The Paws & Claws Family
Melissa Birken, DVM
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Dr. Melissa Birken and her family (husband, three children and three dogs) are residents of Damascus. It has been Dr. Birken's long time dream to build a companion animal hospital offering both routine and emergency medical and surgical services to her home town. Veterinarian and clinical staff are highly trained and experienced in both general and emergency medicine.
Dr. Birken received her veterinary degree from Oklahoma State University in 2007. She started practicing at a general veterinary hospital in Gaithersburg, Maryland. During this time, she also continued her training part time at various emergency hospitals to learn advance surgical techniques and emergency trauma medicine. Dr. Birken next elected to continue advanced training as a full time associate in emergency medicine. For the past four years, she has been working at an emergency veterinary clinic in Hagerstown, Maryland. Dr. Melissa Birken is experienced in treating unexpected emergencies such as trauma from a car accident, breathing difficulties (asthma, cardiac disease), bloat (twisting of the stomach), and removing objects from the digestive tract that our four legged friends should not have eaten. The hospital will be well equipped for both routine care as well as emergencies. Paws and Claws Animal Hospital has in house diagnostic blood analyzer, blood pressure monitoring, oxygen saturation monitoring, EKG, a surgery suite, cages to provide oxygen, and digital radiology in-house to provide full care. |
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You can be confident in bringing your treasured pet to Dr. Birken whose extensive training goes beyond routine care to include complex surgeries and emergency needs. Dr. Birken will also make recommendations as to how to keep your pet healthy all year. Your pet will have the best available veterinary care from a very compassionate practitioner.
Areas of Interest:
Areas of Interest:
- Emergency medicine
- Internal medicine
- General/ Preventative Care
- Dentistry
- Surgery
Katie Spaniol, DVM
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Dr. Katie Spaniol grew up in Frederick, MD. Her family's farm style property was home to a wide variety of pets (cats, dogs, turtles, bunnies, hamsters, parakeets, chickens, geese and even a goat), which fostered at a young age a true passion for the care of animals. Dr. Spaniol graduated from Towson University in 2012 with a Bachelor of Science in Biology and a minor in Chemistry. She gained experience in small and large animal medicine working as a veterinary technician in a mixed animal practice prior to and throughout veterinary school. Dr. Spaniol received her veterinary degree from Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine in 2017. Her areas of veterinary interest include surgery, radiology, dentistry, and preventative medicine. She shares her home with an orange tabby cat (Chelsea) and a chocolate lab (Penny). Dr. Spaniol is excited to provide quality compassionate veterinary care to the Damascus community.
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Nikki, Veterinary Technician RVT
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At a very young age, Nikki dreamed about becoming a Veterinarian. She started out pursuing her dream by enrolling in the pre-vet program at Bridgewater College. After a year in the program, Nikki decided to change her route to become a Veterinary Technician. She graduated from Wilson College in 2008 with a Bachelor of Science degree in Veterinary Medical Technology, with a concentration in Biology. She took the Maryland State Boards in June 2008 to become a Registered Veterinary Technician. Since 2007, she has worked at an Emergency Vet Clinic as well as a couple small animal hospitals. Nikki currently resides in Hagerstown with her (husband) Chris, (son) Wyatt, (daughter) Piper and dog Gordon (Great Dane).
Areas of Interest:
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Tina, Veterinary Technician
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Tina started her animal career when she was 8 years old in the Gaithersburg 4 H club. She continued her career as a veterinary technician at a local animal hospital in Gaithersburg. Tina completed her Bachelors Degree at UMUC 2013. She currently resides in Frederick with her Husband, daughters and furry family members Achilles (Dog), and Pancake (cat). She is very excited to serve the Damascus Communities furry family members.
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Natalie, Veterinary Technician
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Natalie has loved animals from a young age and has always wanted to help take care of them. She has been an assistant since 2014. Natalie has a few pets; Waldo (dog), Bandit (dog), Daisy (cat) and cows. She is currently studying to further her education in veterinary medicine.
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Katie, Practice Manager
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Katie moved here from New York with her husband, three cats, and two dogs. She graduated from the University of Delaware in 2009 with a Bachelor of Science in Animal Science, and has been a Veterinary Technician since 2008. Katie has been rescuing animals since she learned to walk, starting with a litter of baby squirrels when she was 6. She also rescued a barn kitty while working on a Dairy Farm in Ireland. He's been loving life here in the states since 2012. Katie also loves cows, and dreams of having one of her own someday.
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Chantell, Groomer
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Meet Chantell our professional groomer. She has over 10 years of experience grooming cats and dogs. Chantell strives to make the world beautiful one pet at a time.
Areas of Interest:
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Ally, Veterinary Assistant
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Ally has been a part of the Paws & Claws Family since 2016. She aspires to be a Veterinarian and is currently pursuing a degree in Animal Science at the University of Maryland.
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