Our Doctors

Personal Interests and Bio: Dr. Benjamin was raised in Castro Valley, California. As the daughter of Dr. Richard Benjamin, she also grew up at Berkeley Dog and Cat Hospital. Throughout her pre-college years, she worked every job position at BD&C, short of being a doctor. She left the Bay Area for college and received her first bachelors in psychology from the University of California, Santa Barbara. She worked as a women's health counselor during her college years, which she loved, but she knew what her true career should be. Moving back to San Francisco, she attended SF State while working as a technician at Berkeley Dog and Cat. Dr. Benjamin received a second bachelors in biology from SF State and valuable technical skills in preparation for veterinary school. She attended the University of California, Davis, for veterinary school and received her DVM in June 2005. She was involved with several organizations during veterinary school such as class historian, class vice president, Mercer Clinic (providing veterinary care for Sacramento's lower income population), and president of Caduceus Club. After graduating from Davis, she completed a one-year internship program at Berkeley Dog & Cat. The internship program involved both working as a general practice doctor a few days a week and working with the various specialists. She now proudly works at Berkeley Dog and Cat as a general practice doctor.

Pets and Family Info: She lives with her husband and their brown tabby princess named Carlie....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio: Dr. Richard Benjamin grew up in Yonkers, New York. During his formative teenage years, he attended boarding school in Nairobi, Kenya, during that country's own formative colonial years. He then attended Colorado State University and received his DVM degree from Cornell University, where he put himself through school as the veterinary fraternity cook. He was elected student body president during his senior year in veterinary school. After marrying his high school sweetheart, the second thing he did right was to move to the West Coast after graduation. After four years in a progressive practice in East Oakland, he, together with Dr. Shriro, purchased the Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital. The hospital has grown from a two-doctor general practice to a multidoctor specialist referral center and general practice and a fully staffed 24-hour emergency/critical care facility. In addition to his clinical duties, Dr. Benjamin has assisted in multiple clinical field trials for most of the large pharmaceutical companies. Many of the drugs on our pharmacy shelf, and around the world, were researched here first, including Clavamox, Rimadyl, Mometamax, Zubrin, and Zenequin. He has lectured on this subject at FDA symposiums and has traveled to Europe to be part of global studies. He currently consults and serves as a veterinary advisor to the pet insurance industry. Long ago, seeing a need for overnight emergency care in the bay area, Dr. Benjamin was instrumental in convincing 23 local veterinarians to start PETS, the first veterinary emergency facility serving this area. He voluntarily oversaw its first 20 years of operations. Dr. Benjamin is also past president of the Alameda County Veterinary Medical Association.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Benjamin's main pleasures are Lynn (remember the high school sweetheart) and their daughters Amy and Jill. Amy professionally followed in her father's footsteps, first as a technician at BD&C, followed by Vet School in Davis and, just to confuse the staff, is now another Dr. Benjamin at Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital. Dr. Benjamin is thrilled to have her around as a competent colleague and close friend. Amy is soon to be married to Ben and resides with her cat Carlie in San Francisco. Jill "defected" to Los Angeles and is already full partner in her law firm. She is involved in interesting and varied cases, and she truly loves what she's doing. Jill and Brian were recently married, and with the recent addition of a house and dog, they are permanent So-Cal residents. The huge menagerie that populated Dr. Benjamin's house when the kids were home has dwindled somewhat to fish, Twitter the canary, Ferrous the cat, and Scruff the dog, all rescued and happily relocated.

