Ness Exotic Wellness Center

11/12/2024

11/02/2024

We hope you all had a HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!! 🎃🎃

Let’s see those costumes! (People and Pets)! 🧡

10/19/2024

RACHEL
-Years at Ness Exotic: 3 years
-Pets: Chinese Water Dragon, Northern Blue Tongue Skink, a Leopard gecko she’s fostering, a rabbit, 3 dogs, 2 clutches of baby jumping spiders and 2 adults. Let us know if you want to purchase any jumping spiders as they will soon be looking for new homes! 🕸️
-One thing she loves about being an exotic animal tech: Helping pets that can’t be seen at traditional exotic animal clinics and teaching/educating clients about exotic species
-A little more about Rachel: You might see Rachel at the front desk for a while as she is recovering from multiple surgeries, but she still jumps in and helps tech as needed. We hope she will be able to join us in the back full time again soon! Rachel loves to bake and bring in treats for us and she likes to sew and often sews snuggies and cozies for exotic pets! Another fun fact is she was born with 6 fingers on each hand! The extra appendages were removed when she was very little, but we wonder if those extra fingers might have come in handy in our busy practice! 😜

10/19/2024

MICHELLE
-Years at Ness Exotic: 6 years
-Pets: A bull terrier, 2 sweet lovebirds, 1 bratty moon cheek conure, a Leachianus gecko, an axolotl, bird p**p frogs (yes, that’s not a typo), a green frog, many fish, a praying man this, hundreds of isopods and the future owner of a regal jumping spider.
-What she loves about being an exotic technician: Meeting all the birds and their owners and discussing diet and husbandry and ordering super cute and fun bird toys for the clinic 🦜
-A little more about Michelle: Was diagnosed with MS a few years ago and likes to support research for this cause, rides a motorcycle with her husband and they are members of the Combat Veterans Motorcycle Association (CVMA). 🏍️ She loves to spend her free time at the VA. Michelle also loves live music, is very artistic and loves doing crafts and creating with her Cricut machine.

10/19/2024

JAKE
-Years at Ness Exotic: 7.5 years
-Pets: Currently has 2 geckos, but has owned many species of reptiles in the past including a ball python, blood python, king snake, blue tongue skink and a crocodile skink
-One thing Jake loves about being an exotic animal tech: Client education and all the reptiles 🦎
-A little more about Jake: He likes to listen to heavy metal music - the louder the better! 🤘

10/19/2024

JESSICA, CVT
-Years at Ness Exotic : 3
-Pets: 10 rats (she had had up to 22 at one time) and 3 ball pythons
-One thing she loves about being an exotic technician: Discussing husbandry and diet of different species with clients
-A little more about Jessica: She loves cooking and baking (and we love when she brings us tasty homemade treats 😋), crocheting and collecting cool rocks. 🪨

10/19/2024

ANJ, CVT
-Years at Ness Exotic: 5 years
-Pets: Currently, Anj has no pets, but we don’t think she’ll be able to hold out on getting a rabbit for too long 😆
-One thing she loves about being an exotic tech: Putting little hats on all the cute bunnies (and guinea pigs)!
-A little more about Anj: She is currently learning how to cook Indian food and other cuisines, she likes to listen to EDM and go to concerts, she enjoys doing yoga 🧘🏾‍♀️

10/19/2024

KELLY, CVT
-Years at Ness Exotic: 8 years
-Pets: Currently, Kelly has 1 mixed breed dog named Presley, but she has had many exotic pets from rabbits, budgies, guinea pigs, a cockatiel, rats, mice and fish
-One thing she loves about being an exotic animal technician: Seeing all the cute and unique pet names
-A little about Kelly: Kelly used to be a client before she got her CVT and started working at the clinic, she is one of the tech managers, she loves Harry Potter and she met and fell in love with her husband Kevin (our practice manager) while working at the clinic and now they have a beautiful baby girl Ava 💜

