Looking for Windham veterinarians who care for their patients as if they were their own pets? Look no further than Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital. Our doctors love what they do and have a genuine interest in making and keeping pets well. If you have any questions about our veterinarians, or if you’d like to make an appointment, give us a call at 603-898-8982.
Meet Our Veterinarians.
Melissa Magnuson, DVM
Medical Director
Dr. Melissa Magnuson is a native of southern Minnesota, where she grew up on a small pig and cattle farm. Ever since she can remember, she’s wanted to be a veterinarian and fulfill her lifelong passion of helping animals. With a degree in biology and philosophy from Hamline University in St. Paul, MN, she went on to work on a master’s degree at Southern Mississippi University. From there, she completed her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine at the University of Minnesota in 1998.
Her internship in small animal medicine, surgery, and emergency medicine brought her to the east coast. She has a special interest in surgery, emergency medicine, and avian and exotic animal care. Because she absolutely LOVES veterinary medicine, she never feels like she’s at work. She feels very lucky to have found her passion.
Dr. Magnuson is married to her best friend, Andy, with whom she has three beautiful daughters. Her pets include four dogs, three cats, a bird, a bearded dragon, and a guinea pig. In her spare time, she enjoys being with her family outdoors, biking, hiking, swimming, and reading.
Patti Dressel, DVM
Veterinarian
Dr. Patti Dressel is a New England native. She grew up in Massachusetts and completed her Bachelor of Science degree in pre-vet/animal sciences from the University of Vermont. She then moved to Colorado to continue her education and fulfill her lifelong dream of becoming a veterinarian. She earned a Master of Science degree in anatomy and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Colorado State University.
After graduating from veterinary school, she worked in a large 24-hour general practice/emergency clinic in Baltimore, MD, for two and half years. She then worked in southern New Hampshire at another large practice for several years. Her passions include the diagnosis and treatment of complicated cases, surgery, and emergency medicine. Developing and maintaining a client bond is also very important to her.
Dr. Dressel is happy to be back in New England, closer to family and friends. Her family is very important to her and includes her husband, Rob; daughter, Ryleigh; and son, Evan. She also has three rescued animals: two mixed breed dogs named Kezar and Kyna and a cat named Keagan. In her spare time, you may find her at a Patriots or Red Sox game, as she was born and raised a New England sports fan, and this has never changed. She also enjoys spending time outdoors, especially with her family.
Katie Handley, DVM
Veterinarian
Bio coming soon.
Lauren Soucey, DVM
Veterinarian
Dr. Soucey grew up in Windham, New Hampshire, but now resides in Auburn, New Hampshire with her boyfriend and two cats. She had a passion for animals at a very young age and dedicated many years working towards her lifelong goal of becoming a veterinarian. Her journey began by receiving her undergraduate degree from the University of New Hampshire in Durham. From UNH, she went on to Ross University in St. Kitts for her pre-clinical schooling and then completed her clinical year at the University of Tennessee, graduating in May of 2018.
Dr. Soucey loves many aspects of veterinary medicine but has a special interest in internal medicine, soft tissue surgery and canine rehabilitation. She looks forward to learning something new each day to provide the best medicine for her patients. She especially loves interacting with clients and their pets!
In her spare time, she loves being with her two cats. She hopes to add a dog to her family soon! She enjoys spending time with family, baking, watching the Boston Bruins, traveling, and spending time at Old Orchard Beach.
Ayse Washington, DVM
Veterinarian
Ayse Washington comes to Canobie Lake Veterinary hospital after graduating from Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine in 1999 and working at various jobs in various states along the East coast, West coast and Rocky Mountains. She has a fondness for geriatric and internal medicine cases. She enjoys the outdoors and reading and spending time with her husband. At this time she has no pets.
Kerry Albrecht, DVM
Veterinarian
Bio coming soon.
Meet Our Travelling Veterinary Specialists
Catherine Reese, DVM, DACVS
Board-Certified Veterinary Surgeon
Meet our travelling surgeon.
After graduating from Cornell University in 1991, Dr. Reese attended Tufts University’s School of Veterinary Medicine and graduated in 1995. She then completed an internship at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston in 1996 and a small animal surgical residency at Cornell University in 1999. After her residency, she returned to Angell as a staff surgeon for almost 12 years, where she was also the director of the Surgery Residency Program and trained over 30 new board-certified surgeons. She was board certified as a specialist in small animal surgery by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2001. In addition, she is a member of the AVMA, MVMA, NHVMA, the Society for Veterinary Soft Tissue Surgery, the Veterinary Society of Surgical Oncology, and the Veterinary Orthopedic Society.
