Meet the Veterinarians & Team of Westarbor Animal Hospital in Ann Arbor. We’re pleased to provide exceptional vet care for your pets!
Please call us at (734) 769-5391 to speak to one of our caring veterinary staff members!
Dr. Katie Anderson has been providing care to cats and dogs since 2010 when she joined the Westarbor Animal Hospital team. In 2019 Dr Anderson purchased Westarbor Animal Hospital from then owner Dr James Clarkson Dr. Anderson’s transition to hospital owner has been smooth and natural. Her vision is similar to Dr. Clarkson’s before her. They both believe that the focus of a successful veterinary practice should be to offer and provide the best quality medicine, surgery and dentistry possible for pets and their people. Dr. Anderson feels incredibly blessed to be able to continue the quality care that Dr. Clarkson started years ago at Westarbor Animal Hospital.
Although she loves all aspects of veterinary medicine, two of her special interests are in surgery and dentistry. She appreciates that surgery can help heal and improve comfort for a pet. She also believes there is a strong connection between oral health and overall health. Other areas of interest include behavior, internal medicine, feline medicine and preventative medicine.
Dr. Anderson has a deep appreciation for the strong connections between animals and their family, and she understands the special relationships that can develop. She feels it is a privilege and an honor to have a window into these special relationships through providing veterinary medical care.
When Dr. Anderson is not helping animals at Westarbor, she enjoys spending time with her family including her husband, two children and her four-legged family members. Dr. Anderson and her family have a golden retriever named Pickles (she is as silly as her name), a Labrador Retriever named Birdie (who is equally as silly as Pickles) , and three wonderful cats, Jingle, Mando and Rocky. Some of her hobbies include working on home improvement projects, golfing, reading and anything outdoors.
Doctor Sandi Danes is a 1997 graduate of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Michigan State University. Dr. Danes came on board at Westarbor initially as a relief/ fill in Doctor while we waited for another doctor to come on board. Everyone loved her so much that we convinced her to stay on board in a part- time permanent capacity. After working at so many other hospitals in a relief capacity, we feel very fortunate that she chose Westarbor to make her more permanent home. As long as she can remember, Dr. Danes has been obsessed with animals and their care. At eight years old she decided her goal was to become a veterinarian and she has never looked back. Dr. Danes has a real passion for soft tissue surgery and has many, many years’ experience because of that. She enjoys all facets of her job, but particularly enjoys helping owners to really understand and care for their pets. In her free time Dr. Danes enjoys knitting, gardening, food preservation and one of her true passions, horses. Dr. Danes has one daughter who is now off at college at Michigan State University but fortunately she still sees her quite often when she comes home to ride the horse they own, a thoroughbred named Otter. In addition to Otter, Dr. Danes shares her home with her two pets Jazz and Mac A. Cheese. Westarbor can’t be more excited to have Dr. Danes join our team. She is efficient, dedicated, detailed and hardworking and clearly committed to the welfare and care of her patients first and foremost.
Dr. O'Toole is a Colorado native who completed her doctorate at Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine.
She is married with two wonderful daughters. Their family would not be complete without their two cats, Dr. Panda Meowski and Tiger Pawsington, Kitty-At-Law. In her free time, she and her family love to go hiking, play board games, and continue to build out the family aquarium.
Dr. O'Toole has a passion for whole body wellness and dental health. She is level three Fear Free Certified and ready to help reduce any anxiety experienced by your pet during an appointment. Dr. O'Toole is also a Certified Peaceful Euthanasia Veterinarian.
Our practice manager, Stefanie, is the glue that holds it all together! Stefanie joined the Westarbor team in 1993 and has made sure our practice has been running smoothly ever since. Stefanie graduated from Eastern Michigan University with a bachelor’s degree in liberal arts with a minor in business management. As she puts it, she “stumbled” into veterinary medicine in college when a family friend mentioned a part time receptionist position at a nearby clinic. She took the job and quickly moved from reception to office manager and found her calling. She left that practice to come to Westarbor and has been working as our manager ever since. She loves developing new programs to help advance the level of education we provide our clients to ensure the very best care for their pets. She recognizes it is a partnership between the veterinary team and the owners and that the more knowledge they have, the better their pets’ lives will be. This is why we love our Stefanie!
