Why we are obsessed with Dr. Tara McCarthy

Dr. Tara McCarthy isn’t what you think of when you conjur the image of a typical veterinarian. She owns a CrossFit Gym with her husband, helps manage a health and wellness business, and volunteers as a 4H leader.

On top of all these things, she is also a veterinarian, as well as certified in veterinary acupuncture. She recently joined Galaxy Vets as Head of Community Engagement, with the goal of reaching out to and meeting more veterinarians.

Dr. Tara has a rich life, full of wonderful hobbies and things she enjoys. Her bubbly personality helps her make friends, and keep going even when she faces hardships in life.

Like most people, Dr. Tara is no stranger to struggle. One of the most difficult choices she made involving her career came after the birth of her daughter. She had to choose between a job she loved in an area without a support network of friends and family, or moving to a job she liked less but was closer to family.

Although it was a difficult choice, in the end she chose to be with her family and take what she could get on her career path until better opportunities opened up for her. 

A valuable lesson Dr. Tara learned along the way is that you should never give others power over your emotions. As you go through life you are going to meet and interact with thousands of people. Some of those people will not like you, view you poorly, or be otherwise unpleasant.

There’s no reason to let someone else’s bad mood ruin your day. There’s no reason to choose who you are as a person or what you like purely for another person’s approval. 

Dr. Tara also doesn’t value the opinion of celebrities like most people do, and instead finds traits in and admires the features of the ordinary people she meets. She admires anyone who can be happy with the life they have and be honest with themselves.

If Dr. Tara could give people one piece of advice, it would be to travel somewhere different from where you currently live. This doesn’t just mean mileage, but also culture. By taking the time to immerse yourself in someone else’s culture, you can help learn to adjust your perspective to live in a new world. 

Dr. Tara got this experience firsthand when she was still in veterinary school, after volunteering for a trip to Thailand. There she met many people, worked with Elephants and local vet clinics, and moved to a new location every single week for all eight weeks.

Like most veterinarians, Dr. Tara has her concerns about the industry. She feels that powerlessness and general unhappiness are the biggest concerns in the industry. Covid-19, as well as the surge in animal care needs and tightening restrictions, have all contributed to feelings of powerlessness in the industry.

We can’t change this feeling until individuals work to change themselves, and that is Dr. Tara’s goals right now—to help individuals adopt that change.