Dr Sarah Schultz – Veterinarian

Sarah graduated as a Veterinarian from James Cook University in 2014 and after completion moved back to Geelong, starting at DVS in January 2015. She has two busy little dogs, Benji the Jack Russell and Toby the Cardigan Corgi who she trains in agility and other dog sports. Coming from a family pet shop background Sarah has an interest in birds, reptiles and fish with an Eclectus Parrot and Long Necked Turtles at home.

In 2019 to add to her menagerie, Sarah and her husband Chris welcomed a daughter Claire to the family, since then Claire has been a big part of the DVS family. If you have been a regular at the clinic you may have even met her greeting patients at reception.

Sarah has a broad knowledge in canine and feline medicine and surgery, and an interest in avian and reptile medicine, Honing her surgical skills over the past years Sarah is now an accomplished surgeon. Oh and if anyone is going to find the most weird and wonderful, complex cases we can almost guarantee it will be Dr Sarah. Her ability to see the detail and pick up on the little things means her level of patient care is astonishing and she has a very loyal following of clients at DVS.

Dr Nicole Brown – Veterinarian

At her home, you will find two spoiled rabbits, Sheldon and Pretzel, and a cheeky Border Collie, Caspian. In her spare time, she escapes to the mountains and goes hiking (taking Caspian whenever possible). She also has fun with indoor rock climbing and photography.

Dr Keeley Barry – Veterinarian

Keeley graduated as a Veterinarian from the University of Melbourne in 2023 and was thrilled to join DVS the following year. She previously had a beautiful golden retriever, and now loves spending time with her family’s Labrador and Boxer cross.
Keeley enjoys the variety of general practice and finds it very rewarding to develop relationships with pet owners as she works with them to reach the best outcomes for their pets. Having studied Indonesian, she has also been lucky enough to travel to Indonesia and contribute to equine health and dog sterilisation programs!

Outside of work, Keeley enjoys spending time swimming and surfing at the beach, or going on hiking trails with friends. Be sure to say hi the next time you are in the clinic!

At home, Kate shares her life with a Doberman named Halo and a cat named Cleo. Her devotion to animals extends beyond her work, reflecting her strong commitment to animal welfare in all species

Outside of work, she enjoys fitness, reading, and spending time with loved ones. Kate looks forward to meeting you and your pets!

Karen Donnelly – Veterinary Nurse

After many years working for a large Government department. Karen decided a major career change was in order. Her family was grown up & with their support, she embarked on following her passion. Karen returned to study in February 2010 and commenced working as a Veterinary Nurse at the same time. Karen gained her Certificate IV qualification in 2011 and after 5 years of the commute along the Westgate freeway working for a city based clinic, Karen joined the DVS team in January 2015. Karen loves working closer to home. Karen’s 2 sons now have their own families and with 9 grandchildren, Karen is certainly a busy Nanna.

Karen’s other love is sewing. Karen spends many contented hours in the “girl cave” which is a converted demountable building in her back yard. Karen has made doggie fashion in the past & this includes dressing Mr Puckers (clinic PR manager) & Miss Penny the golden retriever. We love seeing what creative outfits she comes up with and the animals love it, frequently with no pattern or plan her ability to “throw together” an outfit is seriously awesome. Being our matriarch and having come from a public service roll, Nurse Karen provides great comfort to distressed clients during challenging times. She’s that Mum in the team firm but always there for a hug when you need one.

Kim Bowden – Veterinary Nurse

After many years in private practice, we were thrilled to welcome Kim to the Direct Vets’ Team in 2015. Kim and hubby Craig share the house with a farm-load of animals including Golden Retrievers, two cats, guinea pigs, pigeons and whatever homeless waif wandered in from the neighbourhood in the last week. For her dainty size, Kim is surprisingly strong and will help wrangle the biggest of beasts. Her technique of straddling some of the bigger dogs often leaves the staff in stitches. No persona boundaries with this nurse. When it’s a hug your pet needs it is up close, personal and heart felt. She has a heart of gold and a total softie when it comes to patient care. There are often pets snuggled on her clothing at reception or sharing her lunch.

