Meet Our Team in Lakeland, FL
At Parkway Veterinary Emergency Clinic, our team consists of experienced veterinarians and veterinary professionals dedicated to providing exceptional after-hours emergency vet care to the pet community of Lakeland. Each member has been hand-selected for their role and brings a wealth of experience and skills unique to them. We are proud of each of our veterinary staff members! Learn more about the team that is taking care of your pet throughout the night. If you have any questions, give us a call today.
Rachel Pratt, DVM, MBA, MS (Nutrition), MS (Genetics)
Regional Medical Director
Dr. Rachel Pratt received her undergraduate degree in animal biology and first master’s degree in animal nutrition at the University of Florida. She received an additional master’s degree and advanced to candidacy for her doctorate degree in genetics/proteomics at the University of California-Davis. Dr. Pratt went to veterinary school at Ross University and did her clinical year at North Carolina State University. She then received an MBA in international business summa cum laude from Louisiana State University- Shreveport and started her own nonprofit merging human and animal medicine while helping those less fortunate to receive proper medical care. Her clinical interests include both feline and canine internal medicine and surgery as well as “pocket pet” exotic species such as rodents, rabbits, reptiles, and birds. The only animals she will not see are primates. Dr. Pratt lives with her husband and two children. When she isn’t busy practicing veterinary medicine, Dr. Pratt enjoys spending time with her family, participating in triathlons, and traveling around the world.
Dr. Erin Rothrock
Associate Veterinarian
Jorge Suarez-Llanes
Veterinarian
Dr. Suarez is originally from Cuba. He received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University Agrarian of Havana. Dr. Suarez joined the Parkway team because he loves emergency, critical care, and emergency surgeries. You can find him fishing or playing the guitar when he’s not taking care of emergency cases. He has no pets at this time, but his favorites are German Shorthair Pointers. His goals are to do good medicine and improve his surgical skills to one day become a board-certified surgeon.
Rissa
Practice Manager
Rissa is an absolute animal lover from Lakeland, FL. Originally joining our team in 2017, Rissa’s goal was to gain better knowledge of veterinary emergency services. Rissa has definitely grown that knowledge and is a dedicated and hard-working member of our team. Rissa is used to working as a team being one of five children. Just like most of our team members, Rissa loves animals outside of work as well, having three dogs, seven cats, and usually fostering any number of rescue pets.
Kelsey
Lead Client Patient Coordinator
Kelsey is from right here in Lakeland, Fl. She joins us with the want to grow her career in the veterinary field while also establishing client relationships to better serve both people and their pets. In her free time she enjoys spending time with her husband and kids. With a love for animals, she has 4 Siamese cats, a tabby cat, 2 German Shorthaired Pointers, and a Chocolate Lab. Her goal is to become a Certified Veterinary Practice Manager.
Leanna
Client Patient Coordinator
Leanna comes to us from right here in Lakeland. She has always loved being around animals and love being able to help them and their families. Leanna has two GSPs named Miller and Rhett. She enjoys working out, exercising, and spending time outdoors when she isn’t working.
Marisol
Client Patient Coordinator
Marisol is one of the friendly voices you hear when you call our clinic. She joins us with a dream of helping animals when they need it most and learning through experience in this field that she is passionate about. In her free time, Marisol enjoys video games, reading, coloring, and especially going to Disney with her husband and daughter. Marisol has a 6-year-old cat named Blake and hopes to learn something new every day.
Ariell
Lead Veterinary Technician
Ariell is from right here in Polk County, being originally from Lake Wales, FL. She truly loves veterinary emergency care. Ariell’s veterinary interests include exotic medicine, mostly birds, and animal rehabilitation. Ariell has a collection of wonderful pets of her own, having three dogs, three cats, and one parrot. When she’s not being an incredible contribution to our Parkway team, Ariell enjoys reading and painting.
Renay
Veterinary Technician
Renay is originally from Prestonsburg, KY, and enjoys spending time with her fiance and son while running a zoo at home. She is excited to grow and learn within her role in the veterinary field. Renay is a lover of all animals; which includes owning a variety of species of reptiles, green tree pythons being her favorite. She has two Catahoulas named Arrow & Brew and even has a passion for fish tanks, too. Renay is currently in college to obtain her CVT, but has 5 years of experience, 3 of which is in general practice.
Taryn
Veterinary Technician
Taryn has brought her general veterinary practice knowledge with her as she helps the emergency pet cases here at Parkway Veterinary Emergency Clinic. Helping animals and working in the veterinary field started early for Taryn when she shadowed veterinarians back when she was in middle school. Taryn looks forward to any new knowledge and experience that she can gain on the job, so she can improve her veterinary technician skills to help the pets in our community. Taryn describes the pets she has as a home as a herd of German Shepherds and working/field Cocker Spaniels. Taryn also enjoys participating in AKC sports with some of the dogs in her herd.
Fernanda
Veterinary Technician
Fernanda brings her veterinary knowledge from the countryside of Sao Paulo state in Brazil. She is currently working to transfer her Brazilian DVM diploma to the United States to help provide the best care to animals. Fernanda is a people person and believes in kindness and that together we can always achieve the greater good. The key to her heart is Elvis Presley, English Bulldogs, and Glazed donuts.
Casey
Veterinary Assistant
Originally from New York, Casey chose this field to learn and make this field her career. In her free time, she enjoys cooking, especially if it’s a new recipe, and dressing up for Renaissance fairs. Casey has two cats and a dog.
Nina
Veterinary Assistant
Excited to learn as much as she can about the veterinary field and emergency medicine, Nina was part of our very first assistant apprenticeship program. She loved being a part of an incredible program and enjoys being on the emergency team. Outside of work, having fun at the beach and going for a hike are activities that Nina enjoys. And of course, Nina is an animal lover so her pet family includes tropical fish, a four year old pitbull named Dakota, and a one year old shepherd mix named Charlotte.
Natasha
Veterinary Assistant
Natasha joined our emergency veterinary team as part of our very first assistant apprenticeship program. She has always dreamed of working with animals so this career opportunity to learn and grow with our team was perfect. And she also hopes to one day work with exotic animals. Natasha is from Port Huron, Michigan but now calls Lakeland home. She enjoys any activities that involve being outdoors. Natasha has a wonderful large family which includes animal family members as well. She has three dogs, four cats, and two birds.
Riley
Veterinary Assistant
Riley joins us with a want to work in the veterinary field and a passion for learning. She graduated from the University of Florida with a Bachelor of Science in Biology. Riley is from right here in Lakeland, Fl. Her hobbies include dance and music. She has two dogs; Odie, a mini dachshund, and Nova, a hound mix.
Meredith
Veterinary Assistant
Meredith comes to us from Virginia. Working in the veterinary field allows her to be happy while doing something she loves. Meredith enjoys hiking, reading, and spending time with her brother, whom she is very close with. As part of the pet community, she has a dog named Koda that she loves very much. She is excited to continue to learn as much as possible throughout her career.
Julia
Veterinary Assistant
Julia joined our team with a want to learn more about veterinary medicine and here she can do just that. In her free time, Julia enjoys sewing, crocheting, video games, and playing volleyball. She has two beloved cats named Gamja and Farrah. She enjoys being creative and trying new things that she may not be good at, along with traveling and experiencing new things.