Our Team
Meet Our
Veterinary Team
Get to know the Cats Preferred Veterinary Hospital team! Our dedicated veterinarians and staff are committed to delivering outstanding pet care. Your pets are in good hands with us!
Get To Know Our Veterinary Team
Meet Our Veterinarians
Dr. Debra Shirley
Dr. Debra Shirley graduated from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine in 1996. With a diverse background in veterinary practices, she has always had a special affinity for feline patients. After spending the last 4.5 years at a cats-only clinic, she is excited to continue providing exceptional care for your cats.
As a member of both the AVMA and AAFP, Dr. Shirley is certified in Fear Free and Cat Friendly Handling. Her key areas of interest include preventative medicine, behavioral counseling, dentistry, pain management, and strengthening the human-animal bond.
At home, she and her husband, Mike, share their lives with five cats—Quasimodo, Max, Ellie, Pepper, and Pumpkin—a dog named Gemini, and their two children, Jacob and Kyler. In her free time, Dr. Shirley enjoys photography, reading, nature walks, gardening, antiques, and crochet. She is also eager to explore kayaking in Minnesota, one of her favorite outdoor activities.
Dr. Ellen Buckley
VETERINARIAN
Dr. Ellen Buckley graduated from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 1991. She completed her undergraduate training in animal science at the University of New Hampshire.
Dr. Buckley has worked at feline-only practices since 1994 and joined Cats Preferred in 2001. She is a member of the American Association of Feline Practitioners and is a Certified Cat-Friendly Veterinarian.
Her husband, Robert, owns a floor covering/furniture business in Northfield, MN.
They live in Apple Valley with their cat, Count Lukas, and one dog-Mya.
Dr. Lori Boettcher
VETERINARIAN
Dr. Lori Boettcher, a Minnesota native, graduated from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine 1991. She has worked in companion animal practices in Minnesota and Florida for several years and a cat-exclusive clinic in North Central Florida for 4 years. After returning to Minnesota, she joined Cats Preferred Veterinary Hospital in 2001.
She is a member of the American Association of Feline Practitioners, the American Veterinary Medical Association, and a Certified Cat-Friendly Veterinarian.
She lives with her husband and their 5 cats- Coconut, Scooter, Simon, Mr. Grey, Big Orange Kitty, and a Labrador retriever – Maui.
Dr. Robert Schmitt
VETERINARIAN
Dr. Robert Schmitt graduated with a Bachelor of Music from Berklee College of Music. After working in the music business in New York, he moved to the Twin Cities, where he obtained his veterinary degree from the University of Minnesota. Since graduating, he has worked exclusively with cats in the Twin Cities and, most recently, in Boston. He first became familiar with Cats Preferred while doing a two-week externship during his clinical year in school and then later doing relief work for our vacationing veterinarians.
He was happy to return to the Twin Cities and join our staff as an associate veterinarian when the opportunity presented itself. Dr. Schmitt is an American Association of Feline Practitioners member and has contributed to their online educational materials. He lives with his wife, their 2 sons, and their 2 kitties – Bijou and Bonkers.
Meet Our Staff
Jill
LEAD CERTIFIED VETERINARY TECHNICIAN
Jill graduated from the Medical Institute of Minnesota in 2001. Animals are just one of her passions. She also enjoys gardening, hiking, lying in a hammock by the water and playing legos with her son.
Trisha
PRACTICE MANAGER
Trisha graduated from Globe College in December 2003. She has worked as a veterinary technician since that time and joined Cats Preferred in December 2009. She lives with her husband, cat-Nala and dogs-Harper, Charlie and Jade.
Kelsey
Kelsey joined Cats Preferred in September 2015 as an intern. She graduated from Minnesota State University Mankato with a bachelor’s degree in Zoology in December 2015. After completing her internship, she accepted a position at Cats Preferred as a veterinary assistant. She lives with her boyfriend and cat Edgar.
Jess
Jess graduated with a Bachelor’s degree in Biology in 2011. Since then she has volunteered/interned for the Wildlife Rehabilitation Center, interned at Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo rehabilitating manatees, and volunteered at the Minnesota Zoo connecting the public to wildlife. Following her passion to work with animals, she has worked in the pet care and veterinary fields as a Boarding Facility Supervisor and Veterinary Receptionist since 2013. Jess joined Cats Preferred in May of 2015 and loves contributing to the focus on high quality feline care and being part of our team! She has no pets of her own for now, but loves her spunky four-legged sister Sophie, a Choodle (Chihuahua Poodle mix).
Kasandra
CERTIFIED VETERINARY TECHNICIAN
Graduated from Ridgewater College in 2015. She joined the Cats Preferred team in May of 2022 and has enjoyed working exclusively with cats since then. She shares her home with her cat Momo and likes going for hikes in her down time.
Monica
VETERINARY TECHNICIAN STUDENT
Joined us at Cats Preferred in February 2023 and is currently in the Pennfoster Veterinary Technician Program. She has worked in the animal field for 7 years, starting off as an animal care tech and learning animal behavior and then transferred to veterinary medicine in 2020. She shares her home with her 4 cats: Levy, Tabby, Lucy and Sparta along with her 2 dogs: Cyra and Bella
Molly
TECHNICIAN ASSISTANT
Molly graduated from UW Madison in 2018. During her college years, she gained valuable experience working as kennel staff, which deepened her passion for animal care. After graduation, she transitioned to a technician assistant role in 2018, where she honed her skills and knowledge in veterinary medicine. Molly joined our team in 2023, bringing her dedication and expertise to our clinic. She is also a proud pet parent to, Boops and Poots.
Dr. Whiskercloud
Veterinarian
Lorem ipsum dolor sit amet, consectetur adipiscing elit. Donec congue tempor rutrum. Nullam vitae elit sapien. Morbi pharetra bibendum est, a commodo ex fermentum a. Donec a elit interdum, feugiat turpis nec, porttitor sapien. Ut condimentum hendrerit odio a porta. Etiam et consequat justo, eget pharetra justo. Phasellus consequat neque dui, id molestie velit elementum in. Aliquam hendrerit metus ac pellentesque varius. Vestibulum consequat libero metus. Aliquam semper felis id justo molestie, ac eleifend quam fringilla. Phasellus cursus, leo at rhoncus facilisis, arcu quam rutrum diam, at molestie neque lacus at augue. Vestibulum ante ipsum primis in faucibus orci luctus et ultrices posuere cubilia curae; Nunc nibh magna, porttitor ut mi sagittis, lobortis bibendum magna. Integer sem ante, eleifend at volutpat sit amet, hendrerit at metus.