Meet the Team – Equine

Ben Gill
BA VetMB MRCVS

Ben qualified from Cambridge and joined us in January 2023.

Sarah Haycock
BSc BVMS GPCert(Derm) MRCVS

Sarah was born in England but grew up in Perth, Australia. After graduating from University she came back to England and joined us in 2005. She works in the small animal department usually at our Droitwich branch. She enjoys all aspects of her small animal work and loves the people she works with. Outside of work she is kept extremely busy looking after her three young children.

Kelly Heritage
BSC BVSC MSC PGCERT(SAS) MRCVS

Kelly graduated from Liverpool in 2011 and joined us in December 2021. She holds a Postgraduate Certificate in Small Animal Surgery, in addition to degrees in Zoology, Veterinary Parasitology and Veterinary Medicine.

Alice Hoggarth
BVM BVS GPCERT(SAM) MRCVS

Alice joined us in Autumn 2023 having worked elsewhere in the area. She graduated from Nottingham and holds an additional postgraduate Certificate in Small Animal Medicine. She leads a Girl Guides group in her spare time.

Sue Howarth
BVetMed MRCVS

Having been brought up on a small holding in Wales a career with farm animals seemed the natural choice when Sue graduated from London Vet College. However she soon realised her main interests lay in small animal work, specifically diagnostics and radiography, Sue has worked in this field mainly in Worcester since 1984. She is kept busy with her three daughters and in her spare time fell running.

Vlad Ivanov
DVM GPCert(Ex AP) MRCVS

Vlad joined us in 2017 and is our exotics vet. He has a very loyal client following and works primarily at our Droitwich surgery. He owns a wide variety of animals and in 2021 was awarded a General Practitioner Certificate in Exotic Animal Practice.

Steve Odell
BVMS GPCert(SAS) MRCVS

Steve joined the practice in December 2011. Qualifying from Glasgow University in 1996 he has worked in mixed practice in Leicestershire and Worcestershire before specialising in small animal practice, spending nine years in Birmingham. He enjoys equally the medical and surgical challenges of veterinary life but is happiest when in the operating theatre. Steve has recently gained a certificate in orthopedic surgery.

Mark Patteson
MA VETMB PHD DVC CERTVR FRCVS

Mark is an RCVS Recognised Specialist in Cardiology. He is based at our Droitwich branch every fortnight and runs a cardiology referral service. Mark holds the RCVS Diploma in Veterinary Cardiology as well as the RCVS Certificate in Veterinary Radiology. He regularly lectures to both undergraduates and vets and has published widely on the subjects of both small animal and equine cardiology.  

Jonny Reading
BVSc MRCVS

Jonny graduated as a vet from Bristol University in summer 2020 after training with us for the past five years. He’s now studying for certification in small animal medicine and in his spare time he enjoys walking his dog May.

Katherine Robinson
BA VetMB MRCVS

Katherine graduated from Cambridge University in 2021 and joined our Small Animal team in March 2023. Outside work, she is a keen rower.

Isabel Russell
MRCVS

Izzy joined us in September 2024, having graduated from Liverpool. She grew up locally and enjoys equestrian activities.

Richard Sant
BVMS MRCVS

Richard joined us in 2019 having previously worked in Redditch & Bromsgrove. He is the lead vet at our Worcester branch.

Jeremy Wills
BVSC Cert.V.Ophthal MRCVS

Jeremy is an eye specialist who is based at our Droitwich branch each Thursday. He qualified from Bristol in 1997 & attained a Certificate in Ophthalmology in 2005.

He runs Veterinary Eye Referrals, offering services such as ocular ultrasonography, cataract surgery and ophthalmic photography.

Sarah Bunting
BVM&S MRCVS

Sarah is with us on a temporary basis for Summer 2024.

Alison Cole
BVSc MRCVS

Following qualification from Liverpool Alison worked briefly in Manchester before joining the Droitwich surgery in 1989. She retired from daily practice in 2022 but still works for us on an ad-hoc basis. You may find her at our Worcester branch or undertaking inspections.

Ness
RVN

Ness has been with the practice since 1994 and qualified as a veterinary nurse in 2004. She has a keen interest in radiography, assisting in theatre and anaesthesia. Outside of work she enjoys gardening, horse riding and enjoys walking.

Jo P
RVN

Jo has been working at the Worcester surgery since 2004 and became a qualified veterinary nurse in 2007. She had her own horse for many years and used to work at an eventing yard, where she still enjoys helping out at the weekends.

Sue
RVN

Sue also joined the practice in 1994 and qualified as a veterinary nurse in 2005. Her interests are in laboratory work and bereavement. Outside of work she enjoys rugby and is a keen of Worcester Warriors. She is also a member of the local Farmers Club.

Emilie
RVN

Emily has been working at the practice since 2014. She qualified as a Veterinary Nurse in 2018 and has a naughty cat called Noodle. In her spare she enjoys wild swimming.

