Our Staff
From the front desk, to the exam room, to on-farm calls - our friendly, professional staff is here to serve you
Veterinarians
Dr. Jake Murphy has been practicing since 2013. His main interests lie in large animal medicine and bovine reproduction, but if you ask the staff he is the resident cat doctor. Dr. Murphy now spends most of his clinic time doing embryo work and is CETA certified to export embryos anywhere in the world. When he's not working he's just as busy chasing behind his 4 small children.
Robert has been practicing since 2008, after graduating from WVCM and joined the team at WVC in February of 2012. He enjoys practicing large animal medicine with his main interest being cattle & swine. When he is not practicing medicine, Robert enjoys spending time with his wife, Jolene, and his three children. Fun Fact: he also has a passion for aviation and is a pilot!
Patty has been practicing at the Westlock Veterinary Center since 2013. She grew up just outside of Ponoka on a beef farm and attended the Western College of Veterinary Medicine. At work, her main areas of interest are in small animal surgery, dentistry and ophthalmology. At home her 2 young children, husband, crazy yellow Lab and 2 lazy house cats keep her entertained and on her toes!
Dr. Tannis Jackson grew up outside Calgary and earned her DVM from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in 2000. She started her career after graduation at the Westlock Vet Center and liked it so much she never left! Her focus is on small animal medicine and surgery with a special interest in orthopedics. Dr. Jackson became a partner in the practice in 2008 as the practice was transitioning into a new 10000 square foot mixed animal facility. She is proud to have been a part of this small town rural clinic growing into the thriving 12 doctor practice that it is today. When not practicing veterinary medicine, she enjoys spending time gardening, working around the acreage, golfing and kayaking.
Reagan grew up in the beautiful rolling hills of Athabasca, just north of Westlock. Her love of animals started at a young age while being surrounded by a regular old funny farm of pets. From dogs, cats, rabbits, guinea pigs, iguanas, chickens, ducks, pigs, sheep and a handful of others, there was never a shortage of animal companions.
Reagan graduated from WCVM in 2010 and spent 1 year in mixed animal practice back in her hometown of Athabasca. She was then drawn to the wonder of WVC in 2011, has made herself comfortable and now can’t be rid of. She is now a small animal only practioner and has a special interest and desire to learn more in the field of ultrasonography. She is also very partial to adorable kitten appointments.
When not working, Reagan enjoys time at her acreage with her human family of a husband and 2 children and fur family of 2 dogs, 3 cats and 2 rabbits. She also enjoys camping, hiking and travelling with her family and friends.
Associate Veterinarians
Dr. Alexa Dixon grew up in Calgary and graduated from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in 2023. She has an interest in both small and large animal medicine, with special interests small ruminant medicine, poultry medicine, public health and epidemiology. When Alexa is not at work she enjoys spending time outside cycling, hiking, cross-country skiing or camping.
Meet Dr. Melissa Morey. She grew up in Calgary where she was an active Equine 4-H member and rode multiple disciplines, including roping, reining, dressage, hunter jumping...you name it! Melissa started her career at WVC in 2022 upon graduating from UCVM and soon after she married a local dairy farmer. Melissa's pride and joy is her small herd of Purebred Speckle Parks. When she is not here at the clinic you will find her tending to them and working at the dairy. Her special interests are beef embryo work (where she has been getting lots of practice with Dr. Murphy & DBK Genetics), as well as most things equine. We are happy to have Dr. Morey here as a Mixed Animal Veterinarian!
Cali has been practicing since 2015, but may be a familiar face to many, having grown up in the area. Often found in the footsteps of her veterinary parents, Dr. Roy Lewis and Dr. Carol Shwetz, Cali is no stranger to veterinary medicine and the Westlock Veterinary Center family. Cali now practices full time in British Columbia but graces us with her presence a few times of year to see her chiropractic patients. She practices both in small and large animal veterinary medicine, but has special interest in equine care. In her free time, Cali can be found riding her horses, hiking or paddle boarding with her dog, and partaking in all things outdoors.
Megan graduated from the University of Calgary in 2015 and joined the WVC team in November of 2020. She has an interest in both large and small animal medicine, with a special interest in pathology. When she’s not working, Megan enjoys spending time with her family and mixed-breed dog, Beaker.
Sven has been practicing since 2013 with an interest in equine medicine and reproduction.
Jolene graduated from WCVM in 2008 and joined the WVC team part-time in 2012. Jolene’s 3 children keep her busy on the days she is not here at the clinic! Since having children, Jolene has focused her interest in small animal medicine, even though she is very much looking forward to having a small herd of cattle at home. In addition to her cows, she also has a Labrador retriever, Skye, and 3 cats.
