Aaron Wentzell was born and raised in Racine, Wisconsin. He spent his summers at the YMCA Camp Anokijig where he passed most of his time with the horses in the camp’s Ranch program. Aaron’s camp experiences are what inspired him to want to become a veterinarian, and he worked towards that goal throughout high school and college. He went to Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida where he received a bachelor’s degree in Biology. From there he went to North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he met Mary Beth, his classmate.

Mary Beth was born in Itasca, Illinois, and was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She went to the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, where she received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. She then moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, where she worked as a receptionist and veterinarian’s assistant at a local animal hospital while finishing up her prerequisite courses for veterinary school. From there, she moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, where she attended North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Aaron and Mary Beth were married in 2003, and moved to California shortly afterwards. They first landed in Calistoga and Aaron worked at a mixed animal practice over Mount St. Helena in Middletown, while Mary Beth made the drive through the Alexander Valley to her job at a small animal practice in Cloverdale. Aaron enjoyed his work with both large and small animals, but he decided to focus on small animal medicine and transferred jobs to a practice in Mill Valley. The couple moved to Marin County in the spring of 2005 and had their first child, Jonathan, in early 2006.

While Mary Beth and Aaron really enjoyed their experiences at the various practices where they have worked, they always had the goal of owning their own veterinary clinic. After investigating several different hospitals for sale, some on the East Coast, they set their sights on Fairfax Veterinary Clinic, where Mary Beth had done some relief work before she had Jonathan. After many months of planning, the couple took over as the new owners and veterinarians at the Fairfax Veterinary Clinic in February 2007.

As the practice has grown, so has their household. In October 2008, the Wentzells welcomed their daughter Kathryn (“Kate”) to their family and in April 2011 they had another boy, Benjamin. In addition to the three kids, they have 1 cat, Diva, and one dog, a sweet-hearted if not a little neurotic “rescue mutt” named Maple.

Aaron and Mary Beth are truly enjoying their place in the community of Fairfax. It is rare that a family can live, work, play, and raise a family in the same town, and they feel as if this is a dream come true for them. It is not unusual to come in and find the kids playing in the office and waiting room-it is definitely a “family practice”.

Owning (and renovating) a business and being veterinarians takes up a lot of time, but The Wentzell Family manages to have a lot of fun in their free time. As a family, they enjoy camping, hiking, sailing, running, music, cooking (and eating!) and reading. Aaron and Mary Beth are also board members of Lily’s Legacy, a sanctuary for senior large breed dogs, and active members of the AVMA, CVMA and MCVMA.

Katie is a native of Marin County. She grew up in Corte Madera and went to Redwood High School. After graduation, she went to UC Davis where she received a BS in Psychology. She moved back to Marin after undergrad and worked as a veterinary technician in Novato for a couple years. Katie had always been interested in animals and medicine, but her experience as a technician solidified her decision to become a veterinarian. She moved back to Davis in 2005 to go to veterinary school and graduated in 2009.

After graduating, Katie began working as a veterinarian at the San Mateo SPCA. Working at the shelter was a wonderful experience for her because she was able to see hundreds of animals with various ailments and truly hone her medical and surgical skills. Despite all of the very rewarding experiences shelter medicine had to offer, it had its frustrations as well. It was particularly difficult to not be able to help animals with more involved medical or surgical needs because they were not deemed “adoptable” or because of lack of funding. She really missed working with people and their pets in the setting of a family veterinary hospital. As luck would have it, an opening at the Fairfax Veterinary Clinic revealed itself to her, and in April, 2011, Katie moved back home to Marin. She is enjoying being close to her family and childhood friends again.

Katie now resides in Corte Madera with her husband Justin and their daughter Emily. They also have two cats named Mikey and Eddie who have lots of personality and are a constant source of entertainment. When Katie is not working she enjoys her other job of being a mom and when she occasionally gets some down time she loves reading and connecting with friends. Katie also enjoys taking long weekend trips up to Lake Tahoe with her family.

Aaron Wentzell was born and raised in Racine, Wisconsin. He spent his summers at the YMCA Camp Anokijig where he passed most of his time with the horses in the camp’s Ranch program. Aaron’s camp experiences are what inspired him to want to become a veterinarian, and he worked towards that goal throughout high school and college. He went to Florida State University in Tallahassee, Florida where he received a bachelor’s degree in Biology. From there he went to North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in Raleigh, North Carolina, where he met Mary Beth, his classmate.

Mary Beth was born in Itasca, Illinois, and was raised in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She went to the University of Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, where she received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology. She then moved to Wilmington, North Carolina, where she worked as a receptionist and veterinarian’s assistant at a local animal hospital while finishing up her prerequisite courses for veterinary school. From there, she moved to Raleigh, North Carolina, where she attended North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Aaron and Mary Beth were married in 2003, and moved to California shortly afterwards. They first landed in Calistoga and Aaron worked at a mixed animal practice over Mount St. Helena in Middletown, while Mary Beth made the drive through the Alexander Valley to her job at a small animal practice in Cloverdale. Aaron enjoyed his work with both large and small animals, but he decided to focus on small animal medicine and transferred jobs to a practice in Mill Valley. The couple moved to Marin County in the spring of 2005 and had their first child, Jonathan, in early 2006.