Stefanie enjoys the country lake life with her husband Paul and daughter Faith. She enjoys horseback riding and competing in horseback events, especially jumping. Stefanie’s family also includes a Cocker Spaniel names Miles, a cat names Waffles and her horse Jake, a Halflinger.
Jenifer LaHuis joined the team in July of 1999. Jenifer loves working with people and their pets. Her main goal is "making lasting relationships with clients and their pets." Jenifer is understanding and compassionate by nature.
"I feel like we offer quality veterinary medicine to our patients beyond what is offered at other clinics," Jenifer said. "We treat clients and their pets the way we would want to be treated."
Jenifer has a mix of cats and dogs at home, including her pug, Ghibli, her labrador, Lolly, and her cats FeFe, Jinkies and Chubbs Magoo. Jenifer is mother to two wonderful boys and she loves gardening.
Mary is one of Westarbor’s licensed veterinary technicians. Mary graduated from Baker College’s licensed veterinary technology program. Her eternal optimism and smile keep everyone smiling all the time! Mary joined the team in 2013 and is Westarbor’s ray of sunshine! Mary is a true leader of her team. She excels at training and educating up and coming LVTs as well as our highly valued Veterianry Assistant staff. Mary is committed to the highest quality of veterinary care for her patients. Their safety and comfort is her highest priority at all times. Mary recognizes the importance of the 45 plus years of AAHA accreditation Westarbor has behind it and manages our AAHA membership to make sure Westarbor meets all the rigorous standards needed to maintain our AAHA accreditation. She also oversees maintaining Westarbor’s status as a Feline-Friendly Practice Accreditation. Mary is also one of Westarbor’s Fear Free Certified staff members. Mary’s love of all creatures is not just limited to those with fur; she also has a passion for reptiles and amphibians as well.
Mary and her husband Aaron enjoy regular nature hikes and adventures near their home in Dexter. Mary’s animal children consist of her two mini–Australian Shepherd doggies, Ruby and Cassie along with her lovable and equally spoiled kitties, Leroy, Logan and Poo. Mary also enjoys cooking, baking and candle making, all of which the Westarbor team just can’t get enough of!
Rachel joined the Westarbor team in 2017 as one of our licensed veterinary technicians. Rachel graduated from Baker College of Flint in 2016 and started off in emergency medicine before coming to Westarbor. Rachel brought with her a great deal of Emergency medicine experience, and since starting with Westarbor, has developed a great deal of dentistry skills working alongside Dr. Clarkson and now Dr Anderson on our complicated dental referral cases. From a young age, she had a passion for animals that only got stronger as she got older. She could not imagine herself in any other field. Her love of her profession made her a wonderful choice for the Westarbor team. She loves helping animals who are sick and nursing them back to health. Rachel’s loving demeanor makes her an amazing technician!
Rachel came to Westarbor from the Saginaw area and now lives here with her Siberian Husky, Keeta. She is an avid Detroit fan supporting the Tigers and the Red Wings and enjoys going to games in her spare time along with traveling.
Abby joined the Westarbor Animal Hospital Nursing care team in June of 2021. Westarbor has been so fortunate to have Abby on the front line of care for our patients. She is a highly trained Licensed Veterinary Technician who is a 2012 Graduate of the Baker College of Veterinary Technology in Muskegon. Abby began her career in Veterinary Medicine because of her love of animals coupled with her desire to work in a health care field. Veterinary medicine offers the best of both worlds. Abby’s special interests are in dentistry and feline medicine. Abby currently shares her home with her beloved cat Bean. In her spare time Abby enjoys hiking, keeping physically fit and exercising as well as knitting. The Westarbor team is so thankful that Abby chose our hospital as her home. She is a calming and skilled Technician who puts patient care as her highest priority.
