Meet The Veterinary Technician Team

Since August 2021

Nancy was born and raised in central and eastern Washington. She graduated from the Yakima Valley Community College Veterinary Technician Program in 2001. She moved to Port Orchard in 2003 and has been planted here ever since. She has worked in both emergency and general practice. 

Nancy prides herself on being compassionate and empathetic to the needs of animals. She quickly embraced the Fear Free culture at Willow Tree Animal Hospital and has excelled in working with some of our most fearful and/or anxious patients.

Nancy loves spending time with her family and her menagerie of animals; including dogs, cats, birds, a bearded dragon, some fish, and frogs. She enjoys the nature of the PNW, reading, watching tv, and crafts.

Since September 2021

Chrissie entered veterinary medicine in 2012 to become a licensed veterinary technician. She was inspired to follow this career path by the love she held for the remarkable benefit pets can be in a person's life. She has spent her career dedicated to strengthening the human-animal bond through education and advocating for her patients as well as their owners.

Chrissie has experienced her career learning and working in a variety of situations including emergency, surgery, exotic animals, some farm animals, end of life care, and, of course, dogs and kitties. Her passions are client education, helping our older, "crunchier" feline patients, and helping families through end of life care for their beloved companion. 

Chrissie joined Willow Tree in 2021 after realizing that this clinic prioritized patient well being through Fear Free care, genuinely cared for our community, and promoted an advanced learning environment. She is hoping to bring continued excellence in care, add to the diverse and intelligent voices, help keep up on current end of life care standards, and provide detailed and friendly education for all pet parents.

Outside of veterinary medicine Chrissie has a variety of unique interests including all things dreary, dark and scary like horror movies, exploring abandoned towns, or relaxing during the beautiful pacific northwest grey season. She can often be found haunting the local area with her family (both those with fur and without). Her favorite color is orange and her favorite tree is the weeping willow. Her favorite cat names are any that sound like they belong to a human like Steve or Brittany. Finally, Chrissie is not a zombie, but has played one on TV (for real, she even has a movie credit on IMDB).

Since December 2021

Amber is a recent transplant to the state of Washington. After earning her BS in Biology from Northern Arizona University she moved to Alaska and spent the next 7 years working at a privately owned
veterinary clinic in Anchorage. It was there she completed training to become licensed as a veterinary technician.

Tired of the snow and wanting to be closer to their extended family, Amber and her family decided to relocate to the Pacific northwest.
 

Around the clinic, Amber particularly enjoys anesthesia and dentistry. She understands the discomfort and worry anesthesia can cause for pet parents and she likes being able to help families feel as comfortable as possible through education and communication throughout the day. 

When Amber isn’t at the clinic, you might find her spending time with her two daughters (who keep her
very busy), reading a book in the sun, or searching for frogs in her backyard. She also shares her home
with her husband, two dogs and a menagerie of amphibians/reptiles.

Since February 2022

Bio coming soon!

Since August 2022

Kelly grew up in the midwest and has lived & worked all over the United States before choosing the Pacific Northwest as home. Her first stray rescue was a sick, tiny black kitten she found during Kindergarten recess and smuggled home in her coat.  She has been a crazy cat lady ever since. 

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As a former military wife, Kelly was fortunate enough to work in a variety of diverse veterinary roles as her family traveled the states. She was credentialed in Texas and Georgia before she obtained her Bachelors of Science in Biology at University of Georgia in 2001. 

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In 2006, Kelly took a position at a small animal practice in Tacoma working with a veterinarian with over 50 years of practice experience. Since that time, she has worked in several other clinics in the Tacoma area gaining experience in emergency care, surgery, dentistry, and animal behavior. 

Kelly focuses on client education; helping owners to be informed, confident, and capable regarding their pet’s health is her goal. She loves utilizing and teaching Fear Free principles. She has seen how small actions can reduce fear in pets for their clinic visits and improve their quality of life outside of the clinic. She loves being the “treat lady” and offering games for the owners to play at home with their pets. Kelly is interested in animal behavior as well as pet nutrition. She is currently pursuing a Veterinary Technician Specialty Certification in animal behavior. 

“I came to Willow Tree with the intent to fill in once in a while when needed. What I found was a positive, inclusive work culture that I have never experienced in my 20+ years of experience working in this field.  I feel fortunate every day to work side by side with such compassionate and talented veterinary professionals.” 

When not at work, Kelly enjoys cooking, reading, exercise, and spending time outdoors with her granddaughter. Her challenges are: sitting still, using all the emojis while texting, and talking too much. She loves listening to True Crime podcasts and taking photos of other people’s food. 

Since June 2022

Kate was born in Boston but raised here in the Pacific Northwest with Point Defiance as her backyard. She earned her first Associate Degree at Tacoma Community College and went on to the University of Washington Tacoma to earn a Bachelor’s Degree in Arts & Sciences specializing in Psychology.

After completing 80+ hours in canine behavior and becoming an Accredited Trainer, she decided to explore the medical aspect of animal wellness. In 2016, she earned her second Associate Degree in Veterinary Technology at Pierce College and became a Licensed Veterinary Technician. Over the years, Kate has specialized in triage and emergency care, but is currently focused on surgery and anesthesia.

Kate shares her home with Theo, a White Swiss Shepherd, who is both handsome and sweet as could be! In her free time she enjoys activities spent in the great outdoors, traveling and running.