Meet Our Veterinary Team in Bend, Oregon

Heather

Hospital Manager

Heather grew up in Springfield, Oregon. Heather, her husband, and her twin boys moved to central Oregon 17 years ago. Heather has been working in the veterinary field in all roles, but primarily on the hospital management side, for over 20 years. She loves working in management and building productive relationships with her team to provide exceptional service to clients and the best quality medicine in central Oregon. Her family consists of a husband, twin boys, 2 dogs, and 4 cats. When not at work, she enjoys snowboarding, biking, tennis, and pretty much anything outdoors in Central Oregon.

Carlee Biggs

Kennel Assistant

Carlee was born and raised in Redmond, Oregon. She moved to Southern California in 1999 but missed Central Oregon and moved back in 2002. She has an eighteen-year-old daughter, a cat named Noah, and a Dog named Max. In her spare time, Carlee enjoys fishing, being outdoors, and going to the movies.

Ashton Kennedy

Client Service Representative

Ashton was born and raised in Bend. She is currently studying Social Work at Oregon State and plans to pursue pre-law. Ashton has two Labradors, River and Bailea, and a horse named Wilbur. In her free time, she enjoys hiking to waterfalls with her dogs.

Rachel Shaver

Client Service Representative

Rachel was born and raised in the San Francisco Bay area of California. She has been working in exotic animal rescue since 2014. She currently has an Amazon Parrot named Sunny and over 200 reptiles! Rachel is currently on the path to pursuing a career in exotic animal veterinary medicine.

Margi Hinkston

Client Service Representative

Margi has lived in Bend for 12 years after being a Southern California native. She enjoys hanging out with friends, relaxing, and watching movies. She loves baby anything (except spiders) and keeping in touch with her four grown children and ten grandchildren. She has been working in the veterinary field for 23+ years.

Clarissa Joseph

Lead Client Service Representative

Clarissa was born in Santa Maria, California. She moved to Bend in 2004 with her family. She attended elementary, middle, and high school here (she graduated from Bend High School in 2012). Clarissa enjoys spending time with her friends, family, adorable daughter, and three dogs.

Trinity Anglin

Veterinary Assistant

Trinity recently relocated to Central Oregon from Whitefish, Montana. She plans to attend OSU Cascade to obtain her bachelor’s degree in Zoology before enrolling in school to become a veterinarian. In her free time, Trinity enjoys paddle boarding, hiking, and spending time with her five adorable dogs.

Nadia Devine

Veterinary Assistant

Nadia moved to Bend from Portland in 2010. From a young age (since she could talk), Nadia wanted every type of animal as a pet. Nadia started working in veterinary medicine in 2021. She enjoys helping injured wildlife and working with clients and their pets in veterinary medicine. She loves researching exotic species, writing stories, and creating new characters with her friends to write in those stories. Nadia has two geckos at home (one of which is special needs).

Kayla Wagner

Veterinary Assistant

Kayla recently moved to Central Oregon to finish her BS in Biology at OSU Cascades. She began her career in veterinary medicine in 2021 at an equine practice. Outside of work and school, you’ll find Kayla enjoying the wide variety of outdoor activities Bend has to offer as well as loving on any animal she can.

Rachel Marcks

Veterinary Assistant

Rachel Growing up in Little Rock, AR, Rachel spent much of her time taking care of her family’s cats and Guinea pigs. Her high school job working at her local zoo ignited her passion for veterinary medicine. She fell in love with the Northwest while attending Lewis and Clark College in Portland, where she graduated with a BA in Biology. Rachel strives to become a veterinarian herself someday. She has been living it up ever since moving to the dry side of the Cascades; when she is not in the clinic, you can find her cross-country skiing or painting some of the beautiful scenery that surrounds us here in Bend.

Tori Crowell

Veterinary Assistant

Tori began her career in veterinary medicine with East Bend Animal Hospital in April of 2021 after years in cosmetics and salons. She enjoys working with all kinds of animals. In her spare time, she enjoys traveling, watching movies, going to concerts, and loving on her two cats and two dogs.

Jordyn Morrell

Veterinary Assistant

Jordyn grew up in Bend. She attended the University of Oregon in Eugene to study painting. She spends her free time hiking with her dog, Kondra and cuddling at home with her cats, Meatball and Jones. Jordyn just enrolled in veterinary technician school and is excited about a career in helping animals.