Dr Benjamin is an avid mountain bicyclist and has gone riding in the East Bay hills twice weekly for the last 25 years. He travels extensively with his family and has always been into photography, archeology, collecting ancient Greek and Roman coins, red wine, and tending his fruit trees, vegetable garden, and bird feeders in the back yard. Besides his family, the constants in his life are a mid-day half-hour nap and a nightly soak in his hot tub. Basically, he considers himself disgustingly lucky and happy....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Originally from Long Island, New York, Dr. Freeman now calls the Bay Area home. He enjoys the unpredictable and demanding nature of emergency medicine as well as being able to serve patients when they need him most. He also has a love of general practice, where he hopes to build long-term relationships with clients and their pets. In his free time Dr. Freeman and his dog Squee can be found outdoors enjoying the natural beauty of the area while kayaking or hiking. He also has an interest in volunteer work that benefits the local community....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Harkewicz received a degree in animal sciences from the Pennsylvania State University before doing graduate work in animal nutrition at Ohio State University. He received his VMD degree from the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Philadelphia in 1981. After graduating veterinary school, he did a 20-month post-doctorate externship in wildlife medicine in Queensland, Australia, working with small marsupial populations and reptiles and amphibians. After marrying his wife Florence, he moved to the Bay Area in 1985. He has worked as an exotic animal veterinarian ever since. Dr. Harkewicz have been with the Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital since June 1997. In addition to working on non-domestic species (85% of total patient load) at Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital, he is also president-elect (2010-20110) of the Association of Reptilian and Amphibian Veterinarians (http://www.arav.org) and is a consultant to the Veterinary Information Network (http://vin.com) for reptiles and amphibian medicine, care, and surgery. VIN is a collection of over 45,000 veterinarians worldwide. Dr. Harkewicz also gives lectures on reptile and amphibians at the University of California, Davis, as well as local and nationwide reptile clubs and associations. He has had multiple papers and book chapters published on the same subjects.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Harkewicz lives with his wife in Crockett, California. Their "kids" include a French Bulldog, Jean-Luc; a Chinese Crested X Pug cross, Lil' Pea; four cats; three parrots; 24 exotic tortoises; and some 200 plus assorted reptile, amphibian, and invertebrate pets. His personal hobbies include (when he has the time) gardening, gourmet cooking, science fiction reading, and animals in general....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Yu-Tin Lee was born in Taiwan, where she lived until the eighth grade when her family moved to the US. After spending the first year in cold Michigan, she moved to sunny California and fell in love with the Bay Area. After high school, Dr. Lee attended UC Davis and graduated with honors with a major in biochemistry and a minor in animal biology. Her original goal was to become a physician, however, that goal was quickly changed after adopting her favorite dog in the world, Fido, a terrier mix. While taking care of Fido, she realized that her true passion was for veterinary medicine. After graduating from UC Davis, Dr. Lee moved to Michigan to attend veterinary medical school at Michigan State University. She was involved in several organizations such as secretary of Student Chapter of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Society (SVECCS) and member of Student Chapter of American Veterinary Medical Association (SCAVMA). Dr. Lee graduated with honors in 2005 and was inducted to Phi Zeta Veterinary Honors Society. After graduation, Dr. Lee was proudly accepted into a rotating internship in small animal medicine at Tufts University, School of Veterinary Medicine. During the one-year training program, she rotated through a variety of specialty fields such as emergency and critical care, internal medicine, neurology, surgery, and ophthalmology, and she gained valuable experiences. She developed a strong interest in emergency and critical care medicine. Dr. Lee was ecstatic to finally move back to the sunny Bay Area and work as a clinician at the Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Lee has a terrier mix named Fido, who has been her companion through college, vet school, and internship. He helped Dr. Lee study in school by posing as a patient so Dr. Lee could practice her physical examination skills. He loves to cuddle and enjoy going on walks. Dr. Lee and her husband, Tony, recently welcomed their first child, Aiden, in March 2010....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. McBride was born in Los Angeles, California. She spent a small part of her childhood living in Denmark with her family but, for the most part, grew up in the LA area. She attended Whittier College for her undergraduate education and studied art and biology through the prestigious Whittier Scholars Program. Her senior project included field research on urban coyotes. At Whittier College, she competed on the diving and lacrosse teams and was president of the Ecology Club and founder of the Pre-Veterinary Club. She graduated summa cum laude from Whittier College and was then accepted into the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. At UC Davis, Dr. McBride was a member of the feline and canine medicine clubs, vice president of the Mercer Veterinary Clinic for the Homeless, and the organizer for the annual Canine Medicine Symposium. Dr. McBride focused on small animal medicine (dogs and cats) during her senior year rotations. She graduated with honors and was inducted into the Phi Zeta Honor society for her accomplishments. After Veterinary School, Dr. McBride applied for and was accepted to an additional year of training at a busy 24-hour emergency clinic the East Bay Area, where she completed an internship in internal and emergency medicine and critical care.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. McBride has been practicing at the Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital since 2001. She lives in the East Bay and enjoys running, hiking, art, photography, cooking and baking, and spending time with her family including their two dogs: Alex and Little Jo....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Rope was born in San Diego and lived in Southern California until she moved to Davis for her undergraduate studies. At UC Davis, she received her degree in animal science and management. While attending UC Davis, she was a member of the Pre-Veterinary Club and competed on the Cross Country and Track and Field teams. After completing her undergraduate degree, she was accepted into the School of Veterinary Medicine at Davis, where she was an active member of the Canine and Feline Medicine Clubs as well as the Student Chapter of the American Veterinary Medical Association. After graduating from veterinary school, Dr. Rope completed a one-year internship in internal medicine, surgery and critical care at East Bay Veterinary Specialists in Walnut Creek.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Rope has been working at Berkeley Dog and Cat Hospital since 2007. She has a dog named Troy with whom she enjoys running, hiking, and camping in her spare time. She also loves to cook and travel....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Shriro grew up in Mt. Vernon, New York, and Greenwich, Connecticut. After graduating from the Fieldstone School in Riverdale, New York, he attended the University of Wisconsin, majoring in physics. After an honorable discharge from the US Army, he received his DVM degree from Cornell University in 1974. As a student, he served as Veterinary School Senator and chairman of the student/faculty liaison committee. He credits his friendship with Dr. Benjamin (senior) as his motivation to move to California, and he has never regretted the move. Dr. Shriro worked as a research fellow for the Harvard University School of Nutrition, supervising a primate colony in the Guatemalan Rain Forest. This experience, among others, convinced him to pursue clinical medicine. He worked a clinician at East Oakland Veterinary Hospital and presently owns and operates the Berkeley Dog and Cat Hospital with his business partner, Dr. Richard Benjamin. Dr. Shriro served as president of the Alameda County Veterinary Medical Association for two terms and has chaired the Alameda County Peer Review and Ethics committee for 24 years. Dr. Shriro is president emeritus of the Berkeley East Bay Humane Society and is vice chairman of the City of Berkeley Humane Commission.

