management, and medical systems development.
• The opportunity to help shape veterinary protocols, workflows, and standards as part of a growing nonprofit organization.
• A meaningful work environment where your expertise directly contributes tosaving more dogs and improving their quality of life.