Our Staff
Veterinary Staff | Practice Management | Client Care Staff | Patient Care StaffVeterinary Staff
J. Burner, DVM, MS
Dr. Burner graduated with honors from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in 1996 and has been practicing veterinary medicine for over 14 years. He completed a one-year internship in cardiology and internal medicine at California Animal Hospital before entering into general practice. Most recently, Dr. Burner practiced in a feline specialty hospital in Orange County.
Dr. Burner has a great deal of experience and interest in ultrasonography, internal medicine and cardiology. He is committed to practicing quality medicine and strives to treat every animal as if it were his own. Dr. Burner lives in Oxnard with his wife, Kirsten, daughter, Sophia and their other "furry kids"; dogs - River and Kodi, cats - Felicia, Blaze, Ophelia, and Wobbles, their tortoise Stompy and parrotlet Dude. In his off-duty hours, Dr. Burner enjoys surfing, reading, and good food.
Mary Ashley Waikart, DVM
Dr. Mary Ashley Waikart was born and raised in Columbia, South Carolina. Dr.Waikart graduated from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine in June of 2007 after working in the veterinary field for a number of years.
While attending veterinary school, Dr. Waikart completed numerous externships to compliment the curriculum at UGA including an exotics externship in Rome, Italy; general small animal externship on the island of Oahu in Hawaii; and a referral small animal externship in Colorado. She was also chosen as one of only four veterinary students in the U.S. to work alongside veterinary specialists with dolphins and sea lions at the US Navy Marine Mammal Base in San Diego, California. During her externship at the US Navy Marine Mammal Base, Dr. Waikart fell in love with California and made it a goal to return and practice here. Dr. Waikart recently relocated to Ventura with her beloved dog, Cash (yes, he is named after Jonny Cash!). She has a strong interest in behavioral and internal medicine. In her spare time, Dr. Waikart enjoys surfing, good food, and spending time with her family and friends.
Consulting Veterinarians
Eric Wright, DVM, MS - Surgical Consultant
Dr. Eric Wright graduated from the Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences (CVMBS) in 1995. He completed an internship in Small Animal Medicine and Surgery at Southwest Veterinary Specialty Center in Tucson Arizona. Following his passion for quality care and surgery he completed a 3-year residency program at Virginia Tech Veterinary College in small animal surgery and received his Master of Science degree in the process. In 1999, he founded Pacific Veterinary Surgery, a small animal referral surgical hospital in Santa Barbara. In 2003, he merge his practice into and co-founded California Animal Referral and Emergency Hospital (CARE Hospital). He was the Chief of Surgery for five years at CARE before he founded Small Animal Surgical Associates, a veterinary surgical consulting group servicing Ventura County.
Dr. Wright's expertise includes orthopedic surgeries such as TPLO, TTA, total hip replacement, and fracture repair, soft-tissue surgeries such as major abdominal and thoracic surgeries, soft-palate resections, perineal hernia repair, and perineal urethostomy, minimally invasive surgeries such as arthroscopy, laparoscopy and thoracoscopy, and neurosurgery such as invertebral disc herniation, spinal cancer, and spinal fracture repair. He utilizes progressive pain-management protocols that provide complete pain control before, during and after surgery to promote rapid healing for his patients. We at Anacapa Animal Hospital are very proud to have him as an extended part of our veterinary staff.
[back to the top]Practice Management
Kirsten Burner, MBA - Hospital Adminstrator
[back to the top]Client Care Staff
Nancy: Receptionist
Nancy joined the Anacapa team in 2006. She is currently attending
Ventura College. In addition to her love of all animals, Nancy is also interested in fashion design.
She has a rabbit at home named "Lola Bunny" who she enjoys playing
with in her spare time. She also enjoys shopping, playing video games
and spending time with her boyfriend.
Shannon: Receptionist
Shannon has learned a lot since she joined the team in August of 2006. She is interested in either continuing a career in the veterinary field, or branching out into cosmetology. She has two pets at home, her orange tabby cat Bonkers and a cocker spaniel named Little Bear. She also likes to shop and spend time with her boyfriend of five years, Richard.