Caroline
CertAVN (Dentistry), RVN

Caroline joined us in March 2018 and passed her final exams shortly afterwards. She developed an interest in dentistry and in June 2022 completed her Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Nursing (Dentistry). At home she has a cheeky cat called Elsa who was handed into the practice as a stray kitten.

Hayley
RVN

Hayley joined us following the birth of her son. She loves all aspects of her job but her favourite thing to do is anaesthesia. She is border collie-mad and looks forward to seeing our clients in nurse clinics.

Rebecca
RVN

Rebecca qualified from Pershore College after achieving her FdSc in Veterinary Nursing. She has worked in a charity hospital, a referral hospital and general practice. Rebecca has a keen interest in in-patient care and has also completed the ISFM Advanced Certificate in Feline Behaviour and the ISFM Certificate in Feline Nursing.

Tina
RVN

Tina started with us in October 2023 and works across all three of our Pets and Exotics branches. Tina qualified in November 2021. Tina enjoys Nursing Consults and anaesthesia, and in her spare tine enjoys walking her dog Maple.

Petrina
RVN

Trina was with us for a number of years before moving away. She returned in early 2024.

Michala
RVN

Michala joined us as a Stylist at The Pet Spa in 2018. After 10 years as a pet stylist, she started her veterinary nursing journey with us in 2021. She qualified as an RVN and SQP in June 2024.

Outside of work she is working towards a black belt in Mixed Martial Arts, and is a MMA coach at her academy.

Bethany
RVN

Based mainly at our Webbs branch, Bethany qualified in 2014 and joined us in Autumn 2024. She is an SQP, Clinical Coach and LANTRA OSCE Examiner. In her spare time she enjoys yoga and pilates.

Eloise
RVN

Originally from Northern Ireland, Eloise qualified from Hartpury in 2022. She joined us in September 2024 and splits her time between our Droitwich and Worcester sites.

Ellen
Nursing Assistant

Ellen joined us in 2022 and is the granddaughter of a well-known local farmer. She is currently studying towards her veterinary nursing qualification and in her spare time she loves going on walks with her dog Tommy.

Kim
Nursing assistant

Kim has been working at the Worcester surgery since 1999. She has a BSc Honors degree in animal health and welfare and is an AMTRA SQP. In her spare time she enjoys photography, cake baking and holidaying in Scotland.

Claire
Nursing Assistant

Claire has been with the practice since 2009. Her interests are working with all kinds of animals and helping clients with bereavement. Claire also loves helping with the exotics. Outside work she enjoys DIY and gardening.

Nancy
Nursing Assistant

Nancy joined us in 2021 and is usually found at our Droitwich surgery. She hoping to do her RVN qualification in the future. In her spare time she enjoys spending time with her spaniel Bertie and is actively involved in the Young Farmers.

Kirsty
Nursing Assistant

Kirsty joined us in June 2021 and is based at our Droitwich branch.

Sylwia
Nursing Assistant

Sylwia hails from Poland and joined us in late 2023, working at our Droitwich branch. She graduated from the West Pomeranian University of Technology in Poland. Sylwia enjoys being in the lab the most. She’s a proud mum of 3, and in her spare time loves gardening and photography.

Maggie Dreistadt
BVM&S MRCVS

Maggie moved to us in 2023, having worked in South Wales and Wiltshire for a number of years. She grew up in Pennsylvania before qualifying from Edinburgh in 2015.

Fiona Georgetti
BVM&S MRCVS

Fiona qualified in 2001, initially working in mixed practice. She travelled to New Zealand and worked predominantly in equine practice before joining the practice in 2007. Fiona works part time and has recently completed training in acupuncture. She now uses the technique regularly as an additional therapy in many cases. Fiona is particularly interested in lameness and the management of chronic conditions.

Anne Gibbs
BSC BVSc MRCVS

Anne qualified from Bristol University in 1991 having intercalated to obtain a degree in Pharmacology. She worked initially in mixed practice in Oxfordshire before returning home to join the practice in 1993. Anne works in the Large Animal department dividing her time between farm and equine work. She provides veterinary cover at Ludlow, Hereford and Worcester racecourses, as well as many local Point-to-Points. She is a former chairman of the Association of Racecourse Veterinary Surgeons, and is certified to undertake export work for farm animals, horses & products.

Ben Gill
BA VetMB MRCVS

Ben qualified from Cambridge and joined us in January 2023.

George Mayes
BA VetMB MRCVS

George graduated from the University of Cambridge before spending a number of years working in the area. He joined us in early 2020 and focuses on farm work.

Ollie Morrison
BVM&S MRCVS

Ollie graduated from the Royal Dick Veterinary College in 2014, and following a couple years in other practices in Worcestershire, he joined MBG in 2019. He splits his time between our farm and equine clients, enjoying all aspects of large animal work. As well as performing normal reproductive work in both cattle and horses, Ollie has also started performing embryo transfer in these species as well. He has also been known to moonlight in our small animal clinics from time to time! Having recently retired form playing rugby, his spare time is spent with his young family, running and cheering on Gloucester down at Kingsholm.

