Meet The Expert Faculty

Dr. Jen Mathis is in the final dentistry boards testing process after training under Dr. Heidi Lobprise, DAVDC. She owns two small general practices in Des Moines, Iowa. Prior to formal dentistry training, she became a certified veterinary acupuncturist and a certified veterinary pain practitioner with the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management. Treating the mouth is treating/preventing pain. Over 15 years of general practice experience is the basis for her time in the trench(mouth)es. Dentistry was once a least favorite topic, but upon learning more, it has become her favorite discipline. She enjoys teaching and explaining how much fun dentistry can be. Only the veterinary team can clean effectively in the gingival sulcus. The veterinary team is essential in aiding to reduce the systemic inflammation that is associated with periodontal disease.

Dr. Candace Sousa received her B.S. degree in Physiology from the University of California, Davis, and her DVM from the College of Veterinary Medicine at UCD where she subsequently completed her residency in Dermatology and Allergy. She has been certified by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in Companion Animal Practice since1983 and is currently certified in Canine and Feline Medicine. In 1985 she was certified by the American College of Veterinary Dermatology. Dr. Sousa worked in private small animal practice, owned a small animal clinic in Sacramento, and worked in a private dermatology referral practice before joining Zoetis in 2003. She has lectured extensively to veterinarians worldwide as well as published in numerous veterinary publications. In 2008 Dr. Sousa received the ACVD Award for Excellence. She is currently retired but maintains an appointment as a Clinical Professor in the Department of Medicine and Epidemiology at the University of California, Davis, and as an Adjunct Assistant Professor at Washington State University.

Bob was a faculty member at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine, with a focus on Emergency and Critical Care from 1984 to 1998. He served as Hospital Director for both the Large and Small Animal Teaching Hospitals during his time at Tufts. From 1998 to 2000, he served as the Chief of Staff at the nonprofit Dove Lewis Emergency Animal Hospital Group in Portland, Oregon. Bob practiced emergency and critical care for 25 years, trained dozens of residents, and is a founder and past president of the ACVECC.

Dr. Patty Lathan is a professor of small animal internal medicine at Mississippi State University. Her primary interest is endocrinology, specifically the management of adrenal disease and diabetes mellitus. She has published several articles and book chapters, given lectures throughout the United States and internationally, and currently serves as the past president of the Society for Comparative Endocrinology.

Dr. Diane Levitan is a veterinary internal medicine specialist who has been practicing veterinary medicine since 1991. She has built several businesses and 5 veterinary practices and is always pursuing more challenges. She is a groundbreaking entrepreneur and has introduced many new concepts into the field of veterinary medicine, such as creating the first hospital in the world where families could stay overnight with their pets, pioneering the use of hyperbaric oxygen therapy for animals, and creating a traveling CT scan company. She is currently an internal medicine specialist at Peace Love Pets Veterinary Care and an associate professor at Long Island University College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Levitan has many interests in her field but making a lasting difference in veterinary medicine is key. She loves to teach, mentor, and promote excellent veterinary care. In 2009, she started a non-for-profit, Helping Promote Animal Welfare (Helping-PAW) as a means to give back to the community. Her most current business Chirp Vet Mentors, is a peer-to-peer mentoring program for veterinarians who need help “on the spot”. For immediate case assistance, call Chirp! Some of her many skills are medical diagnoses of the most difficult medical problems in pets using reasoning, deduction, radiography, ultrasonography, and diagnostic laboratory testing. She is a consultant for many veterinarians, veterinary businesses as well as for television and radio, and print. She sits on several boards as Director and or advisor. She lectures around the world on veterinary hyperbaric oxygen therapy, as it is one of her greatest passions.