Ashleigh joined the Westarbor team as a client care specialist in 2018. A former makeup artist, she decided her passion was with animals and decided to join the veterinary world. Ashleigh graduated from Lincoln High School in 2013 and started working right away. She loves animal and people and is very excited to have the opportunity to work with both. She loves how rewarding it is to care for animals and is enjoying the chance to do so. Her bubbly and bright personality makes her a wonderful addition to the Westarbor team!
Ashleigh grew up in Belleville and continues to live around the Ann Arbor area. She continues to enjoy doing makeup for special events on the side along with going to the gym. She also enjoys spending time with her dog Walter who is a cocker/puggle mix.
Sarah Garrison joined the Westarbor client care specialist team in 2017. She graduated from Ivy Tech Community College with an associate’s in business administration and began working in customer service. Her loving personality, calm demeanor and big smile became a great addition to Westarbor as she discovered she wanted to put her love for animals and people to work in the veterinary world. As someone who has always loved taking care of others, she found it natural to want to take care of both animals and people. She learned a lot from caring for her own dog at home that had fearful tendencies and wanted to put her knowledge to work to help other animals and help people understand their nature. She enjoys being part of a knowledgeable and dedicated team of professionals who strive to always provide the best care. She is honored to be a part of the team, and we are so lucky to have a team member who is so passionate about her job! Sarah is a true leader of her team and a strong educator of any new employees that are added to our client care team.
Sarah lives in the Ann Arbor area with her daughter, Mia, boyfriend, Dustin and their Rottweiler Feni and tuxedo cat Gilbert. In her spare time, Sarah enjoys hiking, discovering new hiking trails, visiting national parks and traveling. She also enjoys painting with acrylic paint on canvas.
Meaghan joined the Westarbor team in June of 2022 as one of our amazing Veterinary Client Service Team members. Meaghan graduated from Kenyon College in Ohio in 2019 with a bachelor’s of arts in classics and a minor in Anthropology and Art History. Meaghan stumbled into the field of Veterinary medicine by chance while job hunting during the craziness of COVID. However, no matter what role she has filled in her previous positions, she has almost always been the first face that customers see and speak with. Meaghan understands and is committed to providing our clients a warm, knowledgeable and
soothing presence for their pets. As a pet owner herself, Meaghan knows and appreciates the peace of mind that comes from prompt, compassionate veterinary care that starts from the very first phone call. Meaghan loves all animals, but definitely has a soft spot for bunnies. Currently, Meaghan loves and cares for five rabbits named Squirt, Cherry, Chicory, Po and Sawdust. In her free time, Meaghan enjoys embroidery, writing, collecting silly enamel pins and playing soccer. We are very fortunate to have Meaghan on the front lines helping to care for and educate our clients.
Megan began with Westarbor Animal Hospital in January of 2022 as a Veterinary Assistant. Megan is attending the Baker College Licensed Veterinary Technician program. She has been in the Veterinary medical field since 2020 and before that was an active member of her local 4H club. Megan’s commitment to animal welfare dates back to when she was a young child. She has always had a drive to help animals, but watching her childhood cat go through many difficult medical issues made that drive even stronger. Since starting at Westarbor, Megan has committed to learning and helping in whatever areas she is needed throughout the hospital. She has quickly picked up a very positive way of communicating with and educating clients on the best care practices for their pets. While Megan loves ALL animals, she has a soft spot for our feline patients and being able to help the kitties and their owners is particularly rewarding to her. Megan currently has three of the sweetest feline children, Mocha, Ginger and Tinky as well as too many ducks to count. In her spare time Megan enjoys cooking and baking, trapshooting, and photography. In addition to all that she does for Westarbor on a daily basis as well as attending school, Megan also has several other side ventures including her business “The Duck Lady LLC” and a pet photography business.
Alex joined the Westarbor team in 2014 and has been an invaluable addition. Alex graduated from the Ross Medical Veterinary Assisting Program in 2014 and joined Westarbor shortly after. He is an extremely rare find and Westarbor is happy to have him! He provides support for the doctors, technicians and front staff. He is everyone’s right hand man! Alex is exceptional with both our clients and their pets and has a way of putting both at ease. Since he was a kid, he knew he always wanted to care for animals. He loves working with coworkers who love animals as much as he does!
