Meet Our Veterinary Staff
At Jonesville Animal Hospital, our veterinary staff have always been chosen based on their warm, nurturing approach to pet health care and genuine passion for helping others. We know how meaningful it is to build lasting, trusting relationships with local pet families in Newberry, Jonesville, Tioga, Alachua and Gainesville, FL. That's why our veterinary hospital is committed to cultivating an environment that is comforting, compassionate and personal for every visitor. We hope you take a moment to become acquainted with our veterinary team and stop in to visit our animal clinic firsthand very soon!
Leadership Team
Christina Hospital Director
Christina joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team as a receptionist in June 2012 with 14 years of experience in the veterinary field. She has a Chinese Crested named Harold, a Chi-Weenie named Trooper, an American Bulldog Mix named Clyde and a French Bulldog named Yoda. Christina enjoys spending time with her family, being outdoors, cooking and watching sports.
Melanie Client Service Specialist Director, Client Liaison, Social Media and Public Relations Director
Melanie has been a part of the Jonesville Animal Hospital team since March of 2008. When it comes to client service and connection, she is one of the best! Melanie has two children and a house full of papillons! You will often see her five Papillons, Eden, Ivy, Luna, Nova and Stormie greeting you at the front desk. To say her life is all things Papillon is an understatement! Melanie enjoys gardening, landscaping, and photography, as well as spending time with her children and her dogs.
Emily HR Administrator, IT and Inventory Director
Emily has worked with Dr. Vliet and Dr. Lerman for over 20 years after moving to Florida from Athens, Georgia. Over the years she has enjoyed working in many areas of the hospital and became our practice manager in 2014. She is truly proud to be a part of such a caring and compassionate team. Emily also loves being a mom to her daughter, Gaelyn, and spending time with her best friend, Groot (pictured above).
Alia Outpatient Team Operations Coordinator
Alia joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team in July 2018. She was raised here in Gainesville. Growing up she was very involved in athletics. She danced at Pofal Dance Studios for eight years and trained for professional water skiing for seven years. She also swam on the Buchholz swim team for two years. Alia has always had a love for animals and volunteered at a local veterinary clinic while in high school. She started working professionally as a Veterinary Technician when she moved to Southern California. She continued to do so for many years while also becoming involved in casting commercials in Los Angeles. Alia enjoys cooking, gardening, any opportunity to be in the water, and going to Disney World as often as possible. She has three pets at home; Shelly the leopard gecko, Monty the ball python, and Bisquit the couch-potatoest lab mix ever.
Shelby Inpatient Team Coordinator
Shelby joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team in September of 2020, but previously worked as a Veterinary Assistant in Vermont. She graduated from Southern Vermont College with a Bachelor of Science in 2017. Shelby moved to Gainesville from Bennington, Vermont to follow her dream of becoming a Veterinarian. She has two Golden Retrievers back home. Her hobbies include clogging and any outdoor activities.
Client Service Specialists
Alyssa
Alyssa joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team in September 2022. She is a Florida native and graduated in 2020 from the University of Tampa with a Bachelor's degree in Biology. She has many years of experience volunteering with animals at places such as Big Cat Rescue and the Humane Society. Alyssa also has a couple years of experience working as a client care specialist at another animal hospital. She has been an animal lover since she was a little kid and rescues animals regularly. She currently has many four-legged family members, including four Chihuahuas, a Pit Mix, a Doberman Mix and two cats. During her free time, she enjoys relaxing with her animals, reading, and spending time with family.
Angela
Coming Soon...
Tiffany
Tiffany works at USGS Research Center as a biologist, but I stay on as an occasional part of the JAH team! She joined the JAH team in July 2018 after moving to Florida from New Jersey. She has been a huge animal lover her whole life, so naturally was drawn to the veterinary field. She is pursuing veterinary school, but if it doesn’t work out, is also pursuing a career in herpetology (the study of reptiles and amphibians). Tiffany loves spending time with all of her pets at home. She has two dogs, four cats, guinea pigs, amphibians, and a lot of reptiles! She enjoys nature walks, Disney, crafts, collecting and caring for plants, and taking her dogs everywhere she can.
Outpatient Team
Christina
Christina is originally from south Florida and recently moved from Miami to Gainesville. She has had all types of pets from newts and fish to Guinea pigs, cats and dogs. She has an Associate of Arts Degree from Palm Beach State and wishes to pursue further schooling in the medical field. She has been in the veterinary field since 2020, and is thrilled to continue her work as a Technician at Jonesville Animal Hospital. She has two spoiled cats at home, Artist and Raven. She enjoys spending time with her family, cooking, gardening and anything to do with crochet and crafting.
Gianna
Coming Soon...