Amber Delema

Veterinary Assistant

Amber was born and raised in Southern California. This is where her love for animals grew strong at a very young age. Amber began her career in a pet daycare and boarding facility but soon found that veterinary medicine was her passion. She relocated to central Oregon in 2018 and has been working as a veterinary assistant since. Amber dreams of one day becoming a Certified Veterinary Technician.

In her free time, you can catch her outdoors with her dog Roxy Mae, riding dirt bikes with her boyfriend, or hanging out inside reading a good book.

Tiger Walther-Gingold

Veterinary Assistant

Tiger was born in Rochester, New York. She moved with her family to Bend in 2003. She graduated from Green Mountain Valley School in 2020. Tiger is currently enrolled with Penn Foster and is in her first semester of the CVT program.

Since a young age, Tiger has had a passion for taking care of animals- big and small. She grew up with three dogs and a horse. She spent most of her free time at the stables with her horse. She has medical experience with horses and small farm animals. In 2021, Tiger started pursuing her medical interest in all animals. She spends her free time studying and being out in nature with her boyfriend and her 8-month-old puppy, Pacho.

Kristina Cassidy

Lead Veterinary Assistant

Kristina grew up in a small town in Nevada. Before graduating from high school, Kristina moved to Medford, Oregon. She then attended Western Oregon University, where she obtained a BA in ASL studies. Kristina moved to Central Oregon in 2015.

Kristina began working in the veterinary field in 2016 as a veterinary assistant. She hopes to enroll in an online tech school this spring. She has a great passion for animals, great and small.

Kristina’s interests outside of work include going to parks with her dogs, playing video games, reading, puzzles, drawing, and socializing with her critters.

Wendy Holm

Certified Veterinary Technician

Wendy grew up in Central Oregon. She graduated from Central Oregon Community College in 2016. She has four kids (all boys). Wendy loves working in rescue. In her free time, she loves camping and going to the beach.

Nakia Twigg

Senior Certified Veterinary Technician

Nakia grew up in beautiful Sisters, Oregon. Her passion for veterinary medicine started with her school’s career program. Nakia earned her Veterinary Technician Certificate in 2006.

Nakia’s special interests are dentistry and behavior. She enjoys helping pets and their people have long, healthy, and happy relationships. In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, horseback riding, camping, mountain bike riding, and hanging out with her pets (horses, dogs, cat, chickens, and goats)!

Dr. Nicole Pupich

Veterinarian

Dr. Nicole Pupich was born and raised in a small town in Carson Valley, Nevada. She knew she wanted to work with animals from a young age, having her mind set on becoming a veterinarian by the time she was in 1st grade. Her love of animals was inspired by the various dogs, cats, and exotic animals she grew up with. Dr. Pupich completed her Bachelor of Science in Earth and Environmental Science and her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine at Washington State University.

Dr. Pupich is passionate about working with families to provide the best medicine possible for their beloved pets. She is particularly interested in preventative medicine, internal medicine, surgery, and exotic medicine. One of her favorite aspects of veterinary medicine is getting to know her patients and clients. She enjoys working with families to help make the best decisions for their pet’s health through all of life’s ups and downs.

In her free time, Dr. Pupich enjoys exploring the outdoors with her partner, Jake, via hiking, biking, climbing, and camping. If she isn’t enjoying the outdoors, Dr. Pupich can be found at home hanging out with her Sphynx cat (Wade) and axolotl (Sir Lancelotl).

Dr. Anna Kilgore

Veterinarian

Dr. Anna Kilgore joined the East Bend Animal Hospital family after earning her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Michigan State University. Dr. Kilgore has a strong passion for client education, behavioral management (both pharmaceutical and training), and surgeries. She is excited to apply her skills and knowledge in a small animal general practice where she can build meaningful relationships with clients and engage in face-to-face interactions. After completing a rotation in Bend, OR with her fiancé, they both fell in love with the area and have decided to make it their home. Having already established relationships with the staff during several visits to East Bend, we are thrilled to see Anna flourish in her new role and make a positive impact on the local pet community.

Dr. Jessica Puccetti

Veterinarian

Dr. Jessica Puccetti was born in Napa, CA, but moved to Oregon at a young age. She grew up on a small farm in Redmond and was involved in both 4-H and FFA, raising and showing sheep, hogs, and horses, as well as livestock judging. This experience working with animals helped shape her dreams of becoming a veterinarian. Dr. Jessica received her Bachelor of Science degree in BioResource Research at Oregon State University in 2009 and her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Colorado State University in 2014.