Originally an Ann Arbor native, Alex has remained in the area he grew up in. He lives with his dog Rodney and cat Puss in Boots, and a boa constrictor, Hossy Bee. Alex loves reptiles and herpetology in general. In his spare time he enjoys playing disc golf and traveling with his dog Rodney.
Alyssa began with Westarbor Animal Hospital in June of 2022 as a Veterinary Assistant. Alyssa attended the University of Michigan Dearborn. While Alyssa is relatively new to Veterinary Medicine, you would never know it. She has recently been promoted to hospital inventory manager. This is a complex, valuable role that not many people are able to fulfill successfully. But, with Alyssa’s organization, dedication and attention to detail, she is just the right person for the job. Alyssa’s commitment to learning all there is to learn in the field is apparent the moment you see the attention to detail and the passion that she exudes when learning new tasks or information and most importantly, when dealing with the pets and their owners. Alyssa’s first cat, Maui, passed away in April of 2022. It was Maui that inspired Alyssa to pursue a career in which she can dedicate herself to helping sick pets as much as she possibly can. Alyssa has been an amazing addition to the Westarbor team. We feel very fortunate to have her here with us as she learns and grows within the Veterinary field. She has a soft spot for kitties and loves that part of the job, being able to care for and love the feline patients that she helps with each day. She enjoys her fellow team members and coming to work every day. Alyssa’s special interests include feline medicine and internal medicine. In her free time Alyssa enjoys reading, traveling to visit family and playing fetch with her cats Archie and Tater (aka Tater Tot) as well as her Doberman Azula.
Taylor joined the Westarbor Animal Hospital Nursing care team in March of 2024. Taylor is a highly trained Licensed Veterinary Technician who is a 2018 Graduate of the Stautzenberger College of Veterinary Technology. Taylor has always wanted to help animals, even from a young age. She loves dedicating her days to helping those that can’t help or advocate for themselves. Taylor has been in the Veterinary field fulfilling her goal of being the voice for those who cannot speak for themselves since 2017. Taylor’s work history shows her dedication to putting down her roots at the practices she has been with during her career. She is dedicated to finding a place to stay so she can become a familiar face to both our clients and their pets. Westarbor is so grateful that Taylor has chosen our hospital as her home. Taylor’s special interest is small animal dentistry. Because Westarbor is a dental referral practice, Taylor is looking forward to all she will learn from the advanced dental training of Dr. Katie Anderson. Taylor currently shares her home with her black labrador retriever Ember, her cat Carl and her tri-pod cat Tipsy. In her spare time Taylor enjoys traveling, reading, and spending time with friends and family. The Westarbor team is so excited that Taylor has joined our team. Taylor has a calm demeanor and is a positive influence on the clients and pets that visit the hospital.
Elizabeth joined the Westarbor Animal Hospital Nursing care team in November of 2023 after earning her Licensed Veterinary Technician degree from Michigan State University. Elizabeth is super smart, has an incredible work ethic and brings a smile to the faces of all that meet her. Her love, compassion and dedication to her patients is openly evident in every interaction she has with both the clients and the patients. Elizabeth started her career working with animals while volunteering at an animal rescue and absolutely loved it. She felt so privileged to be able to help those who were sick or injured and then working to help find the pets that came into the rescue their forever homes. From there she decided to embark on the journey to becoming a Licensed Veterinary Technician and worked at two clinics simultaneously as an Elevated Veterinary Assistant, while also going to veterinary nursing school full time. Within veterinary medicine Elizabeth’s special interests include feline medicine and anesthesia. Elizabeth shares her home with her two dogs, Annie, a shepherd mix and Kimber, a spaniel mix as well as her cat Callie. In her free time Elzabeth enjoys doing hot yoga as physical fitness. When you meet Elizabeth, you instantly know why Westarbor is beyond fortunate that she chose our hospital to call her home. Elizabeth is always smiling and spreading good vibes to the rest of the team.
