Our Team

MEET OUR TEAM!

Learn about our team at Topa Mountain Animal Hospital, Oak View, CA. Committed to exceptional veterinary care, we prioritize your pet’s well-being with passion and expertise.

dog wearing a Halloween costume and a black hat

Get to know our team!

We are dedicated to your pet’s well-being! Explore our commitment to exceptional care. Scroll down to meet our team. We’re eager to connect with you and learn more about your cherished companions.

Our Veterinarians

Mary Ashley Waikart

Dr. Mary Ashley Waikart

DVM

Dr. Mary Ashley Waikart, originally from South Carolina, started her veterinary career in Ventura, California in 2007 after graduating from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine.

She has worked as an emergency vet as well as a general practitioner and surgeon in Ventura, Sherman Oaks, and Santa Barbara.

Dr. Waikart is now the proud owner of Topa Mountain Animal Hospital.

She and her husband moved to Ojai in 2015 and welcomed a precious daughter to their family in 2019. They currently cuddle up with a pitty mix named Kernel Biscuits to complete that family. Outside of work, Dr. Waikart enjoys surfing, yoga, and traveling.

Katie Sahyouni

Dr. Katie Sahyouni

DVM

Dr. Katie Sahyouni is a Southern California native. She attended the University of Southern California for her undergraduate training in Biomedical Engineering then went on to obtain her veterinary degree at UC Davis.

Shortly after, she completed a rotating internship at Veterinary Medical and Surgical Group in Ventura, then a specialty internship at Animal Surgical and Emergency Center in Los Angeles where she worked exclusively with the Internal Medicine team.

She then worked in general practice in Santa Barbara and now is happily part of the team here. She currently lives in Ventura with her husband, son, and her sassy orange cat named Cheesy Puff.

In her time outside of work, she enjoys traveling, surfing, hiking, going to USC football games, and taking her baby to the Santa Barbara Zoo.

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Dr. Kristin Unverferth

DVM

Dr. Kristin Unverferth grew up in Ohio and graduated from the Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine. She practiced for ten years in Aspen, Colorado, doing general medicine, surgery, and after-hours emergency care until she moved to California. She has been practicing at Carpinteria Veterinary Hospital since 2008 until joining the team at TMAH. She lives in Summerland with her sweet kitten Squirrel Monkey and enjoys being outdoors in nature, cycling, hiking, beach walking, and traveling. She looks forward to getting to know you and your beloved furry family members.

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Dr. Ann Welton

DVM

Dr. Ann Welton grew up in Southern California, moving to Santa Barbara to attend UCSB in 1988. From that point on, she knew this was where she wanted to live. She attended Michigan State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, graduating in 2000.

After graduation, she did an internship at California Animal Hospital in West Los Angeles, getting intensive training in cardiology, internal medicine and ultrasonography. In 2001 she returned to the Santa Barbara area where she has been a full time practicing veterinarian seeing dogs, cats and small exotic companion animals.

Dr. Welton lives in Santa Barbara with her husband Steve, her child Nico, Radar and Banana, and two Brussels Griffons. In her spare time, she is an avid reader, participating in a monthly book club for almost 20 years. As a cinephile, she looks forward to the Santa Barbara International Film Festival yearly and regularly participates in our local Cinema Society. She also enjoys hiking, biking, traveling, and cheering on the UCSB Gauchos at sporting events.

Our Staff

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Kendall Ella

Hospital Manager

Kendall Ella, our hospital manager, is also a SoCal native, born in Ojai and raised in Santa Barbara.

Working with animals has always been her passion since she was in elementary school. She started out working at a local pet store working with small animals, reptiles, and fish and eventually graduated into working as a kennel attendant in a clinic in Santa Barbara, then as a receptionist, then a veterinary assistant, and finally a hospital manager.

She has 2 handsome cats, Bug and Pico de Gato, and a boxer named Harley, who her parents bribed her with to go to UCSB instead of UC Davis.

Outside of work, she enjoys cooking, baking, going to the Santa Barbara Farmer’s Market, collecting board games, and playing video games with her partner. Kendall is proud to serve this community by helping care for all these amazing pets!

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Megan Corte

Lead Receptionist and Office Manager

Megan Corte, our lead receptionist and office manager, is from the Inland Empire/Rancho Cucamonga.

At home, Megan is the doting mother to her 2 pups, Dodger and Emma. Dodger is a 9-year-old Havapoo who has a very sweet trick of dancing on his back feet. Emma, a 13-year-old Daschund, loves having her ears and tummy rubbed all day long.

Outside of work, Megan loves to craft and do all sorts of fun DIY projects. You’ll likely recognize Megan as one of our nicest team members, always greeting everyone with a smile on her face. She’s been with Topa Mountain Animal Hospital since our beginning and was here at Animal Clinic of Oak View for 2 years prior to that!

Before getting into the veterinary industry, Megan was a store manager for Brighten Collectibles. Megan’s passion is to help animals with outstanding customer service.

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Sergio Garcia

Inventory Manager

Sergio is our inventory manager, from Oxnard, CA. Sergio has had a long history in the veterinary field, starting back in 2015 when he worked in the neurology department at a VCA specialty hospital. He’s since worked in ER, surgery, cardiology, and ophthalmology.