10/19/2024

CAITLIN, CVT
-Years at Ness Exotic: 9
-Pets: Crested geckos, Chahoua geckos, gargoyle geckos, crocodile skink, Eurydacylodes vieillardi geckos, 2 cats and a corn snake
-One thing she loves about being an exotic tech: Working with all the different species of animals
-A little more about Caitlin: She is a mom of an adorable 2 year old little girl, she responsibly breeds geckos (Cresties, Chahouas and E. vieillardi) - you may see her booth (Velvet Claw Geckos) at local reptile shows, she loves to read and is teaching herself to crochet 🧶

10/18/2024

We started National Veterinary Technician Week with a personalized gift bag to all our techs from Dr. Golan and are ending with another gift bag from Dr. Ness. In between, they enjoyed Donuts and Coffee, a bagel breakfast, an assortment of snacks and drinks, and several lunches including one that was generously donated by one of our clients. We hope they felt extra appreciated this week as we celebrate them and recognize all the hard work they do and their dedication to our patients . We will be posting later today to feature all our amazing techs so you can get to know a little bit more about them!

10/17/2024

🌟AHuge Thank You to Our Exotic Animal Technicians!🌟

Today, we want to express our gratitude for our amazing team of exotic animal technicians. We feel so lucky to have such skilled professionals who tackle the challenge of learning about and understanding multiple species across different classes of animals. Their expertise in animal care, behavior management, and habitat maintenance is truly exceptional.

These trusted experts are passionate advocates for animal welfare, ensuring that our exotic friends receive the best care possible. Thank you for your hard work and dedication!

Happy National Veterinary Technician Week! 🩺🦎

At ARAV, we celebrate the amazing work of veterinary technicians, especially those dedicated to reptile and amphibian medicine. Your skills and dedication are invaluable, from assisting in surgeries to providing expert husbandry advice. Thank you for all that you do! ❤

➡ Tag a vet tech who inspires you and share your appreciation!

10/15/2024

10/14/2024

Happy National Veterinary Technician Week to the best techs in the business!!!

09/04/2024

Dr. Kristin Valdes, DVM
Exotic Animal Veterinarian

Dr. Kristin Valdes is a dedicated veterinarian specializing in exotic animal medicine. She graduated from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in 2013, following an undergraduate degree in Molecular and Cellular Biology. With a decade of experience, Dr. Valdes has developed a deep passion for providing compassionate and expert care to a wide variety of exotic pets.

Her approach to veterinary medicine is rooted in a commitment to understanding each animal’s unique needs, ensuring that every pet receives the highest standard of care. Whether it’s a routine check-up or a complex medical issue, Dr. Valdes is dedicated to delivering thorough and personalized treatment plans that promote the health and well-being of her patients.

When she's not in the clinic, Dr. Valdes enjoys spending quality time with her husband and daughter, alongside their beloved pets—a ball python, two chinchillas, and a cat. In her free time, she loves to sew, read, and explore the outdoors.

08/31/2024

Buttercup, Darla and Oliver hope you all have a very HOPPY weekend!

These 3 froggos came in for their annual wellness exams and are being so well cared for by their owner.

Official diagnosis: ADORABLE 🐸

If you think they’re super cute too, you can follow them at fantasticfroggos on Instagram. They won’t disappoint!

08/15/2024

Alfred Sampang

Wildly impressed with this place. My wife and I have gone to a few places now for our hedgehog Eugene and Ness is by far the most knowledgeable about hedgehogs. They clearly knew how to handle him and pick him up. Just as well they were very aware of possible hedgehog diseases and knew exactly what kind of care he needed in-office to keep him comfortable. They were smart enough to touch and coax him lightly, and give him somewhere to burrow under when he was scared. The little things really show at this place, and made us comfortable leaving Eugene with them for check-ups. Eugene ended up having a cancerous growth which they identified quickly and removed, and now he's doing fantastic in recovery! So thankful to have Doctor Ness and all his staff to advise us with our exotic hedgehog.

08/15/2024

E. Hirschtick

If you have reptiles, this is the place to go! Everyone on the staff was absolutely wonderful and did everything they could to help me with an egg bound gecko. They were able to offer diagnostics AND treatment that helped my gecko finally pass her eggs.

I have finally found my reptile vet, and I am so, so happy!