Fostering Penny (one of the Retrievers) turned into a foster fail, and you will often see her in the clinic. Penny was born missing her right kidney, and both the ureters instead of emptying into the bladder, opened closer to the end of the system leaving her incontinent. Surgery to correct the issue was only partially successful and she wears a nappy to catch the drips. She is an amazing comfort dog for patients in the clinic for treatment and will often curl up next to them to lend support.

Alicia Mits – Veterinary Nurse

Alicia AKA ‘Leesh’ started her Certificate 4 in Veterinary Nursing with Direct Vets in 2014 and managed to find herself employed before she had even finished. Alicia has been with DVS ever since and is an integral part of the team. With the team award for bravery, Alicia is the only team member (other than Dr Karen) that is permitted the honour of handling Noisy the Eccy. The monster bird has a strong bond with Alicia, often going on trips home or outdoor adventures together. The level of trust animals have with Alicia and her patience with some of the tough ones is a skill to be admired.

Alicia has a gorgeous husky ‘Sparky’ who although now starting to get a little older still loves her walks so much she will put the brakes on when they get to the driveway and refuse to go home.

Alicia is also ‘manager’ for Puckers (the clinic Devon Rex) and oversees all his social media endeavours, keep your eyes open for her Puckers and Elf on the shelf Christmas adventures each your on the social media pages, they are a scream.

At home, Claire shares her life with a diverse array of pets, from feathered friends to scaled and furry companions. Driven by a lifelong love for animals, she’s always seeking to expand her knowledge. Claire is currently planning to pursue further studies to deepen her expertise and continue making a global impact on animal welfare. Her unwavering dedication to animals fuels her mission to create a better world for them.

Elizabeth Adofo – Trainee Veterinary Nurse

Most just call her Liz—is a trainee veterinary nurse with over a year of hands-on experience at DVS. Originally from London, UK, she’s currently studying for her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing and has developed a special love for surgical nursing. Every day is a learning opportunity, and she wouldn’t have it any other way.

When Liz isn’t in the clinic, she’s likely dancing her heart out, lost in a movie, or wandering through a museum. But her real daily challenge? Keeping up with her two mischievous cats, Mischief and Misty, who certainly live up to their names. Despite her active lifestyle—including years of dance—she’s never broken a single bone (knock on wood!). Between her cats’ antics and her passion for animal care, life is never dull! Liz is excited to continue growing in the veterinary industry and can’t wait to see where the journey takes her next.

Kezia – Trainee Veterinary Nurse

Kez graduated with a Bachelor of Science, majoring in Animal Biology, in 2023. In 2024, she joined Direct Vet Services to pursue her dream of becoming a veterinarian. Determined to pursue this career, she hopes to one day open her own veterinary clinic specialising in a particular area. Alternatively, she’s considered physiotherapy, which would allow her to work with animals or even explore paediatrics.

A passion for animals, Kez has cared for German shepherds, Border Collies, and a Macedonian shepherd named Arlo. Her compassion and enthusiasm drive her dedication to supporting pets and their owners.

In her free time, Kez enjoys road trips, movies, and preparing wholesome meals with her loved ones. She plays the piano and has a passion for travel, having visited seven countries so far, she’s excited to explore more destinations in the future!

Ashleigh – Trainee Veterinary Nurse

Ashleigh, known as Ash, is new to the team and started working with Direct Vet Services at the start of 2025. She is currently gaining hands-on experience while working towards a Certificate II in Animal Care, with plans to progress to a Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing. With a strong interest in patient handling and surgical nursing, Ash is dedicated to providing compassionate, high-quality care and ensuring that every pet feels safe and comfortable during their visit. Each day, she strives to expand her skills and knowledge to better support both the veterinary team and clients.

Outside of work, Ash enjoys spending time with her two cats, Pumpkin, a sweet domestic short hair and a mischievous maine coon, Freya, as well as her two very energetic golden retrievers, Belle and Cody. A fun fact about Ash? If you look closely, you can spot all her fur babies tattooed on her arm!

Sarah – Trainee Veterinary Nurse

Meet Sarah. Animal lover, Nursing enthusiast, and Veterinary professional in the making.

