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Our Staff
Doctor
Dr. Thomas (TNT) N Torhorst , DVM, Michigan State(1968) Dr Tom Torhorst is the owner and founder of North Shore Animal Hospital which was established in 1970. Tom graduated from Michigan State in 1968. He and his wife Jeanne have 3 children, two of whom are married. They have five grandchildren. The Torhorst’s have a Labrador Retriever, Annie and two cats, Radar and Patch. Tom is an avid hunter and fisherman. He enjoys photography, golf and being outdoors. He currently is quite active as a volunteer with the Racine Ducks Unlimited chapter as well as serving on the Board of Visitors at the University of Wisconsin Madison’s school of Veterinary Medicine. | 
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Dr. Linda Axnick , DVM Dr. Axnick is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin School of Veterinary Medicine and has been with us since 1999. Dr. Axnick and her husband Todd (also a veterinarian) live with 2 dogs and 1 cat. They have a Golden Retriever and a Flat Coated Retriever. Linda enjoys competing in agility with her dog Tully and they have done quite well. | 
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Dr. Heidi Jahn , DVM, University of Wisconsin Madison(1988)
Dr Heidi Jahn has been a part of North Shore Animal Hospital since 1991. Dr Jahn graduated from UW-Madison in 1988. She lives in Racine with her beloved cat BC (a stray that she took home from the clinic). Heidi enjoys reading, walking, and spending money at art fairs. She has the reputation of being a very caring veterinarian. | 
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Dr. (Al) Alvydas Arbas , DVM, Purdue University(1977)
Dr Al Arbas has been with North Shore Animal Hospital since 1992. He graduated from Purdue in 1977. Al, his wife Anne, and their son Adam live in Racine with their cat Louie, who was abandoned at NSAH. The Arbas family also share their home with a handsome Golden Retriever named Ace who keeps them busy throwing the ball and taking walks. Dr Arbas has many interests, among them are fishing, travel, singing, and cooking. | 
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Dr. Chantil Ruud , DVM Dr. Chantil Ayres-Ruud graduated from Colorado State University in 1997. Dr Ayres works part time at North Shore Animal Hospital on some Saturdays and when other Doctors are out of the office. She and her husband Chris have three children: Jacob, Zachary, and Caitlyn. They have one horse Flicka, 3 dogs - Brandy, Maggie, and Breezy, 4 cats - Jasmine, Ebony, Nala, and Desiree. Besides caring for her pets and children Dr Ayres enjoys dancing, running, horseback riding, reading, and scrapbooking. Chantil says her practice motto is to practice quality medicine emphasizing communication and excellence! She is especially interested in preventative medicine and dermatology. | 
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Dr. Alice Van Maastricht , DVM from UW-Madison Dr. Alice Van Maastricht comes to us from the Animal E.R. of Racine and Kenosha. After many years of emergency work she has decided to work regular hours. She was in the Army Reserve Veterinary Corps and has a DVM from UW-Madison. Alice and her son Daniel have three cats (Meeko, Snuggle Puss, and Willie) and 12 birds. When not practicing veterinary medicine Dr Van Maastricht enjoys geocaching, biking and traveling. We are excited to have another experienced, compassionate veterinarian as an addition to our team. | 
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Management
Mrs. Lori Jensen , Practice Manager - Bachelors of Art in Management - President, Wisconsin Practice Managers Association.
Lori Jensen is our Practice Manager. She has been with us for over 23 years. Lori has done every job at the clinic and has been involved in lots of continuing education. She is a past President of the Wisconsin Veterinary Practice Managers Association and currently serves as President of the Wisconsin Border Collie Rescue. She is always happy to discuss concerns with our clients. Lori is very involved in the community serving on several animal related boards. Lori has a house full of pets, besides fosters, she has 5 Border Collies and 3 cats. She also has two daughters Myla who is 4 and Eden who is 2. | 
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Mr. Patrick A Torhorst , MIS Degree - Milwaukee School of Engineering, Grew Up Working @ NSAH Patrick is the youngest son of practice owner, Dr. Thomas Torhorst. He is responsible for the clinic's Local Area Network and Web Presence. Patrick works for NSAH as a contactor. His full time job is at Quest Continuing Education Solutions( www.questce.com) in Brookfield, WI as their Director of IT. Quest is a national povider of Continuing Education for the financial services industry. Patrick considers the clinic his second home and the people that work their his extended family.
Mrs. Suzanne Torhorst , A/R, A/P, Payroll Suzanne and her husband Chris (Dr Torhorst's eldest son) have three beautiful children. They also have a yellow Labrador named Riley and two cats that they have adopted from HOPE Safehouse. Suzanne helps us keep our finances, vaccination and exam reminders and payroll in order. In her spare time she likes scrapbooking.