While Mary Beth and Aaron really enjoyed their experiences at the various practices where they have worked, they always had the goal of owning their own veterinary clinic. After investigating several different hospitals for sale, some on the East Coast, they set their sights on Fairfax Veterinary Clinic, where Mary Beth had done some relief work before she had Jonathan. After many months of planning, the couple took over as the new owners and veterinarians at the Fairfax Veterinary Clinic in February 2007.

As the practice has grown, so has their household. In October 2008, the Wentzells welcomed their daughter Kathryn (“Kate”) to their family and in April 2011 they had another boy, Benjamin. In addition to the three kids, they have 1 cat, Diva, and one dog, a sweet-hearted if not a little neurotic “rescue mutt” named Maple.

Aaron and Mary Beth are truly enjoying their place in the community of Fairfax. It is rare that a family can live, work, play, and raise a family in the same town, and they feel as if this is a dream come true for them. It is not unusual to come in and find the kids playing in the office and waiting room-it is definitely a “family practice”.

Owning (and renovating) a business and being veterinarians takes up a lot of time, but The Wentzell Family manages to have a lot of fun in their free time. As a family, they enjoy camping, hiking, sailing, running, music, cooking (and eating!) and reading. Aaron and Mary Beth are also board members of Lily’s Legacy, a sanctuary for senior large breed dogs, and active members of the AVMA, CVMA and MCVMA.

Ryen Morey grew up in Southern California. He started at community college in Santa Clarita and transferred up to UC Davis to finish undergrad where he received his BS in Animal Science with a minor in Wildlife, Fish, and Conservation Biology. Ryen then stayed in Davis to go to veterinary school and graduated in 2016.

Ever since starting on his path to veterinary medicine, Ryen has always wanted to end up in family practice. He has always enjoyed talking to and meeting new people and pets. He grew up working at a cat only clinic, and through that has grown to love and understand our little kitty friends. Ryen enjoys the idea of meeting a new pet in the family and working with them as they grow with their new family.

Ryen lives in San Anselmo with his partner Erin. Together they have four cats named Pippin, Merry, Nessa, and Stridor (but Nessa is a daddy’s girl). They also have four fire bellied toads who all love to croak and show off their bright red stomachs to anyone who will watch. Ryen loves exploring all around Marin in his free time. He has always enjoyed traveling and has been to Japan, Sri Lanka, Ecuador, Nicaragua, Thailand, England, Scotland, and more! When not traveling, he loves to play tennis, spend time outdoors, try new restaurants, and just relax to a good movie.

Dr. Kelly Pipkin earned her veterinary degree at UC Davis in 2016, accomplishing her lifelong dream of becoming a vet. Growing up in Orange County California, Kelly was involved in her local 4H club and raised many rabbits, chickens, and sheep to show at the county fair. Kelly went to Cal Poly, San Luis Obispo for her undergrad degree in Animal Science and then went straight to UC Davis for vet school. She loves all aspects of veterinary medicine but chose to join a small animal hospital in Fairfax because of its perfect family-oriented atmosphere, beautiful location, and great clients and patients.

In her personal life, Kelly is happily married and living in San Anselmo where she enjoys exploring the country drives and hiking opportunities, taking trips to wine country, and experiencing all of the small town social events. Kelly and her husband, Brandon, met at Cal Poly as students in 2011 and were married immediately after she finished vet school at a vineyard in Sacramento. Almost immediately after getting married, Kelly and Brandon adopted a rescue dog, Penny, from Family Dog Rescue in San Francisco. Penny fits right in with any adventure that her "parents" take.

Outside of work, Kelly likes hiking, wine tasting, experimenting with new recipes, and spending as much time outside as possible. In the clinic, Kelly enjoys working with a variety of animals ranging from dogs and cats to rabbits and chickens. The diversity of patients at Fairfax vet clinic keeps things interesting and each day treating animals is fulfilling.

Dr. Nicole Captanian grew up in the neighboring town of San Rafael. Her grandfather owned a small business that sold veterinary supplies to vet hospitals throughout the Bay Area, and he sparked her interest in veterinary medicine at a young age. She began working at a local veterinary hospital at the age of 16 and has devoted her life to the study of animals ever since. After receiving her bachelors of science and veterinary degrees from the University of California, Davis, she ventured to New York City for a year of advanced training in small animal medicine and surgery at the Animal Medical Center. Dr. Captanian is thrilled to be back in Marin and to have joined Fairfax Veterinary Clinic. In addition to dogs and cats, she loves seeing exotic pets, such as rabbits, guinea pigs, rats, birds, and particularly reptiles; and enjoys developing close relationships with her furry, feathery, and scaly patients and their families.

Dr. Captanian lives with her dog, Chase, her red-footed tortoise, Bob, and her corn snake, Neo. Outside of work she enjoys rock climbing, hiking, traveling, and training for her next long-distance race.