Mark spent most of his free time as a child chasing reptiles around northern Arizona and southern California. He joined the U.S. Army after high school which gave him the opportunity to chase reptiles around the southeastern United States, Europe, and the Middle East. Mark has cared for and raised many species of reptiles over the years. Although reptiles are his primary interest, he has a strong passion for all exotic pets. He currently spends most of his free time fishing at Arizona’s desert lakes or photographing rattlesnakes.
Staff
Regional Hospital Administrator
Hospital Manager (Denver)
Joy was born and raised in the very small town of Cut Off, Louisiana. She's pretty much as Cajun as they come and is from a family of commercial shrimpers. She moved to Lafayette, Louisiana in 2011 to pursue a career in veterinary medicine. There she was able to get hands on experience in small animal mixed practice, emergency, and specialty medicine. In 2017 she became an RVT. In 2019 she joined our team as a RVT. She later became the manager at the phoenix location and in 2022 moved to Colorado to manage our new location.
Executive Assistant
Lisa's had a love for animals ever since she was a little girl. She always knew she wanted to work with animals. Lisa began working with exotics when she lived in California. She continued her passion for working with exotics when she moved to Arizona and found us in 2018.
Director of Human Resources
Kendra graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a Bachelor’s degree in biology and later became a Certified Veterinary Technician. She worked for a veterinary dermatology specialty practice, where she had the opportunity to work with several animals at the Phoenix Zoo. She has also rehabilitated sick and injured raptors and other birds while volunteering at Liberty Wildlife. Her interest in exotic pets and wildlife/zoo animals led her to a career in exotic pet medicine.
Administrative Assistant
Katrina was born in Knox, Indiana and moved to Arizona in 2005. She has always had an interest in animals and obtained her Associates in Arts from Mesa Community College in May 2016 where she cared for all the exotic animals (a kangaroo rat, a pocket mouse, two salamanders, two desert toads, various constrictor snakes, two mud turtles, a crayfish, a black widow, a tarantula, desert tortoises, a bass, a chuckwalla, and desert iguanas) that Mesa Community College Life Science Department had.
Public Relations/Social Media Manager
Malik was born and raised right here in Tucson, Arizona. He began his content creation journey on YouTube in 2019. When Covid hit, he focused on his craft and built up his brand as an influencer, amassing a following of over 200,000 people. He studied with the leading social media networks, learning the ins and outs of social media management from their own platform developers. Malik is a trusted voice for influencer marketing and has worked with some of the largest brands in the world, including NZXT, Epic Games, and Fabletics.
Director of Inventory & Vendor Management
Ron grew up in the beautiful Pocono Mountains of Pennsylvania and ventured to Arizona for warmer weather over 20 years ago. His continued love for the Sonoran Desert and the Superstition Wilderness Area is what still keeps him here. Ron joined AZEAH in 2015 as Inventory Manager. He keeps us well supplied with all of our hospital needs as well as maintaining healthy relationships with all of our vendor partners. In his spare time he enjoys mountain biking, backpacking in the Superstition Mountains, and spending time with his wife and two sons.
Receptionists
Natalie was born and raised on Vancouver Island, off the west coast of Canada. She found her way to Colorado in 2015 and has been working in the animal care field since 2017. She has a lifelong love of pets and has nearly never been without at least a couple of furry friends in her home. Currently, Natalie and her husband are owned by five cats and two dogs; she has also been privileged in the past to care for rabbits, guinea pigs, hamsters, and rats. In her spare time Natalie can frequently be found crocheting or "attempting" to teach her dogs new tricks.
Emily was born and raised in Colorado and started working with animals as soon as she could. She started out working at an alpaca farm as a teenager and later went on to work in the veterinary industry as a kennel technician, receptionist, veterinary assistant, veterinary technician, and a scribe. She has always adored animals and grew up with farm animals, exotics, and small animals. All her favorite childhood memories involve her pets.
Scott was born and raised the northern part of Colorado. Growing up, his household had a wide variety of animals including 3 parakeets, named Sky, Jay, and Casper. Also, a toad named Oscar, a black cat named shadow, and a fish in his living room.
He has mostly worked with dogs in various settings including Daycare and veterinary reception/assistant positions and has always preferred being surrounded by animals. While in pursuit of a degree in social work, Scott has been on a journey to gain firsthand experience with domestic animals in hopes to incorporate them into his career.
Ray has nearly a decade of experience in the animal industry. They have worked in shelters and vet clinics throughout their home state of Mississippi, as well as a five year stint managing a pet supply store. They have been obsessed with animals from a very young age.
Lead Technicians
Mary was born and raised in upstate New York before moving to Colorado in 2021. She grew up around dogs and cats, but her interest in exotic animal medicine began after adopting a hedgehog during her early twenties. Since then, she has gone on to earn her Associate’s in Applied Science in Veterinary Technology at LaGuardia Community College in Long Island City, NY. After working with dogs and cats for a few years after graduation, Mary was excited to accept a position at Colorado Exotic Animal Hospital to pursue her interest in avian and exotic animals.
Registered Veterinary Technician
Chelsea was born and raised in South Carolina. She has a Bachelor’s in Wildlife Biology and Rehabilitation from Lees McRae College in North Carolina and an Associate’s in Veterinary Technology from Bel-Rea in Denver, Colorado. She has always had a passion for working with exotic animals and wildlife especially birds of prey, so she is very excited to expand her learning in avian medicine and surgery. Currently, she lives in Denver with her three cats and a red tail boa. On her days off you can find her hiking or enjoying local music venues.
Victoria originally grew up in the urban jungle that is south Florida. Before graduating from Florida State University with a bachelor’s degree in biology, she discovered her passion for working with animals at the Tallahassee Museum, the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission, and the Goose Creek Wildlife Center. She then moved to Colorado for a change of scenery shortly after receiving her degree.
August was raised in Central Florida surrounded by her favorite animal, rabbits! She moved to Colorado Springs in 2019 and to Denver in 2023. She has practiced in dog/cat/exotic animal hospitals (including with Disney World's birds in Florida) but has always enjoyed the exotic medicine the most! She has an Associates in Veterinary Technology from St. Petersburg College in Florida.
Veterinary Assistants
Maddi was born and raised in Denver, Colorado spending a majority of her childhood collecting and learning about creatures of all kinds. She moved to Arizona in pursuit of her passion for animals, working towards obtaining her degree in conservation biology at Arizona State University. During her time in Arizona, she has provided veterinary care for injured and sick birds of prey through the Wild at Heart raptor rescue and began her journey at Arizona Exotic Animal Hospital in Mesa.