Dr. Reese brings extensive experience in the field of advanced animal surgery to our staff. Her skills are diverse and include orthopedic, neurologic, and soft tissue procedures. These procedures include advanced fracture repair, laryngeal tieback surgery, brachycephalic airway correction, persistent right aortic arch surgery, thoracic duct ligation and cisterna chyli ablation for idiopathic chylothorax, lateral and ventral bulla osteotomy, skin grafting, oncologic surgery, patella luxation repair, and cranial cruciate ligament repair. She was certified to perform the Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy (TPLO) procedure for cranial cruciate ligament repair in 2000 and was one of the first surgeons in New England to perform Tibial Tuberosity Advancements (TTAs) for cranial cruciate ligament repair beginning in 2002. She prides herself on providing compassionate care for her patients and open communication with her clients.
Dr. Reese lives in the Boston area with her son and husband. In her rare free time, she enjoys traveling, gardening, softball, and golf.
Meet Our Staff
At Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital, we’re pet lovers, just like you! Our veterinary staff in Windham is passionate about making and keeping pets well throughout their lives and about providing clients with exceptional customer service. If you have any questions about our team, feel free to let us know.
Julie
Julie joined Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital upon opening in December 2005. Prior, Julie worked in advertising in the greater Boston area for 19 years. She has extensive training in working with clients and providing unprecedented customer service. She has also participated in AAHA’s Veterinary Management School Program in Denver, Colorado. Julie is certified in Reiki II and Advanced Allergy Therapeutics (AAT), two modalities she enjoys working with to help animals. Julie resides with her husband and their Meyer’s parrot, Butch and 2 guinea pigs, Taco and Burrito. Some of her interests include yoga, reading, jig saw puzzles, ice-skating and hiking.
Sara
Sara has been working as a veterinary technician since 2001 and joined our team in 2010. She has a strong interest in radiology and phlebotomy and loves to work with exotics. Her hobbies include art, outdoor activities, and horse training and riding. She has a variety of pets at home, including a dog, three cats, two horses, and one leopard gecko.
Maria
Maria has been working with animals since 2006. Her adventure started at a humane shelter where she learned skills in behavior and some veterinary medicine. From there, she decided to take on a roll as a veterinary technician and did this until the birth of her 1st child in 2015. After a brief leave to open up a comic book store with her husband, she realized working with animals was still a passion. She has since returned to us at Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital helping wherever needed. Every chance she gets she spends time with her daughter Alex and husband Jason.
Amber
Amber has always loved animals and knew she wanted to work with animals at a very young age. Her adventure with Canobie Lake Vet started as a client with her guinea pigs. She loved the experience with the hospital and the team so much, she decided to become an intern. She interned at Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital until she graduated from Great Bay Community College in 2017 with an associate in science in veterinary technology. After graduation she took a permanent position with the team. Amber went on to pass the VTNE and got certified in NH. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her friends and family, and loves being outdoors. She also loves spending time with her 8 guinea pigs and 3 family dogs.
Andrea
Andrea has been working in the veterinary field since she was 16 years old. Andrea graduated from Becker College in 1991 and received her Certified Veterinary Technician license . She likes spending time with her family at the beach, working/showing her 3 German Shorthaired Pointers, reading, singing and baking. Andrea has many pets which include dogs, cats, rabbits and a snake. When time allows, Andrea fosters and bottle feeds baby kittens for the MSPCA and she also supports the House Rabbit Network.
April
As the owner of four dogs and two cats, it was only a matter of time before April gravitated to a role where she could share her compassion for animals with others. Before joining Canobie Lake Vet, she spent many years working and traveling as a flight attendant. April and her husband have three children. She enjoys spending time with family & friends, hiking with the dogs, watching hockey, days at the beach with a good book and cooking.
Cayla
Cayla has loved animals since she was a young girl begging her parents for a pet dog and trying to prove she was responsible enough to take care of one. She proved successful and has since has a variety of pets, including dogs, cats, rats, and birds. After working at a horse rehabilitation clinic in Florida for a few years, she moved back home to New England to work in human medicine. Eventually realizing that her true passion lies in the veterinary field, she joined the Canobie team in July 2020. In her spare time, Cayla enjoys reading, gaming, and taking care of her pet cat and fish.
Christina
Christina has had a special connection with animals as far back as she can remember. She grew up with cats, a dog, pocket pets, and fish. She started working with horses at 11 years old at Ironstone Farm in Andover. She attended and graduated from NSCC in 2015, receiving an Associates degree in Veterinary Technology. She became a CVT shortly thereafter and has been practicing for ever since. She shows a particular interest in client education, pet nutrition and enrichment. In her spare time she likes gardening, bird watching, art, music, and watching sports. She also enjoys spending time with her 2 cats, Husband, friends and family. Her favorite sports team is the Boston Bruins.