Dr. Roy Lewis gradated from WCVM in 1981 & was a partner here at WVC until 2013. His passion as a large animal practitioner for many years, mainly in bovines, brought out his interests in preventative medicine, fertility in bulls and cows as well as animal welfare. He has written numerus producer articles you will see in many magazines including, The Cattlemen and The Western Producer. Roy also teaches and examines the Veterinary students at the University of Calgary. He spends time doing some locum work for us here at WVC as well as semen freezing.
She has been involved in vet med for 36 years; first as an AHT, now as a vet, where she graduated from WCVM in 1997.
After 2 years in mixed practice, she owned operated a large animal ambulatory practice from 1999-2011 in the Newbrook area; a place she has called home for 26 years.
In the last 10 years, she has been providing locum work (mainly small animal) in Bellis, Grande Prairie, and Edmonton
When she is not working, she farms with her husband and enjoys what little time off she has with her 4 legged family.
She describes herself as a true general practitioner, but does enjoy surgery and dentistry.
Dr. Brenden Hilgartner grew up on a mixed grain and beef farm in the Camrose area, this is where he developed his interest in both large and small animal medicine. Outside of work you will find him running or biking around town or headed to the mountains for a hike.
Animal Health Technologists
Cassandra grew up on a farm near Breton AB where she enjoyed being involved in rural life and took part in 4-H for many years. She graduated from Lakeland College in 2020 and started at WVC in November of 2020. Her interests in the clinic are pet dentals and medical cases. In her free time she enjoys herding various animals with her two border collies Lexi and Finn.
Alana grew up in Edmonton but now lives in the Thorhild area with her horses, dog, cats and various pocket pets. She graduated from NAIT in 2013 with Andrea. She joined the WVC team in April 2016. In her spare time, you will find her caring for her motley crew, riding, baking and drawing.
Harley is from Fawcett where she raises and trains registered Quarter Horses. You can find her out in the arena barrel racing and team roping. She also has a Chihauhau named “Yager”. She is a Lakeland graduate of 2012 and joined WVC in November of 2012. Her interests are in Equine Rehab and alternative therapies.
Jenessa did her practicum with us and we hired her on shortly after in June of 2017. She has just graduated from the RVT program and we are happy to have her here with us full time now.
Jenessa grew up outside of Barrhead and now lives right in Westlock. In her spare time she enjoys her horses, reading & camping.
Jess grew up in Northern BC on her parents cattle ranch. She graduated as a tech in 2016 from GPPC Fairview. After moving back home and working in a busy mixed animal practice for 5 1/2 years she moved to Sturgeon County at joined us at WVC in November 2021. Her favorite things as an RVT are large animal surgery and anesthesia. Jess has two horses, Sage & Q, a cat, Auz, and an Axolotl, Axol. She enjoys spending as much time outside as possible, riding her horses, quadding or snowmobiling.
Customer Service
Ericka lives near Barrhead and joined WVC staff in March as a certified Vet Medical Assistant. She has three dogs, Penelope, Cliff and Oscar. Two horses, Tex and Patty. Erika enjoys horseback riding, the mountains, and doing many other outdoor activities with friends, family, and her animals.
Nicole has been with WVC as a receptionist since October 2019 and is a great addition to our team!She grew up on a mixed cattle and grain farm in Clyde and has worked in Westlock since graduating. Her joys in life are petting cows, and travelling. We will be sure to be extra nice to her as she’s a black belt in tae-kwon-do and likes to bake cookies.
Carolyn is married with 3 girls, 1 boy and many, many pets! She grew up on a mixed farm in the Manola area. She is certified in Equine Management. She has been a horse breeder/trainer for 15 years and has worked with a professional dog trainer for 7 years. Carolyn enjoys horseback riding, dog training & agility, quading, sledding, and being with her family.
She has three cats; Jake, Tiger and Max. We are very happy to have them all join our WVC family.
Office Staff
Amy joined the WVC team in 2016 as the Media and Marketing Manager. Her and her husband Cody, along with their 3 children, manage Excel Ranches a purebred cattle operation just outside of Westlock. At the moment she isn’t sure what she likes to do in her spare time, as she’s not sure she has any.
Hey there, I'm Mango! Living at the clinic was a life made for me. Although it took me some time to convince the people here of that. I may only have one eye but I'm always checking things out, especially if you leave unattended chicken nuggets on the counter. Finders Keepers is my motto, and these people never learn, but they still love me. I'm always up for an adventure whether its running past aggressive dogs or doing my business while everyone is eating lunch. I certainly keep the staff here entertained, and I like to think of myself of the king of WVC.
Karissa started at WVC in October of 2020, she is an RVT working as our Practice Administrator. She lives in Dapp, where she raises and barrel races Quarter Horses. When she isn’t with her horses you will find her in the great outdoors cross country skiing. he grew up in Edson and started her RVT career at the local clinic there after graduating from Lakeland in 2006. After travelling for a few months, in 2009 she made her way to the Westlock area and worked in Barrhead. In 2013 she took a bit of a hiatus from the veterinary field she couldn’t be happier to be back!