Dr. Atkinson graduated from Washington State with her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine degree over 20 years ago. Dr. Atkinson has worked in emergency medicine in Texas, Connecticut, and New York; as the medical director of busy hospitals in Bushwick, Brooklyn and Manhattan’s Upper East Side; as chief of staff of a Connecticut hospital; and as a surgery instructor at The University of the West Indies in Trinidad and Tobago. During her career, she has focused on improving the lives of companion animals and strengthening the human-animal bond. Dr. Atkinson treats all types of family pets, from the tiniest pocket pet to pot-bellied pigs, believing that all pets deserve the best care possible.
During her final year of veterinary school, Dr. Atkinson became certified in veterinary acupuncture, and continues to explore and enjoy the benefits of integrative medicine for her patients. She believes in treating the whole patient, and in addition to traditional modalities, such as vaccines, radiology, ultrasound, dentistry, lab work and surgery, she also incorporates holistic practices, such as nutritional counseling, acupuncture, cold laser therapy, and stem cell therapy.
When the time comes for a pet to cross the rainbow bridge, Dr. Atkinson firmly believes in offering end-of-life services in the comfort of a patient’s home, instead of on a cold, sterile exam table, and regularly travels to clients’ homes to help her patients pass with dignity.
Dr. Atkinson lives in downtown Brooklyn. She has two wonderful, grown children—Justin, a biochemist, and Maddison, a film editor—as well as a bevy of 4 legged family members, including Maude, a 17-year-old Cavalier King Charles spaniel, Genvieve, a 15-year-old labradoodle, Whit, a 15-year-old domestic shorthair cat, Bear, a 6-year-old rottweiler, and Radames, a 1-year-old sphynx. In her spare time, she loves eating out, listening to live music, riding her bike, reading, and going on road trips with the clan, and is building a house on the top of a mountain in the Blue Smoke Mountains.