Pets and Family Info: Interests outside of work include amateur mycology, photography, and a passion for scuba diving. Together with his dive buddy wife, he dives and travels the world whenever possible....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio: In his free time, Dr. Detweiler enjoys jogging, cycling, and working on older cars.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Detweiler lives in Davis, California, with his wife, four children, and Simon the cat....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Doering was raised near Peoria, Illinois, where his family owned a small farm. There he developed a fondness for animals and chose veterinary medicine at the University of Illinois. After two and half years in private practice, he returned to graduate work (MS) at Purdue University in Indiana. He served as a faculty dermatologist at Auburn University and the University of Missouri, where he became certified in dermatology. After a stint in nutrition research, he moved to the Bay Area in 1988, owning his own dermatology practice. He has been a dermatologist at Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital and Special Veterinary Services since 2001. Dr. Doering especially likes working with allergy cases, autoimmune diseases, and demodectic mange.

Pets and Family Info: His hobbies include spending time with his wife and family, international traveling, and golf. He plans to retire in two years, but he has said "two years" since 2004. His pets are Mickey, a male sheltie, and Kobe, a male black cat....Read More >

Medical Special Interests: Dr. Kim enjoys all aspects of internal medicine, but has particular interest in diseases of the gastrointestinal tract, kidneys, lower urinary tract, and immune system. During her residency, Dr. Kim did her research on feline interstitial cystitis, a common urinary condition in cats. Her mission is to nurture the human-animal bond by providing the next step in veterinary care.

Personal Interests and Bio: Dr. Kim graduated with a degree in animal science from University of California Davis. After working in the biotechnology industry for 2 years performing microsurgery on rodents, she decided to attend veterinary school at UC Davis. She went on to complete a 1-year internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Veterinary Specialty Hospital of San Diego, which led to a residency in small animal internal medicine at UC Davis. She enjoys cooking, baking, dining out, spending time with family, and cleaning the house.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Kim considers Sacramento her hometown and but enjoys exploring the culture and cuisine of the Bay Area with her husband and daughter. She is also a mother to two needy cats, Ben and Cheese. ...Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:When away from the hospital, Dr. Matteucci enjoys spending time with his family, being outdoors, and cooking.

Medical Special Interests:While enjoying all the facets of internal medicine―basically the specialty of internal medicine covers all internal organ systems (heart and respiratory diseases, kidney disease, liver disease, infectious and blood diseases, diagnosis of cancers, intestinal diseases, glandular issues, urinary issues, joint diseases, etc.―Dr. Sergeeff has special interests in endocrinology, gastroenterology, renal disease, and critical care. She especially enjoys performing endoscopy (nonsurgical technique to obtain biopsies, perform lung washes, or to retrieve foreign bodies that dogs/cats ingest) to help diagnosis or treat a problem in a less-invasive manner.

Personal Interests and Bio: Dr. Sergeeff is a native of the Bay Area (grew up on the Peninsula), and after the foray to the Midwest, she promptly returned to the Bay Area after completing her residency in 2004. Dr. Sergeeff was on staff at a multidoctor referral-only specialty practice in the San Jose area from 2004 to 2009, prior to joining BDC Specialty Services in July 2009. Dr. Sergeeff currently resides on the Peninsula.

