Board of Directors
Linda Jacobson, BVSc MMedVet PhD – President and Treasurer
Linda received her veterinary degree in Pretoria, South Africa, in 1986 and subsequently completed a residency in small animal internal medicine and a PhD on the pathophysiology of virulent canine babesiosis. She completed the University of Florida Online Graduate Certificate in Shelter Medicine in 2015She served on the CVO Practice Advisory and Standard of Care Panels, and is a member of the editorial board of Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery and the new journal, Journal of Shelter Medicine and Community Animal Health. She joined the Toronto Humane Society in 2010, where she is currently Senior Manager: Shelter Medicine Advancement.
Sarah Kirk, DVM, MS – Vice-President and Vice-Treasurer
Sarah received her DVM from Michigan State University in 1977 and her MS in Veterinary Medical Sciences (Shelter Medicine) from the University of Florida in 2017. Although she has had brief stints in private small animal practice, zoo medicine, and research, the majority of her career has been spent in shelter medicine and surgery while residing in the US. She has held positions at private humane societies, was the Medical Director of the ASPCA’s Field Investigation and Response team (large-scale natural and man-made disaster response) and was Adjunct Clinical Assistant Professor with the Maddie’s Shelter Medicine program at UF. She is grateful to be living in the beautiful country of Canada (dual US-Canada citizenship) and looks forward to giving back to her new country of residence.
Lauralee Dorst, RVT – Secretary
Sarah Lokaisingh, DVM
Dr. Sarah Lokaisingh graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College in 2024. Following graduation, Dr. Lokaisingh went on to pursue an Internship in Community and Shelter Medicine with the Kim and Stu Lang Community Healthcare Partnership Program.
She is committed to strengthening the human-animal bond by providing accessible veterinary care. She is passionate about communication and education, and currently serves as a coach with the OVC Clinical Communication Program.
Michelle Meckelborg, DVM, CCRP
Dr. Michelle Meckelborg spent several years in private practice following graduation from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in 2003. During her private practice stint, Michelle nurtured her interest in exotic animal medicine and surgery and obtained her Certificate in Canine Rehabilitation Therapy in 2016. Michelle joined the shelter veterinarian community in 2017 as a casual surgeon at the Edmonton Humane Society. She found her love for shelter medicine and moved into the role of Director of Animal Health in 2021.
Elissa Bessonette, DVM
Dr. Elissa Bessonette received her veterinary degree from Atlantic Veterinary College, University of Prince Edward Island in 1999. She worked in private practice in Fryeburg, Maine and Halifax, Nova Scotia before completing a short internship at the Wildlife Center of Virginia. She worked with Toronto Wildlife Center and volunteered with the Fatal Light Awareness (FLAP) Program until 2005. In 2006, Elissa began working for Calgary Humane Society. She completed the University of Florida Online Graduate Certificate in Shelter Medicine in 2014 and has been an adjunct clinical instructor for the University of Calgary Distributed Veterinary Learning Community since 2011.
Hannah Weitzenfeld, DVM
Dr. Hannah graduated from Ontario Veterinary College in 2008. After graduation, she moved to British Columbia. During her 15 years of mixed private practice and shelter experience both in Canada and the United States, Hannah has consistently volunteered in outreach and TNR projects, both locally and internationally. Hannah is now the Senior Manager, Animal Health for the British Columbia Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (BC SPCA). Her passions include infectious disease prevention and management, TNR and veterinary outreach.
Jacenta Snyder, DVM
Dr. Jacenta Snyder was born and raised in Prince Edward Island. Like many who enter this profession, I had a passion for animals from a very young age and (naturally) pursued a career in veterinary medicine. After graduating from the Atlantic Veterinary College in 2009, she worked as a term clinical instructor teaching vet students in junior surgery and Community Practice rotations at AVC. She then spent 10 years in small animal private practice in Newfoundland and Nova Scotia, during which time she often worked with various small rescue and shelter organizations and developed an interest in shelter medicine.
In 2020, Jacenta joined the Nova Scotia SPCA where she practice as a lead shelter veterinarian, providing medical, dental, and surgical care to the animals from multiple shelter locations across the province, with an emphasis on high volume spay/neuter. She is proud to practice a “hybrid medicine” approach, balancing between high efficiency/volume for shelter needs and high attention to detail for individual animals & cases that require it. When not busy at work or spending family time with my husband and two young boys, my “spare time” is often spent refinishing furniture, landscape and water gardening, or fulfilling my houseplant obsession.