Leah joined the Westarbor Animal Hospital Technical care team in June of 2023 as a Veterinary Assistant. Leah is a 2021 graduate of the Michigan State University Animal Sciences Program. Leah has spent most of her life around animals. She is an active equestrian competitor and has owned horses most of her life. Leah was active in 4H and knows what it is like to take care of animals of all sizes. She has known since she was a young child that her passion was working with and caring for animals. It was her classes in the MSU animal sciences program that solidified that she wanted to make caring for animals her career. Leah’s special interest within the veterinary field is canine medicine. Leah shares her home with a German Shepherd named Rambo and her beloved horses, Lacy, an Appendix, Chilly a Quarter Horse and Liam, a Paint. Leah’s soft-spoken personality is very calming to the clients and the pets. But she is no stranger to hard work. Having managed an equine facility, she is very used to hard work and doing what needs to be done when it needs to be done. In her free time, Leah competes in many equine competitions with her various equine companions. We feel very fortunate that Leah has chosen Westarbor as her home away from home. She brings a feeling of calm and happiness whenever you are around her.
Rose joined the Westarbor Animal Technical Care Team in November of 2023. Rose has a background in both veterinary medicine as well as retail customer care. With that combined background, Rose is able to provide the highest level of client care as well as a dedication to the care of our patients. Rose brings with her a unique range of knowledge in veterinary medicine as most recently she was working as a veterinary technician assistant with an animal rehabilitation facility. While she loved her work at the rehabilitation facility very much, she felt she needed the more well-rounded knowledge base that a general medicine practice is able to offer. We feel very fortunate that Rose chose Westarbor to take that leap into another realm of the field. Rose is currently in the Penn Foster college program working towards becoming a Licensed Veterinary Technician. Rose’s areas of interest within the veterinary field are pharmacology and phlebotomy. Rose loves all animals. In her life she has owned many types of pets including guinea pigs, mice, rats and sugar gliders. It is this wide exposure to various different pets that sparked her desire to make veterinary medicine her career. In her spare time Rose enjoys videogames, art history and reading classic literature. She also loves star wars and big dogs. Currently, Rose shares her home with a grey tabby kitty named Machiavelli. Rose is another team member who has a demeanor that creates a sense of calm for the clients and pets that she interacts with. Rose has been a valuable addition to the Westarbor family. We feel very fortunate she chose to join our team.
Samantha joined the Westarbor family in the spring of 2024. Sam and her husband moved to Michigan from Utah. Sam has been in the Veterinary field for over 12 years and her knowledge, expertise and commitment shows. She is enrolled and working through the Penn Foster program to become a Licensed Veterinary Technician, furthering her knowledge in the veterinary field. Sam is like the energizer bunny; she never stands still. She is such a hard worker and so dedicated to her job, and you can see it in her exceptional work ethic. Sam loves all facets of veterinary medicine, especially surgery. In her free time, besides studying, Sam enjoys the outdoors. She loves kayaking, hiking and volleyball. Sam currently shares her home with her husband and their two cats. We are so very glad Sam decided to join the Westarbor family. She notices things that some of us overlook and takes care of them. She is kind, quiet and busy at all times.
Aspen joined the Westarbor Veterinary Assistant care team in 2022. She graduated from Michigan State University in 2020 with the goal of applying to Vet schools to earn her doctorate of veterinary medicine. Aspen is currently in the process of applying to several different veterinary schools. And, while we know she will get in, we are also not looking forward to the day Aspen must leave us to go back to school. Aspen is such a kind, big hearted person and when you see her interact with the clients and their pets, you know she is in the exact field she was meant to be in. She has always loved animals and when you combine that with an interest in science/medicine, becoming a DVM seemed like the natural progression of her life. Aspen has a lot of prior experience in large animal work, but she seems to be a natural when dealing with the canine and feline patients that we see at Westarbor. She has an interest in small animal emergency and surgery but honestly just loves all areas of veterinary medicine. Aspen shares her home with her cat Reggie and in her free time enjoys going to the gym, being outside and spending time with friends and family. We feel so fortunate to have Aspen as a part of the Westarbor family. We hope someday maybe she can join us as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine.
