Meet Our Team

Alex was born and raised in Tucson, AZ.  She has grown up around animals her whole life, so it was an easy decision for her to choose this career. Alex graduated from Carrington College, from the veterinary program and will be continuing her education to become a CVT.

She has 5 fur babies, Kahlua, Canela, Pepper, Dakota, and Oscar. On her spare time, she loves to spend time with her family and attend sporting events. 

Andrea was born and raised in Tucson, AZ. She has always had a love for animals. She has several years of experience working in general practice, as well as emergency practice. She is currently working on becoming a Certified Veterinary Technician. In her free time, she loves to train for Spartan races, hike, and spend time with her fur baby!

Amber was born and raised in Tucson Arizona.  She moved to Madison Wisconsin in 2013 were she went to Globe University and got her Associates degree in Applied Sciences, focusing it to Veterinary Medicine.  

She recently just moved back to Tucson in December of 2017.  She has worked in urgent care to a mixed practice working with exotics, wild life, cats and dogs to spending many hours volunteering at shelters.

Amber’s passion is working with exotic and wild life animals.  Eventually she would love to work in Wildlife rehabilitation traveling around the world. In the mean time, she spends most of my time outdoors hiking, camping, snowboarding, going out with friends, kayaking and many more adventures.  

Amber’s partner in crime is a cute little cocker spaniel named Simba, who she has had since high school and travels everywhere with her!

Ashley was born and raised on the east coast and in the midwest. Her love of animals has been apparent since birth. From an early age, she insisted on naming every critter that frequented her yard and was often found organizing burials for those that met untimely ends. As a child, she spent her time caring for her array of small pets and family dog, Zeppelin. She has always had a strong affection for horses and spent the majority of her young adult and teenage years caring for them at a local stable, where she took riding lessons and competed in English style riding and jumping competitions.

She earned a BFA with an emphasis in photography, video, and installation art at Herron School of Art and Design in Indianapolis - where she met the love of her life, Aaron. For years, she worked in both graphic design and visual merchandising until migrating west to Tucson in 2016 when Aaron accepted the position of Assistant Professor of Printmaking in the University of Arizona’s College of Fine Art. It is here that she decided to further pursue her love of creatures and launch her career in animal health.

Ashley’s compassion and advocacy for all living creatures is evident through her various volunteer efforts. She joined the PAWS team in early 2018, finding a group of kind-hearted and like-minded individuals that have proven to be fantastic mentors and valuable resources.  Ashley graduated from Pima Community College's Veterinary Technology Program and became a Certified Veterinary Technician in 2019. 

She is a loud and unwavering voice, speaking on behalf of the creatures who can’t, and has chosen to dedicate her life to ensure their comfort and happiness through good times and bad. Her advocacy for animals is so strong that it lead her to embrace a plant-based and cruelty-free lifestyle, happily finding that many in Tucson embrace the same. Ashley is also the dedicated human to the softest yellow lab mix on earth, named Poe.

Bria grew up in Tucson from a very young age. Her passion for animals started from childhood, and she was passionate about making it her career.She graduated from Pima Medical Institute in 2014, and quickly became a technician supervisor at her previous practice. She has joined the PAWS team to work more with Integrative Medicine.Bria spends her free time playing outside. She loves exploring the outdoors and hitting the mountain trails mountain biking. If she is not found outside, she’s likely spending her time cuddled up to her big baby of a pit bull, Diesel.

Dr. Carine Klimentidis was born in New York City, but grew up in Texas, where she graduated from Texas A&M University's School of Veterinary Medicine. She worked at a mixed animal practice in upstate NY for a year and then moved to Baltimore Maryland, where she worked at a small animal practice for 12 years. After getting her fill of snow and ice, she decided to move back south for some warmth and also to be closer to family.

In her spare time she likes to visit with her niece and nephew and start to explore Tucson and the surrounding area. She grew up riding horses and hopes to find some places in Tucson to enjoy the company of horses. She has a cat, Ginger who she's had since she was a tiny kitten who will be turning 19 in a few months and a horse, Halie, who currently lives in Maryland.

Her special interests include internal medicine, ultrasound and always learning new things.

Meet Chloe! She's been a veterinary technician since early 2015. She is a graduate of Pima Medical Institute and became certified in 2017.  Chloe has worked for a few different urgent care veterinary clinics in Tucson but really enjoyed her time working in emergency. Her passion for both eastern and western medicine brought her to PAWS! 