Danielle
Danielle entered the field of veterinary medicine after graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Biology back in 2017. During her college career, Danielle worked as a zookeeper focusing on captive wildlife care and education. She completed her undergraduate internship on a remote island in the Caribbean where she aided in the conservation of the critically endangered Anegada Iguana. Initially aspiring to become a wildlife biologist, her career goals quickly changed after accepting a position in the veterinary field where she fell in love with caring for sick and injured animals. Danielle is now a licensed wildlife rehabilitator for the state of Massachusetts where she cares for debilitated wildlife in an effort to release them back into the wild. When not caring for animals, Danielle enjoys spending time with her husband Tyler, her dog Riley, and her cat Maverick.
Elizabeth
Elizabeth is a junior at Alvirne High School, where she is in year one of veterinary science. She enjoys the outdoors along with spending time with her pets. Some animals on her small farm include a pony (Buddy), a horse (Nash), donkeys (Iris, and Charlie), sheep, rabbits, chickens, dogs (Lucas, and Willow), a cat (Buster), birds, and fish. Her hobbies include horseback riding and sheep showing. Her small farm has a flock of Romney sheep that are breed and shown throughout the year.
Emily
Emily has been working in the veterinary field since 2012. Her vet med career started at an absolutely wonderful 4 doctor privately owned hospital in Winthrop, Maine where she gained a majority of her skills that make her the Technician she is today. Her strongest interests are phlebotomy, radiology, and laboratory diagnostics. She currently has a GSD/Pitbull mix named Rebel (they are a Star Wars nerd household) ((she also lives up to her name..)) and a sassy feline kiddo, Maggie. Emily enjoys spending her free time hiking, cooking, reading, traveling, and spending time with her family and better half. She is working towards getting my degree and certification as a Veterinary Technician.
Faith
Faith started working closely with animals in 2014 as a volunteer for the New England Aquarium and Zoo Creatures, but her love for animals didn’t start there. Faith’s grandmother was a naturalist and taught her to love and respect nature and animals from a very young age, even the creepy crawly ones. Before starting at Canobie as a Veterinary Assistant in September 2020, she spent six years learning about and working with reptiles, arachnids, fish, and amphibians at Zoo Creatures and NERD. In 2019 she brought that knowledge to Wildlife Encounters, where she became an “Eco-Educator” and fell in love with educating anyone and everyone about animals, especially the ones that most see as being unlovable. Faith is currently training to be a Veterinary Technician, gaining new skills every day, and is attending Great Bay Community College for Veterinary Technology in Fall of 2021, from there she plans to get her CVT and move on to a four-year college to study Environmental Biology. In her free time you can find her hiking, fishing, reading, spending time with her dogs, Nala and Sophie, and spending time in her reptile room, socializing and caring for her numerous reptiles, amphibians, and invertebrates
Felicia
Bio coming soon.
I'Lish
Prior to working at Canobie Lake Vet I’Lish worked with a multitude of exotic animals in a retail pet store, volunteered at several animal shelters and has owned pets as long as she can remember. Canobie Lake Vet is I’Lish’s first experience working in a veterinary hospital setting. I’Lish likes to spend time with her sassy cockatiel Cor and her small mischief of fancy rats, including a oneeyed rat named Vaka.
Jonathan
Jonathan is currently enrolled at the University of Connecticut with a major in Animal Science and pre-veterinary focus. He aspires to be a veterinary doctor after 4 years of undergrad and 4 years of vet school. He joined the Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital team in June of 2020 and has always strived to improve himself as an employee and person. At home, Jonathan has a coonhound-pit bull mix named Daisy, a cat named Merry, and a spoiled bearded dragon named Gimli. In his free time, Jonathan enjoys hanging with his three brothers, playing baseball, exercising, and fishing.
Kate
Bio coming soon.
Katelyn
Bio coming soon.
Katharine
Katharine is a rising Windham High School senior with a lifelong love of animals and science. She has worked as a veterinary assistant for the past year, and first became familiar with Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital while attending appointments with her shiba inu (Piper), mixed breed (Buddy), and two tuxedo cats (Maestro and Billie Holiday). Katharine has several years of experience working with local pets and their owners as a pet sitter. Katharine obtained Fear Free Pets Certification and the VLACS career badge in veterinary science in 2020. Katharine’s favorite pastimes include saxophone, Irish dance, and stand-up paddleboarding.
Kerri
Bio coming soon.
Madison
Bio coming soon.
Megan
Megan has been a Veterinary Technician for 30 years, her many years of experience has allowed her the opportunity to work in a variety of veterinary environments and has given her strong knowledge of many areas in the field. Megan has enjoyed learning in all of these areas of veterinary medicine and loves every part of it! She especially likes to apply that knowledge to help her clients and patients. When not working, Megan enjoys going to her son’s sporting events. She also enjoys spending time with her son at the beach and doing other outdoor activities. Megan has a cat named Umpi.
