In her free time, Kristine enjoys reading and painting, playing any sports and anything outdoors, especially soccer and golf, and backpacking, skiing, hiking, kayaking, and camping with her dogs Roux, Bug, and Zwieback, and squeaking with her guinea pig Nome. When at home, her hobbies include organic gardening, raising chickens, beekeeping, reading, and stamp collecting and scrapbooking for her daughter. In 2019 she and Brett had their first child Charlotte Elisabeth and they both can’t wait to teach her the wonders of nature and animals!! You may also meet her rescue cat Kenai when you come to the animal hospital. Giving back to the community is important to Dr. Preiser; she has recently started a therapy farm in Northern Illinois for both people and animals, pursuing her wildlife license to help any and all animals heal both physically and mentally. She volunteered as medical director of Heartland Animal Shelter from 2007 to 2018, taking pride in treating every shelter animal like her own and not just a number. Her veterinary interests include surgery, geriatric medicine, wildlife, orthopedics, exercise rehabilitation, holistic medicine, and reproduction. She is also a huge Rory McIlroy and Bayern Munich fan!! She moved back to the Midwest to be closer to her father, but her heart and passion lie in the Northwestern mountains. Someday she’ll be reunited with the wilderness, she says! 🙂 While she loves what she does in her practice, her dream job would be Dr. Oakley, Yukon Vet! If you watch that show, you’ll know why!

She attended Fox College Vet Tech Institute and is proud to be a Certified Vet Technician.

She enjoys living a very exciting life, always trying new food and going on adventures; but being a mom is her happiest journey yet, and her Son gives her an excuse to act silly! Lifting and running keeps her fit, but dancing is her favorite way to maintain good cardiovascular fitness!

Elsie’s Zoo features Polly Miller, 14 yr old Quaker Parrot, Troy, 2 yr old Jack Russel Terrier, Alec,2 yr old, Bearded Dragon and Oscar, 2 yr old Leopard Gecko.

Elsie is blessed knowing she has a whole team of amazing people with the same passion and goals in their hearts as she does for the veterinary field. We are blessed to have Elsie on our team, come in and meet her and you will agree with us on how compassionate, caring, and will do anything to make your pet and you comfortable here at the hospital!!

Javier’s full bio is coming soon, but did you know he was a veterinarian in Bolivia?? The first thing you’ll learn and notice about Javier is he is so genuine and kind. He came to the US with his wife 3 years ago and is working on his prerequisites to get certified in the US as a veterinarian. Javier loves all animals big and small! More information on Javier coming soon! 🙂 

Bridget is here this summer helping us out with all of our needs. She’s very interested in learning about the wonderful veterinary field and currently attending the University of Oregon. Her family lives in Arlington Heights but she’s fallen in love with Oregon. Please welcome her to our team this summer!

With a deep love of animals and an insatiable wanderlust, Mandi has carried her passion for critters of all shapes and sizes from coast to coast. As a teenager, her first job was at Chicago’s very own Brookfield Zoo, working as a junior docent and helping in the Children’s Zoo with animal demonstrations and teaching young children about the fantastic creatures right in their own backyards. After meeting the love of her life in the early 2000s, Mandi and her husband relocated to the small, Viking town of Poulsbo, Washington in the Pacific Northwest where she began work at a critical care and emergency veterinary hospital and fell in love with veterinary medicine. Three clinics and two baby seal rescues later, the lovebirds moved back to the Land of Lincoln, where she joined a large, private animal hospital in the north suburbs of Chicago for five years before stepping away from the field in 2020. Mandi has returned to veterinary medicine and joined Preiser Animal Hospital this summer as a lead client care coordinator and boarding director.

When she isn’t writing children’s books, dancing on quad skates, learning the fine art of tattooing, or hanging out with her two fabulous cats Luna and Pippin, you can find Mandi on the road, taking the scenic route and chasing sunsets. She loves music, photography, reading, scary movies, peach tea, drag queens, serial killer documentaries, and everything Halloween! Come in and you’ll meet Mandi right away ready to greet you with a smile!

Karen says the best part about her job is going to be getting to know all of you and your 4 legged family members and that no two days are ever the same. Please come in and meet Karen–she ALWAYS has a genuine smile on her face!