When she's not working, she enjoys hiking, lifting weights, and spending time with her many animals including her Mastiff, Lily and her 8+ foot long boa constrictor, Kahlua. She has a large array of animals, including dogs, cats, snakes, lizards, fresh and saltwater fish, and turtles. Chloe also loves to cook and bake delicious desserts! 

David was born and raised in the Northern Virginia/DC Metro area and has always had a love and passion for taking care of animals. He has been here in Tucson since November 2014, and began working for PAWS Veterinary Center in July 2016. 

David has worked in just about all aspects of the animal community for the past 13 years; from volunteering at animal shelters, kennel tech, certified groomer, room/surgery/back tech, as well as a live-in night tech who would monitor critical cases after clinic hours.

He spent 8 years at his last clinic in Virginia, where he gained the experience and knowledge that he now brings to PAWS Veterinary Center.

In his free time he enjoys hanging out with friends, hiking, fishing, camping, reading, tending his garden, reclaiming old furniture and being outdoors with his two dogs, Pistol Pete and Brion, or just simply hanging out with his cats Damain, Pandora, and Sia!

Diana has over a decade of experience in the veterinary field.   She graduated from Pima Community College’s Veterinary Technician program in 2010, and gained her Certified Veterinary Technician credentials shorty after. After learning and growing in a specialty veterinary surgical facility, Diana’s interest turned to the recovery process.  Her love of companion animals drove her to seek out novel ways to help her patients enjoy a long, healthy life of joy with their owners. Seeing patients healing through rehabilitation proved to be very rewarding, and revealed a path to continue to grow her passion for patient care.

Patient recovery was only one of the motivators for Diana to change her focus to canine rehabilitation.  Diana’s health journey cemented her love of helping others gain back the quality of life they were meant to have.  With the help of her father, she gained a new life after losing weight and training her mind and body to push for excellence. This new life has ignited her passion to see her patients get their quality of life back too.

Diana is currently attending the University of Tennessee’s Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner Program and will be completing the program in December 2019. 

Dr. Elizabeth Jobe was born and raised in the South, near Atlanta, Georgia, though she doesn’t have a southern accent to prove it! Her family knew she would become a veterinarian upon the discovery of her sleeping outside in the doghouse with the family pets as a child. Dr. Jobe grew up playing soccer and competed for the USA National team and Clemson University, graduating with a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal and Veterinary Sciences in 2007. Upon graduation, Dr. Jobe attended The University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine and graduated Summa Cum Laude in 2012.

Excited to get out West and to be in the mountains, Dr. Jobe moved to Santa Fe, NM to start her veterinary career; however, her love for physical therapy and sports medicine led her to pursue a more specialized career as the Rehabilitation Director and Medical Director for multiple hospitals in the northern Denver, CO area. Dr. Jobe joined the PAWS team as both Rehabilitation and General Practitioner in 2016.

Due to numerous knee surgeries from soccer injuries, Dr. Jobe spent a lot of time in physical therapy igniting her passion and appreciation for physical medicine. She received her certification as a Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner (CCRP) in 2013 through the advanced training program with the University of Tennessee and received her certification as a Veterinary Medical Acupuncturist (cVMA) with Colorado State University in 2014.  Additionally, Dr. Jobe completed the Canine Course with the International Academy of Medical Massage for Animals in 2013. She is a USDA Accredited Veterinarian and member of the American Veterinary Medical Association.

Whenever she’s not in the office, you can find Dr. Jobe hitting the trails and training for XC mountain bike races as a member of CZ Racing. Traveling is a passion of hers, and she hopes to hike through Patagonia some day! Downtime involves cooking, reading, and relaxing with her AKC Canine Good Citizen named Bailey, who dances for her morning kibble, cool-cat Baloo, who doubles as a fur scarf at night, and McFly, the Siberian Forest Cat who likes jumping in the shower!

Bio coming soon!

Gabby is thrilled to join the PAWS team, and to have the opportunity to combine her love of veterinary medicine and osteopathic philosophy of treating the patient as a
whole. She earned her Associates of Applied Science from Pima Community College’s Veterinary Technology program in 2015, then became a Certified Veterinary Technician in Arizona. She has worked in Emergency Medicine as well as General Practice, working with both small animals and exotics.

