The Integrative Veterinarian

Dr. Colleen Smith was previously a guest on Episode 26. She is the owner of the Integrative Practice, Chattanooga Holistic Animal Institute, located in Chattanooga, Tennessee.

In this episode Dr. Smith and I discuss her decision to utilize some space in her clinic for sales of retail food and supplements. We dive into the thought behind the decision, how it has changed the workload in the practice, how she managed staffing, and her inventory decisions.

Please enjoy this episode as we explore Dr. Colleen Smith's decision to open the store, Chai Life Pet Nutrition Market, and how a retail operation can provide an income stream for an integrative veterinary practice.

Dr. Nichola Spooner was raised on a beef cattle property in Queensland, Australia, knowing from an early age that she wanted to be a Veterinarian. After graduating from the University of Queensland with first class honors in 2001, she worked in a  mixed animal practice for two years before completing a small animal rotating internship at Queensland Veterinary Specialists and Pet Emergency in 2004. She obtained her membership of the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists in Small Animal Emergency Medicine and Critical Care in 2005.  After leaving the Emergency practice, she worked in both mixed and small animal private practice.

Her son's health challenge led her to integrative medicine.  In 2018 she completed  Graduate Diplomas in Veterinary Western Herbal Medicine and Veterinary Acupuncture with CIVT.

She also earned her Certificate IV in Training and Education and has worked in the field of education for both veterinarians and veterinary nurses for 14 years. Currently, she works part-time in general practice offering integrative medicine consultations for small animal patients and serves as the Registered Training Organization Manager for CIVT.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Nic Spooner as we discuss her childhood, practice experience, training in integrative  medicine, and her suggestions for people interested in learning more about integrative medicine.

Hello Everyone,

Welcome to our 100th episode! I want to take a minute and recognize those that have been so instrumental in getting us this far. First, I'd like to thank the Directors at CIVT for their continued support. Drs. Barbara Royal, Natasha Lilly, Nichola Spooner, and Mr Robert Kelly. Thank you to all of the guests who have so graciously given up your time in your busy schedules to tell us your stories; I have learned so much from all of you. Finally, I'd like to thank the listeners of the podcast for your support and positive feedback. It is really wonderful to know that you're enjoying these stories as much as I do.

Along the way, we've heard a wide variety of origin stories, practice histories, and ways of making a living as an Integrative Veterinarian. Learning about how you all practice your craft has been inspirational. I'm as excited about the next one hundred interviews as I was for the first one.

So for this episode, something a little different. This is a conversation between Dr. Barbara Fougere and I, who in a moment of weakness originally approved this little experiment.

As most of you know, talking with Barbara is always a pleasure and I was happy to have the opportunity.

Thank you all again for your support. Cheers!

Dr. Julie Wentzel was raised in Annapolis, Maryland. She earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry and Wildlife from Virginia Tech in 1998. After a few years of assisting in veterinary clinics and working on farms, she decided to enter veterinary training and earned her DVM degree from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in 2004.

After graduation, she completed an internship in Emergency Medicine in Maryland, remaining on the clinic staff at that facility for seven more years. She continued to work  in Emergency Medicine as well as a Rehabilitation and Pain Management Veterinarian in association with a surgery specialty practice.

She was certified by IVAS in acupuncture in 2013 and as a Veterinary Pain Practitioner and Canine Rehabilitation Therapist in 2014. She started an apprenticeship in Western Herbal Medicine in 2018.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Julie Wentzel as we discuss her childhood, education, work in a specialty rehabilitation practice, and her current position in an integrative medicine practice in Leesburg, Virginia.

Dr. Rachel Klickman was raised in Oregon with a menagerie of animals. She served two years in the United States Army and then moved to Maryland where she worked as a veterinary assistant in an emergency clinic. She became a credentialed veterinary technician and then earned her DVM from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 2007.

After graduation, she did an internship in an Emergency Clinic, then worked in other small animal practices before staring her integrative medicine journey.

She was certified by IVAS in acupuncture in 2015 and completed an apprenticeship in Western Herbal Medicine in 2017. She then worked in a hospice and palliative care practice, and earned her certification in Hospice and Palliative Care. After six years in the Hospice Practice, she joined Healing Paws, an Integrative Medicine practice in Maryland.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Rachel Klickman as we discuss her childhood, education, beginnings in Veterinary Medicine, and how important mentorship was to her professional journey.

Dr. Grant Hebel was raised in Overland Park, Kansas. His interest in veterinary medicine started at ten years of age, when his family dog became ill with parvovirus. He earned his DVM degree from Kansas State University in 1995. After graduation, he entered small animal private practice for a few years before enlisting as a Veterinarian in the United States Army.

He served for eight years, three years in active duty, and five years in the reserves. He was deployed to the Middle East in 2003.

After leaving the military, he worked for a food science company doing nutritional analysis and bacteriological testing. Afterwards he worked for the Fremont Fire and Rescue as well as the Omaha Fire and Rescue Service as a paramedic for 7 years. He was also the co-founder of a brewery at that time as well.