Dr. Brofman received his DVM from Cornell University in 1998. Following his internship Dr. Brofman completed his residency in internal medicine at The Animal Medical Center in NYC in 2001. During his internal medicine residency Dr. Brofman found his true calling in neurology and completed a neurology residency at The Ohio State University in 2004. Dr. Brofman has practiced medical and surgical neurology in private practice since 2004 and has been a member of the Thrive Pet Healthcare team since 2017. He currently is the medical director at Thrive Pet Healthcare Specialists in Albuquerque, NM, as well as the National Director of Neurology for Thrive Pet Healthcare. Dr. Brofman enjoys spreading the joy of neurology and has been involved in resident training, local and national conferences, leading the neurology page of Ignite, and providing smaller in-hospital talks for local veterinarians.

Dr. Meighan Daly DeHart graduated with honors from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine, continued on after graduation to an internship at Florida Veterinary Specialists, and then completed a medical oncology residency at Texas A&M University. She completed her board certification with the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. She has many publications (Veterinary Comparative Oncology, Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery, Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, and the Journal of Veterinary Diagnostic Investigation) and has participated in many research studies/clinical trials. Dr. Daly Dehart’s areas of special interest include feline oncology, complementary and alternative therapies in conjunction with traditional oncology therapies and clinical trials. She enjoys the bond that forms with clients and patients during cancer treatment and likes to maintain communication with the referring veterinarian to create a team for the patients well being. She approaches cancer in a way that focuses on the patient’s overall well-being and quality of life. She lives in Austin with her husband, daughter, cat, and the cutest dog in the world.

Dr. Starkey is an Associate Professor at Auburn University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. She was raised on a cattle farm in Northeast Kansas and earned her BS (2007) in Animal Science from the University of Arkansas. She completed both her DVM (2011) and PhD (2015) in Veterinary Biomedical Sciences at Oklahoma State University where her graduate research focused on several vector-borne infections of dogs. She is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Microbiology, Parasitology sub-specialty, completing her residency training through the National Center for Veterinary Parasitology at Oklahoma State University in 2015. Dr. Starkey joined the faculty at Auburn University in May 2016 where she is involved in various research projects involving vectors and vector-borne pathogens, diagnostic parasitology, and parasite consultation and outreach. Dr. Starkey also is heavily involved in the teaching of parasitology to first, second, and fourth-year veterinary students, and she has received two teaching awards while at Auburn, most recently being awarded the Zoetis Distinguished Teacher Award in March 2020. She currently serves as a board member for the National Center for Veterinary Parasitology as well as the American Heartworm Society.

Dr. Pease graduated from Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. Then, after completing an equine internship at the Marion DuPont Scott Equine Medical Center in Virginia and a small animal internship at Affiliated Veterinary Specialists in Florida, he completed a diagnostic imaging residency at Cornell University. Dr. Pease became board certified by the American College of Veterinary Radiology (ACVR) and served as an assistant professor at North Carolina State University and a tenured Associate Professor at Michigan State University. He was the President of ACVR, and is currently their Director of Continuing Education. He currently serves as the Chief Veterinary Medical Officer for the Viticus Group (formerly known as WVC), which has 140,000 square feet of dedicated space used for continuing education of physicians and veterinarians. Dr. Pease lectures extensively on diagnostic imaging in small and large animals and supervises hands-on laboratories on small animal and equine imaging.

Dr. Mark Parchman received his DVM from the University of Missouri in 1984. He completed an internship at the University of Saskatchewan in 1986 and a surgical residency at Cornell University in 1989. After his residency, Dr. Parchman was a member of the surgery faculty for 2 years before leaving to join Dr. Dougald Gilmore DACVS and Dr. Sue Dougherty DACVIM to open South Bay Veterinary Specialists in San Jose, CA in 1991.

He and his wife, Sue Dougherty left SBVS in late 2003 and moved their family to Bend, OR.  They co-founded the Animal Emergency Center of Central Oregon in January 2004 and then opened Bend Veterinary Specialists in July 2004.  Dr. Parchman opened Pawsitive Strides Physical Rehabilitation for Dogs in 2008.  Their practices became part of Pathway Vet Alliance in December 2017 and Dr. Parchman retired from surgical practice in Feb 2020.  He has been working for Ignite (Ask the Surgeon) since 2018.

Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, is the chief veterinary officer for dvm360®—an MJH Life Sciences® company —who oversees content strategy and development and is the brand voice and personality for dvm360®’s multimedia channels. As a charismatic leader, he brings wit, humor, and authenticity to animal health care as the host of a new web-based talk show, dvm360 Live!™, The Vet Blast Podcast, continuing education webinars, and live media broadcasts. Christman also has been in private practice and shelter medicine for 18 years and is currently an elected member of the New Jersey Veterinary Medical Association. He received his DVM degree from Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Ames, Iowa, and his MBA from Aspen University. Christman is a national thought leader, speaker, and author on practice management, social media, and rehabilitation, and coauthored, “Honey, Have You Squeezed the Dachshund? A Pet Owner’s Guide for Owners Who Are Terrified of IVDD”—a book on dogs with disabilities. He has been featured in multiple publications and appeared on various multimedia shows throughout the United States, sharing his expertise and passion on all things veterinary medicine. As an avid social media influencer for animal health care, he has over 900,000 followers on TikTok and 56,000 followers on Instagram. He loves to engage with fellow pet parents and veterinary professionals across social media. Christman is an advocate of Pride VMC and Pawsibilities. He is also the proud dog dad to 4 dachshunds and believes no one should be deprived of the incredible human-animal bond.

David Liss has an incredibly rich and diverse background in the field of veterinary technology. A registered veterinary technician in California, David holds a Bachelor’s in Sociology and an associate degree in Veterinary Technology. He also holds double board certifications as a veterinary technician specialist in emergency/critical care and small animal internal medicine and has a diverse background in emergency and critical care nursing in addition to being a certified veterinary practice manager (CVPM) and professional in human resources (PHR). He has been technician manager at two different twenty-four-hour referral/specialty facilities in the Los Angeles area, has contributed to numerous veterinary texts, and was awarded the Veterinary Technician Educator of the Year award by the Western Veterinary Conference. David also holds a Master’s in Biomedical Science. David currently is the director of operations for Amerivet in Los Angeles, and runs his own consulting business: Veterinary Training and Consulting, Inc., and lectures worldwide.

Natalie Young, PharmD, BCSCP, FACVP graduated from the North Carolina School of Science and Mathematics before receiving her Chemistry degree from UNC-Chapel Hill in 2006. She went on to earn her Doctorate from the UNC-Chapel Hill Eshelman School of Pharmacy in 2016. Dr. Young is board certified through the Board of Pharmacy Specialists in sterile compounding. She currently serves as the Chairmen of the American College of Veterinary Pharmacists, the Chair of the American Pharmacists Association’s Compounding SIG, and the Past-President of the North Carolina Veterinary Medical Association’s Industry Council. Dr. Young also serves in the American Pharmacists Association’s House of Delegates, as an Assistant Professor of Clinical Education at the UNC Chapel Eshelman School of Pharmacy, and as a consulting Clinical Staff Pharmacist at several veterinary clinics.

Dr. Tanner Trantham graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Exercise and Sport Science before earning his Doctorate from the UNC-Chapel Hill Eshelman School of Pharmacy in 2020. Dr. Trantham is now the lead pharmacist of BRAVA NC’s sterile program and a current fellow and board member of the American College of Veterinary Pharmacists.  He participates in weekly clinical rounds with local veterinarians to provide pharmacotherapy and compounding knowledge for individual patient cases. Dr. Trantham also assists in teaching veterinary pharmacy to students at UNC Eshelman School of Pharmacy and serves as a preceptor for advanced immersion students.

Dr. Erik Clausen received his BS in Cell Biology and Neuroscience from Montana State University and his Doctor of Pharmacy and MBA from University of the Pacific.  He has served on the Board of the American College of Veterinary Pharmacists, the Compounding Sub-Committee of the California Pharmacists Association, and the Federal Legislative Committee for the Alliance for Pharmacy Compounding.  He has worked as a veterinary compounding pharmacists for over 15 years, and also serves as Adjunct Faculty for University of the Pacific and Touro University.