Personally, she enjoys adventures outdoors, scoping out Tucson’s food scene, joining her friends for game night, or good conversation over a cup of coffee at a cozy
cafe. Her fur family currently consists of her cat Dipper (who acts more like a dog) and her four extra cute ratties.

For Dr. Geren Thurston, a passion and appreciation for animals combined with a love for science and problem solving shaped a childhood dream of becoming a Veterinarian.  As soon as she had her driver's license, she secured her dream job cleaning kennels and walking dogs at a Veterinary Clinic in Nebraska.  Through this early experience, she was transformed by the profound human-animal bond, the magical connection of meaning and joy that we share with animals.  Witnessing the important role medical care, disease prevention and education have in the lives of people and their beloved pets, resolved her to continue her pursuit of Veterinary Medicine.  Sharing in, protecting and prolonging the relationships that we experience with animals is her enduring source of inspiration and fulfillment.

Dr. Geren Thurston fell in love with Tucson during her undergraduate education, earning a Bachelor of Science degree from the University of Arizona in 1997.  She attended Veterinary School at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and received her D.V.M. degree in 2001.  She was recognized through varied academic and service achievements.

Upon completion of Veterinary School in 2001, Dr. Geren Thurston eagerly returned to Tucson to begin her career caring for dogs and cats.  She enjoys the challenges and rewards of general practice, from puppy and kitten exams to end of life care, as well as the preventative, surgical and medical services in between.

After many years of planning, Dr. Geren Thurston and her best friend & husband, Dr. Randy Aronson, opened P.A.W.S. in July of 2008.  P.A.W.S. is the embodiment of their shared passion and vision for the future of Veterinary Medicine, as well as their commitment of caring for pets and people of Southern Arizona.

In her free time, she loves goofing around with their son, Benjamin and daughter, Livia.  She enjoys being outdoors, going to the movies, working around the house, hiking and horseback riding.

Joanna was born and raised in Tucson, AZ. Starting from a very young age she was surrounded and interested in all types of animals. Straight out of High School, Joanna started her journey in this field by completing the Veterinary Assistant program at Pima Medical Institute.

She is humbled to be working here at PAWS Veterinary Center with such an amazing and caring team. Working here has allowed her to cultivate experience as well as fuel her empathy for pets in need. She still looks forward to expanding her knowledge and passion each and every day. Joanna takes great joy in seeing our patients return home happy and healthy with wagging tails.

Joanna enjoys being a loving Dog Mom to four amazing pups. All of her dog babies, Cukie, Tito, Murphy and Ottis are lovely mixed breed dogs. She enjoys taking them on walks around the park, watching them nap on the couch all day long, and taking pictures of their silly faces. Joanna's dogs have been her biggest motivation in pursuing her career and doing her best in everything she does for all patients.

Jonathan was born and raised in Tucson, AZ. He attended Northern Arizona University in Flagstaff, AZ pursuing a degree in veterinary science. After 8 years in corporate veterinary medicine, he decided he needed a change. He joined PAWS to get a better understanding of rehabilitative therapy and alternative veterinary medicine. His family includes 3 dogs, 5 cats, a guinea pig and a hamster. In his free time, he loves spending time with the furry critters, pet-sitting, and playing video games.

Dr. Justin Keaner was born and raised in Michigan.  He spent his childhood exploring the outdoors and collecting every insect, reptile, amphibian and small mammal he could catch.  After deciding that entomology was not his calling in life, Dr. Keaner attended the University of Michigan and earned a bachelor’s degree in biology.  He then moved to Boulder, Colorado and began working as a veterinary technician.  This position enriched his interest in veterinary medicine and the importance of human-animal bond.  Dr. Keaner continued his education at Colorado State University where he received a master’s degree in biomedical sciences.  Dr. Keaner then attended the University of Wisconsin where he earned his DVM degree and met his wife, who is also a veterinarian.

Upon completion of vet school, Dr. Keaner returned to Colorado to begin his career as a general practice veterinarian caring for cats, dogs, and exotic pets.  Some of his specific areas of interest include dentistry, soft tissue surgery, and preventive medicine.  Dr. Keaner strives to work with pet owners to develop care plans specific to the individual needs of their pet.  As a vet, he feels truly rewarded by the positive relationships that he develops with his patients and their guardians.

