Hospital Leadership
Carla – Practice Manager | She/Her
Carla was born in Mexico City, where she studied Design & Visual Communication with a major in Photography. While visiting family for a wedding, Carla met her now-husband Albert and moved permanently to the US.
Carla realized that Graphic Design was not her vocation after a couple of years of specializing in it. After a process of discernment and an epiphany, Carla stumbled upon the realization that she had been living her passion all along: animals! Very specifically, cats.
With this newfound information, Carla enlisted in the Veterinary Assistant course at the Animal Behavior College and started her journey in the animal care world. Before she was even finished, she met Dr. Breitreiter while the hospital was still being built. Dr. Breitreiter took a chance and hired Carla as a Veterinary Technician. After a year with our family, she was promoted to Lead Veterinary Technician, then Veterinary Technician Manager, and since 2021 she has been the South Austin Cat Hospital’s proud Practice Manager. Carla couldn’t be happier to live her dream every day.
For Carla, being in a practice where cat lovers are the norm and where education, growth, and learning are part of the core values is a must.
Carla has a big family with seven cats, two dogs, and two chinchillas. In her free time, she enjoys reading, watching movies, and playing video games, as well as spending time with her husband and fur babies.
Brit, LVT – Veterinary Technician Manager | She/Her
Kimi – Assistant Technician Manager | She/Her
Born in Oklahoma and raised in Austin, TX, Kimi started her career in medicine as a registered nurse. She began fostering kittens for a local animal shelter and fell completely in love with caring for them and helping them to grow happy and healthy. Her passion for animals led her to veterinary medicine, and she began working as a veterinary technician in 2020 at the shelter where she volunteered. She has a special love of cats, and her devotion to them led her to South Austin Cat Hospital. Kimi adores all cats and enjoys working with senior cats in particular.
Kimi shares her home with one cat, Herman. Herman came to her as a single-bottle baby found by the ASPCA while they were doing relief work after a hurricane. From day one, she started calling him her son, and they have been a happy family ever since.
Alexis – Reception Manager | She/Her
Alexis was born and raised here in Austin, TX. She has previous experience working with animals, as she started volunteering at a local animal clinic at the age of 14. Once she was of legal working age, she was employed by the same clinic. After 4 years of working there, she decided she was ready to try something new. While working in the retail industry, she realized that her heart was still in veterinary medicine. She is more than excited to be back in this field once again!
Veterinary Technicians
Natascha – Veterinary Technician, IV | They/Them
Natascha was born in Honolulu, Hawaii, while her dad attended The University of Hawaii to get his Ph.D. in biophysics. She spent much time in labs with her dad as a kid, spurring her love for science. Natascha has loved cats since infancy and has never been without one in her entire life. She started her involvement in feline welfare by volunteering with Houston-based shelters in 2010. Natascha started working for APA! in 2015 after moving to Austin to attend college at The University of Texas, and quickly started the APA! Cat Matchmakers Program that very year. The Matchmakers program’s goal was to provide better quality adoption matches and to advocate for special needs cat adoptions. In 2017, she become the feline leukemia research coordinator for a large two-year study funded by Maddie’s on best FeLV testing practices in shelters. She has overseen the intake and placement of over 1,000 FeLV cats since 2017. Wanting to learn more about private practice and specifically cat specialty medicine, Natascha left the shelter world to join the SACH team. In her spare time, Natascha is involved in several feline research studies, plays video games, and goes on hikes. She shares her home with four cats named Kaiju Murderfloof, Berlioz, Willow, and Little Bird, a dog named Stitch, and an ever-rotating array of foster cats. Natascha continues to be a no-kill advocate focusing on cats with special needs, FeLV, and other medical or behavioral challenges.
Kourtney – Veterinary Technician, IV | She/Her
Born and raised in Houston, Kourtney moved to Austin in 2016 to complete her degree in Environmental Science and Policy at St. Edward’s University. Having grown up with a menagerie of different pets and the influence of characters like Dr. Doolittle and James Harriot, Kourtney always dreamed of becoming a vet. As she got older, other interests led her in a different direction for schooling, but she continued to nurture her passion for animals by volunteering at animal shelters, working at a wildlife center, and rehabbing neonatal opossums!
