After working for Florida Hospital for 30 years Terry Rubinstein has joined Park Avenue Animal Hospital as our Office Manager. With her experience in nursing and her love of animals, Terry made the decision to move from human medicine to animal medicine when her husband Rick opted to open a new practice in Apopka so he could be closer to home. Of course having the opportunity to work along side her husband of 29 years did not influence her decision in any way!

Terry loves people and animals and her care and compassion for both, is endless and heartwarming. Her favorite things are reading and being with her family and friends, and taking care of the family's numerous pets that include but is not limited to: dogs, cats, hamster, bird, 3 horses and one mule colt. Be sure to say Hi to Terry when you visit she would love to chat.

Amber DiSalvatore has been in the veterinary field since 1999.  Her senior year at Apopka High School allowed her to shadow at Umatilla Animal Hospital where she was able to observe routine care, surgeries, and traveled to farms for routine farm calls, including tusk trims on pot belly pigs, all the way up to castrating bulls. After graduation, she worked as a technician and receptionist for various animal hospitals in central Florida, while taking courses for Veterinary Practice Management at Saint Petersburg College.

Jessica Wilson has been in veterinary medicine since 2002. She has served a variety of positions at a variety of hospitals across the state of Florida, and has been a member of the Park Avenue Animal Hospital since 2008.  Her passion for animal care began at an early age and after several years in technology-based positions, made the switch to animal medicine,  and has not looked back since. Jessica’s personal interests in animal medicine include client education, animal behavior, senior care and dental health.

She also supports rescue groups and fostered and bottle-raised Park Avenue Animal Hospital’s very own Hospital kitties, Hamlet and Ophelia.  She plays several roles around the hospital, including receptionist, technician, computer repair and maintenance, and even cat grooming! She has a casual personality and an ability to communicate with clients, as well as a love for all animals – Large, small, furry, scaly, or feathery, two legs, four legs, hooves, paws or claws! Her passion to learn the hows-and-whys of animal medicine, coupled with her expansive knowledge of computers and general technology makes her an asset to the Park Avenue team.

Barbara Blow has been a veterinary receptionist for seven years. After owning her own business in the Apopka community for over 23 years, she decided it was time for a change of pace. A love for animals and people alike inspired her to become a veterinary receptionist. 

She became a member of the Park Avenue Animal Hospital team in 2008. She is a wife, mother, and grandmother, and utilizes those life experiences to better connect and communicate with clients of all ages.  She enjoys meeting new clients and her charisma and energy is an inspiration throughout the office.  Barbara is the proud pet-mommy of Briar, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, and Shadow, a very appropriately-named cat.

Alex Meza was born and raised in Peru and moved to Florida in 2001. A lifelong animal lover, she has dedicated her life to working with animals, learning about behavior, care, and medical issues and campaigning against abandonment and animal cruelty. She has worked as a kennel technician in both Peru and Florida and attended film school with the goal of producing animal documentaries.

Her dream is to travel the world helping to contribute to wildlife conservation through raised awareness. Alex is fluent in Spanish and joins the Park Avenue Animal Hospital team as a receptionist, and as a excellent translator and communicator, she helps our connection to the community grow even stronger. Along with her fiancé, Alex has rescued a horse, four cats, and three dogs.
 

Carol Church has been a member of the veterinary community for over 12 years. She knew her calling from an early age was to work with animals and got her start as a kennel technician in her home state of Connecticut. After relocating to Florida in 2001 she decided to take her career to the next level, attending the Florida Institute of Animal Arts. After  graduation she set out to establish herself as a certified veterinary assistant, working for Banfield, the Pet Hospital in Casselberry. In 2003 she made the move to Tuscawilla Oaks Animal Hospital in Oviedo, where she met Dr. Rick and Dr. John and began building a solid working relationship and gaining the experience needed to help her attain her next goal, becoming a certified veterinary technician.

