Peter De Waal, DVM
Dr. De Waal is a 1982 graduate of The Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine. He loves all sports and is currently immersed in mountain biking.

He has been married to Merrilee for over twenty years; she is a residential Real Estate Agent. Their son, Kyle, loves sports and entertainment, plays hockey and is a recent graduate of Fort Lewis College .

Dr. De Waal's goal is to be devoted and passionate about his family, friends, work, spirituality, and life in general.

Rex Johnson, DVM
Dr. Johnson is a 1997 graduate of Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine. He practiced in Oklahoma and Texas before moving to Colorado in January 2004.

Dr. Johnson has a special interest in surgery, cardiology, and exotic animal medicine.

Dr. Johnson and his wife Shannon are the proud parents of a baby girl named Teagan. Their furry kids include Courage the Boxer, Gunner the Lab mix, and Jagger the cat.

Outside of the clinic, Dr. Johnson enjoys snowboarding, backpacking, cycling, golf, and most other sports. He and Shannon enjoy going to the movies and concerts together.

Roman Dye, DVM
Dr. Dye came to Westside Animal Hospital in the summer of 2006 from Oklahoma , where he earned degrees from The University of Oklahoma, Southwestern Oklahoma State University , and Oklahoma State University for Veterinary Health Sciences.

Dr. Dye and his wife, Deanna, have two adorable sons, Dylan and Lennon, who keep them both busy at home. They are also the proud parents of a dog, Squiggie and a cat, Scoobey.

Deanna regularly bakes wonderful goodies for the Westside staff, which we all look forward to. They enjoy spending their spare time with family and friends.

Leslie Ornelas, Hospital Manager
Leslie has been employed at Westside Animal Hospital since February 1997.

She was in the communications field for nineteen years before leaving the "corporate world" to move on to a more rewarding and satisfying career in pet health care.

Leslie and her husband, Ted, enjoy traveling, hiking, and marathon movie viewing at home. Ted is a successful sales associate at Red Noland Cadillac. Leslie loves Chow Chows, gardening and anything to do with flowers!

They share a home with Kiko, a red male Chow Chow born October 2002; Zia, a black female Chow Chow born November 2004; and Ruby, a French Bulldog, born February 2007. Kiko, Zia, and Ruby are their "children" and they are shamelessly spoiled!

Megan, Lead Technician
Megan moved to Colorado Springs in 2009 from Seattle to take a position working as a backcountry wilderness instructor for at risk youth.

After taking a few months off from the veterinary world, Megan realized how much she loved and missed working as a veterinary technician and retired her backpack for a pair of scrubs.

Megan was born and raised in California where she attended Yuba College’s Veterinary Technician program. She has worked primarily with dogs and cats but has worked at large animal and dairy practices in Northern California . Megan moved to Washington to take a technician job at a 27 Doctor mixed animal practice outside of Seattle.

Melissa, Tech Assistant/Cert. K9 Massage Therapist
Melissa has been with Westside since March 2000. She is a Tech Assistant, caring for the pets in the hospital and the cats in Cecil's Bed & Breakfast Feline Boarding Facility. She give all the pets extra TLC!

Married for 17 years, Melissa has two children, Kristine and Steven. Their family includes six cats - she loves to foster wayward kitties - and two dogs, Myth and Zodiac.

They enjoy living in Colorado for all of the outdoor activities such as camping, hiking, and four-wheeling. Her family also loves to attend the Renaissance Festival each year.

Recently Melissa achieved her long-time goal of becoming a Certified Canine Massage Therapist. She practices her "tender touch" on dogs here at the hospital - and they love it!

April, Technician Assistant
April joined the Westside team in August 2009. She takes great care of all the animals here at the hospital as she has extensive experience caring for her own nine four-legged family members.

April’s pet family includes three horses: Sierra, Jiggers, and Hank; five dogs: Khan, a Rottweiler; Gus, a Collie; Rex, a Fox Terrier; and her newest additions, brothers Chancey & Winston who are Chiweenie Poms. Last but not least is Charlie the cat.

It was an easy choice for April to pursue her education and career in the animal field. April earned Associates of Applied Science degree in zoo keeping technologies and is pursuing a degree in zoology.

She loves the outdoors, snowboarding, and riding dirt bikes.

Tami, Technician
Tami joined Westside as a technician assistant, then was promoted to Technician in 2006. She is a biology major at UCCS and plans to attend Veterinary school in the near future. She has lived in Colorado Springs her entire life.

Tami is the "mommy" of four very happy Labs; Bailey, Coal, Chance, and Hunter, and three beautiful cats named Riley, Ziggy & Dinah.

In her spare time, she enjoys hiking with her dogs and nights out on the town.

Karren, Certified Technician
Karren graduated from Bel-Rea Veterinary Technician Training School where she earned AAS degree. She chose Westside Animal Hospital for her internship, which she enjoyed very much. When an opening became available, Karren came back as a full-fledged Certified Technician.

She enjoys snowboarding, hiking, or anything she can do with her three girls. Karren's "girls" are Xena, a ten year old poodle mix, Gabby, a Min Pin who is eight, and Annabelle, a three year old Doberman.

Karren and her husband moved to Colorado six years ago from Texas . They love all the outdoor activities so much, they never want to go back!

Sarah, Veterinary Technician
Sarah has lived in Colorado Springs all her life. Since the tender age of nine, Sarah has wanted to work with animals.

After completing High School, she decided to pursue her dream by attending Pima Medical Institute, graduating one year later. Sarah has been a veterinary technician since 2002.

Sarah’s pet family members include five cats: Emily, Angel, Lucy, Devon, and Shammy; and two feisty Welsh Corgis, Jack and Jill.

