We are celebrating that we are now an American Animal Hospital Association  accredited hospital!  This means that we passed the test for the highest standards in veterinary care and are among only 15% of the best hospitals in The U.S. and Canada!

Our Team..

Dr.Carolyn McMaster 

At Briar Patch we pride ourselves on working effectively as a small congenial team of doctors, technicians and staff. Getting to know every individual pet and every pet-owner is our favorite part of the job. You'll likely meet each of us over the course of your visits to our hospital. We often wear many hats, so don't worry about titles. 

Dr. Carolyn McMaster, DVM, opened the current Briar Patch Veterinary Hospital in 1986, but it existed in two other locations in and around Ithaca for years before that. She welcomes new patients and continues to see pet-owners who have stayed with the practice for over 30 years. Her practice involves medical treatment and surgery for dogs, cats, birds and exotic pets. She provides free care to injured wildlife.         When Carolyn was in high school she considered becoming a doctor.  She loved science, was gifted in math and felt drawn to a healing profession.  Her guidance counselor advised against it--she was a girl, after all--and suggested that she pursue a career in a "softer" science, like social work.  So, Carolyn received her B.S. from Cornell University in 1971 and worked for a year as a social worker at George Jr. Republic. It was there, helping out in the stables, that she decided that the guidance counselor was partly wrong, her real love was the practice of medicine, but it was veterinary medicine. She received her D.V.M. from the College of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell in 1978.  She felt that no new graduate, including herself, could know enough to go directly into practice, so in 1979 she completed an internship in small animal medicine at Michigan State University and then served as a staff veterinarian at practices in the Buffalo area. Carolyn returned to Ithaca in 1981 to take advantage of an opportunity to run a veterinary hospital that was owned by an out of town vet. The hospital was designed as a model for Cornell veterinary students to learn the business management aspects of running a high quality small animal practice. This hands-on experience gave her invaluable skills to transfer to her own practice, along with an enduring goal to spend extra time with clients, educating them in the proper care of their pets.   Carolyn has become particularly interested in dermatology cases, perhaps because they are such a challenge and require so much patience.  For some time she has also been working on a geriatic program; pets are living longer, and the veterinary world is developing new ways to make those longer lives happier and healthier.  She never tires of learning, never stops researching and only bemoans the fact that there simply isn't enough time.    For several years she has worked to create a wildlife sanctuary on the land behind the hospital. This includes a memorial garden for the many beloved pets who have been cared for at Briar Patch as well as a quiet, beautiful space for euthanasias. Stay tuned for a way that you can be a part of this dream.   A horde of cats and two dogs live with Carolyn and her partner, Gillie. When not at Briar Patch they enjoy birdwatching, hiking, music, gardening and choral singing.

Dr. Leni Kaplan hit the ground running when she joined us in 2010, with an upbeat attitude and wonderful experience.  She graduated from Colorado State University in 2000 and has spent most her time working in emergency work and critical care.  She is the past president of the Genessee Valley Veterinary Medical Association and the Southern Tier Medical Association.  In 2007 she volunteered with Rural Veterinary Services to bring quality care to outlying areas.  Her real passions are pain management and nutrition, especially with geriatric patients.  With her help we have been able to see more patients and do more research with the experts we rely upon for answers about the newest and the best veterinary medicine available in the world today.    She's pictured here at work with two of her patients, brothers who are known to their friends as Robbie and Willie.  She shares her home with two cats, four dogs and one husband

Dr. Jillian Costigan  Dear Clients, It is with a heavy heart that I must announce the end of my time as an Associate Veterinarian at Briar Patch.  I have thoroughly enjoyed getting to know each and every one of you while doing my best to care for your wonderful pets.  An amazing opportunity has come up in my life and I have made the difficult decision to relocate out of state.  I will be transferring the care of all of my patients to my colleagues Dr. McMaster and Dr. Kaplan.  They are both very talented physicians and incredible people as well.  Trust me when I say that your pets will be in excellent hands. Thank you for affording me the opportunity to serve as caregiver to your little friends.  It has been a pleasure and an honor. All the best, Dr. Costigan         Sue (LVT) joined us in February, 2011 after working in Emergency care at the Cornell Vet School.  She received her license in 1990 from SUNY Delhi, and loves this work because it gives her the opportunity to be an advocate for animals.  Outside of Briar Patch she most enjoys the time spent watching her two teenaged daughters dance in performances and competitions.  Besides the teens, she also shares her home with 1 husband, 3 cats, 2 dogs, 1 bearded dragon, a cockatiel, a leopard gecko and a turtle.  She gets the grand prize for variety of housemates!

BJ (LVT) graduated in 1989 from Camden County College in Blackwood, New Jersey.  Since graduation, she has worked in three veterinary hospitals, one in New Jersey and one in New York before joining us here at Briar Patch in 2011.  She loves her work and loves animals--probably more than people!--and brings with her a wonderful sense of humor as well as a willingness to do whatever needs to be done.  She especially enjoys the emergency and critical care aspects of veterinary medicine.  When not at work, she spends time hiking with her dogs and working around the house. BJ shares her home with her two sweet Rottweilers, a Jack Russell Terrier, Lucy, and a black-and-white, soccer shaped cat named Eunice.

