2026 Road to Graduation: Madison Hammond
For Madison Hammond, the road to veterinary dermatology began at home through caring for a beloved dog with chronic ear disease.
While some veterinarians discover their specialty calling during school, Madison Hammond stumbled across hers early in life through caring for her cocker spaniel, Nigel, who spent the better part of his 18 years managing chronic ear disease that required constant care and attention. "In caring for him and wanting to learn more to help him, I found a calling for dermatology," she says. Madison's personal connection grew into a professional one, and now, it's shaping the entire arc of her career.
Following graduation in August, Madison plans to undertake a small-animal rotating internship at BluePearl, located in Levittown, Pennsylvania, before returning to the Southwest for a dermatology residency with Dermatology for Animals in Phoenix, Arizona. While a personal passion set her on the path to dermatology, Madison fanned the flames of that passion by creating extensive learning opportunities, one rotation at a time.
"I [was] able to structure my clinical year to spend more time in my field of interest, allowing me to solidify that dermatology is the pathway for me."
A pivotal moment in Madison's career came during her third-year rotation with Dermatology for Animals in the Scottsdale area, where she was able to apply her classroom knowledge to real patients, learn about diseases she had never encountered before, and perform hands-on therapeutic procedures for the first time. More than the clinical skills, though, it was the people who left a lasting impression. "I learned from some of the most incredible veterinarians in the field," she reflects, "allowing me to truly fall deeper in love with dermatology." Not only did her clinical year block reaffirm her pursuit of the specialty, but it also opened the door to joining Dermatology for Animals as an incoming resident in 2027.
Madison's love of veterinary medicine is fueled not only by the opportunity to deepen her knowledge of her given specialty, but also by contributing to ongoing education and giving back to a field that shaped her just as much as she hopes to shape it. For aspiring veterinarians, Madison's advice is a reminder that passion and persistence are essential to the journey:
"Veterinary school is what you make it. Some of the most important aspects of my learning did not come from the textbook, but through experiences outside of my study hours and spending time with incredible mentors."