Donna Chandler is a canine behavior specialist and author, with over 30 years of experience in her practice and a lifetime of training, breeding, and showing dogs. She has shown dogs in all levels of obedience (finished 2-UDT dogs) and also trains service and therapy dogs. Donna has written five books and a textbook, all available for Continuing Education by the American Association of Veterinary State Boards/R.A.C.E. Her books have been endorsed by many veterinarians (nationally and internationally) and Jack Hanna, Director Emeritus at the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium. He calls Donna’s Good Dog!, “An amazing book for anyone who has a dog as a best friend or is about to form a new canine relationship!” The Spanish edition of the book is ¡Buen Perro!

The new Good Dog! ONE-der Class® is an accumulation of Donna’s past works and uses only positive reinforcement, and trademarked training techniques. Her online video training class is based on the success of her one-of-a-kind teaching method — and makes it accessible to anyone, anywhere, anytime. Donna also works with many veterinarians (nationally and internationally) as a canine behavior specialist for dogs with behavior issues.  Donna has helped thousands of families achieve harmony with their pets. After going through her program, these pet owners and their precious pets are Better Best Friends® who can enjoy going out together too so many places. Her video class features her proven puppy and dog training and behavior modification techniques and her published books. I look forward to having you join me in having one of the best dogs EVER!

Dr. VanNoy is a learning strategist fueled by compassion, curiosity, and dissatisfaction with the current state of adult learning in the veterinary industry. In her PhD work, she combined her passion for both teaching and learning while investigating the possibilities that modern cognitive psychology models provide to adult learning. During her graduate work, Dr. VanNoy followed another one of her passions – the love and care for animals. She started working at a general practice in Austin, TX and quickly began to see the wide array of opportunities for improving continued veterinary education and the opportunities for all people to expand their careers in veterinary medicine. Dr. VanNoy is passionate about developing and supporting emotionally healthy and internally motivated teams to drive success in professional and personal development.

Dana is an HR professional whose career has expanded over several industries.  With over 30 years of hands-on HR experience in hospitality, in every discipline of the field, Dana worked for ShowBiz/Chuck E. Cheese’s Restaurants, Metromedia Restaurants (Steak & Ale and Bennigan’s), with the final 18 years as Director of Human Resources for the founder of Applebee’s Grill and Bar in Georgia with his restaurant group of Applebee’s, Rio Bravo, and Up The Creek restaurants.

In 2018 Dana relocated from Georgia to Montana to be with family and has been doing HR consulting/advising.  While COVID has definitely changed the way things are done, Dana is very active volunteering for the Missoula Food Bank, Dementia Friendly Missoula, Alzheimer’s Organization and enjoys biking, hiking, cooking, painting, reading and spending time with family.

Kristi currently lives in the town she grew up in, right outside of Chicago, Illinois. She completed the veterinary technician program at Cedar Valley College and graduated with an associate’s Degree in Applied Science. She went on to pass her state licensing boards to obtain her Certificate of Veterinary Technology in 2013. Kristi began working in the veterinary field at age 15. She started out working at a local general practice hospital as a receptionist and worked her way into the treatment area as an assistant and then to a non-certified technician. Deciding this career was her passion, went on to get her CVT as mentioned. She stayed at the general practice as a CVT for a few more years until she wanted to practice emergency medicine, where her true passion developed. Kristi’s love for emergency medicine opened many teaching opportunities from lecturing a small group of 20 people all the way up to a large group of 200 people. Kristi’s position progressed into a Veterinary Relations Coordinator, which included being the main contact for the referring technicians and doctors to her ER and Specialty hospital. After about a year of being out of the clinic, she felt like she needed to learn more and went on to work in specialty surgery. Missing her ER role terribly Kristi decided to leave the surgery world and head back to ER as the lead technician at her hospital. During this role, she used IGNITE® almost daily, fell in love with it, and here she is now as their Education and Account Manager.