Carol is now enrolled in the Saint Petersburg College, pursuing her AS Degree in Veterinary Technology.   She relocated to Apopka shortly before Park Avenue Animal Hospital opened its doors, and has been a member of the team since 2008. As Lead Technician she oversees the rest of the tech staff, leading by example and ensuring that everyone on the team continues to reach toward the common goal of providing only the best care for both pet and owner. Her personal passion for animal care includes focuses on client education regarding nutrition, rehabilitation and animal behavior, though she is well-rounded and knowledgeable about many aspects of small animal medicine. She loves all animal types, as evidenced by the motley crew of pets in her personal care, including two dogs, a cat, a rat, and a catfish.

Sharon Merrick is a graduate of the Florida Institute of Animal Arts, and is presently in her final semester at Penn Foster college, where she is pursuing an AS degree in veterinary technology. She has been in veterinary medicine since 2002, when she decided to turn her love and passion for animals into a career. She has worked in small animal veterinary offices as well as small animal specialty centers, and has been with Park Avenue Animal Hospital since 2008.

Sharon is the proud mommy of two beautiful children, and a variety of pets including dachshunds and Chihuahuas, as well as three cats. She also volunteers for two local animal rescue groups, occasionally fostering pets that need temporary homes. Her goal is to continue to excel in the veterinary field, and her dedication, enthusiasm, and drive to provide a high standard of care to our clients and their pets only helps to pave the way. 

Mary Varner has been an animal lover since an early age.  After the birth of her daughter, and playing mommy to her Chihuahua, Luis, Mary decided to pursue a career in animal medicine. She enrolled in the Florida Institute for Animal Arts and graduated in 2008.She has been with Park Avenue Animal Hospital since then.

As animals cannot speak for themselves, Mary dedicates herself to providing a voice and understanding for them.  She is a caring and compassionate technician with a love for life and for her work. She also puts her caring touch to good use with pets in the kennel, helping to keep the environment clean and comfortable and offering lots of extra TLC to every pet that comes to stay. She strives to ensure the comfort and good health of each and every pet as if it were her own.

Becky Deighan has been a member of the veterinary community since 2000. She joined the Park Avenue Animal Hospital team in September 2009 and we are glad to have her experienced mind and compassionate heart as part of the PAAH family.

Her grandmother’s golden retriever, who only had one eye, helped spark an interest in animal health that started at an early age and followed her into adulthood. Becky is passionate about animal nutrition, believing that proper nutrition and exercise are critical to ensuring a good quality of life for pets of all ages.  In addition to all the pets she loves on at Park Avenue Animal Hospital , Becky has a black lab and two cats at home. In her off time she has a love and talent for the visual arts, and enjoys painting and drawing. She also enjoys fishing and spending time outdoors.

Park Avenue Animal Hospital’s resident cats were born 4/16/08. They were rescued at 6 days old when a Good Samaritan found them abandoned by their mother. They were part of a litter of five kittens, however three had passed away. With no mother to nurse and nurture them, they were in desperate need of human intervention. Young kittens need warmth and nutrition, and they need to be fed every few hours in order to thrive.

Since many rescues had already become over-filled with kittens, Park Avenue Animal Hospital’s very own Jessica took them in and bottle-fed them. Hamlet was difficult at first, not taking well to being bottle fed. In order to get him the nutrition he needed to thrive, Hamlet  needed to be tube-fed for several days, which involved pushing a tiny, fine tube down his throat and syringing formula directly into his stomach. After eventually finding the right formula for both of them, Hamlet and Ophelia began to grow like weeds! A little love, some quality nutrition, and a whole lot of sleepless nights helped them grow up to be the strong, healthy cats they are now. When Park Avenue Animal Hospital opened in August of 2008 they became permanent residents of the facility and now provide hours of entertainment for the staff. Since cats generally have a universal blood type, Hamlet and Ophelia also act as resident blood donors whenever necessary.
Come and visit Hamlet and Ophelia today!