Retirement Statement

Dear Friends,

After 37 years of practicing exclusively feline medicine, it is time for me to retire from The Cat Clinic and start a new chapter in my life. Thank you for entrusting me with the medical care of your family felines and for being such wonderful clients. You have enriched my life in so many ways and I will miss seeing each and every one of you.

I am leaving you and your cats in incredibly capable hands. The Cat Cinic and Village Cat Clinic's teams are trained in "Cat Friendly" handling and they understand the needs of the feline in the clinic. The veterinarians on the team are focused on feline medicine, surgery, and dentistry and are dedicated and knowledgeable.

Dr Tina Hall was recently credentialed to write her ABVP Feline specialist board exams this November and I couldn't be prouder - it is an enormous undertaking to become board-certified. I am beyond delighted that the Cat Clinics will have a board-certified feline specialist on the team again in the near future.

Many thanks to all the veterinarians, veterinary technicians, veterinary assistants, receptionists, and managers who have called the cat clinics their professional home over the years. It takes a skilled unified team to practice feline medicine, and I have been blessed with the most incredible teams. I have also had the great fortune of mentorship throughout my career - a special thank you needs to be extended to Dr.Sandra Chernesky, Dr. Helmi Kaufman, Dr. Jon Francis, and Dr. Ed Fritsch.

Most importantly, I need to thank my family for their patience over the years. I thank them for understanding that veterinary medicine and feline medicine in particular was never a "job" to me but a calling. My Tom and our girls were always patient when the "one minute" to check a cat turned into one hour when as a family we stopped to do a late-night check on a patient and all the other blips and delays that occurred in our family life in order to help a cat or client. The patients, clients, and clinics will always have a part of my heart, but my family will always be what keeps my heart beating.

Missing all of you already, Dr Liz

Biography

Dr. Elizabeth O'Brien graduated from OVC in 1985 and became the only feline specialist in Hamilton when she became a Diplomate, American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in Feline Practice in 1999. Our "Dr. Liz" is the visionary for Cat Healthy, whose mission is to increase the value of owned, homeless, and feral cats in communities across Canada. Through her leadership, Dr. Liz brought together the five board-certified feline practitioners in Canada and industry partners to create the Cat Healthy initiative and resources including the Feline Preventive Healthcare Protocols. She has received numerous awards including the HBSPCA Jean Rumney Memorial Award, the Kitchener Waterloo Humane Society Humanitarian Award, and in 2014 was the recipient of the prestigious CVMA Small Animal Practitioner of the Year Award for Canada. As a life-long Hamiltonian, she continues to be an advocate for the cats in our community and country as well as enjoys caring for patients at both The Cat Clinic and Village Cat Clinic.