Dr.Colleen Koch with 

Panda,Scooter and Ben

Dr. Colleen was raised out on the east coast- a city girl with a country heart. She loved animals- all animals. When she was in kindergarten she went to visit a dairy farm- she thought taking care of all those animals would be the life! 

Her parents weren't really the animal types, and it took a lot of commitment and convincing that the family needed a dog.  Dr.Colleen was always bringing home strays- geese, racoons, and once even a lost pony!  Her Mom would call the humane society and have them gone before I would get home from school. Except for the pony- it took over a week to find the owners!

Needless to say, she has wanted to be a vet from that very first visit to the dairy farm. Dr.Colleen graduated from Virginia Tech with a degree in Biochemistry and Nutrition and then came to the mid-west in 1986 to go to vet school.  

In 1990, she graduated from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine.  She practiced primarily small animal medicine in Petersburg, and started her own equine practice on the side. 

In 1993, she left Petersburg and worked primarily in her equine practice and helped Dr. Joe occasionally at Lincoln Land Animal Clinic. In 2000, Dr.Colleen went back to school to work on her MBA through the Executive Veterinary Program. In 200, she I joined the team at Lincoln Land Animal Clinic and the equine practice was merged with Lincoln Land. It was a wonderful thing as it allowed her to continue working with both small animals and horses.

Dr.Colleen is a very strong proponent of education of both people and pets. She frequently give talks and demonstrations to many different organizations as well as children from pre-school to college age. She is confident that educating people is the key to humane and responsible pet ownership- which results in pets living longer and healthier lives, as well as reducing the numbers of animals that are euthanized every year

She is a recent graduate of the Karen Pryor Clicker Training Academy. This is an exceptional way to help train animals, especially those that have fears and anxieties. Dr.Colleen is now incorporating these techniques into her behavioral counseling and is training our team as well.  

This is her dog- Panda Jean Bear.  Dr.Colleen's  kids said she had to have a middle name for when she was bad!  Panda came to her as a very sick abandoned puppy to be euthanized by a neighbor who couldn't find the owners.  The poor starving fluff ball (that was after we gave her a bath to remove all the evidence of being abandoned) quickly weaseled her way into Dr.Colleen's heart. She has psychological scars from those early days, but they have a great time together. She is a lot of fun and they enjoy doing agility together when they have time. Recycled dogs are a great thing!

Dr.Collen met Dr Joe at the University of IL and they married in 1988.  They have two beautiful, intelligent, and athletic girls ( she is not biased). 

The Doctors also share their house with three dogs- Panda (featured above), Scooter,  and a another rescue- Ben Jamin Bear.  (Ben Jamin Bear was picked up at a behavior seminar where Dr.Colleen was learning how to educate owners on how to make their pets gentle and be positive pet parents. A local rescue group had brought their puppies and dogs for us to practice the training techniques. Well, he also weaseled his way into their hearts andhome.)

Their favorite cat- Fuzzy Hairy was euthanized in 2007 due to lymphoma. He was the best cat ever and is missed.

Their horse, named Rysa, is now living with a young girl who promises to spoil her rotten.