Dr. Elaine Y. Kuo, DVM, MS, CVA

Veterinarian

Dr. Kuo received her DVM degree from National Taiwan University in Taipei, Taiwan. After she immigrated to the  United States, she completed the veterinary clinical rotation year in Louisiana State University to fulfill the requirement of PAVE (Program for the Assessment of Veterinary Education Equivalence). She also studied the Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine under TCVM pioneer Dr. Huisheng Xie at the Chi Institute in Reddick, Florida, where she achieved certification in veterinary acupuncture. She currently holds veterinary license in both New Jersey and New York.

Dr. Kuo has practiced in many veterinary clinics in NJ/NY area, before establishing Riverdale Integrative Veterinary Care. Now she brings her unique style of combining conventional and holistic, complementary veterinary medicine to northern New Jersey.

Dr. Kuo loves classical music, cooking, gardening and hiking. She spends most of her free time with her husband Jie, two energetic boys, two German Shepherd boys Martin and Murphy, the Bearded Dragon Spiky and the Goldfish Goldie. 

Certifications
Doctor of Veterinary Medicine
Master of Science in Biomedical Engineering
Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist
Fear Free Certified Professional

Experience
The Seeing Eye, Morristown, NJ – Nonprofit Organization, veterinarian

Branchburg Animal Hospital, Branchburg, NJ – Private Practice, veterinarian

Armory Dog and Cat Hospital, Bronx, NY – Private Practice, veterinarian

Oakland Animal Hospital, Oakland, NJ – Private Practice, veterinarian

Animal Clinics of Bayonne, Bayonne, NJ – Private Practice, veterinarian

Veterinarian Newark Community Healthy
Pet Clinic, Newark, NJ –Private Practice, Volunteer

Benfield Pet Hospital, East Hanover, NJ – Corporate, extern

Animal Medical Center, New York, NY – Referral Center, extern

Oradell Animal Hospital, Paramus, NJ – Referral Center, extern

Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, Tinton Falls, NJ – Referral Center, extern

Louisiana State University Veterinary
Teaching Hospital, Baton Rouge


Dr. Beth Hirsch, DVM, CVA, AVCA

Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Beth Hirsch is a veterinarian certified in animal chiropractic (AVCA) and acupuncture (CVA) who is very passionate about offering holistic treatment options for her patients. She specializes in ensuring every client feels heard and have all their questions answered; as well as focusing on fear-free animal handling. 

Dr Hirsch graduated from Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine and she pursued equine veterinary medicine for the first 11 years of her veterinary career, working mainly with horses and alpacas. Her passion for holistic medicine led to a change towards focus solely on holistic veterinary medicine for dogs and cats, with an emphasis on hands-on chiropractic care.

Dr. Hirsch has a Bachelor of Medicine degree in Equine Science/Pre-veterinary Medicine from Otterbein College, Ohio. Graduated veterinary school at Ohio State University in 2008. Completed a 1 year internship at a lameness/sports horse practice and finished her certification in acupuncture at the Chi Institute in 2009. She became certified in AVCA chiropractic adjustment in 2015. She has pursued some Fear Free training as she aims to try to minimize stress for her patients. She embraces learning professionally and recently became Reiki Level 1 certified.

Dr. Hirsch resides in New Jersey with her husband Ray and three fluffy therapists - their Ragdoll cats, Reuben, Wallace and Wilbur. Saltwater reef-keeping is a hobby that she admits her husband does the bulk of the work for, but she really loves as well. She enjoys knitting, needle felting, and numerous other creative outlets when she finds time outside of work, and especially enjoys exploring learning about metaphysical aspects of crystals.  


Dr. Amy Chan

Associate Veterinarian

Dr. Amy Chan is the newest addition to our lovely little veterinary clinic. She is still finding her footing as a doctor, becoming an associate veterinarian in 2023. Dr. Chan is passionate and open-minded about learning all she can about helping her patients and providing them with every option available. Her professional goal aligns perfectly with holistic modalities, and we are happy to have her on our team.

Dr. Chan graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor’s in Nutritional science; and then continued her studies at Texas A&M School of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences in 2019. She volunteered at Austin Pets Alive animal shelter, which is currently Austin’s longest-running no-kill city in the US. Dr. Chan uses all her knowledge and kindness to offer pets the best hospice and end-of-life care imaginable. She understands the difficulties of loss and passionately strives to ensure pets and their families are comfortable during their hardest times.

An avid advocate of rescuing animals, she owns two rescue dogs named Kona and Spud. She treats them like her children, spoiling them with love, attention, and the healthiest nutritional snacks they could ever want.


Dr. Dennis Ting

Relief Surgeon

Dr. Dennis Ting is originally from Southern California where he attended the University of California, San Diego for his undergraduate work in the field of Animal Physiology and Neuroscience. He then earned his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of California, Davis in 2003. In the following year, Dr. Ting returned to Southern California to complete a one-year internship in small animal medicine and surgery. With a growing interest in small animal surgery, he completed a surgery specific internship in Denver followed by an orthopaedic research fellowship at Michigan State University. Dr. Ting then stayed on with Michigan State University and completed his residency training in small animal surgery. Dr. Ting is board certified by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons. He has particular interests in orthopaedics, traumatology, and oncologic surgery. He is trained in minimally invasive surgeries such as fluoroscopic-assisted fracture repair. Dr. Ting has published a number of original orthopaedic articles in various veterinary journals and has presented numerous lectures on international, national and local levels. He remains active in veterinary continuing education and is a leading instructor in veterinary orthopaedic courses.