Dr. Keaner typically spends his time away from work discussing veterinary medicine with his wife, who is an emergency vet, or at the dog park with his dog, Dutch.  He also enjoys hiking, camping, fishing, and mountain biking.

Kaila grew up in Des Moines, Iowa where she learned she had a passion for animals. She grew up with many small animals, including a cat and a dog. These pets encouraged her from a very young age to make the decision to become a veterinarian. With her goal in mind, she moved to Tucson to start her collegiate career at the University of Arizona as a Veterinary Science major. She plans to continue her education and enjoys all opportunities that contribute to her experience working with animals. Kaila’s family consists of three dogs, a cat, two rabbits, a leopard gecko and a horse. In her free time, she enjoys hanging out with her pets at home or riding her horse. 

Lindsay is proud to be a native Tucsonan. Her passion for animals began at a very young age. Lindsay took courses at Pima Community College towards a psychology degree, in order to pursue her life-long dream of training and caring for killer whales. However, once she began working at another veterinary clinic in Tucson, she discovered that her path was in the small-animal veterinary field. She is currently working towards obtaining her Certified Veterinary Technician license and is proud to be a part of the PAWS team. 

In her free time, you can find Lindsay trail riding with her horses Rayne and Stormi or taking her Jeep up Mt. Lemmon with her three dogs, Thor, Jax and Oliver. She also enjoys spending time working on home projects and hanging out with her friends and family.

Lisa is a native to Arizona, born and raised in Tucson.  Lisa graduated from Pima Medical Institutes Veterinary Program in 1987.She has devoted her career to veterinary medicine by working many different roles, expanding her knowledge over the years.

Lisa worked in two local veterinary hospitals before relocating to the White Mountains, where she worked for several years at a veterinary hospital in Lakeside, Arizona.  She returned to Tucson after many years and joined the PAWS team in early 2013. Lisa loves spending her time with her husband Marc, their two dogs, Scooter and Sadie, two cats, Breaker and Purrlotta.  She enjoys spending time with friends and family, camping, gardening, cooking and reading.

Michelle was born in Michigan and raised in Tucson. She was raised with dogs her entire childhood. And In her early 20's she took in and raised abandoned kitties. Currently, Michelle and her husband, Don, have 2 dogs, Rascal- a Bichon mix (Zuchon), and Roxy- a Terrier mix, and a cat, Shadow. Together, they have 5 kids and 2 grandkids. 

After working 25+ years in the fast food industry, Michelle was ready to try for something new, and was graciously given an opportunity to work with her love for animals at PAWS. In her free time, she enjoys dancing, singing, and spending time with her family and friends.

Dr. Randy Aronson has dedicated his professional life to providing innovative veterinary care for companion animals of Arizona. He is never satisfied with the status quo and is determined to provide the best care for his patients and the people who love them.  Advancing preventative and diagnostic capabilities as well as enhancing treatment outcomes is his passion.

Dr. Aronson augments his over 35 years of traditional veterinary experience as both a practice owner and accomplished practitioner through the completion and certification in complementary modalities.  Dr. Aronson has extensive training in rehabilitation therapy, Chinese food therapy, Chinese herbal medicine, and acupuncture. His gift is seeing the big picture, embracing the concept of optimum health and accurate diagnoses, caring for the whole animal, not simply treating disease symptoms.

Inspired by the synergy of integrating conventional and complementary medicine, Dr. Randy Aronson and his wife, Dr. Geren Thurston, set out to create a new paradigm of care for companion animals of southern Arizona.  P.A.W.S. Integrative Veterinary Center is his passion and shared vision for the future of veterinary medicine.

Dr. Aronson grew up in Philadelphia dreaming of becoming an equine veterinarian or a NBA star.  He received his undergraduate degree from George Washington University.  He went on to pursue his Veterinary Medical Degree from the University of Pennsylvania. He graduated in 1980 receiving the Leonard Pearson award, the highest honor of student achievement. He completed a combined small animal Internship in 1981.

When Dr. Aronson is not caring for animals and educating clients at P.A.W.S., he is busy providing seminars, Skype conferences, Key note speaking, consulting for pet health product companies, providing consultations with pet owners through Google hangouts, and hosted a call-in talk radio show, Radio Pet Vet with Dr. Randy for over 10 years.  He enjoys educating pet owners through both public speaking and column writing.  He is a member of the National Speakers' Association; he has published numerous articles in both national and local periodicals. To ensure quality and accountability for the safety and benefit of his patients, he directed and co-formulated 2Docs, a comprehensive line of vitamins and dietary supplements.

