My Take Tuesday: In the Room Where It Happens

I just returned from Chicago. I was privileged to attend the Veterinary Leadership Conference, and once again, it reminded me why I love this profession so deeply.

I love everything about this conference. New leaders sitting next to seasoned ones. Students leaning forward in their chairs. Mentors leaning back, still listening. Everyone showing up—not for credit, not for applause—but to do the work of shaping our profession.

The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) held the winter session of the House of Delegates January 9–10, and it was, as always, humbling. More than 111,000 AVMA members are represented through this body. Seventy delegates speak for their respective states, territories, and allied groups—every facet of veterinary medicine flowing into one room: small animal, large animal, industry, academia, military, and students.

And what a room it is.

I am continually amazed by the depth of expertise in that space. Surgeons, researchers, practitioners, educators, policy thinkers. People who could be anywhere else—but chose to be here, debating language, refining resolutions, and asking the hard questions that rarely fit neatly into bullet points.

The House of Delegates is the principal policy-making body of the AVMA. It sets direction, elects leadership, and guides how our profession shows up in the world. But when you’re sitting in the middle of it, it doesn’t feel like bureaucracy. It feels like stewardship.

I serve as the delegate for the Society for Theriogenology—a group devoted to animal reproduction. It’s a small but mighty corner of veterinary medicine, and I never take lightly the privilege of carrying their voice into that room. When I participate, I’m not just speaking for myself. I’m speaking for colleagues, mentors, and future veterinarians who care deeply about the same work.

What strikes me most each year is not the disagreement—but the respect. Policies are debated. Language is challenged. Perspectives differ. And yet, the common thread remains we are all trying to make veterinary medicine better than we found it.

I often think about that line from Hamilton— “the room where it happens.” It is an honor to be in that room. 

I left Chicago with cold hands, tired feet, and a heart quietly full. Veterinary medicine is not only practiced in clinics and barns—it is also gently shaped in conference rooms, by people willing to listen deeply, speak carefully, and carry the profession forward.

And honestly… I wouldn’t trade my seat in that room for anything.

And that is My Take!

N. Isaac Bott, DVM