Meredith
From the time Meredith was a little girl she always knew her calling was helping animals. She was the kid that brought home strays and tried to nurse injured birds, chipmunks and snakes back to health in a shoebox in her back yard. Her cat was her constant companion. Her first cat she found hiding under her kindergarten building scared of the boys in the school yard. She gained her trust and brought her home with her that day. Since then, Meredith has always championed the underdog or misfit. Taking in orphaned kittens and bottle raising them or working with the scared stray dog to build trust and friendship. She has spent 20+ years as a Veterinary technician sharing her passion for the care and wellbeing of our companion animals. She joined the team here at Canobie Lake Vet in May 2020. In her free time, she is drawn to the outdoors and the creatures that live there. Spending her time walking in the woods, tending to her garden or enjoying the ocean. Don’t be surprised if you catch her talking to the rabbit or spider passing by her as she works in her garden.
Patti
Patti started working in the animal field in 2004 when she began working for Doberman Rescue. During her 5 years there she learned lots about dog behavior and training. In 2009 she decided to take some time off after giving birth to her son, Brayden in August of 2008. Patti was lucky enough to spend two whole years with her son before returning to the workforce. In 2010 she began working for the Humane Society in the dog department. During her time at the shelter she gained lots of knowledge about all kinds of animals and helped place thousands of dogs in new homes. In 2017 she was promoted to Canine Manager. After 10 dedicated years to the Humane Society, she decided it was time for a new adventure and that’s when she began working here. During her free time she enjoys hiking with her Boxer mix, Dakota and watching lots of television.
Rebecca
Rebecca is a Junior at Windham High School and has always had a passion for animals and veterinary science. She began pursuing her interest in veterinary medicine by completing an internship at Canobie during the Summer of 2021. She then joined the team as a veterinary assistant just a few months later. At home, Rebecca spends time with her rescue dogs, Toffee, an adorable Chiweenie with attitude, and Tino, an extremely energetic Bichon who loves absolutely everyone. In her free time, Rebecca enjoys playing trumpet, making jewelry, sewing, and helping out where she can in her community.
Ryann
Ryann graduated from the University of New England with a B.S. in Animal Behavior and a B.S. in Environmental Sciences. Currently a vet assistant at Canobie Lake Vet, she is training to become a vet technician. She values animals and the environments they come from, which helps her provide the best service and care to patients we see here at Canobie, working with animals is something she is very passionate about. Outside of work, she is a fitness fanatic and loves working out. She also enjoys spending time with family, friends, and her rat, Casper.
Samantha
Samantha has been working with animals since 2012 when she started as a doggie daycare attendant. She started working in the veterinary field in 2017 and is currently in school working towards her veterinary technician degree. She loves getting to care for a wide variety of animals and has always had a passion for veterinary medicine since she was young. During her free time, she enjoys walks with her dogs, hiking, and camping.
Shyra
By getting back to her roots in the medical field dealing with animals, Shyra is bringing experience to the company having worked with animals since she was 16 years of age, having explored (and studied) many different areas in the animal field and spending the last 8 years in Doggie Daycare. Her experience includes everything from being a kennel technician at an animal hospital to working at a holistic pet store. In her free time, she takes her dog Zazu for walks and adventures. Adventures usually include camping or BBQing with family and friends.
Stacey
Stacey has always had a love for all animals. She started work in the veterinary field as a receptionist. From there she moved into technology doing desktop support for many years. She realized how much she missed working with animals and decided to return to the field. She was a client at Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital for 10 years before becoming an employee. She shares her home with her chocolate lab Ben and her cat Ezra. She loves spending time with family and friends, hiking, bike riding and kayaking.
Steven
Steven graduated from the University of Southern Maine in 2015 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Biology with a specialization in ecology. After college Steven went on to work in a wildlife rehabilitation for 2 years at centers in Vermont and Florida. Steven joined the Canobie Lake Veterinary Hospital team in July of 2018 as an assistant. In his free time, he enjoys volunteering, birding, and spending time with his dog Gordie.
Susan
Susan is a native to New Hampshire, she has 29 years of veterinary experience. She enjoys spending time with her family and friends and hiking with her goldendoodle Rudy.
Sydney
Sydney began her endeavors in veterinary medicine her senior year of high school when she took animal science courses and started her internship at Canobie. After graduating high school, she started the veterinary technology program at the University of New Hampshire. She graduated with her associates degree in veterinary technology in May 2021. She feels she was fortunate to work part time at Canobie as a veterinary assistant while finishing college. She is now a full-time technician at the hospital and is working towards her CVT certification with hopes to specialize in animal behavior. Outside of work Sydney enjoys caring for her two horses, spending time friends, family and her four legged best friend Delilah the German Shepard.