Dr. Jessica’s professional interests include acupuncture, pain management, soft tissue surgery, dentistry, cardiology (with a special love for Cavalier King Charles Spaniels), and dermatology. She loves being able to build long-lasting relationships with her clients and patients. She believes open communication, along with client education, is one of the most important aspects of the doctor-client-patient relationship. Dr. Jessica acquired her acupuncture certification during her last year of vet school through the CuraCore Integrative Medicine and Education Center. She loves being able to integrate western medicine and eastern medicine together.

Away from the clinic, you can find Dr. Jessica outdoors; camping, hiking, and adventuring with her husband, Beau, her daughter, Sedona, and their two dogs; Kai (a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) and Beira (a Golden Retriever). They also have two indoor cats that rule the home (Bebe and Pai Mei).

Dr. Dalton Webb

Veterinarian

Dr. Dalton Webb grew up in the Texas Hill Country alongside 4 dogs, 2 cats, 2 horses, and a small herd of beef cattle. His earliest exposure to veterinary medicine came as a result of his rambunctious Beagle, who was frequently sticking his hound dog nose in places it didn’t belong. Seeing the level of care that was given to his best friend in his times of need instilled in him a passion for the veterinary profession. Dr. Webb attended Texas A&M University, where he received both his Bachelor’s in Biomedical Science and his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine.

Dr. Webb’s professional interests include dermatology, soft tissue surgery, preventative care, and exotic animal medicine. He appreciates the challenge that comes with working on all types of animals and has even traveled to South Africa to complete a course in Wildlife Conservation Medicine. He enjoys building lasting relationships with his clients and their furry, feathered, and scaled family members. He places special emphasis on client education and wants to work as a team with clients to help make the best decisions for their pets’ health.

In his free time, he enjoys exploring all that Central Oregon has to offer. His hobbies include mountain biking, snowboarding, playing pick-up soccer, and fly fishing. He also spends as much time as possible with his wife (Maddi), his son (Owen), their canine companions (Mavryk and Zelda), and their guinea pig (Molly).

Dr. Brett Thomas

Veterinarian

Dr. Brett Thomas was born and raised in a rural town in the mountains of southern California. As a child, he raised and cared for farm animals, exotic pets, dogs, and cats. Prior to veterinary school, Dr. Thomas was the lead technician and clinic manager of a six-doctor practice in Texas. He obtained his Bachelor of Science in Biology from Lamar University and his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Mississippi State University, College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Thomas is an experienced emergency and general practitioner for dogs, cats, and exotic animals. His areas of professional interest include small and exotic animal surgery and medicine, nutrition, dentistry, ophthalmology, and preventative medicine.

Dr. Thomas is passionate about caring for all his patients with empathy and with the same level of attention and care he would give to his own pets. He is dedicated to providing your pets with the highest quality veterinary care and believes that client education with open and honest communication is paramount. He strives to provide a comfortable environment for his clients and patients and takes pride in helping clients make educated decisions toward the care of their beloved family pets.

Dr. Thomas is a sports and outdoors enthusiast who enjoys fishing, hiking, and exploring. He and his wife (Erika), two dogs (Tank and Kain), and their mustached parakeet (Erin) are looking forward to exploring the beautiful state of Oregon for years to come.

Dr. Jaime Thurk

Veterinarian

Dr. Jaime Thurk was born in rural Wisconsin and grew up on a Dairy farm, where her love of animals has grown into her lifelong dream of becoming a Veterinarian. Dr. Thurk received her Bachelor of Science degree in Marine biology at Texas A&M University and her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Ross University in 2009. She completed her one-year clinical rotation at Washington State University.

Dr. Thurk’s areas of interest are preventative medicine, natural nutrition and supplementation, avian/exotic medicine, surgery and dentistry. Her priority is to maintain the highest ethical and medical standards while providing a friendly and relaxed environment for your pet. Her goal is to ensure her patients are treated as members of the family and that clients are well informed, involved, and comfortable with the decisions made regarding their pet’s care. She will constantly apply the latest in veterinary medical advancements to properly diagnose, treat and care for her patients so that your loved ones remain happy and healthy.

Dr. Thurk’s interests outside of the practice are spending time with her son, husband, 2 dogs (Echo and Hoss), and 2 cats (Mr. Bojangels and Fat Cat). She also enjoys hiking, camping, and just spending time outdoors.