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THE TEAM

Dr. Eleanor Jones

Dr. Jones is the owner of Schmitt's Animal Hospital. What she loves most about her job is enjoying the human-animal bond and working with a great staff. Outside of work she enjoys kayaking, photography, and fresh water aquariums - fish and shrimp. Her four-legged family includes the larger dogs - Kara and Willow; the little dogs - Forrest and Karmal; and the cats: Suu Kyi, Eric, Orangey, and Tiger Lily. Her family includes the Lansing Spartans - Laura, Steve, Sarah and Chris as well as the Ann Arbor Wolverine - Josh. She graduated from Michigan State University in 1991 and has special interests in preventative medicine and dental care.

Dr. Linda Schmitt

Dr. Schmitt is an avid horse back rider. She spends her winter months in Arizona, riding her horses Alvin and Calvin. She also has a German Shorthair Pointer named Cheska and a German Shepherd named Alena. What she loves most about her job is the people, pets, and interesting stories and cases. She also enjoys the variability in each day's schedule. She graduated from Michigan State University in 1979 and opened Schmitt's Animal Hospital in 1984. Her special interests include reproduction, surgery, and preventative health.
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Dr. Ann Timmer

Dr. Timmer is very involved with dog shows. In her spare time she attends agility shows, conformation and obedience/rally events. She enjoys dog training, especially with her Boston Terriers - Victor, Eva, and Dot, and her Boxer - Cash. What she loves most about her job is that the days are never the same, she's always learning and she enjoys the interaction between clients and their pets. She graduated from Michigan State University in 2003 and has a special interest in reproduction.

Dr. Aimee Cochell

Bio to come.

Sarah DeYoung, LVT, VTS (CP-Canine/Feline)

Sarah graduated from MSU in 2001 with a bachelor's degree in Veterinary Technology. She has worked at Schmitt's Animal Hospital since graduation and is the Head Technician. In 2014 she earned her Veterinary Technician Specialty in Clinical Practice (Canine/Feline). She loves this career for the variety it offers, the ever changing medical advancements, developing relationships with clients and their pets, dentistry, puppy training, and hospitalized patient care. She and her husband have one daughter, one son, four cats, one black lab, one veiled chameleon, and one Paws puppy. In her spare time, Sarah and her family raise Paws with a Cause puppies. Check out her blog about assistance dogs here.
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Sara Jo Riley, LVT

Sara has been with Schmitt's Animal Hospital since her high school internship in 2006-2007. She worked as a receptionist and veterinary assistant while attending Baker College in Muskegon. She graduated in 2012 and has since been one of our Licensed Veterinary Technicians. She enjoys building bonds with clients and their pets, educating clients, and finding ways to stay organized. Sara and her husband David welcomed their daughter Sylvia in July 2016. They spend a lot of time with her parents and help watch their nieces Neecy and Deedee. They have two cats, Gracie Lou Crazy and Fox, and two Boxers: Kumi and Katter.

Shelly Van Dusen, LVT

Shelly has been working at Schmitt's Animal Hospital since November 2015. She graduated from Michigan State University with a BS in Veterinary Technology in 2007. Her favorite parts of being an LVT include dentistry and that every day is new and interesting with continuous opportunities to learn. Shelly lives with her husband, son, and daughter on a small farm with two horses, one pony, two dogs, one chinchilla, one cat, and a changing variety of other farm animals.

Kenzie Tuttle, LVT

Kenzie graduated from Baker College of Muskegon in June 2017. She has one daughter named Lea, two cats (Carter and Nero), a chinchilla, and a leopard gecko. She loves working with dogs and cats, but also loves working with exotics and wildlife - she spent a month in Africa working with cheetah conservation groups when she was in high school. Her hobbies are reading and listening to music.

Kari Holt, LVT​

Kari joined Schmitt's Animal Hospital in July 2019. She previously worked at a specialty and emergency hospital for a few years before deciding to try general practice, which she enjoys so far. She really likes surgery and internal medicine. She lives in Muskegon with her boyfriend of sixteen years (Bobby) and their pets. They have two very ridiculous cats named Jax and Little. She is also very interested in rescuing and caring for chinchillas. They recently adopted their fifth chinchilla, a 2-year-old female named Olive, and she is perfect.

