Meet The Team

Dr Julia is our primary Veterinarian, and the woman with the dream that created this practice. She will examine your pet, discuss treatment or preventative care options with you, perform medical procedures, and be here to answer questions on your pet’s health.

Graduated with Honors from the Faculatad de Medicina Veterinaria y Zootecnia (FMVZ), UNAM in Mexico City.
Studied Veterinary Dentistry at the European School for Advanced Veterinary Studies in Luxembourg.
Studied Clinical Pathology at The University of Guelph (UG) in Ontario, Canada.
Obtained her Masters of Science, and Graduate Diploma in Small Animal Medicine, from The University of Guelph in Ontario, Canada.
Studying to become a Certified Small Animal Veterinary Acupuncturist.

Dr Julia has lived in Mexico, Ohio, Alberta, Ontario, and more, but has settled-down here in Barrhaven with her husband, and their two beautiful daughters, and their two rescued cats.
In her spare time, Dr Julia enjoys cooking, scrap-booking, sewing, and jewelry-making.

Dr. Merchant was born and raised in Ottawa. She aspired to be a veterinarian from a very young age, and in pursuit of her dream, decided to complete her undergraduate degree at the University of Guelph in Biological Science. She then decided to return to Ottawa for a year to volunteer for several organizations, including the Rideau Valley Wildlife Sanctuary, and the Therapeutic Riding Association of Ottawa-Carleton, before completing her veterinary degree at the Ontario Veterinary College in April of 2019.

During her spare time, Dr. Merchant enjoys scrapbooking and making personalized greeting cards for her friends and family. She also enjoys spending time in nature, and photographing its beauty.

Chelsey is our veterinary assistant. She graduated college in 2018 and started with us in 2021. She has two dogs, Penny and Fiona, and a cat named Zoe. Cats are Chelsey’s favourite animal and she thinks the feistier the better! In Chelsey’s free time she enjoys taking care of her plants and walks with the dogs.

Emily graduated from the veterinary technician program at Algonquin College in 2020 and became registered with the OAVT in 2021. She started as a placement student at Vimy Bridge and has been with the clinic ever since. She’s a cat lover with three of her own, bringing both chaos and love into her life. Pictured above is Orpheus, the only one willing to prioritize love over chaos long enough to be part of a picture.

Originally from a small northern Ontario city, Emily and her roommate spend many weekends finding new things to enjoy around Ottawa. When not exploring, Emily enjoys reading, video games and spending quality time with her friends and family.

Emilee is a fourth year undergraduate student at Carleton University studying biology and neuroscience. She first started at Vimy Bridge in January 2021 as a volunteer and now works as a Customer Care Representative, while continuing to gain knowledge and experience as she pursues her veterinarian career following post-secondary.

Emilee resides in Barrhaven with her very energetic Lab mix named Salt, and Tabby cat named Miah. She also has several horses and cows which she keeps at her farm in Quebec. In her spare time between work and school, Emilee enjoys hanging out with friends, horse-back riding, reading and travelling