My Veterinary Life

I spend most of my working life at Sunset Animal Clinic, a small animal hospital in South Miami where I've worked since the tender age of ten. Though my practice keeps me busy I'm always looking for new challenges. Writing, speaking and entrepreneurship are fun but animal advocacy is my life's passion.

Internal medicine, dentistry, dermatology and behavior are prime areas of interest, but I'm perhaps most passionate about weight management in pets. 

As for my other pet issues, whether in the clinic or on the Internet, I gravitate towards anything to do with animal welfare and the economics of animal health.

Personal Stuff

I'm an outdoorsy single mom, an avid reader, accomplished cook, music geek, die-hard foodie, nerdy knitter, and indefatigable fashionista. I live in South Miami with my teenage son (Armando), four dogs, one cat, two goats and nine hens ... but who's counting?

My Creds

Education: I received a BA from Wellesley College in 1990, a veterinary degree from the University of Pennsylvania in 1995, and an MBA from its Wharton School in 1997. 

Print creds: These include USA Today, The Bark, Veterinary Practice News, and The Miami Herald. For the latter two publications I've been contributing monthly and weekly columns, respectively, since 2007 and 2009, respectively. 

Online: Apart from my columns, I also contribute blog-style posts to Vetstreet.com and Embrace Pet Insurance's Water Bowl, among others. My writing has appeared on popular news aggregator sites like MSN.com, Yahoo, The Daily Beast, and The Huffington Post.

Awards: One of “25 Veterinarians to Watch in 2013” by Veterinary Practice News, among the “25 People to Watch” by Pet Product News in 2008, and a “Rising Star” by the Veterinary News Network. My Dolittler blog has also been listed among the "Ten Best Blogs in Pet Health" by Fox News.