Technician
Ms. Teri Tomlinson CVT , Certified Veterinary Technician
Teri has been a member of the North Shore team since 1989. She is a State licensed, certified Veterinary Technician. Teri and her husband Don live in Big Bend with their yellow Labrador, Boz. Teri happily drives 45 minutes to get to work. She enjoys working with people and animals. Teri is especially interested in assisting in surgery. |
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Ms. Sally Marianyi CVT , Certified Veterinary Technician | Sally is a new addition to the North Shore Animal Hospital team. She came from an emergency/specialty hospital where she worked as a 3rd shift critical care nurse and worked in general practice for 7 years prior to that. Sally and her husband Sandor have a son and a daughter, as well as 2 crazy Boxers, a lab mix, 5 spoiled cats, and a Guinea Pig - all adopted through various rescue organizations. Sally enjoys all aspects of veterinary medicine and is looking forward to meeting you and your pets. | 
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Assistants
Mrs. Kim Jacobson
Kim Jacobson has been with us for almost 19 years. Kim has done almost every job at the hospital and currently is coming in early to check in our surgery patients before spending the day assisting the Doctors. Kim and her husband, Chuck have 3 cats and a dog. Kim is a real cat lover and spends lots of time cuddling and playing with the cats in her care. We call her the Cat Whisperer because she can often handle cats that the rest of us cannot touch. | 
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Ms. Joy Meiller No Biographical Data Is Currently Available.
Betsy Brase
Betsy is a transplant from Iowa who has a degree in Animal Ecology with an emphasis in wildlife. After a year of working at the Wisconsin Humane Society and the Milwaukee Zoo, Betsy decided she would like to try working in a veterinary hospital. Betsy lives with her three cats in an apartment nearby so she is close to work for late evening visits. Betsy enjoys working with all kinds of pets and people.
Sarah Elwell , Certified Veterinary Assistant | Sarah joins our staff in June of 2008 as a veterinary assistant. She is a Certified Veterinary assistant with a degree from Apollo College in Portland, OR. Sarah's previous employer described her as delightful person and employee. | 
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Lindsay Soine , graduate from Veterinary Technician School | Lindsay is a former employee who is back after getting married and attending veterinary technician school. We are excited to add Lindsay to our team and look forward to having another certified veterinary technician (CVT) on staff. Lindsay and her husband just moved back home to Racine from Arkansas where she was in school and he was in the Air Force. They are happy to be back near their families and brought an assortment of animals with them. | 
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Chris LaCanne | Chris returns to North Shore Animal Hospital after 10 years. Chris will be working Saturdays and occasional fill vacation fill in. Chris and his wife have 2 sons and 2 cats. | 
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Reception
Mrs. Alice Applin Alice Applin has been employed at North Shore Animal Hospital since 1990. She and her husband Glenn have one grown son Harlan. Alice shares her home with three Australian Sheepdogs, Blaze, Chaos, and Deuce. She has owned a variety of dogs over the years. Alice enjoys training and showing her dogs in obedience and agility. She has many years of experience as a dog trainer at the Greater Racine Kennel Club. She uses this experience to help our clients with new dogs or puppies to get started in their relationships. Alice is always happy to answer dog training questions. | 
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Mrs. Barbara Olson Barb has been at North Shore Animal Hospital for more than 14 years. She and her husband Scott have three children, the youngest Murphy will be 18 this year. Barb trains and breeds dogs and current owns two Pomeranians. Barb has many years of training experience and is always happy to give training advice or help to clients in need.
Ms. Michelle Erdman Michelle and her fiance Jim have 5 children between them. Besides the house full of kids they have a Chihuahua named Pup and a Bengal cat named Scrapper. Michelle enjoys working with the animals and the people that own them. | 
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Claudia Widen | Claudia and her husband have 2 adult children, 2 English Springer Spaniels and a brand new grand son. Claudia is excited to work in an animal hospital after years of working at a desk. She is interested in helping both our clients and patients have a pleasant experience at North Shore Animal Hospital. | 
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Kennel
Ms. Megan Wilson
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Megan is a college student who is working as our head kennel and floor person. She is a hard worker who enjoys spending time with the animals in our hospital and boarding kennel. She shares her home with a dog named Belle that she adopted from HOPE Safehouse. |
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Ms. Megan Mertins Megan is our morning kennel cleaning person, arriving as early as 4 AM some mornings. She ensures that all animals in our care are fed and well cared for. Megan also is responsible for keeping the grounds clean. Megan lives with a blind dog named Gidget that she adopted when her owners could not care for her. Megan is a huge fan of sharks and has even been swimming with a great white. | 
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Mr. Aaron Block Aaron is a recent high school graduate who loves working with animals. He is gentle and kind with the animals that he cares for in our hospital. Aaron enjoys cars and spends some of his free time caring for his car. | 
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Mrs. Kathy Van Parys | Kathy is new to North Shore Animal Hospital in 2007 and we are excited to have her. She is a volunteer from HOPE Safehouse who cleans and cares for their adoptable and resident cats each morning. At HOPE they refer to Kathy as the cat minister and we are happy to have her animal expertise here too. | 
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Laura Muzia Laura is a high school student who cleans our clinic and cares for our boarding and hospitalized animals in between running track, singing in the choir, and playing in the band. Laura lives with her family which includes a Golden Retriever named Buster and a Labrador Retriever named Scout.
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