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Melissa Neal, DVM

MELISSA NEAL, DVM
Medical Director, Owner

Dr. Neal is originally from the Sacramento area. She moved to Los Altos in 2010 after a 12 year adventure in Chicago and New England. Dr. Neal is a former high school biology teacher who decided to pursue her childhood passion of becoming a veterinarian. She attended veterinary school at the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine and has a MA in Education from Stanford. She has been practicing in the Bay Area for ten years and joined the LAVC team in 2018. Dr. Neal’s professional interests include internal medicine and preventative care for cats and dogs. Her most treasured aspect of the job is the quality relationships she builds with her clients and their animals. Having found a love for cats at an early age, Dr. Neal has a passion for feline medicine and surgery. She is an active member of the American Association of Feline Practitioners, and strives continually to improve the experience for all feline patients who visit the clinic. Dr. Neal lives in Los Altos with her husband, 2 very active children, and 3 orange cats. You may see her riding her bike around town or picking up take out from the local restaurants.

College

  • University of California at San Diego, B.S. General Biology

Graduate School

  • Stanford University, 1998

Veterinary School

  • Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, 2009

Memberships

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
  • California Veterinary Medical Association
  • American Association of Feline Practitioners
Denise Johnsen, DVM

DENISE JOHNSEN, DVM
Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Denise Johnsen is a Southern California native, hailing originally from the Ventura area. Knowing she wanted to be a Veterinarian from a very early age, she attended UC Davis for both her undergraduate studies in Animal Science and veterinary school, graduating from the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in 2000. After briefly living in San Francisco and working at the San Francisco SPCA, she moved to Palo Alto in 2004 and has worked in the Los Altos area for over 16 years. Dr. Johnsen is very excited to be joining the LAVC staff! She enjoys all aspects of small animal medicine and surgery, but is particularly interested in internal medicine, ultrasonography, senior pet care, and general feline medicine. She also sees small mammal companion animals and hopes to add this aspect to our practice soon. Dr. Johnsen lives in Palo Alto with her husband and young son and their menagerie of pets, which includes 2 dogs (a Jack Russel Terrier mix & an Australian Shepherd mix both adopted via rescue), 5 rescue cats, rodents, and a freshwater fish tank. As a family, they enjoy going to local sporting events, hiking, camping, and being with friends and family. She also loves being active with her dogs, having participated in the canine sport of Agility with previous dogs, and also rally and nosework with her Aussie, Kodi, and hoping to return to Agility with both dogs.

College

  • UC Davis, B.S. in Animal Science, 1994

Veterinary School

  • UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, 2000

Memberships

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
  • California Veterinary Medical Association
Allison Bain, DVM

ALLISON BAIN, DVM
Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Bain is originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. She moved to Sunnyvale in 2008 after a 10 year career in wildlife conservation in various far-reaching locations, including the most remote of Hawaii’s Northwestern islands, Alaska’s Aleutian Island chain, Newfoundland and Labrador. After having worked with endangered and threatened wildlife as a marine biologist, Dr. Bain decided to pursue a career change and become a veterinarian. She attended veterinary school at St. George’s University School of Veterinary Medicine in Grenada with clinical training at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine. Additionally, she has a M.Sc. in Biology from Memorial University in Canada. Dr. Bain has been practicing veterinary medicine in the Bay Area for over 13 years and joined the LAVC team in 2021. Dr. Bain’s professional interests include internal medicine, preventative care and nutrition. Dr. Bain lives in Sunnyvale with her husband and enjoys playing tennis, skiing and backpacking in the beautiful Sierra Nevada mountains.

College

  • University of California at Santa Cruz, B.S. Marine Biology

Graduate School

  • Memorial University, M.Sc. 2003

Veterinary School

  • St. George’s University School of Veterinary Medicine, 2008

Memberships

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
Megan Bystrom, DVM

MEGAN BYSTROM, DVM
Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Megan Bystrom was born and raised in Omaha, Nebraska. Her passion for animals surfaced at a young age as she spent her summers raising and showing bucket calves, pygmy goats, and sheep at the local and state fairs before working in veterinary clinics. She went on to attend Iowa State University and earned her bachelor’s degree in Animal Science before graduating from the Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2015. After graduation, Dr. B relocated and has been practicing in the Bay Area ever since. Dr. B is thrilled to be joining the LAVC team! Her professional interests including soft tissue surgery, internal medicine, and preventive care for dogs and cats. Dr B lives in Cupertino with her two dogs (Crumpet and Sparrow), two cats (Caspian and Amelie), two children, and one husband. She spends her free time running half marathons, skiing, throwing murder mystery parties, and escaping every escape room she can find.

