Our Doctors
Dr. Justene Tedder
Originally from South African and trained in Canada, Dr. Justene is proud to call beautiful Salt Spring Island home. After practicing in Alberta, she and husband Christo, along with beloved cat Nala, made the move to the West Coast in 2012 when they purchased the clinic.
Dr. Justene is passionate about providing personalized, compassionate veterinary care . She prioritizes consent-based treatment and always respects the emotional experience of both patients and their families. No case is too challenging for her – she is committed to doing everything she can to help every animal who comes through the clinic’s doors, regardless of species. And if she doesn’t have the answer, she’ll find someone who does.
In addition to Western veterinary training, Dr. Justene is also trained in Veterinary Chinese Medicine, including Herbal Medicine, and is in the process of becoming certified in Veterinary Acupuncture. She has a special interest in dentistry and finds great satisfaction in improving the quality of life for her patients through oral health care.
Outside of veterinary medicine, Justene is an avid and talented tennis player, a passionate birdwatcher, skilled tracker, and trained safari guide. She’s also a gifted artist—her hand-painted cards are sent to clients who have lost a pet, as well as for the clinic’s annual holiday greetings.
Our Support Staff
Kim – Registered Veterinary Technician and Director of Public Contact
Kim grew up on Salt Spring Island and through numerous career paths and life experiences she has found her passion in veterinary medicine. She started working for us in 2012 as a part-time assistant and is now a Registered Veterinary Technician. She is a Certified Level 3 Fear Free Professional with additional Fear Free certification in horses, birds, and even humans! She loves her job and truly appreciates that all of the skills she has acquired over her lifetime are put to use in her position at the clinic. She loves giving clients and their pets personalized care and attention. Her special interests at work are animal behaviour, nutrition, and client education.
She loves to go backcountry camping with her mare, Tara, and her little dog, Teddy, usually accompanies them! She also has a cheeky miniature horse, Buddy, and a small flock of chickens that she loves. Her most favourite place is on the back of her horse in the wilderness with the sun on her back. She can often be heard to make up her own words and own menus in restaurants!
Gabi – Registered Veterinary Technician and Director of Medical Services
Gabi is a Registered Veterinary Technician who graduated in 2021. She moved to Canada from Brazil in 2017, started volunteering at the SPCA, then started working for us in 2019 as a Veterinary Assistant. She has helped and cared for many stray animals in Brazil, and decided to change careers and dive deep into Veterinary Medicine after moving to Canada. She is a Fear Free Certified Level 3 Professional and has 100’s of hours of Continuing Education – she is passionate about education and is always studying something!
Her favourite part of her job is anesthesia and clinical laboratory diagnostics. In her free time, she enjoys playing with her 3 dogs – Potto, Tasha and Joshi. They all look very similar but came from 3 different countries and backgrounds. Her Mom is still in Brazil and she helps her to take care of 9 cats. She is an accomplished guitarist and plays in a band, likes tattooing and is artistically inclined in general!
Olivia – Registered Veterinary Technician
Olivia joined our team just recently this year and has worked as a veterinary assistant for 5 years in the Okanagan before she graduated from the TRU veterinary technician program in 2023. During her last year at TRU she adopted one of the Program’s clinical pets “Scottie”, a sweet, 3 yr old Shepherd Mix that was rescued.
She is very interested in anesthesia and analgesia and would like to eventually obtain her VTS (Veterinary Technician Specialty) in this area. She is a certified Level 2 Fear Free professional.
Outside of work she really enjoys horseback riding on the trails and jumping, hiking the Island trails with Scottie and painting.
Alex – Veterinary Technician in training
Alex has worked in the veterinary field for 9 years and just recently joined our amazing team in January 2024.
She has six cats! Bruno, Pixel, Rusty, Daisy, Odin, and Buddy. They range in age from 2-15 years old. Some were given to her and some had a couple litters. Amazing story – Buddy went for a walk about 10 years ago and was just recently reunited with her, thanks to his microchip!
Her 10-year plan starts with working towards becoming a Registered Veterinary Technician and she is looking forward to better understanding using Fear Free initiatives to add to her skills.
She is always striving to help animals with as much compassion as she can and is looking forward to all the opportunities that are ahead of her.
She has also started her own Grooming business and works hard to provide her grooming services during the weekends and help pamper everyone’s furry friends.
Outside of working, she enjoys drawing, writing, and reading but currently most of her free time is taken up with school. However, she does try to take some time to relax.
Fiona – Veterinary Assistant
Fiona’s interest in the veterinary field started by volunteering at her local clinic on Mayne Island. She went to Douglas College and received her Diploma as a Vet Assistant in 2020. She came to work with us after graduating and is a dedicated caregiver to all of our patients. Fiona is also a Fear Free Certified Level 1 Professional.
She has five pets under her “umbrella of care” including Luna, who is an older lady cat with thyroid disease, who is doing great with medical management of her condition. She also loves to bake and often brings us yummy treats to keep us going during the day.