After the pandemic derailed plans in 2020, she seized the opportunity for change and started working as a vet tech in the neonatal kitten nursery at Austin Pets Alive! where she truly realized her love of cats. After a year of working in the shelter world, she expanded her horizons into feline-specific private practice and found her way to SACH. Kourtney is thrilled to be surrounded by fellow feline enthusiasts and to be able to provide excellent care to all of your furry family members.
Kourtney shares her home with her partner, her tripod pup, Cali, her 3 resident kitties- Cooper, Joey, and Zalien- plus her “foster” kitten, Lola. When she’s not caring for animals, Kourtney enjoys spending time outside, reading, and practicing photography.
Kelsey – Veterinary Technician, IV | She/Her
Originally from Houston, Kelsey moved to San Marcos with her partner in 2015. She has always had a passion for animals, and when asked at a young age what she wanted to be when she grew up, the response given most often was “a cat”. That dream was always doomed to fail, but Kelsey went for the next best thing, which was a career in animal care.
Kelsey currently attends Texas State pursuing a degree in Wildlife Biology, and hopes to open her own wildlife rehabilitation center eventually. In the meantime, she devotes her time, love, and attention to her 3 dogs- Beth, Cash, and Nyx- and her 2 cats- Ba’al and Zelda. When she has any time left, she enjoys reading, playing video games, cooking, and spending time on the river.
Helena – Veterinary Technician, IV | She/Her
Helena is a native of the Rio Grande Valley, where she began her career as a Veterinary Technician in 1991. For most of her career, she has worked at mixed practices in Texas, Maine, and Minnesota. She learned early on that she has a special affinity for cats and has advocated for using low-stress techniques to make their veterinary visits more comfortable. She is very proud to work at an all-feline practice where everyone is passionate about improving the lives of feline companions using fear-free techniques.
Helena lives with her wife, Sarah, and two very sweet cats, Mojo and Mochi. During her free time, she enjoys traveling, bird watching, photography, and nature hikes. Helena also enjoys cooking and the challenge of making traditional Mexican recipes vegan-friendly.
Abigail – Veterinary Technician, II | She/Her
Growing up in Abilene, TX, Abigail always had a passion for animals. From taking in neighborhood strays to nursing injured birds back to health, she always found herself caring for them. In high school, Abigail began volunteering at an emergency clinic and joining the FFA, where she would take veterinary medicine classes. After graduation, Abigail moved to San Marcos with her best friends and continued to pursue her dream of a career in animal care by joining SACH.
In her spare time, Abigail enjoys watching movies, making art, playing video games, and obsessing over her adorable King Charles Spaniel, Honey.
Hailey – Veterinary Technician | She/Her
Hailey was born and raised in Texas. Moving around a lot in her early years and finally settling down in the Austin area. Growing up mainly with dogs, she always thought they were her favorite until she started working in animal welfare and was fostering cats/kittens almost constantly. She falls in love with every cat she takes home, and it is always difficult to give them up when they are ready for adoption. Hailey feels they are the only beings who truly understand her. In light of this, SACH was her first choice for starting her career in veterinary medicine. She is living her cat-lover dreams every day!
Kaitlyn – Veterinary Technician | She/Her
Born and raised deep in the heart of Texas, Kaitlyn is a true Austin native. Residing for the majority of her life as a North Austinite and Georgetonian, she soon discovered after meeting her partner in crime, Taylor, that her heart aligned with the “Keep Austin Weird” South Austinites.
Jill of all trades, Kaitlyn is an avid learner. With her first career being in the beauty industry as well as early childhood development, she always had a calling for a profession dealing with care, virtue, and healing. It wasn’t until she found her true calling in Veterinary Medicine in 2015 that she was in search of her soul’s home. Starting out as a boarding technician in the veterinary field, through her empathetic nature, perseverance, and integrity, Kaitlyn has climbed her way up the professional ladder. As she continues to keep on keepin’ on, it is important to her that she continues to showcase all she does with kindness and grace.