Jacqueline
Jacqueline was born in Cheyenne, WY, but moved around to various states including MI, FL and NC, the last two where she was able to work with animal rescues and veterinary practices. Overall, she has been in the animal field for about 7 years professionally, but has been around animals her whole life, growing up with them and volunteering at local shelters after school. Her dream is to become a veterinarian one day and for now has completed her Bachelor's of Science from Indian River State College. Her next steps are getting into veterinary school and then even specializing in both nutrition and rehabilitation. Jacqueline spends her free time with her Fiancé and dogs; Hope, Hershey, Hercules, and Hermione (Chihuahua, two large breed mix mutts that she loves dearly, and a little poodle/terrier mix). She is also growing a butterfly garden and a separate vegetable garden in her backyard. Lastly, she enjoys hanging out with her friends and family.
Samanntha
Samanntha joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team in August 2020. She was born and raised in Gainesville. She is no stranger to athletics and started playing volleyball at the age of five and continued throughout college. In college she won a Division 2 National Championship in volleyball and was nominated as MVP of the tournament in 2018. In 2020 she graduated with a bachelor’s degree in Biology from the University of Tampa and plans to attend Veterinary School in the near future. She has been involved with a local shelter in Gainesville since 2014. She has two dogs, named Copper and Beau, and kitty named Nova. In her spare time, Samanntha enjoys fishing, water sports, adventures with her dog, and spending time with the family and friends.
Savannah
Savannah joined Jonesville Animal Hospital in August of 2022. Ever since she was little, she has had a passion for animals. She started showing livestock when she was 8 years old and from then on she knew she wanted to become a veterinarian. While in high school she started working as a Veterinary Technician at a non-profit animal clinic in Tampa, FL. She then moved to Gainesville, FL in 2021 to pursue the dream of becoming a veterinarian. In her free time, she is usually spending time with her dog Penny, doing any outdoor activities and watching football.
Will
Will joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team in July 2017. He was born in Houston, TX but has lived in Gainesville for most of his life. Will grew up around animals from an early age and was raised by parents who are also committed animal lovers and former long-time employees of the Houston Zoo. He began working in veterinary practices in high school. Aside from his love for animals, Will is a passionate musician. He graduated with an Associates degree in music from Sante Fe College and has been performing and recording with bands since 2010. He is currently the guitarist for a nine-piece soul band "The Savants of Soul" who tours and performs regularly. He has two animals at home, a cat named Harley and a dog named Polly Pocket.
Inpatient Team
Heather
Heather has worked in the veterinary field for about 8 years, first as an adoption counselor at Gainesville Pet Rescue, then as a veterinary technician in North Carolina. Most recently, she worked at the University of Florida's Small Animal Hospital as a shift lead in their ECC PCW department. Heather also has a love of nature and previously worked as a forester in Louisiana. She enjoys teaching and learning new skills. She is excited to continue her career as a technician with the fantastic team at Jonesville Animal Hospital! In her free time, she loves being with her family, pets, and in the outdoors. She looks forward to meeting you and your pets!
Makayla
Coming Soon...
Stephen
Stephen joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team in March of 2017. He grew up in Melbourne, Florida but moved to Gainesville for college and has stayed here ever since. Stephen has rescued two stray cats while working here, Oliver and Leo, who are always very spoiled with treats and toys. In his free time, he enjoys spending time with friends and family, going to the beach, playing games, and the outdoors.
Tania
Tania is originally from Honduras. She has two sons. She and her family moved from New York to High Springs in 2018. Tania has four dogs, three cats, eight chickens, and a duck...so far. She has always loved being around animals, and has a soft spot for rescues. All of her furry (and some of the feathered) children are adopted. In 2019 she started fostering puppies and helping out during adoption events for a rescue group in Gainesville. Not long after that, she began volunteering at Lake City's Humane Society. While helping at LCHS, Tania realized she wanted to do even more to help animals, so she began her journey to become a Certified Veterinary Technician. Tania enjoys working with our great team and learning new skills. On the rare occasion she actually finds some free time, she enjoys reading and grooming her furry kids.
Clerical Team
Julie
Julie came to the U.S. from Nottingham, England in 2006. She worked at a small animal practice in Miami for seven years prior to relocating to Gainesville in 2014. She joined the Jonesville Animal Hospital team as a receptionist in 2015, tried to retire later that year, but returned November of 2016 to work behind the scenes in data record management. Julie shares her home with five rescued pets: two dogs and three cats. In her spare time, she enjoys crafting on her Cricut machine, catching up with her friends and family in the UK (a daughter, son and four grandchildren) via FaceTime, and exploring new sights in and around Gainesville with her family and friends.
