24-Hour Emergency by
Dogwood Veterinary Emergency
Alyssa Thompson, DVM
Medical Director
Dr. Thompson attended the College of William & Mary where she graduated with a BS in biology and psychology. She attended veterinary school at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine with a focus on small animal and equine medicine and a special interest in emergency medicine. Dr. Thompson graduated in 1998 and relocated to the Richmond area where she has been practicing emergency medicine as well as general medicine & surgery for the last 13 years. In 2006, Dr. Thompson returned to school at the Chi Institute of Chinese Medicine to study acupuncture and is currently studying herbal therapies as well. In December, Dr. Thompson was promoted to Medical Director for Dogwood Veterinary Emergency & Internal Medicine.
Andrew MacDougall, DVM
Dr. Andrew MacDougall is a graduate of Old Dominion University and he received his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Atlantic Veterinary College located in Prince Edward Island Canada. Before joining the Dogwood family he was practicing in Yorktown, Virginia. Dr. MacDougall is excited to be pursuing his passion for emergency medicine and to be working alongside some of the area’s leading specialists. Professionally, he is also interested in radiology and internal medicine and when he isn’t working he enjoys playing golf, going to the beach, and watching Nascar.
Jesper Lorentzen, DVM
Dr. Lorentzen is a graduate of Virginia Tech and the Virgina-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. He has been working as an emergency clinician for 8 years and is very excited to be a part of the emergency department at Dogwood. In his free time, Dr. Lorentzen enjoys spending time with his family as well as the outdoors but does try to sneak away for Hokie football and basketball games.
Cathleen Blanchong, DVM
Dr. Cathleen Blanchong, who joins Dogwood this fall, is a graduate of The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She has been practicing as an emergency clinician in the Richmond area for over 10 years. Outside of work she enjoys spending time with her family, friends and dog, Herman.
Cardiology by
Chesapeake Veterinary Cardiology Associates
Jess Weidman, DVM, DACVIM (Cardiology)
Dr. Weidman received his bachelor’s degree from Pomona College in Claremont, CA and his veterinary degree from Oregon State University in Corvallis, OR. He completed his small animal medical internship at Veterinary Medicine and Surgery Group in Ventura, CA and then joined the cardiology residency program at Chesapeake Veterinary Cardiology Associates. Dr. Weidman completed his residency and became board certified in cardiology in July of 2006. His professional interests include emergency and critical care of the cardiac patient as well as cardiac pharmacology. Dr. Weidman has a large four-legged family with two dogs and two cats. Outside of work, he enjoys running, biking, and playing chess.
Dermatology by
Veterinary Dermatology of Richmond
Nicola Williamson, DVM, Diplomate ACVD, Board Certified in Veterinary Dermatology
Dr. Williamson has been serving central Virginia since 2003. She is a graduate of the Virginia-Medical Regional College of Veterinary Medicine and has also completed an internal medicine and surgery internship in New York City followed by the completion of a three-year residency in veterinary dermatology at the University of Tennessee. She has also been recognized by her fellow veterinarians as the Best Veterinary Dermatologist in Richmond and central Virginia in the publication, Virginia Living Magazine. In her spare time, Dr. Williamson enjoys traveling, hiking, gardening, reading, and quilting. She also enjoys spending time with her dogs, Chloe, a beautiful lab mix, and Fonzie, a very affectionate rescued shepherd
Internal Medicine by
Dogwood Veterinary Internal Medicine
Emily Skovira, MS, DVM, Residency Trained
in Internal Medicine
Dr. Skovira recently completed her Internal Medicine Residency and Masters of Science at Auburn University and
is a 2008 graduate of the College of Veterinary Medicine at Michigan State. She has also completed a rotating small animal internship at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. Dr. Skovira will be relocating to Richmond with her dog Tanner, cats Miles and Janis. Outside of work she enjoys running, hiking, camping, photography, reading and making jewelry.
Neurology/Neurosurgery by
Bush Veterinary Neurology Service
Martin Young, MS, DVM, Residency Trained in Neurology/Neurosurgery
Dr. Young received a Master of Science degree in Anatomy and Neurobiology from Colorado State University where he also received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. He spent the first few years out of school working in general practice. In 2007 Dr. Young completed a small animal medicine and surgery internship at South Paws Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center before being accepted as the first resident into the Bush Veterinary Neurology Service Residency program in July of 2008. Dr. Young completed his three-year neurology/neurosurgery residency program in June of 2011 and practiced in Northern Virginia for several months before relocating to Richmond. A Colorado native, he and his wife have settled in Virginia with their Border Collie/Shepherd mix. They are enjoying exploring the area as well as hiking, fishing and camping.