In 2012, he and his wife, Dr. Jennifer Hebel, founded Five Elements Veterinary Alternatives in Omaha, Nebraska.  They offer acupuncture, chiropractic, rehabilitation, sound and vibrational therapy, nutritional and herbal therapy, and others. Grant received animal chiropractic training at Options for Animals and acupuncture training at Chi University.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Grant Hebel as we discuss his education, time in the military, establishing a holistic practice, and his activities outside the office.

Dr. Ann Scearce was raised in  Orange County, California. She had an interest in veterinary medicine when she was young, but changed her mind and studied International Relations and German at the University of California, Davis, with a mind toward a  career in the State Department.

During a year of study abroad, she changed her mind and decided to apply to veterinary school. She earned her DVM from the  University of California, Davis in 1999. Afterwards, she joined a mixed animal practice in  Central California, with an emphasis on dairy medicine. After five years in that practice, she worked in a few small animal practices before settling at her current practice, where she has been for the last 17 years.

Looking for additional tools to help her hospice patients, she became certified in acupuncture by IVAS in 2015. She is also certified in Chinese Herbal Medicine by Chi University, and completed David Winston's two year program in Western Herbal Medicine. She has additional training in both Western Herbal Medicine and Integrative Oncology.

Currently, she continues to work in small animal practice and teaches with Dr. Laurie Dohmen  at Purple  Moon Herbs and Studies.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Ann Scearce as we discuss her education, practice progression, holistic training, and her thoughts on the future of integrative medicine.

Dr. Elaine Cebuliak was born in California, raised in Hawaii, and then moved to Australia as a teenager. She grew up in a holistic household, as her father was trained as a Chiropractor.

She earned her veterinary degree and a Diploma in Education from the University of Queensland in 1981. After graduation, she moved to New Zealand and did locum work before moving back to Queensland and established two mixed animal practices in the Gladstone area. After moving to Brisbane in 1996, she did locum work before establishing her practice, "Animal Wellness" in 2010. She continues to be actively performing referral work and teaching.

She has an intense interest in Dentistry and earned a Membership by Examination in 2000. She is certified in acupuncture by IVAS, and has training in Shiatsu, Tui Na, aromatherapy, advanced remedial massage, Chinese and Western Herbal Medicine, and is a Qualified Naturopath.

Dr. Cebuliak lectures extensively both nationally and internationally and has been involved in providing volunteer veterinary care in Bali, the Cook Islands, and Northern India with the Vets Beyond Borders organization. She has also served in numerous roles in organized veterinary medicine in Australia.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Elaine Cebuliak as we discuss her childhood, education, and extensive career history.

Dr.  Laurie Dohmen was born in Kentucky and spent the bulk of her childhood in the Philadelphia, Pennsylvania area. She rode horses from an early age and always wanted to be a veterinarian. 

She did her undergraduate work in Biochemistry and Greek Studies at Mount Holyoke College, and earned her veterinary degree from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in 1997. After graduation, she started a mobile mixed animal practice in Delaware.

Soon after starting her practice, Dr. Dohmen received training in Acupuncture, Food Therapy, Bach Flower Essences, and Herbal Medicine.   She has studied with Dr. Steve Marsden, Dr. Huisheng Xie, Registered Herbalist Rosemary Gladstar, and many others. She earned her Masters of Therapeutic Herbalism from Maryland University of Integrative Health in 2014, and  was accepted as a Registered Herbalist through the American Herbalist Guild in 2020.

In 2013, Dr. Dohmen down-sized her clinical practice and is now a full-time continuing educator and lectures regularly on Veterinary Herbal Medicine, and other holistic topics.  In 2017 she partnered with Dr. Kris August to start the only hands-on veterinary herbal medicine course for western veterinary herbal medicine in the United States. She is published frequently in journals such as the Journal of the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association and the Integrative Veterinary Care Journal.

Dr. Dohmen is the Past President of the Veterinary Botanical Medical Association and is a member of the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society, American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture, American Holistic Veterinary Medical Association and American Veterinary Medical Association.  She serves  on the Editorial Board of the AHVMA Journal. 

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Laurie Dohmen as we discuss her education, clinical practice, teaching career, and her Delaware farm and teaching center in the Outer Banks of North Carolina.

Dr. Vicky Simon was raised in Somerset, UK and knew from a very young age that she wanted to be a Veterinarian. She earned her veterinary degree from the Royal College in London in 2012, and immediately afterwards started a two year course in Western Veterinary Herbalism.

She took a position in an Integrative small animal practice in the Yorkshire region of the UK and then one in  another similar practice in West Sussex UK. She earned her MF Hom degree in 2019.

In 2020, she opened her own holistic practice, Holistic Vet Vicky. She offers her patients nutritional consultations, Western Herbal Medicine, and Homeopathy. She primarily treats dogs and cats, but also works with horses and other smaller animals.  She also enjoys conducting educational seminars for animal owners.

Please enjoy this conversation with Dr. Vicky Simon as we discuss her education, early practice experience, starting a practice during the Coronavirus pandemic, and building her practice through client referrals and social media.