Starting her tertiary journey in Biomedicine followed by human nursing, Sarah realised that human nursing wasn’t her cup of tea! She transitioned to animal care and never looked back. After completing her Diploma in Animal Technology and working in that industry for a short while, she’s finally found her passion in caring for your fur babies!

A martial arts enthusiast, she’s a little pocket rocket who has quickly developed skills and now spends her days assisting with consultations and nursing patients during their hospital stays here at DVS!

With a knack for building relationships and a love for cuddles, Sarah thrives as Veterinary Liason, clinical and hospital nurse, while pursuing her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing.

Outside work, she’s all about family time with Luna the Bernese Mountain dog and her abundance of feline friends. 🐶🐱

Zünicka – Receptionist

Zünicka joined the Direct Vet Services team in October 2024, bringing over 16 years of experience in medical administration. Before moving to Australia, she worked for a renowned Orthopaedic Hand Surgeon in South Africa, honing her skills in client care and practice coordination.

Her journey to Australia was a family adventure—her husband relocated in 2023, and she and her daughter followed in mid-2024. With a warm, welcoming nature, Zünicka loves meeting new people and making clients feel at home.

Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with family and friends, exploring new places, and following her passions for animals, music, and sports—especially Formula 1, rugby, and figure skating. A former competitive skater herself, she represented two provinces in South Africa and still finds joy on the ice.

Just don’t ask her to go near a snake!

Claire – Temperament tester and Zoomie master

After being born in March 2019, at the early age of 10 weeks old Claire started her career in the Veterinary industry. Claire can be seen greeting patients, examining cages for patient comfort, taste testing and preparing hospital patient food and polishing the floors at any opportunity.

She has brought such delight to staff and clients alike and is a big part of why DVS is family. It often ends up DVS day care and we love it.

Noisy – Door Greeter

(Eclectus Parrot)

Brought into the clinic as an extremely unwell hatchling, Noisy was surrendered to Dr Karen, to avoid euthanasia. Needing to be crop fed, she developed and exceptional bond with Dr Karen (Mum) and Clover. Clover even came into milk to feed the “new baby”. Noisy is the clinic door greeter and is often in for a chat. If anyone can work out how to get her to stop mimicking the doorbell from a couple of doors down, we would all be grateful.

With quite the vocabulary she will call Puckers and Karen, meows, but does not bark (we don’t get it either). She has also developed a close relationship with Alicia and likes to go on outings in her spare time. Her other hobby is taking a decent bite out of any new staff member that does not heed the warnings and thinks that they too can be her friend. Yeah, NAH!!

Puckers – Clinic Cat

Puckers was surrendered to DVS in April 2019 with a rectal prolapse that required surgery and ongoing medical management that the current owner was unable to manage. His name is testament to the team sense of humour, as he left “Butt Pucker” marked when ever he sat down, prior to his surgery.

He takes great delight in sitting on other pets in crates, just to establish his, kingliness (yep he invented that word too), demanding to share staff lunches, and raiding the treat containers. He has a bigger wardrobe than Beyonce’ and has numerous servants, aka staff and students.

As is the nature of the Devon Rex, Puckers is the naughty, cheeky Houdini but also a loving lap or neck warmer for anyone who will offer the opportunity.  With his own Instagram page @Pucker_up_DVS, we are all blessed to be in his presence.

Teddy – Clinic Pet

Joined the DVS family as an 8 week old pup from New Zealand, in 2014. In the early days he worked as a building site supervisor with Karen’s partner Brett. Then one day he decided he too needed a change of career and joined the veterinary field.

You will generally find “Mr Velcro” wherever Dr Karen is, supervising consults.

You will never meet a more placid fellow, after all anything else would take too much energy he is true to the Bulldog breed.

Clover – Clinic Pet

Born at the clinic in 2013 to Harlo (Dr Karen’s Bulldog matriarch who was also born at DVS) she is quite the accomplished staff member. As an accredited MindDog she has completed her VCE and now studies mechanical engineering with Dr Karen’s son Nathan. She is also assistant trainer working with Chiara, Lisa and Anthony of Point Cook Dog Training teaching hundreds of puppies and their families.

As a mother of 10 she loves when some of her kids come for a visit and then after play is equally glad to see them leave.

Yep back to the couch for a nap.