Mark Hladyk

Veterinary Technician, AVA, P.F. Dip, Certified Dog Trainer and Behaviorist

Mark Hladyk has a wide variety of training and experience in the animal industry. Since he was 16 years old he has been working in animal shelters, pet day cares, grooming salons, and animal hospitals. Mark started his pet care education by getting his Diploma as a dog groomer at North Jersey Dog Grooming School in 2011. After that he was very interested in Dog Training and Animal Psychology, eventually getting his Dog Training Diploma in July 2015 from Penn Forster Collège and has knowledge in Animal Psychology in March 2016. Need to learn as much as he could, he would later get his Pet Adoption Certification from Holly & Hugo.

However, Mark wondered what about the medical field that could go along with Dog Training, so he went and got his Veterinary Assistant Certification, AVA in 2018 with Morris County Vocational School in Denville. To update his credentials, he went back to school for Dog Training and a Certification Dog Training with Animal Behavior College in 2022.

Mark uses Fear Free techniques in his training programs. He does not use shock collars or force in any of his sessions. He tries to use natural positive reinforcement and natural training and takes time to understand the clients and the dog(s) he is working with. With a thorough evaluation and report for owners, he will work with you to get to a resolution by working as a team to get to the source of the problem. There is no quick fix in dog training. However, if we work together as a committed team, together we can get to the root of the problem.

While Mark dedicates his life to helping pets and pet parents alike, he does enjoy sitting back, embracing the joys of life with singing, writing and photography.


Kyara Segura

Veterinary Assistant

Kyara Segura has always had an interest in medicine and animals since she was a little girl. It was only natural that combining those interests would lead her into the veterinary field. While working with cattle on the Rutgers University farm, she knew veterinary medicine was where she wanted to focus her time and devote her energy. Kyara had the amazing opportunity to study abroad in Belize where she had hands-on experience practicing suturing, assisting in surgeries, vaccination administration, and working with Doctors to understand various animal diseases.

Kyara is currently completing her Bachelor of Arts in Biology with a minor in Animal Science at Rutgers University, scheduled to graduate in May 2024. After which, she plans on continuing her studies at a veterinary school to master her new abilities.

Kyara balances her studies and work life by enjoying the simpler things like hiking, traveling, and spending time with her pets Bear the cavapoo and Katara her fish.


Tom McNerney

Veterinary Technician / Assistant

Thomas “Tom” McNerney has immersed himself in the veterinary field for over 10 years, working at several animal hospitals before landing at our doorstep. Being a vet tech was not his original goal, but he embraces the veterinary world with open arms as he learns new techniques and modalities from our holistic doctors. Tom loves working with animals, but his eyes are looking toward other horizons as he studies to become a certified ultrasound technician.

Whether in the clinic or out in the woods, Tom cannot resist being one with nature. While he uses his empathy and vast knowledge of animals to help clients, he enjoys being out in nature, taking photographs of wildlife, and studying the vastness of space. Tom also loves making new dishes for himself and his two pets Ellie and RuRu.


Nikki Marie Cabilao

Remote Assistant

Nikki Marie Z. Cabilao has a unique position at our little animal hospital. While she may not be in the clinic, her presence echoes throughout the halls as she is our remote assistant. Despite her physical absence, she is highly organized to ensure everyone gets to see the Doctors and keep the office running.

Nikki loves animals and wants to find more sustainable and humane practices to care for them. There is no better place to learn sustainable, humane, and alternative methods of care than with an integrative animal clinic with holistic and modern modalities. She absorbs all she can to improve herself physically, mentally, and spiritually to become a better version of herself every day.

Outside the clinic, Nikki is a pharmacist who loves playing volleyball, and online games, and spending her free time with her Japanese Spitz named Boogie. She is constantly looking toward the horizon to see new countries to experience new adventures and cultures.


Claudia Grieder

Veterinary Technician / Assistant / Reception

Claudia Grieder is a part-time receptionist at RIVC, but her knowledge and intellectual curiosity have her fitting in right with our team. Claudia is currently in Nursing school and spends extra time studying herbology and energy healing. She believes in the body’s innate healing power, which is one of the core principles of holistic medicine. While she devotes most of her time to school, she is determined to learn everything she can about holistic medicine and pet care while working with us. As she puts it, Claudia wants to study the magic of the world and how we can heal ourselves and our pets.


Jorelle Baker

Freelance Writer

Jorelle Baker is the clinic's freelance writer and content creator for RIVC, as well as helping the Doctors create handouts for clients. 

Jorelle has always loved writing and studying animals. He studied at William Paterson University for a Bachelor's in English, later becoming a certified veterinary assistant at Animal Behavior College. Never wanting to stop stimulating his mind, he takes classes online to learn more about animals, psychology, and folklore to live a well-balanced life.

Jorelle is constantly pushing himself toward his next professional and personal goals, but loves nothing more than to just sit down and relax with his cat Kana.  




Address

82 Newark Pompton Turnpike
Riverdale, NJ 07457, US

Office hours

Monday: 10AM-5PM
Tuesday, Wednesday: 9AM-6PM
Thursday: 1:30PM-8PM
Friday: 9AM-5PM
Saturday: 9AM-2PM
Sunday: Closed

Fax number: (973)288-2187

Please call or text or email us to leave a message outside these hours. We will contact you as soon as possible.

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