[back to the top]Patient Care Staff
Tracy: Patient Care Supervisor
Tracy was born and raised in Orange County, CA and moved to Ventura in 2008 to join the Anacapa team as Patient Care Supervisor. Tracy has been working as a veterinary technician since 1995 and became a Registered Veterinary Technician (R.V.T.) in 2001. In 2005, she was awarded the Outstanding RVT of the Year in Private Practice award by the California Veterinary Medical Association. She had worked for 12 years in a feline specialty hospital and has prior experience working in critical care and equine practices. In 2008, Tracy was one of the first RVTs in the nation to become a Veterinary Technician Specialists (VTS) in the area of small animal internal medicine. Tracy is also a member of a National Veterinary Response Team, which is a team of veterinary professionals that are specially trained to respond to national disasters where animal care is needed. One of her most recent deloyments was in response to Hurricane Katrina in 2005 where she was sent to the New Orleans area to assess damages to the animal agriculture community, treat search and rescue canines in the field, as well as to care for the thousands of pets displaced by this tremendous event. She was also deployed the following year to Georgia in preparation for Tropical Storm Ernesto. Tracy also volunteers her time and skills to Rural Area Veterinary Services, a non-profit organization that provides veterinary medical care to animals in remote areas of the country where veterinary care is not available. She has traveled to indian reservations in California, Arizona, New Mexico, Nevada, and even Alaska in order to provide medical care and preventative care education to the people and pets of these communities.
Tracy lives in Ventura with her husband Eric and their three dogs, Harry, Jake, Jackie, and their three cats, Nate, Jimmy, and Minky. In her spare time she enjoys photography, gardening, walking her dogs on the beach and watching movies.
Holly: Technician/ Boarding Lead
A Massachusetts native, Holly relocated to the Ventura area with her husband Rey in July 2007. Recent newlyweds, Rey and Holly, were relocated to California when Rey was told he would be stationed at Port Hueneme Naval base.
Holly has always loved animals and obtained an Associate Degree in Animal Care from Becker College. She most recently worked as an ICU technician for an Emergency Clinic in New Hampshire. She has five cats back home (Tiger, Smokey, Blacky, Oreo & Naila) that she misses desperately. Lucky for us, Holly transfers all of that love to the care she provides for our patients. When she's not at the hospital she enjoys spending time with her husband and going to the movies and beach.
Erika: Technician
Erika was born and raised in Ojai, Ca. She began working at Anacapa Animal Hospital in 2006 but moved out of state for a couple of years before returning to the sunshine of California. Erika lives with her husband, Jake and five and a half year old daughter, Bree in Ojai. She has a beautiful black lab named "Betty Bulldozer" and a cat, "Meow Matey."
Erika loves being able to help care for all of the patients at Anacapa Animal Hospital. She also loves the fact that she learns something new every day despite having worked in the veterinary field for over 7 years. In her spare time she enjoys camping, hiking, swimming and cooking.
Carolyn: Technician
Carolyn was born and raised in Orange County and move to Ventura as child with her family. She now lives in Ojai with her husband, Aaron, and their two children Lylah and Axel and her other "kid" Brutus, an American Bobtail cat.
Carolyn has always loved animals and started out her career volunteering at an all cat clinic here in Ventura when she was 15. She most recently worked at C.A.R.E. hospital, in Santa Barbara, where she assisted Dr. Downing as an oncology veterinary technician.
Carolyn always has a smile on her face when she comes to work. She loves her job and believes if "you love what you do, you'll never work a day in your life." She is currently working on becoming a Registered Veterinary Technician (R.V.T.).
Cara: Technician Assistant/Kennel Attendant
Cara was raised in Ventura and is currently attending Ventura City College. Growing up she was surrounded by pets. She currently lives with her two dogs, Maggie and Sadie, and her two cats, Molly and Sarah. Cara also has a horse named Zack
Cara wanted to work with animals "all day" as she's stated. This goal brought her to our clinic where she contributes her compasion and care to the patients of Anacapa Animal Hospital. Cara is fluent in German, loves to travel, enjoys reading and during her spare time can be found at the stables with her horse.
Kendre: Technician Assistant/Kennel Attendant
Kendre grew up in Ventura, Bakersfield, and Glendale. She currently lives in Ventura with her grandparents, sister and "Kloe" her blue Russian mix cat. Kendre has always wanted to work with animals and is excited about the experience she will gain at Anacapa Animal Hospital.
Kendre is currently attending Ventura College where she is working on her general studies. She hopes to transfer to Moorpark College and pursue the exotic animal training program in the next few years.
In her spare time, Kendre enjoys going to the beach, reading and spending time with friends and family.
Emma Technician Assistant/Kennel Attendant
Brittany Technician Assistant/Kennel Attendant
Haley: Technician Assistant/Kennel Attendant
[back to the top]