Sergio has had extensive experience working with rescues, as he used to be the manager at SPARC. Sergio has 2 puppies, Khaleesi (a 6-month-old Rottweiler) and Chanel (a 4-month-old Frenchie). Chanel’s favorite activity is snoring like an old man.

Outside of work, Sergio loves going to the gym, traveling, trying out new restaurants, working on cars, collecting sneakers, and building things.

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Alyssa Clark

Receptionist

Alyssa Clark, one of our amazing receptionists, is from Simi Valley.

Outside of work, Alyssa is an exceptionally talented dancer and even teaches dance lessons to cute kiddos!

She loves spending time and shopping with her daughter, Piper. She has a 7-year-old Chihuahua/poodle mix named Tootise (AKA Tooters, Toots), who often makes an appearance when welcoming our clients and patients into our hospital.

Alyssa has been working in this field for 3 years, and before that was a receptionist at a hair salon for 12 years!

Alyssa is our snack queen, always bringing the tastiest treats to work and she loves each and every fur baby that comes through our doors.

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Glori Laurenne

Receptionist

Glori, another wonderful receptionist of ours, was born in Ventura. Glori started working at SPARC shelter in 2022 which opened her passion for the animal welfare industry. In 2021, she adopted an adorable husky named Harley who quickly became her best friend! Outside of the veterinary field, Glori loves to bake! She owns a small business making cakes, cupcakes, charcuterie boxes, and dog cakes! A fun fact about Glori is that she’s adopted! We love having her on our team and the animals love that she’s the treater giver when checking in!

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Jackie Herrera

Lead Veterinary Assistant

Jackie, from Ventura, CA, is one of our amazing vet assistants, having been with us from the beginning and before that when Topa Mountain Animal Hospital was the Animal Clinic of Oak View for 3 years!

Jackie has a not-so-furry critter at home, a 3-year-old turtle named Seaweed! When she’s not busy saving lives, Jackie loves to go to the gym and go on adventures with her son.

One thing to know about Jackie is that she’s an enchilada maker extraordinaire!

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Carissa Arellanes

Veterinary Assistant

Carissa is another proud local, born and raised in Ventura County! Carissa is the owner of 2 kitties, O’Malley and Flynn Rider.

O’Malley is an 18-year-old orange tabby who knows a lot of tricks! While he’s a sweetheart at home, he’s feared by all in this field.

Outside of work, Carissa spends a lot of time at Disneyland! Carissa has been in this field for almost 20 years! She’s worked in a surgery specialty hospital, she’s worked in a cat-only hospital, and worked with exotic animals for 13 years!

Carissa is a lover of all the cats and kittens, spicy or sweet.

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Abby Micke

Veterinary Assistant

Abby comes to our hospital from Red Bluff, CA. She has a home full of adorable pets including 3 dogs: Mila, Oakley, and Max and 1 cat named Benji. Before working in the veterinary field, Abby was a barista. She quickly found a love and passion for veterinary medicine. Her love of animals made the job as a veterinary assistant a perfect career choice for her. Outside of work, Abby enjoys outdoor activities including wakeboarding, snowboarding, & traveling. A fun fact about Abby is that she loves chapstick but is constantly losing it!

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Annette Vidana

Veterinary Assistant

Annette is a native of Chicago and a recent transplant to Santa Barbara after spending the last decade in the Southeast. Her love for animals started at a young age, and her passion steered her into the veterinary field where she has been a veterinary technician for the last 10 years. Annette prides herself on loving and treating each animal as if they were one of her own and brings a compassionate and experienced skillset to Topa Mountain Animal Hospital. In her spare time, Annette enjoys singing, traveling the world, and spending time with her husband and fur babies. A fun fact about Annette – she can never have enough frenchies and she loves the color purple!

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Victoria Patino

Victoria is another proud local resident of Ojai. She fell in love with the vet field because she loves animals and wants to make sure they get the care that they need when they are ill or injured. She has a passion for helping dogs & cats and is happy to share her love with our patients. Outside of the office, Victoria loves to try new restaurants. She also loves baking & cooking at home. Victoria has a sweet 4 yr old Dalmation at home named, Thor and loves coming home to him after a long day at work! A fun fact about Victoria is that knows ALL of the older Disney Chanel songs and can fully recite High School Musical at any moment!
Monica Salgado

Monica Salgado

Technician Assistant

Monica is a proud local to our area, born and raised in Ventura. Monica has 2 huskies (Luna and Taz) and 3 chihuahuas (Dash, Coco, and Preciosa).

Monica has been with us since before it was Topa Mountain Animal Hospital and before that she worked as a caregiver.

Outside of work, Monica enjoys going to the gym and hanging out with her pups. Monica is an expert in making the purr-fect purr-ito!

Monica is an excellent photographer for all the patients who have made our “photo hall” such a joy!

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Cayla Rosene

Technician Assistant

Cayla is a proud local from Oak View. She has a love for animals and has a passion for advocating for all pets. One of her goals working in the veterinary field is to help limit an animal’s pain. Cayla has many animals of her own including 4 dogs (Ella, Nala, Bunny, & Chloe) and 2 cats (Angel & Charlotte). A fun fact about Cayla is that she has 2 bachelor’s degrees and did research on plant diseases.

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Kernel Biscuits

Our Esteemed Emotional Support Specialist

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Tootsie

Our Dignified Client Liaison