Ready, Vet, Go

Dr. Kelly Dowdall-Garberson is originally from Detroit, Michigan. She attended high school in both China and South Korea before moving to Florida for her undergraduate studies. Dr. Kelly graduated from Eckerd College with degrees in biochemistry, Spanish, and biology. In undergrad, she worked as a veterinary assistant, where she gained a strong understanding of the different roles and positions in a vet clinic. She then earned her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from North Carolina State University in 2011. After completing vet school, she followed her husband (active duty Army officer) to Olympia, WA, where she practiced small animal medicine for 1 year. “Life happened” (as it often does) and Dr. Kelly moved to Chiang Mai, Thailand for 3-years. As she didn’t read and speak Thai fluently, Dr. Kelly was unable to practice veterinary medicine...so she was a high school guidance counselor for 3 months, substitute elementary school music for 3 months...and then she worked for the U.S. Department of State in the U.S. Consulate in management and public health. Life happens and...why not! During her time in Thailand, Dr. Kelly earned her Master’s of Public Health as well as her Master’s of Science in Education degrees. She was nominated for several national volunteer awards for her work creating a women’s development project, as well as devising a Congressionally funded project to improve air quality and respiratory health in northern Thailand. After her time in Thailand, Dr. Kelly and her family moved back to Olympia, WA where she worked as a public health veterinarian with the USDA for 2 years (again, why not!) In 2017, Dr. Kelly and her family moved to paradise- HAWAII. Dr. Kelly worked as the Chief Veterinarian at the Hawaiian Humane Society for 7 months, which was followed by several months of relief veterinary work around Oahu. After seeing the need for low-cost veterinary care in Oahu, she founded Aloha Affordable Veterinary Services (AAVS) in August 2018, proudly partnering with animal rescue and welfare groups on Oahu. AAVS honestly started off as a clinic without a true front door, windows or a sign...and had a card table as a front desk. It has since grown to an 8-doctor practice and has +/- 35 of the world’s best veterinary staff. In 2020, Dr. Kelly purchased North Shore Veterinary Clinic (NSVC) in Waialua. It’s now a 2 vet sister practice of AAVS with an equally incredible team (seriously, they’re the best)! Dr. Kelly has 5 children (all from Ethiopia), 5 dogs and 2 outdoor cats (she’s super allergic). She loves pink, pigs, and ice cream, and her favorite pastime is spending time with her lively, fun-loving family. She’s passionate about travel and has been to over 50 countries on 6 continents, and has lived in 7 countries. Recently, she’s started traveling to the Republic of the Marshall Islands to do spay/neuter and outreach veterinary care- and has started veterinary outreach programs around Oahu. She has performed over 25,000 spay/neuter surgeries and loves to teach and mentor others. She is an Army spouse and loves working alongside other military spouses and families. She hopes her work helps to redefine the mindset and stereotypes of who military spouses are, and what they are capable of! She is an advocate for family preservation, women’s empowerment, and education. She is passionate about older child adoption as well. Dr. Kelly remains closely connected to China, South Korea, Thailand and Ethiopia. She loves working with a wide variety of people, and is fascinated by different cultures (she has spent 20% of her life living abroad). Dr. Kelly and her family love living on Oahu and consider Hawaii home. Kelly believes veterinary medicine is a tool to be utilized to improve the lives of people and animals. Dr. Kelly is proud to partner Mission Aloha Foundation, a non-profit that promotes public health in Hawaii and around the globe. Feel free to reach out: [email protected] Seriously! She’s happy to chat, answer questions, laugh, cry, or just share stories!