Isabel – Veterinary Assistant
Isabel started working for us as a cleaner and is currently attending University. If you are lucky enough you may meet her during her school breaks when she returns to be a part of the team.
Levi – Veterinary Assistant
Levi joined GIVC in the fall of 2024 as a cleaner through GISS’s work experience program. Since graduating, he’s been learning all the ins and outs of being a veterinary assistant and plans to continue his education to become a Registered Veterinary Technician, with the goal of working in wildlife rehabilitation.
Growing up surrounded by animals—from cats and fish to guinea pigs and even a lizard—along with the abundant wildlife on Salt Spring, Levi knew from an early age that he wanted to work with animals. He’s excited to keep learning from both his coworkers and the patients at the clinic before heading off to school.
In his free time, Levi enjoys quiet hobbies like crocheting, reading, and doing crafts while watching a good TV show.
Juliana – Veterinary Assistant
Juliana moved to Salt Spring Island in 2023 to join our team and has been working with us since January of 2023. In Brazil, she was a Veterinarian and worked with investigating mistreatment and rescuing animals in poor conditions for 8 years. She moved to Canada a year ago with her 13-year old cat, Liz, who was also rescued from poor conditions and now she is a Queen!
She also has a Postgraduate degree in Veterinary Acupuncture in 2021, Portugal and Reiki 3A.
She is very proud to have moved to this amazing island to start this journey with her cat by her side!
She is enjoying the Island lifestyle and loves to hike, go to the beach, enjoy coffee shops, and spend time with her sweet little cat:)))
MJ – Veterinary Assistant
Marie-Jeanne joined the team in arch 2025 with no previous veterinary experience, but a big love for caring for both humans & animals. She moved to Salt Spring Island in 2019 and since then has grown a deeper relationship with nature, enjoying spending time with both domestic and farm animals of all kinds. You might find her
cleaning things around the clinic and checking on your animals post-surgery or post dental appointments.
Marie-Jeanne loves to learn new things and outside of work here you can find her hosting group sound baths, giving acutonics tuning fork sessions or enjoying nature on this beautiful island!
Zara – Veterinary Assistant
Zara joined the GIVC team a little over t years ago, starting as a cleaner and assistant-in-training, originally helping out after school for work experience. Since graduating high school, she’s been regularly and is no close to completing her veterinary assistant training. She enjoys learning new ways to care for patients as well as making life easier for our incredible doctors and technicians!
Zara shares her home with her dog, Daisy, a cuddly and energetic “potcake” (a street rescue dog from the Bahamas), and two fluffy kittens, Sage and Cedar, adopted from the SPCA after fostering them. The trio loves to snuggle together and are either curled up in a cuddle pile or getting into mischief together!
While Zara doesn’t plan to pursue veterinary medicine long-term, she’s excited to complete her training before starting university in fall 2026 to study psychologoy and become a registered clinical counsellor and practicing psychotherapist. Outside of work, she enjoys spending time with her pets, walking Daisy, making jewelry and art, relaxing by the ocean, and visiting friends.
Valerie – Client Care Representative
Aramis – Client Care Representative
I have three pets, Gus (14), smart but shy Golden Aussie Bernadoodle, and Molly (14) a loving Domestic Shorthair Cat (our farm mouser.) I also have a Giant koi Betta fish named Swim Shady (2). In the past I had about 10 aquariums with ~40 fish, but I had to give them away prior to starting university.
I am currently pursuing a career in aquatic medicine with a focus on fish. I am now working on my application to the Western Veterinary College. In the past, I managed Dr. Litvak’s lab working with Short Nose Sturgeon and Tilapia. I later studied tenacibaculosis – a disease affecting salmon – under Dr. Spencer Russel, later pursuing an honours thesis in his lab. In 2025, I completed a practicum at the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC Diagnostic lab. I also completed a practicum at the Puntledge River Salmon Hatchery in Comox BC. I am very interested in production animal medicine, especially as it pertains to epidemiology, and fish!
In terms of academic achievements, I was awarded a scholarship from the Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC to pursue my studies in fisheries and aquaculture (2024).
In 2023 I was one of 20 students selected to attend the Galapagos field school, a collaboration between Mount Allison and USFQ. There I learned about fisheries management and the history of the Galapagos Marine Protected area from shark ecologist Dr. Alex Hearn and shark physiologist Dr. Morash.
In 2024 I performed a final concert with my Jazz sextet (as part of my minor in jazz,) the programme consisted entirely of arrangements penned by the band, including a 9 minute arrangement of the Rube Goldberg Variations by the progressive rock band Thank You Scientist.
When I am not working, I am fishing, caving, camping, or composing and performing music.
Miki – Office Administrator
Miki is our office queen. She keeps our paperwork in line and our inventory updated so we can help our patients best. She is also in charge of our online pharmacy and food store.
Miki is originally from Japan but has lived in Canada for many years. She now lives in Seattle with Neeko the chatty cat, Bella the cuddle dog plus her human husband, and enjoys exploring the beautiful Pacific Northwest with them.
Christo