Pets and Family Info:In her spare time, Dr. Sergeeff enjoys reading, traveling, exploring the local wine tasting regions, and spending time with her family, which includes two high-maintenance cats, Willow and Natasha....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:After graduation from veterinary school at the University of California, Davis, Dr. Yelland moved to the Bay Area where he has lived for the last 41 years. For much of that time, he owned and managed his own veterinary hospital in San Leandro. Over the past 20 years, Dr. Yelland developed his special interest in veterinary dentistry. He has been active in the American Veterinary Dental Society, including serving on its Board of Directors. His dental skills were honed through participation in an eight-year mentor-based dental residency program, operating his own dental referral practice, working with human dentists, and through regular continuing education. He is active as a dental practice consultant in the Bar Area and is a dental consultant with the Oakland Zoo. Dr. Yelland's website is www.dentistryforpets.com.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Yelland met his wife, Gail, while they were both students at UC Davis. They recently celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary. In April 2010, their daughter, Cara and her husband, Brian, presented them with a grandson, Miles McCrea. His hobbies include photography, cycling, and travel. The Yellands share their home with two dogs, Madra and Oski, and a cat, Abby....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Harkewicz received a degree in animal sciences from the Pennsylvania State University before doing graduate work in animal nutrition at Ohio State University. He received his VMD degree from the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Philadelphia in 1981. After graduating veterinary school, he did a 20-month post-doctorate externship in wildlife medicine in Queensland, Australia, working with small marsupial populations and reptiles and amphibians. After marrying his wife Florence, he moved to the Bay Area in 1985. He has worked as an exotic animal veterinarian ever since. Dr. Harkewicz have been with the Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital since June 1997. In addition to working on non-domestic species (85% of total patient load) at Berkeley Dog & Cat Hospital, he is also president-elect (2010-20110) of the Association of Reptilian and Amphibian Veterinarians (http://www.arav.org) and is a consultant to the Veterinary Information Network (http://vin.com) for reptiles and amphibian medicine, care, and surgery. VIN is a collection of over 45,000 veterinarians worldwide. Dr. Harkewicz also gives lectures on reptile and amphibians at the University of California, Davis, as well as local and nationwide reptile clubs and associations. He has had multiple papers and book chapters published on the same subjects.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Harkewicz lives with his wife in Crockett, California. Their "kids" include a French Bulldog, Jean-Luc; a Chinese Crested X Pug cross, Lil' Pea; four cats; three parrots; 24 exotic tortoises; and some 200 plus assorted reptile, amphibian, and invertebrate pets. His personal hobbies include (when he has the time) gardening, gourmet cooking, science fiction reading, and animals in general....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Lightstone was born and raised in Dallas, TX. She attended the University of California Santa Cruz as an undergraduate earning a bachelor’s degree in Biology and Environmental Science. After living abroad in Australia and backpacking around New Zealand, she decided to attend veterinary school at Massey University in New Zealand. After graduation, Dr. Lightstone completed a year-long internship focused on emergency and critical care. She also volunteered regularly at the Richmond SPCA to help with spay/neuter programs. In her free time, Amy loves most outdoor activities be it snowboarding, biking, swimming, or hiking. She also enjoys good food, wine, traveling, music and movie watching.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Lightstone has family scattered around the country, but many of her extended family are here around the bay area. She currently shares her home with an energetic orange cat named Monkey....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio: Dr. Marion grew up in the San Francisco Bay Area, although she was born abroad in Chile and lived for several years in Indonesia as a child. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of California, Berkeley and from there went up to Davis to complete veterinary school. During veterinary school, she thoroughly enjoyed research and worked closely with a laboratory that investigated heart disease and clotting disorders in cats. She was also greatly involved in the student emergency & critical care club as well as helping to found the pain management club. After graduation, she moved away from her husband for a year to complete further training at a rotating internship at Veterinary Specialty Hospital in San Diego. As an emergency clinician, she loves being able to provide relief and care for people and their animals in a time of need and stress....Read More >

Personal Interests and Bio:Dr. Medrano was born and raised in Miami, Florida, by parents who immigrated to the US from Bolivia. Dr. Medrano completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Central Florida, where she received her bachelors in molecular and microbiology. Continuing her education and the start of her veterinary career, she attended St. George's University in Grenada, West Indies. The University of Pennsylvania Veterinary School was the site for her clinical studies. Seeking further training and experience, Dr. Medrano was selected to enter an internship class in New York City. It was during this additional year of training that her interest in emergency and critical care medicine unfolded. Dr. Medrano always had visions of living in California. She recently relocated from New York to the Bay Area and is enjoying all the benefits of living on the West Coast. In her free time, she enjoys oil painting, running, playing guitar, and photography.

Pets and Family Info: Dr. Medrano has family in Miami, Florida, and enjoys visiting the sunshine state whenever possible. Most of her extended family reside in Bolivia. Guille, a rat terrier, and Lola, a tabby, are Dr. Medrano's loyal companions, with whom has enjoyed life and shared the good and the challenging times....Read More >