College

  • Iowa State University, B.S. Animal Science

Veterinary School

  • Iowa State University College of Veterinary School 2015

Memberships

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
  • California Veterinary Medical Association
Megan Loveland, DVM

MEGAN LOVELAND, DVM
Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Megan Loveland is a California native, growing up in the mountains near Santa Cruz. With a passion for health of all kinds, she earned a pre-med degree at UC Santa Cruz, graduating Cum Laude and with honors in her Health Science major. She then immersed herself in the world of veterinary medicine through internships at private practice and city and county animal shelters. Convinced it was the career for her, she attended UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine where she graduated with Phi Zeta Honors in 2017. With her deep appreciation of the human-animal bond, and a commitment to providing the highest quality of care, Megan is thrilled to be working here in her local community. Dr. Loveland enjoys the full range of small animal medicine with particular interest in internal medicine, dentistry, and dermatology. Dr. Loveland lives in Portola Valley with her husband, their baby daughter, and their mixed-breed rescue dog Max. In her spare time she enjoys baking, exploring the many hiking trails in the area, visiting wineries on the central coast, and she is an avid Peloton rider.

College

  • UC Santa Cruz, B.S. Health Studies, 2012

Veterinary School

  • UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, 2017

Memberships

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
  • California Veterinary Medical Association
Emily Gould, DVM

EMILY GOULD, DVM
Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Emily A. Gould is originally from Florida. She graduated from the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in 2013 and began fulfilling her lifelong dream of working as a small animal veterinarian. Having practiced in Florida, California, and Colorado, Dr. Gould is happy to be back in the Bay Area as a part of the Los Altos Veterinary Clinic team!
Dr. Gould cherishes the human-animal bond and takes pride in strengthening relationships between pets and their owners through client education. She loves the daily variety of being a general practitioner and has a special interest in preventative medicine, including weight management and dentistry, to promote long-term health.
Dr. Gould lives in Campbell with her husband and young daughter. Beyond work, she enjoys reading, being outdoors, and spending time with her family exploring all California has to offer.

College

  • University of Florida, B.S. Animal Sciences, 2009

Veterinary School

  • University of Florida, 2013

Memberships

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
  • California Veterinary Medical Association
Rachel Harnish, DVM

RACHEL HARNISH, DVM
Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Rachel Harnish grew up in Pennsylvania and Michigan before transplanting to the SF Bay Area 30 years ago. She always knew she wanted to ride horses, have lots of pets and be a veterinarian. After completing her undergraduate degree in Biology at the University of Michigan, Dr. Harnish attended UC Davis for her Veterinary Medicine Degree with a focus on Equine and Small Animal practice. She then completed a 1yr internship in Equine Practice at Peninsula Equine Medical Center in Menlo Park.
Because her interests were spread equally between horses and small animals she then went into small animal private practice at a busy 24/7 practice. Dr. Harnish has been practicing in the Bay Area since 2003 mostly working with cats and dogs but also enjoys seeing some small mammals and the occasional goat and chicken. She enjoys medicine, surgery and ultrasound.
She lives in Los Altos with her husband, 2 children, chocolate lab Rolo, guinea pig Marshmallow and 4 chickens. The 2 family horses live on a ranch in Portola Valley. In her free time Dr. Harnish enjoys attending her children’s sporting events, competing in equestrian events and heading to the mountains for hiking, biking and snow fun!

Joanne Kindel

JOANNE KINDEL
Practice Manager

Joanne is currently revising her bio! She is so excited to share with you more about herself, experience, and how she supports the practice and team.

 

 

 

 

 

Glynn Echerd, DVM

GLYNN ECHERD, DVM
Founder

Thank you so much for your guidance and stewardship, Dr. Echerd.
- Los Altos Vet Clinic Team

 

 

 

 

 

Our staff

We are proud to say our Los Altos Veterinary Clinic Team is the best of the best. Each team member brings a high level of expertise and unique skill. Together, we have a clear goal and vision to provide the best veterinary medicine and client service to our Los Altos community. We believe teamwork is key for the health of our patients, the happiness of our clients, the well-being of each other, and the efficiency of their practice. We invite you to experience the difference and meet our fantastic team!

Los Altos Veterinary Clinic Team