In her free time, you can find Kaitlyn continuing her education and exploring the world of cats, holistic and integrative care, spirituality, creative arts, psychology and environmental studies, and women and children advocacy. She loves spending time by the water, creating collage art, and caring for her plants. Most importantly, she loves spending time with her fiance, Taylor, and with their cat, Sid, whom they are convinced may be the reincarnation of Syd Barrett, a founding member and lead singer of Pink Floyd, who, just like him, is not another brick in the wall.
Kristen – Veterinary Technician | She/Her
Kristen grew up near Atlanta, GA, where she attended Georgia Tech and got her Bachelor’s in Material Science and Engineering. She moved to Austin in 2014 to pursue a graduate degree, but a series of hijinks ensued, ending with her working at Austin Pets Alive! Instead, in her six years at APA!, Kristen was a Cat Adoption Counselor, the Ringworm Program Manager, and eventually the Cat Programs Senior Manager. Through these experiences, she discovered a passion for advocating for the most vulnerable cats, learning about the cutting edge of shelter medicine, and above all, trying to make the world a little better for her favorite animals and those who love them. She’s thrilled to be able to continue that journey at South Austin Cat Hospital, combining her love of science with her drive to help cats!
In her free time, Kristen takes any dance lessons she can, watches sports anime with her partner, writes stories about ghosts, and continues her quest to find the best vegan cheesecake recipe. She lives with three cats named Mu, Little Bit, and Yato, a pittie named Jubilee, and two ball pythons named Smaug and Tehanu.
Julia – Veterinary Assistant | She/Her
Julia was born in Austin, TX, and raised in Del Valle, TX. Growing up, the area was popular for cat dumping. At one point in her childhood, her family hosted and fed up to 15 cats at a time. She raised and cared for many animals, including hamsters, rabbits, and of course, cats. She has always had an affinity for anything creative such as creating artwork and dancing. At one point, she even aspired to complete a Fine Arts painting degree. Before completing her degree, she was pulled into her passion for animal welfare and care. After working with APA! and learning a lot about cat care and cat medicine, grateful for the knowledge she acquired there. She is very excited to use that expertise working with SACH.
She currently has three lovely kitties of her own- Tally, Peanut, and Yuna. She still loves to paint, create embroidery pieces, play video games, and hyper-focusing on anything she is super interested in. She also loves yoga during her decompression time, going on long walks, and spending time with her family and fiance, Jose. Cats bring her such joy, and she’s very excited to help ease cats and make them comfortable during their time with SACH!
Veterinary Receptionists
Jessica – Veterinary Receptionist, II | She/Her
Jessica was born and raised in Keller, TX, in a home full of animal lovers. She remembers having her first encounter with animal care at five when she and her mother rescued a black and white cat off the street near their apartment complex. This cat found her forever home with them and was affectionately named Oreo by Jessica and her older sister.
Jessica continued her journey in pet care when she moved to San Marcos, TX, in 2019 to attend Texas State University. She adopted her cat, Winnie, who further solidified her love for all things feline and inspired her to learn more about caring for cats. Since then, she has been very grateful for more opportunities to get to know animals and give them the care they deserve.
Connie – Veterinary Receptionist | She/Her
Raised in Austin, TX, Connie is a creative young lady who loves the arts and all things cats! Having recently exited the Food Service Industry, Connie sought to apply her passion for exemplary client service with her love for cats. Through her work in high-pressure environments, she learned the importance of finding strength through joy. Ensuring the comfort, safety, and happiness of cats as well as their respective humans, is what she strives for, and she works to succeed with a smile on her face!
Connie’s hobbies include drawing, cooking, baking, and tap dancing. Her best friend is Pusheen. She is a self-proclaimed homebody and uses her spare time to be with her husband and their fur babies: Layla, Apples, and Boo Boo. Even though she does prefer to stay indoors, she absolutely adores her friends and family, and she makes sure anyone who crosses paths with her is left with a brighter day ahead.
Clinic Cats
Tippy Toes – Director of Staff Morale
Princess Chloe – Clinic Supermodel (Retired)