When Becca joined the Westarbor Team she had just completed her Bachelor’s degree at Michigan State University and was just one test away from becoming a Licensed Veterinary Technician. She passed her LVT boards with flying colors and hit the ground running at Westarbor. She has been taking advantage of the many combined years of our LVT staff and the knowledge they bring to their positions, many who have come to us from ER and specialty hospitals. She dove into learning all they have to teach and is blossoming under their mentorship. Becca is hard working and dedicated. She can be reserved and quiet or outgoing and forward, depending on the situation. She is clearly dedicated to her patients and is very thorough and complete in all the tasks she does. Becca knew when she was quite young that she wanted to help animals when she was older, and she is finding this career path to be the perfect one for her. She gets much satisfaction from positively affecting the lives of both our patients and their owners. Becca is committed to continued learning and teaching. She enjoys helping to educate clients on the best care for their pets, and in particular she enjoys canine medicine. In her free time, she enjoys going for walks, spending time with family and friends and of course her two Shih-tzus, Kandi and Willow. Becca has been such a wonderful addition to the Westarbor family. She is eager and committed and a true advocate for her patients.
Ena has worked in veterinary medicine for about 8 years now. Five of those years she spent working as an ER veterinary assistant. Working with animals has always been her passion. Ena started volunteering at her local animal shelter in NY when she was 10 and her love for helping every animal she can has only grown over the years. This has led Ena to have an abundance of animals including her current 7 fur babies. She has two labrador retrievers, two German shepherds, and three cats. Ena is also a momma to her amazing daughter Charlotte. Ena works for Westarbor as one of our client care specialist team members, however she does not work on site. Ena works 100% remotely and helps manage our call volume so that our on site team members can devote as much time as possible to the clients and patients here in the hospital. Ena is employed through a company called Chronos, but she is no less a valued team member than any of our on-site team members. We couldn’t do it without Ena.
Courtney joined the Westarbor Client Care Team in November of 2023. Courtney did not have a background in veterinary medicine before starting at Westarbor, but it had always been her true passion to work in the veterinary field. After a year in her position, you would never know that she was still relatively new to the field. In addition to being a quick study, Courtney has a drive to learn as much as she can about veterinary medicine so that she can be able to educate our clients on the best medicine available for their pets. Her goal is to attend school in the upcoming year to pursue a degree as a Licensed Veterinary Technician. In her spare time, Courtney enjoys spending time with her husband Jeff and their two young boys as well as their dogs Smokey and Esme. Courtney loves traveling, especially to Chicago and Frankfort. She also enjoys reading and cross stitching. Westarbor is so very fortunate to have Courtney join our team. She is a quiet and calm presence and her commitment to her job and to the clients and their pets is felt each and every day.
Ashleigh joined the Westarbor team in August of 2024 as a member of our Client Care Team. She joined our team after deciding to make a pretty big career change. Ashleigh graduated in 2021 from Colorado Technical University with a master’s degree in criminal justice. Ashleigh and her husband Sam moved to Michigan after Sam finished his time in the United States Air Force. Both Ashleigh and her husband are originally Midwesterners. After being stationed around the world with the Air Force they decided to set down their roots in Michigan. After working in state government on and off for about ten years, Ashleigh felt the only way she would feel content is if she was working with animals in her daily life. This led her to the career change that brought her to us, and we could not be more thrilled. Because of Ashleigh’s desire to make such a huge change in her life, that makes her even more motivated to learn as much as she can within the field of veterinary medicine, so she is well equipped to help our clients, and their pets have the best relationship possible. You would never know Ashleigh was new to this field. Her dedication and passion for her job is apparent in everything she does. Currently Ashleigh and her husband share their home with their two fur babies Kiba and JoJo who they adore and spoil rotten. We are beyond grateful that Ashleigh chose Westarbor as her home away from home.
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