Oncology by
The Oncology Service
Angharad Waite, VMD, DACVIM (Medical Oncology)
Dr. Waite graduated from Princeton University magna cum laude and then attended the University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School obtaining her degree (VMD) in 2008. She stayed on at Penn to complete a rotating small animal internship in medicine and surgery followed by a residency in medical oncology at Cornell University. During the last year of her residency (2012) she received the Small Animal Resident of the Year Award from the fourth year class.
Laurel Williams, DVM, DACVIM (Medical Oncology)
Laurel Williams received a B.A. (Biology; Magna Cum Laude) from Augustana College in 1990 and a DVM degree from the University of Minnesota in 1994. She completed a Small Animal Medicine & Surgery Internship at Purdue University in 1995, an Oncology Residency at Tufts University in 1998, and a Research Fellowship in Molecular Biomarkers at the University of Minnesota in 1998. In addition to working at Dogwood Veterinary Emergency and Specialty Center, she is a tenured Associate Professor of Oncology at North Carolina State University. She has authored or co-authored 25 articles in scientific journals, written 15 book chapters and given over 100 lectures at state, national and international meetings.
Chand Khanna, DVM, PhD,
DACVIM (Medical Oncology)
Dr. Khanna is a graduate of the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan with continued training through a small animal medicine and a surgery internship at the Ontario Veterinary College and an internal medicine and oncology residency at the University of Minnesota. He continued his cancer research by completing a PhD in Pathobiology at the University of Minnesota where he studied immunotherapy of metastatic cancers. This was followed by a Senior Postdoctoral Fellowship with the National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland.
He has practiced in the greater Washington, DC area for nearly 15 years through his oncology-focused specialty practice, The Oncology Service. As a bridge between his work as a clinician and clinician-scientist, he is the founder of Animal Clinical Investigation, which is a nation-wide network of partners that provides access to novel treatment options for dogs and cats afflicted with complex medical problems. Dr. Khanna also serves on the editorial board of the Journal of Veterinary and Comparative Oncology and the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine. He has authored over 100 text book chapters and manuscripts. He is also the Chair of the Osteosarcoma Biology Subcommittee of the Children’s Oncology Group and standing President of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (Oncology).
He lives in the greater Washington, DC area with his wife, two children and their dog named Odin. He is also active in the community as a soccer and ice-hockey coach and continues to struggle with an average golf game.
Surgery by
Virginia Veterinary Surgical Associates
Richard P. Suess, Jr., DVM, Dipl. ACVS
Dr. Richard P. Suess Jr. completed his undergraduate studies at Virginia Tech and obtained his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) at the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine (VMRCVM) in 1989. Following graduation, he completed a one-year rotating internship and a three-year surgical residency at Cornell University. Upon completion of his residency, Dr. Suess was invited to remain on staff at Cornell as an instructor of veterinary surgery, during which time he completed his credentials for board certification and became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 1994. In 1995, Dr. Suess returned to the VMRCVM as a faculty member in small animal surgery. The following year he left academics and has been in private practice in Virginia ever since.
Roy F. Barnes, DVM, Dipl. ACVS
Dr. Roy F. Barnes attended Mary Washington College as an undergraduate and received his DVM from the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine (VMRCVM) in 2000. In the following two years, he completed both a general rotating-internship at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine and a surgical internship in a large referral surgical practice in Dallas, Texas. Following his internships, Dr. Barnes completed a three-year surgical residency the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine. After his residency, Dr. Barnes was a Clinical Assistant Professor and Director of Companion Animal Rehabilitation at the University of Illinois and became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2006. He joined Virginia Veterinary Surgical Associates later that year and has been practicing in the area ever since.
Sevima A. Aktay, VMD, Dipl. ACVS
Dr. Sevima Aktay completed her undergraduate studies at Boston University and received her Veterinary Medical Doctorate (VMD) from the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine in 2006. The following year Dr. Aktay completed a general rotating-internship at the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine followed by a three-year surgical residency in July 2010 at Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine and Angell Memorial in Boston Massachusetts. Dr. Aktay joined Virginia Veterinary Surgical Associates in August of 2010 and became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2011.
Alex Padron, DVM, Surgical Intern
Dr. Alex Padron completed his undergraduate studies at Florida International University. Following his undergraduate degree, he completed his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine at St. Georges University School of Veterinary Medicine in 2010 and completed his clinical rotations at Oregon State University. Following his graduation, he completed a one-year general rotating internship at Animal Specialty Group in Los Angeles, CA where he was exposed to emergency, critical care, surgery, neurology, cardiology, oncology and internal medicine cases. Pursuing his interest in surgery, Dr. Padron went on to complete a one-year surgical internship at Sonora Veterinary Specialists in Phoenix, AZ before being accepted to a one-year internship with Virginia Veterinary Surgical Associates.