Although he loves biking, hiking, fishing, gardening, and reading, most of his free-time is spent goofing around with his son, Benjamin and daughter Livia.

Sarah is a graduate of Pima Community College’s Veterinary Technology Program, and has been nationally- and AZ state-certified since 2010. She spent the first eight years of her career in general practice as a Lead Technician. She has two years of experience as an Emergency ICU Technician, where she sharpened her nursing skills & cared for critical patients. Prior to PAWS, she spent several years as a Veterinary Ophthalmology Technician on a busy team, assisting with cataract and corneal procedures and gaining experience in advanced anesthetic monitoring.  She joined the PAWS Family in April 2019.

Sarah is passionate about patient care, and is Fear-Free certified. She has been extensively trained in Low-Stress Handling techniques. She has special interests in behavior, nutrition, dentistry, and neonatal care. She is an experienced kitten foster with a soft spot for single orphans.

When not at work, Sarah and her husband can be found seeking out great concerts and traveling to fun destinations. Sarah has a few furry kids at home, including Sadie the longhaired Dachshund, Cedric Diggory the Dachshund/Pug mix, and two calico kitties -- Lollipop and Cupcake!

Seleste grew up, for the most part, in Tucson.  She spent some time living up in the east Mesa area; where she went to high school.  During her senior year of high school, she completed her Veterinary Assistant training at East Valley Institute of Technology.  After high school, she moved back home to Tucson, and began attending the University of Arizona and studying Veterinary Science.  She’s been working as a veterinary technician for about a year and a half, and loves getting to work with your pets everyday. In her free time, she hangs out with her German Shepherd, Nova, and loves being outdoors or spending time with her family.

Shelby was born in Colorado Springs, Colorado but moved here as a child and considers Tucson her hometown. She has always loved animals and had a variety of pets over the years, and has always known that she wanted to work with animals the rest of her life. As a child she was always rescuing strays and attempting to save the lives of the critters her cats brought her.

Shelby has a Bachelors degree in Animal Science, is working on a Masters of Business Administration, and applying to Veterinary School. Her dream is to own her own private mixed-practice clinic. 

She has 4 fur babies: 3 cats named Maui, Misha, and Mitts, and 1 dog named Duo. 

Taylor was born and raised in Tucson, Arizona. She had dogs and cats growing up and she liked them so much that she decided to enroll in the Pima J-Ted Veterinary Assistant program while she was in high school. After graduation she went to the University of Arizona as a vet science major for a year. While enrolled, Taylor decided that she wanted to try her hand at human medicine. She enrolled in the Pima Community College EMT program in 2017. During that time she was working at another vet office so she could still be around animals. She is currently working toward getting accepted into nursing school with the hopes of either becoming a labor and delivery or ER nurse. She hopes to continue working with animals while she is in school since it is still a passion of hers.
 

In her free time you can find Taylor hiking with her dog, Carter, and spending time with her friends, family and cat, Carson. A few of their favorite places to go are Mt. Lemmon and Tanque Verde Falls. 

An established resident of the Tucson Basin originally born and raised in southern California, Vincent is a passionate Eagle Scout driven by a steadily growing interest in Eastern Medicine. Within the familial PAWS team Vincent has found a suitable and stimulating working environment wherein to satisfy his desire to serve and help animals, as well as their caring owners, and to be steeped in an environment rich with the time-proven medical practices and philosophies of Traditional Chinese Medicine.

Having been granted the AmeriCorps Education Award as a result of his thousands of hours of volunteer time working on the maintenance and beautification of public lands with the Arizona Conservation Corps, his goal is to eventually study at the respected Ayurvedic Institute in Albuquerque, New Mexico to become a qualified Practitioner of Ayurvedic Medicine, utilizing his expanded knowledge of nature-based, health-supportive modalities to better serve others (four-legged or otherwise) and to provide nourishment, joy and vitality to those in need of it.

In his free time, Vincent enjoys hiking, painting, practicing Yoga, attempting to play his violin and playing with his three dogs: a cheerful chihuahua named Violet, Dobby, a playful albino terrier mix, and Hermione, a spunky, speckled miniature dachshund. He also spends time out in the garden attending to his great love of plants, often accompanied by Dude, his aloof and adventurous tuxedo cat.