Meet our Outstanding Veterinarian Team

At Martindale Animal Clinic we are proud to provide our patients with an outstanding veterinarian team who are passionate about veterinarian medicine and committed to providing outstanding service. All of our vets are dedicated to providing quality and compassionate care to our patients.

	Dr. Elizabeth McGill For as long as I can remember I have always wanted to be a veterinarian. I have not been disappointed. As a kid I had very understanding parents who shared their home with dogs, cats, birds, rabbits, gerbils, hamsters, snakes, hermit crabs and fish. Our pets were always part of the family and certainly enriched my childhood experiences.During high school and my early university years I worked two twelve hours shifts as the receptionist every weekend at the Toronto Veterinary Emergency Clinic. I loved every minute of it.In 1987 I graduated with a Science Degree in Biomedical Toxicology from the University of Guelph . In the fall of 1987 I realized my lifelong dream when I was admitted into the Ontario Veterinary College from where I graduated in 1992.When I was at the Ontario Veterinary College something unexpected happened. I met my husband and the love of my life, Dr. Jim Turpel. The first recollection I have of Jim is in a barn that was dusty and full of lots of spider webs. Over the tops of the heads of several dairy cattle I saw a tall, long haired, fellow veterinary student gently cuddling and cooing to a very small kitten in his arms. As long as I have known Jim, he has been true to that initial image (other than his hair is shorter and more grey now). We are now truly blessed with a beautiful daughter and ruckus causing son. Our other family members Petunia our forever feeling puppy lab/mastiff cross and Lion Heart, a brown tabby who sleeps every night with our daughter. The pets really complete our family. Upon graduation I worked at a small animal veterinary practice in Hamilton for two and a half years. I fondly remember those early years as a time where I was finally able to implement a craft that I had trained for so long to do. In 1994 I purchased Martindale Animal Clinic where it has now grown to a four doctor practice.I am tremendously proud of the quality of care that is offered to our patients. Pain management is a personal concern as it is so strongly linked to compassionate care. I have thoroughly enjoyed the relationships that have developed over the years with our clients. I often feel I am consulting with old friends.  I am one of the very fortunate few that has found  something that I truly love to do and when that happens you never really work a day in your life.
	Dr. Patricia Bailey I believe that I became a veterinarian because I appeared to have a fascination about how living things function from a very early age and because I enjoy helping animals, as well as people. Although growing up we had cats as pets, my parents would take me to the Experimental Farm in Ottawa and on family farm vacations where I would always be intrigued by the many animals.I went to Guelph University determined to become a veterinarian and was pleasantly surprised to be accepted into the program after my first year of a B.Sc.only to become the second youngest in my class.After graduating in 2002 I worked in Windsor for two years enjoying what small animal practice has to offer. Being too young to stay in one place however, I decided to uproot my life and move it to England (pets and all) where I worked for two years in Dorchester, Dorset, which proved to be an extremely rewarding experience (except for having to treat a poorly chicken on my first day of work, at a small animal clinic!). My fiancé and I lived in a small village in one of the most beautiful parts of England, but eventually we began to miss the Canadian seasons (ok I guess family too!). Our dog and cats thanked us again for our journey home.After arriving home and living out of a suitcase for a while I came to work at Martindale Animal Clinic in one of the most beautiful regions Canada has to offer. As hiking is one of my favourite pastimes the opportunity to explore various areas of the escarpment in this region is truly fantastic.I am passionate about working at Martindale Animal Clinic. Although my veterinary education has equipped me with the tools to treat countless diseases should they arise, I have found preventing many problems in our pets a much more satisfying achievement. There are several preventable problems, whether it is dental disease, obesity, behavioural disorders, or urinary diseases, and I have found that a little education goes a long way.
	Dr. Courtney Barnes Along with my colleagues, my love of animals goes back to early childhood. My family lived in the country where we were always surrounded by lots of pets and wildlife. Those early experiences gave me a profound appreciation for animals and nature. I have always wanted to work closely with animals, and have spent a long time working towards that goal.In 2002 I graduated from the University of Guelph with a Bachelor of Science degree in Wildlife Biology. I then moved out to Vancouver Island with my now-husband, Greg, and our cat Fozzy, where we lived in a log cabin in the woods. We spent our time hiking and camping and enjoying the natural beauty of the area. I was working in a chemistry lab, which paid the bills, but it was my volunteer work at a local veterinary clinic and at a wildlife rehabilitation center that I was really passionate about. Even after falling into the ocean trying to help rescue an orphaned baby seal, I knew what it was that I wanted to do. I applied and was accepted to the Ontario Veterinary Collage in 2004. Hard as it was to leave the idyllic beauty of Vancouver Island, back across the country we went.During veterinary school I developed an interest and aptitude for emergency medicine from spending summers working in the Ontario Veterinary College Intensive Care Unit. This experience continues to be a great benefit to me. Between long hours spent studying and working, Greg and I found time to get married in 2006.After I graduated in the spring of 2008 as a veterinarian, it was my husband’s turn to decide where we would live. We have always loved the Niagara region, and as he works in the wine industry it is the ideal place for us. We bought our first house here in St. Catharines and moved with our cats Fozzy and Fanny and our very energetic lab Milo.I began working at Martindale Animal Clinic almost immediately, and have loved every minute of it. I am learning so much every day. I have a special interest in internal medicine as well as nutrition, and have enjoyed applying all that I have learned. This clinic prides itself on practicing high quality, comprehensive, patient oriented medicine and I am honoured to be a valued member of the team.
	Dr. Krista Williams Born and rasied in Hamilton, I decided to complete a degree in Biology at McMaster University before heading to veterinary college. I knew that OVC was where I wanted to be but the years at McMaster gave me extra time with my horses. Although a city girl, most of my summers and and weekends growing up were spent at horse farms around Hamilton. After graduationg from the Ontario Veterinary College in Guelph in 2004, I spent three years sharing my time with a small animal practice in New York and a mobile equine practice in Niagara. Both positions were equally challenging and rewarding, but I finally had to make a choice to focus on one or the other. WIth the decision to sharpen my small animal practice skills came a move back to Hamilton to work at a small clinic on the mountain. I got the chance to work with some great pets and their owners who helped me to grow. I jumped at the chance to work at Martindale Animal Clinic because of its great reputation, variety of cases and the progressive attitude toward veterinary medicine that is shared by everyone who works here.I am continuing to expand my knowledge at Martindale and love having multiple veterinarians in clinic to consult with on difficult cases. I have a special interest in internal medicine, and rehabilitation therapy as well as a love of cardiology brought about by working with some amazing cardiologists while at OVC.In my spare time, I keep busy fixing up my old house, caring for my arthritic horse, Linus – and two fabulous cats, Barley and Hawkeye.