Kathy Devos (Assistant)

Kathy has been a veterinary assistant at Schmitt's Animal Hospital since 2003. She was married to her husband Todd in 1986. They have four wonderful children. She enjoys walking, reading, watching movies, baking, gardening, and spending time with her family and friends.
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Kaitlin Rossi (Assistant, Social Media Manager, Inventory)

Kaitlin has been a part of the Schmitt's Animal Hospital team since July 2013. She graduated from Grand Valley State University with a BS in Biology in 2013. She and her husband have three dogs: Ira, Oakley, and Kingston; and one cat: Luna. Her favorite part of the job is being able to help people care for their furry family members. Outside of work she enjoys hiking with her family at the Saugatuck dunes, doing DIY projects around the house, and spending time with friends and family.

Rachael Potvin (Assistant)

Rachael started at Schmitt's Animal Hospital in January 2018. She has two dogs - Charlie and Hobbs, and two cats - Lucy and Toothless. Her favorite part about work is interacting with new animals everyday and constantly learning more about the veterinary field. Outside of work, she loves to read and spend time with her family and friends.

Kortney Kleyn (Assistant)

Kortney has been working at Schmitt's Animal Hospital since August 2019. In the future she plans on attending Michigan State to become a veterinarian. Her favorite part of the job is interacting with all the pets and learning new things about veterinary medicine. Outside of work she likes to ride her horse Duke, play with her new puppy Beau, and hang out with friends and family.

Kell​y Bailey (Reception)

Kelly has been at Schmitt's Animal Hospital since 2007 as a receptionist. She and her husband Mark were married in 2013 and they welcomed their twins Kynlee and Coyer in 2017. They also have two Labrador Retrievers - Rusty and Weston.
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Jodi Barrett (Reception)

Jodi has worked at Schmitt's Animal Hospital for twenty-five years. She is blessed with a wonderful husband, two children, two step-children (+ son-in-law), two granddaughters and three dogs. She loves to spend time with her sisters playing cards. She also likes to swim, hike, travel, and shop.

Sheryl Bylsma (Reception, Food Inventory)​

Sheryl has been with Schmitt's Animal Hospital since 1997. She enjoys the interaction with the pets, the interesting cases we see, and the constant opportunities to learn something new. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her husband and two sons. Her furry family members consist of a cat and a dog - both rescues. She also enjoys the outdoors, camping, gardening, and spending time with family and friends.

Beth Willcome (Reception)

Beth has been at Schmitt's Animal Hospital since July 2013. She and her husband Ben have two children - Annabel and Scott. She has four dogs, seven cats, three goats, four rabbits, and some chickens.

Caitie Sayer (Reception)

Caitie has been part of the receptionist team since March 2019. She enjoys meeting clients, their fur babies, and helping them feel more comfortable before their appointment. She loves to visit family in her hometown of Saginaw. She also enjoys spending quality time with her boyfriend, three cats: Rex, Shelly, & Gus, and rescue dogs Pippy & Jack. In her spare time she likes to make signs, woodburn, and cook/bake. Check out her Employee Spotlight here.

Jalyn Ferguson (Reception)

 Jalyn started at Schmitt's Animal Hospital in May 2019. She enjoys getting to know our clients and their pets. Some of her favorite things to do outside of work include horseback riding, PC gaming, and hiking. Her pet family consists of her cat Duncan, the family dog Buddy the Beagle, her horse Chance (who she's owned her entire life - literally!), and a few barn kitties. Check out her Employee Spotlight here.

Deb Morello (Office & Personnel Manager)

Deb has been with Schmitt's Animal Hospital since 1983 when the practice was started by Dr. Schmitt. She worked her way from receptionist to her current position as Office Manager in charge of staffing, scheduling and human resources. Deb lives in Wyoming, MI with her husband Joe, a senior cat named Charlotte and their rescue Labrador named Kenny. Deb and Joe have two children. Their son Andy, daughter-in-law Sandy, grandson Hank, and granddaughter Julia live in Santa Fe, NM. Their daughter Natalie and son-in-law Scott live in Grand Rapids.
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Jennifer Pilon ​(Business Manager)

Jennifer has been a part of our team since 1996. She lives with her husband, two daughters, three dogs, six cats, two dart frogs, a bearded dragon, and multiple fish. The best part of her job is working with such an amazing team!