Anne is the Director of Public Support and Public Relations, and as such is the person whom you will most often see at the front desk.  She juggles all of the office managing duties and makes certain that we all know what we're doing up there.   Anne has always been the one who sends out all of the reminder cards you get, makes sure that we have the office supplies we need, does most of the marketing and is our webmaster.  This comes naturally to her as she is an artist in her own right; she has her own business, Watershed Designs, where she sells the beautiful fiber art and black and white landscape photography that she creates.  You can go to her website, www.watershed-designs.com, and see some of the artwork we have displayed in our waiting room.  She graduated from the University of New Hampshire in 1976 with a B.S. in Environmental Conservation.  She also has a Master's degree in Experiential Education from Boston University, which she earned in 1986.   You may have seen one of the four puppies she has fostered for Guiding Eyes for the Blind up at the front desk, learning to be well mannered dogs.  (Sometimes that takes awhile.)  Her newest puppy, Rhumba, joined us in December, 2011.  She's a beauty with lots of personality!   Always a calming influence at the front desk when things get incredibly busy, she shares her home with DJ, (who is the owner of Shaggy Dog Grooming), one cat, an entire dogsled team as well as the Guiding Eyes foster puppies.

Gillie began volunteering in 2002.  Since then she has become a part of the staff, taking care of things for which no one else had time, some correspondance, setting up interviews, working as a veterinary assistant, staffing the front desk and doing a few other small tasks.  A former English-teacher-turned-licensed-massage-therapist, she consults with the doctors when massage or shiatsu (a form of acupressure) is indicated.  She runs between Briar Patch and her own business--Crane Hill Professional Massage, which is allied with Hands On Physical Therapy--so if you have seen her in passing, she is probably heading to the next job with Zuza, a Prague Ratter who works as her medical alert service dog , tucked in her jacket. When not working she is reading, singing with the Out Loud Chorus, gardening, doing mountains of laundry or cleaning litter boxes!  She lives with her partner Carolyn, several cats, and two dogs.  Here she is with both Zuza and Lukas, birdwatching.

Tammie joined us in November 2009 as a veterinary assistant.  She brought with her over 20 years of experience running Walnut Grove Home Pet Care where she has boarded horses and cared for a wide variety of species.  She has also bred, trained and shown Arabian horses, all of which probably helps her a great deal when holding large dogs during treatment! 

Tammie fills in at the front desk, assists in appointments, runs lab equipment, cleans cages, helps with patients before and after surgery and does all of the tasks with a smile, which is evident in this picture at our August 2011 staff work day. 

She shares her home with her husband Steve, 2 dogs, 4 cats and--not in the house--8 horses.

 Aimee moved from Ellsworth, Maine to Ithaca in November, 2009.  She joined our team as a veterinary assistant in 2010, bringing with her years of training and showing horses as well as a natural, easy way with animals.  She also brings a lot of energy, a willingness to work hard and a very good sense of humor.  She still rides and trains, attends TC3 to study Criminal Justice and hopes to become an animal cruelty investigator.

She lives with "Bub", her rescued Doberman/Weimaraner cross (which is one of the most interesting combinations you have ever seen!)  

Aimee is the one in pink.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                             

Soshi joined us as a veterinary assistant in August,2011, bringing with her a huge amount of love for the animals and the added skills of being a vet tech in training.  She grew up in New York City and moved to Ithaca in 1998 after college.  She has worked as an administrative assistant at Cornell's Hospital of Veterinary Medicine, as well as an adoption counselor at the Tompkins County SPCA and as a veterinary assistant at another small animal hospital in town for the past nine years.  She has volunteered for the SPCA and enjoys shelter medicine as well as emergency and critical care--which is one of the reasons that she is currently enrolled in an online program to become a licensed veterinary technician.  

Soshi enjoys hiking, boating on Cayuga Lake and exploring the gorges and waterfalls in and around Ithaca.  She shares her home with her three older mixed breed dogs, Rocky, Adriene and Seneca.

Jon has been a client care specialist at Briar Patch since September 2010. He entered the veterinary field in 2001, several years after graduating from Cornell with a degree in landscape architecture.  Before coming to Briar Patch, Jon worked in client services at other practices in the Ithaca area.

He lives with his partner of ten years (now husband!), Joshua, on west hill and for now, just one Greyhound named Roger. (You may have seen them on the cover of the Ithaca Journal recently--he's the one on the right).

Jenna joined us in 2011 as a client care specialist us at the front desk, but it isn't the first time she worked here.  When she was just 12 years old she joined us as a volunteer, and continued helping us out for the next 4 years.  Now she has returned to us all grown up, with a B.S. from Ithaca College in Biology and a minor in Psychology.  She has always loved animals, has lived with several of her own, has helped raise foster puppies for Guiding Eyes and has volunteered with Cornell Companions.  She is interested in studying more about animal behavior and dog training.

She shares her home with 2 dogs, Harley and Abby, 2 cats, a guinea pig and a human.  She is pictured here with Harley (the dog) and Justin (the human).

Another Client Care Specialist who joined us in 2011 is Sue.  She is a self-proclamed fitness nut who is inspiring all of the staff to eat well and to keep moving.  She has a Master's degree in Education, K-6, which may explain her patience with all of us here.  She is the mother of 3 (and a brand new mother-in-law).  Sue lives with one human and a stepdog, and one of the things she does in her spare time is to play polo, as evidenced in her photo.  

De works with our accounts receivable and all things numerical.  Before she came to us, she retired from being the CEO of long-term care facilities in the Southern Tier and is now the co-owner of Noble House Farm Bed and Breakfast with her partner, Marsha.  She is pictured here with Buddy, her long and lanky Standard Poodle.