Our Team Members

Dr. Molly King is our newest veterinarian as she and her husband just relocated from North Florida. She attended the University of Florida for her undergraduate and veterinary medicine degrees. While there, she  was lucky enough to spend a semester abroad in Ireland. Dr. King grew up wanting to be a journalist, and she has bachelor's degrees in journalism and animal sciences.

 Dr. King spent her first years in clinical practice doing primary care, but she decided to focus on emergency medicine after doing relief work for an emergency hospital in Orlando. Some of her medical interests include surgery, infectious diseases, and gastrointestinal disorders. 

 Outside of the hospital,  Dr. King enjoys dog agility, horseback riding, traveling and fishing. She and her husband have three dogs: Scout, Colt and Hopper. 

Dr. Caleb J. Palmer graduated from the Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine in

2013. After a year of mixed animal practice he joined Mountain Emergency Animal Center and has been a part of the family since! Dr. Palmer enjoys various aspects of all areas of veterinary emergency medicine.

Hiking, backpacking, horseback riding, paddling, mountain biking, gardening and reading are just a few hobbies and interests that keep him busy when he isn't at the hospital. Dr. Palmer shares a dog named Roger, a cat named Maxi and a horse named Sammy with his wife, Margaret, who is also a veterinarian.

Dr. Parrish is passionate about client education, tail wags, and getting to the root of the problem. She completed her undergraduate and doctorate education at Auburn University (War Eagle!). During that time, she also led spay/neuter and wellness clinics in Nicaragua, studied surgery and anesthesia in Germany, and worked as a veterinary assistant at MEAC. She completed an emergency focused rotating internship in Phoenix, Arizona and has worked in several busy multi-specialty hospitals prior to moving to Blue Ridge to work at MEAC. The adorable hiking buddies in her photo are Tara and Char.

Dr. Wendel enjoys being able to help pets when they need it most. She graduated from the University of Georgia College of Veterinary Medicine in 1991 and completed a rotating internship in Small Animal Medicine and Surgery in 1992. Since then, she has been practicing emergency and general practice medicine in the metro Atlanta and North Georgia mountain regions. On her off hours, she enjoys cuddling her three dachshunds, photography, hiking, and mountain biking.

Tonya has been with Mountain Emergency Animal Center since July 2010 and serves as the center's Operations Manager. She has been in the veterinary field since 1997. She earned her Associates Degree in both Animal Sciences and Livestock Production at Abraham Baldwin Agricultural College in Tifton Georgia. In her spare time, Tonya enjoys barrel racing, pole bending and creating unique leather works.

Tonya shares her home with 3 Australian Cattle Dogs, Josie Mae, Demi Jo and Strauss, a Blue Tick Coon Hound named Drake, a domestic short hair cat named Flagg and 4 horses, Tonka Toy, Casino, Rosa and Side Draw.

La Shawn Pagán has been living in Georgia for two years. She moved from Puerto Rico after Hurricane Maria, where she used to rescue dogs and cats and re-home them after ensuring they were healthy enough for a new home. She’s been working at Mountain Emergency Animal Center as a Veterinary Assistant since January 2018. La Shawn hopes to become a veterinary radiology technician in the future. During her days off La Shawn splits her time between caring for her father, her five dogs, hiking, writing and photography and exciting road trips.

Heather is a veteran of the United States Air Force. During her 9 years in the veterinary field, she has worked in general practice, home health care, and now emergency medicine. In 2013, she obtained her RVT (Registered Veterinary Technician) certification. Her favorite aspect of her work is seeing the improvement in pets during their time in clinic. She loves working with cats and has two of her own: Winston and Wesa. 

A lifelong love of animals drew Jen into the veterinary profession. Prior to joining the MEAC team, she was assistant manager at a wildlife rehab in Cameroon, where she worked primarily with primates. She has a bachelor’s in Psychology and Biology from Simpson College in Iowa. When not at work, she enjoys exploring the North Georgia mountains with her dog Remi and reading with her cat Mala.