In her spare time, Sarah enjoys camping, fishing, hunting, watching movies, skating, and nights on the town with friends.

Jasmine, Technician Assistant
Jasmine was born and raised in Astoria , Queens , New York City. She moved to Colorado Springs in 1983 and settled near her sister, Dr. De Waal's wife, Merrilee.

With her lifelong love of animals, Jasmine adopted a cat, Cindy and a dog, Nifty. They both lived good long lives and passed away when they were very old.

Jasmine's most recent addition is a cat named Skittles who came to her through adoption from the Humane Society. He has a very unique personality and provides Jasmine with many hours of companionship and enjoyment. Some of his playful antics include chasing his tail and playing with his toys.

Tanya, Certified Veterinary Technician
Tanya was born and raised in Ohio where she graduated in 1995 with a B.S. in Management from The Ohio State University (Go Buckeyes!).

After getting her beloved Hannah, she realized her love of working with animals and went back to school where she earned an AAS degree in Veterinary Technology at Columbus State College in 2002.

Tanya’s husband is a captain in the Army and they enjoy moving wherever the Army takes them. Their Army “brats” are “Hannah”, a chocolate Labrador Retriever, and two cats, “Holly” and “Haley”.

Cindy, Technician
As a graduate of Colorado State University with a B.S. in Equine Science, Cindy joined the healthcare team at Westside Animal Hospital in August 2007.

As a veterinary technician at our practice, Cindy is able to fulfill many of her personal goals through experiences ranging from CPR, orthopedic/major surgeries, dentistry, to behavioral interpretation and client education.

Cindy has a deep passion for horses; riding, training, and raising them for many years. She is currently the proud owner of three Quarter horses with a new baby born in May ’09. The other members of Cindy’s animal family include three dogs with which she participates in Schutzhund and personal protection training; two awesome barn cats, and a Nanday Conure Parrott who loves to cuddle and scream your ear off.

As for her human family, Cindy is a proud wife of her husband, Josh. Theirs is true love story, meeting at a dude ranch and falling in love in the middle of the Rawah Mountains. They have a son, Landon, who loves playing football as well as attending horse shows and winning blue ribbons on his favorite horse, “Kaden”.

Megan, Receptionist
Megan moved to Colorado Springs from Los Angeles in the Spring of 2007 to enjoy the beautiful mountains and be closer to family.

She holds a B.A. in Graphic Design yet her passion has always been to work with animals. Megan has been a Veterinary Assistant for the past 13 years and finds it very rewarding.

Together with her husband, Keith, they share a home with three rescued Greyhounds; Macy, Hannah, and Tess; and four rescued cats; Sydney , Fitzgerald, Coda, and Kinsey.

They love spending time with their “spoiled” kids; hiking with the dogs, and exploring all that Colorado has to offer.

Kim J., Receptionist
Kim “KJ” moved to Colorado Springs in 2003 from Las Vegas , Nevada . Joining the team at Westside Animal Hospital in May 2007, KJ soon discovered this was her “dream job”. “Not only do I work in a veterinary clinic, but I also get to be part of an incredibly dedicated team”.

Living in Colorado allows KJ and her husband Tom the ability to enjoy all of their outdoor interests including boating, hiking, biking, skiing, - and their newest passion – kayaking.

When KJ came to work here, she had one cat, Bradley, yet since then she and Tom have adopted a kitty, Domino, a six-year-old dachshund named Kipling, a.k.a. “Kip the kayaking wonder dog”, and last but not least, “Rudy” their second Dachshund who also loves kayaking.

Misty, Receptionist
Misty considers herself a traditional Kentucky girl, born and raised. She moved to Colorado in the winter of 2007 with her young daughter. Having always worked with animals in other areas, this is Misty’s first position at a veterinary hospital.

Misty also works at the Denver Aquarium as an aquarist assistant. She prepares all the food for the exhibits as well as doing the actual feeding. Misty is fascinated with the aquatic world and also has a love of reptiles.

A pleasantly plump cat named Salem is Misty’s only pet, yet working at Westside, she is sure to acquire more! In her spare time, Misty loves to hike and rollerblade. She is looking forward to adding snowboarding to her leisure activities in beautiful Colorado.

Piper, Receptionist
Piper, a proud Army wife, moved to Colorado Springs from Peoria, Illinois. She and her husband, Adam, who is stationed at Ft. Carson, enjoy all the outdoor activities that Colorado has to offer.

Piper and Adam have a special place in their hearts and home for rescue Pitbulls; currently, they have three: “Zoe”, “Lexi”, and “Sable” – and a “Bernoxer” (St. Bernard/Boxer cross) named “Rollie”.

Working at Westside is definitely an advantage when raising such a large “family”.

Piper’s two children, who reside in Illinois, love to visit Colorado whenever possible. Her daughter, Tianna, 14, enjoys quiet time at home reading, watching movies, and of course, “hanging with her friends”. Her son Atley, 19, is preparing to join the Navy and proudly serve our country.

Tom, Receptionist
Tom was born and raised in Tucson, AZ. After moving much of his early life, Tom found it difficult to decide between settling in Colorado and Arizona after moving to both states twice.

In the end, Tom decided he missed the seasonal changes and being close to family and moved back to Colorado. Like KJ, Tom finds working for Westside Animal Hospital to be his “dream job”.

Tom has had several surrogate animals but claims one as his own; Forrest (Gump), a Dalmatian/Great Dane mix.

Tom’s interests include hiking, camping, road trips, and architecture; along with a passion for his family, who are best friends; and friends, who are his family.