Erie Times-News
I was talking to one of my stepmother's friends recently, and she mentioned that her dog had been diagnosed with a heart murmur. "You should take him to a veterinary cardiologist," I said. "I didn't know they had cardiologists for dogs," she replied. "They have every kind of specialist for pets that they do for people," I told her. I should know. Over the years, my seven dogs, past and present, have been to a number of them.
Veterinarians with a string of letters behind their name and DVM or VMD title are board-certified. They've put in long hours and years of study to earn the designation of diplomate and membership in the specialty organization, after passing tough certification exams (boards). For instance, an internal medicine specialist's designation is DACVIM, Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. If you were to see the letters DECVIM, it means the veterinarian was certified through a European internal medicine organization.