Jill Kirk, DVM, MS
Dr. Jill Kirk graduated from the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in 2014 with a Certificate in Shelter Medicine earned at the same time. She has spent almost all of her career in Shelter Medicine, and earned her Masters of Science in Shelter Medicine with a Certificate in Veterinary Forensics in 2020. Jill has worked for private non-profits as well as large municipal shelters. In 2022 she left Florida to move to Ontario and started work at the Ontario SPCA and Humane Society. She is currently their Chief Veterinary Officer over their 13 adoption centres. Jill is passionate about pediatric spay/neuter, equal representation for cats and dogs, FIP treatment, and the keeping the human/animal bond intact. In her free time, Jill takes care of her four rescue horses on her farm in the Niagara region.
Tracy Satchell, DVM, MS
Tracy graduated from the Ontario Veterinary College in 2010 and developed her medical and surgical skills in general practice for four years. In 2015, she co-founded a Humane Alliance-partnered high-volume spay/neuter clinic in London Ontario, and worked as the primary surgeon, performing an average of 35 procedures per day. Tracy completed a Graduate Certificate in Shelter Medicine in 2015 and went on to achieve a Master of Science in Veterinary Medical Sciences with a concentration in Shelter Medicine in 2018, through the University of Florida. She now works for the City of London as a shelter veterinarian at the municipal shelter and companion animal hospital. Her passions include stress reduction in the shelter environment and feline population control through TNR and accessible spay/neuter.
Sara Regehr, DVM
Dr.Regehr graduated from Murdoch University in 2016. She worked in general practice for a couple years until she discovered her passion for shelter medicine. She worked at the Winnipeg Humane Society where she developed an interest in improving access to care for low income families and remote communities. She loves travelling to northern Manitoba to participate in the WHS One Health Remote Veterinary program and volunteering with the Canadian animal task force and has recently started working as an Associate Veterinarian at the Vancouver BCSPCA Animal Hospital. She enjoys adventures in the mountains with her tripawd Husky, Isaac.
Gina Bowen, DVM
Dr. Gina Bowen is a 2005 graduate from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine. She completed a 1 year rotating small animal internship at WCVM and then spent 11 years in small animal rural private practice before becoming the Director of Veterinary Services at the Winnipeg Humane Society in 2017. She completed a 1 year Shelter Medicine Fellowship through the Koret Shelter Medicine Program. Dr. Bowen finds Shelter medicine to be fast paced, quickly evolving and highly satisfying. She enjoys the mix of management and hands on veterinary practice. Her focus in shelter medicine is the One Health Remote Veterinary program in Manitoba and expanding community support by providing access to veterinary services to owned animals.
Board Committees
Communications and Fundraising: Melissa Bennett
Continuing Education: Hannah Weitzenfeld (Chair), Michelle Meckelborg, Gina Bowen, Linda Jacobson, Jill Kirk
Governance: Elissa Bessonette, Melissa Bennett, Lauralee Dorst
Membership Services: Kyrsten (Jade) Janke
Charitable Status: Melissa Bennett, Hannah Weitzenfeld, Tracy Satchell
Board Advisors
Valli Fraser-Celin (PhD), Ontario Veterinary College, Department of Clinical Studies, University of Guelph. Valli completed her doctoral studies in Geography at the University of Guelph where her research focused on human-African wild dog conflict and conservation and wildlife welfare. Following her PhD, she pursued postdoctoral studies in the Community Health Sciences department at the University of Calgary where she conducted research on One Health, dogs in Indigenous communities, and reconciliation. She then worked as the One Health Coordinator and Grants Specialist at the Winnipeg Humane Society, planning humane dog population management and equitable access to veterinary care in underserved communities in northern Manitoba and in Winnipeg. Currently, she works for the Ontario Veterinary College working on facilitating access to pet care through digital techonologies and community connections. Valli is also an advocate for humane dog training methods and enjoys learning about dog behaviour.
Dr. Alexandre Ellis, DVM, Calgary Humane Society. Dr. Ellis obtained his doctorate in veterinary medicine from the University of Montreal in 2016. He then completed a small animal rotating internship in private practice at the DMV Center in Montreal. In 2017, he started a shelter medicine residency at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, which he completed in 2020. He currently works as a shelter consultant and is also a sessional instructor at the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Calgary where he teaches Principles of Shelter Medicine to 4th year veterinary students. His interests include infectious disease management, population management and capacity for care, and teaching.
Founding Committee, Past Directors and Key Volunteers.
Thank you so much for your outstanding contributions!
Lynn Henderson, DVM
Chloe Roberts, DVM
Shelley Hutchings, DVM
Michelle Tuma, DVM
Laura Balanoff, DVM
Shane Bateman, DVM
Dani Boes, DVM
Johanna Booth, DVM
Ariel Brunn, DVM
Darci Burtch, RVT
Frances Cheslo, RVT
Wendy Ing, DVM
Lisa Jones, DVM
Shalini Ramsubeik, DVM
LeeAnn Sealey, DVM
Karen Ward, DVM
Mary Pecarski, RVT
Stephanie Black, DVM
Esther Attard, DVM