Shanna Gebhart
Radiation Oncology Technician
I have wanted to be a veterinarian since I was five years old. My parents both love animals (although my dad might try to deny it), so growing up, we always had a couple of dogs and cats running around the house.
After high school, I felt a little lost with what to do with my life, so I attended UC Denver for a couple of years and enrolled in general classes. My love for animals led me to a receptionist job at a general practice veterinary clinic. Within a year, I was cross-trained to work as a veterinary assistant. At the end of that year, I knew veterinary medicine was still my career passion, so I packed up my bags and moved to Fort Collins with plans to eventually work at the Colorado State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital.
Thankfully, I transferred locations with my job, so I continued working as a veterinary assistant while completing requirements to apply to veterinary school. During that time that I determined that while I love veterinary medicine, my passion is with nursing and patient care, not with being a clinician. Realizing that, I happily worked with patients as a veterinary assistant in private practice for eight years. Just at the time I was ready for something new, a veterinary anesthetist position opened in radiation oncology at the Flint Animal Cancer Center.
Coming from general practice, my job at the FACC combines my interest in anesthesia with an opportunity to learn about oncology and radiation therapy. It’s exciting to continue to develop my skills in a specific field of veterinary medicine. At the same time, I get to work with patients and help pet parents navigate the cancer journey. Through radiation therapy, our team helps alleviate pain, fight cancer, extend and improve a pet’s quality of life while giving their owners more time loving them.
In my free time, I enjoy reading, napping, hiking with my dog and boyfriend, going to the gym, spending time with my various animals, and baking. I share my home with my dog Lilie, two cats named Faust and Hobbes, a bearded dragon named Bartimaeus, and two betta fish named Geppetto and Rufus. My boyfriend has dreams of adding a Golden Retriever to our hoard at some point, and I want to add a Brazilian Rainbow Boa.