Jade Pinnington
BVSc MRCVS

Jade joined us in 2016 after previously working in mixed practice, and has recently returned from maternity leave. Jade is originally from Lancashire and goes home to visit/get roped into working on the family farm and livery yard. She enjoys all aspects of her work, especially surgery. She also trained in acupuncture and offers this for equine and small animal clients for a variety of conditions. 

Josie Rafferty
BVetMed MRCVS

Josie worked in mixed practice for 4 years before joining our Large Animal team in 2009. This has allowed her to focus on farm animal work which she is passionate about. It has also enabled her to pursue her interests in preventative herd-health, particularly mastitis. Josie is our ‘Milksure’ advisor providing training to dairy farmers on safe use of all medications. She also oversees our ‘Dairy Club’, bringing dairy farmers together for relevant discussion topics. Josie also has extensive experience with camelids – alpaca numbers having risen over the last decade.

Isabel Russell
MRCVS

Izzy joined us in September 2024, having graduated from Liverpool. She grew up locally and enjoys equestrian activities.

Rebecca Shaw
BVM&S MRCVS

Becca joined us in October 2021 having qualified from Edinburgh in 2018. She spent 18 months in mixed practice in mid-Wales, followed by an internship at a large nearby equine hospital. She focuses primarily on equine work.

Phil Whiteley
MA VetMB MRCVS

Originally a farmer’s son from Yorkshire, Phil qualified from Cambridge University Vet School in 1997. He moved straight to Worcestershire, initially doing mixed work at another practice before moving to us in 2000. This allowed him to concentrate on farm and equine practice. Phil now spends the majority of his time with dairy cows but is also very experienced with all aspects of the farm and equine caseload. Phil is certified to undertake export work for farm animals, horses & products. He is also a Johne’s Disease advisor.

Vlad Haraga
MRCVS

Vlad joined us in early 2022 as our main TB tester. He has since fully qualified as a veterinary surgeon.

Jo Howl
HR Manager

Jo has been with the practice for many years, joining when Mr Moody was the senior partner. Jo has worked in all departments at one time or another and her current role is Human Resources Manager. With 3 young children, she keeps busy providing a taxi service from one football match to another.

Barbara
TB co-ordinator

Barbara joined us in February 2016, initially on the Small Animal reception team. She has since moved across to Large Animal and now co-ordinates TB testing. In her spare time she enjoys walks with her dog and joining her husband flying birds of prey, with several pets and 2 teenage sons.

Linnette
Finance

Linnette joined us in 2017, providing support in the finance department. She has since taken over day-to-day finance management.

Mandy
Finance

Mandy joined MBG in autumn 2021, providing support to the acccounts team.

Rachel
Finance

Rachel took over from Jan in early 2022. She deals with equine insurance claims and Large Animal accounts.

Lucy
Finance/Receptionist

Lucy is our claims coordinator, she oversees our Small Animal insurance claims department. She started at the practice in 2019 after gaining experience at Manor Vets in Birmingham, with the exotics department.

Julie
Administration

Julie joined us at our new Dodderhill offices in Spring 2022. She brings a wealth of experience from the healthcare sector and works across our Small and Large Animal departments.

Webbs Receptionist
Finance/Reception

This person joined us in 2018 and oversees our Pet Health Plan.

Bev
Receptionist

Bev started at MBG in 2021 and is based at our Droitwich surgery.

Lotty
Receptionist

Lotty joined us in July 2020 and is usually found at our Droitwich surgery. She enjoys puppy cuddles and outside of work she enjoys going to festivals and shopping.

Karen
Receptionist

Karen has been with the practice for 5 years. Originally she worked as a fitness instructor, where she spent 29 years putting people through their paces.

Sport and animals are her 2 passions and she feels very privileged to have worked with both.

Kate
Receptionist

Kate started working here in 1999, helping in the Large Animal office. She now works at our Droitwich branch. Kate has 2 sons and enjoys gardening, horses, cats and 3 Labradors.

Emily
Receptionist

Emily joined MBG in 2021 and is based at our Droitwich branch.

Katie
Receptionist

Katie took on a more permanent role with us in 2023, working on reception at our Droitwich branch. She also helps with our social media and has an interest in dancing.

Abby
Reception/Trainee Nurse

Abby joined our team in early 2023, starting at Droitwich but now based at our Worcester branch. She is training to be a veterinary nurse.

Abbie
Reception/Marketing

Abbie first joined us as a receptionist at our Worcester branch, before returning and taking an additional marketing role.

Amy
Receptionist

Amy joined us in 2023 and is found across all of our branches, she enjoys helping out one of our Large Animal vets at the races and in her spare time she is found riding her horses and walking her dogs.

Emma
Receptionist

Emma has been with us for a number of years, initially working at our Worcester branch. She moved to our Droitwich branch in 2024.