You shouldn't have to choose.
Vivere exists to create a different kind of veterinary journey—one where meaningful veterinary work and extraordinary experiences can exist side by side.
WHY VIVERE
A different kind of veterinary journey.
Traditional veterinary travel often separates the pieces: the veterinary work, the education, the travel, and the time to recharge.
Vivere brings them together intentionally.
Every journey is built around three things:
Excellent Medicine
High standards of veterinary care, wherever the work takes place.
Meaningful Impact
Working alongside local veterinary and animal-welfare organizations.
Extraordinary Experiences
The opportunity to experience remarkable places, people, culture, food, adventure, and wellness.
ABOUT COLLEEN
Meet the veterinarian behind Vivere.
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Colleen Lambo, DVM, PhD is a veterinarian whose career has taken her far beyond traditional clinical practice.
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Her work has spanned general practice, teaching, research, zoo medicine, hospice and end-of-life care, shelter medicine, disaster response, conservation, reproductive medicine, and international veterinary work. She has worked with family pets, zoo animals, endangered species, and communities facing extraordinary circumstances.
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International veterinary service has become an important part of that journey, including missions with Worldwide Vets in Ukraine, Egypt, and Saipan, as well as disaster response following the BP oil spill.
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Those experiences shaped a belief that international veterinary work can - and should - be both meaningful and held to a high standard. They also revealed an opportunity to create something different: veterinary journeys that combine excellent medicine and meaningful service with the opportunity to experience the world, learn, recharge, and enjoy the journey.
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Vivere is the result.
THE VIVERE STANDARD
The standard doesn't change because you're somewhere else.
Vivere was created with a simple expectation: international veterinary work should be held to a high standard.
That means thoughtful medicine, patient comfort, appropriate anesthesia, safety, sterility, and respect for the local veterinary professionals and organizations doing the work.
Vivere also believes that meaningful impact is strongest when it is collaborative. We work alongside local partners rather than arriving as outsiders with a predetermined agenda.
THE PEOPLE BEHIND THE JOURNEYS
Built by veterinarians. Designed for veterinary professionals.
Vivere journeys bring together veterinarians, veterinary technicians/LVTs, and others who want to experience the world while contributing their skills.
Some participants come to learn.
Some come to teach.
Some come to operate.
Some come simply because they want to contribute.
Everyone brings something different to the journey.
BEYOND ECUADOR
Ecuador is just the beginning.
Ecuador is where Vivere begins, but the vision extends much further.
Future journeys will bring veterinary professionals to new destinations, with different clinical opportunities, educational experiences, and forms of community impact.
The destination may change.
The standard won't.
While our heart beats in the Andes, Vivere’s vision is global. We are currently scouting new territories where the need for veterinary excellence meets the call of the wild. From the rugged coastlines of South Africa to the mist-covered peaks of Southeast Asia, we seek out partners who share our commitment to long-term, community-led impact. Every new journey is built on the same foundation: high-stakes medicine, genuine cultural immersion, and the space to breathe deeply.