Growing up in Southern California, Linda developed a lifelong passion for animals from an early age. Her childhood was filled with a wide variety of pets, including dogs, cats, reptiles, birds, and pocket pets, which sparked her curiosity and appreciation for the unique bond between people and animals. Her first job was at a local pet store, where she cared for adoptable cats and birds while helping connect them with their future families. Before leaving for college, she also volunteered at a local zoo, gaining hands-on experience caring for a diverse range of species, including tigers, caracals, macaws, zebras, and many other incredible animals. These early experiences helped shape her passion for animal care, science, and the importance of creating positive experiences for both animals and the people who love them.

After moving to Humboldt County for college, Linda earned her bachelor's degree in Biology from Humboldt State University. She began her veterinary career in 2018 as a Client Service Representative and quickly discovered her passion for veterinary medicine, leadership, and supporting both teams and clients. She soon advanced into the role of Hospital Manager at a general practice, where she spent seven years developing her skills in hospital operations, team leadership, client communication, and creating a strong culture of care. After taking a short break from veterinary medicine, Linda was excited to return to the field as the Practice Manager at Russian River Veterinary Surgical Service.

Linda thoroughly enjoys working alongside the surgeons and the entire RRVSS team. She is continually impressed by their dedication, expertise, and genuine love for their profession, as well as their commitment to providing the highest quality medicine for every patient. She especially enjoys connecting with clients, learning their stories, building relationships, and becoming part of the community that supports the hospital.

As Practice Manager, Linda is passionate about supporting the professional growth of the RRVSS team, advancing specialty veterinary medicine in the region, and helping create a positive workplace culture where veterinary professionals can thrive. She believes RRVSS represents the best of veterinary medicine—exceptional care delivered with a human touch. Without the influence of corporate medicine, the focus remains where it belongs: on the patients, their families, and providing care with the same compassion and dedication we would want for our own pets.

At home, she shares her life with her dog, Toblerone, and her cat, Raven, who happily coexist with her partner's three dogs, one cat, and a growing collection of reptiles. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her partner and friends, whether they're riding bikes, paddleboarding, exploring local breweries and wineries, discovering new restaurants, or relaxing at home playing games on the couch with their furry companions.

A Registered Veterinary Technician since 2008, Niko has been working in veterinary medicine since 2003. After attending Santa Rosa Junior College, Niko gained extensive hands-on clinical experience through PetCare, building a strong foundation that has supported a career dedicated to exceptional patient care.

Most of Niko's experience has been in specialty veterinary medicine, including emergency and critical care, internal medicine, surgery, and reproduction, with additional experience in general practice. They have a special interest in anesthesia and rehabilitation and are passionate about continuing to learn and grow within the profession.

One of Niko's favorite things about working at RRVSS is being surrounded by a team with such a diverse range of knowledge and expertise. They enjoy the collaborative environment and believe there's always something new to learn—proving you really can teach an old dog new tricks.

Their approach to veterinary medicine is centered on building meaningful relationships with both clients and patients. By taking the time to get to know every family and understanding each pet's individual needs, Niko strives to ensure every decision is made with the patient's best interest at heart while helping clients feel informed and supported throughout their pet's care.

Outside the hospital, Niko has a wonderfully eclectic household filled with animals. Their family includes five cats—Willie, Jon Snow, Colonel Gentlemen, Meg, and Mina—with Colonel Gentlemen and Meg proudly sporting an abundance of extra toes as polydactyl cats. They also share their home with three dogs: Helper, the "least helpful" black Labrador; Chloe, a lovable super mutt; and Chippy, an energetic Shih-poo. Their menagerie continues with seven tarantulas, Madagascar hissing cockroaches (which are much friendlier than they sound!), two senior rescue snakes named Icarus and Raspberry, and Ballpit, a crested gecko.

When not caring for patients, Niko enjoys hiking, spending time with family, playing Magic The Gathering, and creating spooky arts and crafts. One of their most unique hobbies is collecting "possibly haunted" antiques—including several vintage dolls that never fail to keep their teenagers on edge.

Katelyn grew up in Southern California and from a young age had a love for animals and the outdoors. She moved to Humboldt County in 2016 where she earned a B.S in Wildlife Management and Conservation from Humboldt State University in 2020, followed by an A.S. in Veterinary Technology from Penn Foster College in 2025. She has gone through Fear Free and American Association of Feline Practitioners certifications. She is currently studying to take the Veterinary Technician National Examination. Once she obtains her license, she plans to go back to school to get her Veterinary Technician Specialty in Rehabilitation or emergency medicine.

Prior to working in veterinary medicine, she volunteered at an exotic sanctuary where she had hands-on experience working with large cats, monkeys, sloths, exotic birds and much more. She has been working in veterinary medicine for a little over 5 years. Over those years she has worked primarily in general practice with some emergency care experience. She completed a veterinary technician student internship at the Marine Mammal Center where she gained hands-on experience with seals, sea lions and sea otters. Here she participated in blood draws, ultrasounds, surgeries, pathology, rescues and many more cool things.

Her favorite part of veterinary medicine is that everyday is different. She also enjoys helping patients, continuing to learn new things daily and building a connection with both the patient but also their families. RRVSS has provided her new experiences in orthopedic cases, CT scans and she is excited to continue learning new complex cases daily. She enjoys scrubbing into TPLO and fracture cases, but loves the crazy mass removals.

Her personal approach to veterinary medicine is that she believes in advocating for her patients and treating every patient as if it was her own pet. She strives to provide compassion, kindness, and Fear Free care while making both pets and their families feel comfortable, heard, and supported. She believes in building trust with clients through communication and education.

Katelyn has two pets, Trinity a golden retriever mix and Alfi an orange tabby. Trinity enjoys spending time with her mom, hiking, running on the beach, paddleboarding, swimming, car rides with the windows down and playing with friends. Alfi loves laying on his window bed, sunbathing, harness walks, causing trouble and tormenting his sister.

Outside of work, Katelyn loves spending time outdoors and exploring new places. You'll often find her paddleboarding, hiking, relaxing at the beach, checking out local farmers markets, discovering new breweries, or taking weekend road trips. She also enjoys spending time with family and friends whenever she can. When Katelyn’s not at work, she competes professionally in disc golf and travels to tournaments on weekends. It's a passion that has allowed her to meet great people and explore new places while doing something she loves.