When I was young, my big dream was to help animals. I wanted to conquer pet overpopulation, euthanasia, suffering and achieve a stray-free world. I became a veterinarian instead and had to put aside the “big dream” and settle for the little victories I could achieve in daily practice. By joining The Paw Project, I feel I am happily getting back to my bigger dream of doing something important on a larger scale.
I was raised in Connecticut, Rhode Island and rural Missouri. I received my BA from The University of Tulsa and my DVM from Oklahoma State University. After practicing in Florida for 12 years, I returned to my Midwestern roots and opened my own practice in Tulsa in 2010. I initially tried to counsel clients away from declawing and succeeded most of the time. But in the instances when this failed and I performed the procedure, I was left feeling ashamed and angry and nauseous. Finally, I decided to just stop. If a client was unhappy, then so be it. And now I sleep a little better. Unfortunately, I know that most of the clinics around here will mutilate the poor cat when I refuse. So let’s get to work!
We share our hospital, Kindness Animal Hospital, with four clinic kitties and two rats. I share my home with my partner Kim, two dogs, and six cats – all fully clawed!