Dr. Karra grew up on the west coast of Canada, near the city of Vancouver. She completed her Bachelor of Science in biology at the University of Victoria on Vancouver Island. During this time, she started working as a staff wildlife rehabilitator at a large wildlife rehabilitation center. Here, Dr. Karra fell in love with wildlife rehabilitation and wildlife medicine. Following her undergraduate degree, Dr. Karra moved to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan to attend the Western College of Veterinary Medicine with the goal of becoming a wildlife veterinarian. During this time, she continued to dedicate herself to working with wildlife. After receiving her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, she did a one-year small-animal rotating internship at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine and then joined the team at the Wildlife Center of Virginia. In her time at the Wildlife Center, she has held the position of veterinary intern, senior veterinary intern, research fellow, and is currently the director of veterinary services. Dr. Karra loves teaching interns, veterinary students, and wildlife rehabilitators from all over the world about wildlife rehabilitation and wildlife medicine. She enjoys all aspects of her job but is particularly fond of treating all things tiny. You will often find her creating micro-bandages and miniature splits for her littlest patients. Her professional goals are centered around advancing the profession of wildlife rehabilitation and learning as much as we can from the patients that come through our doors. Dr. Karra spends her free time with her ever-changing menagerie of pets and her partner, Dr. Patrick, who is also a veterinarian.
Meet the Staff
Veterinary
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Dr. Karra Pierce
Director of Veterinary Services -
Dr. Sarah Sirica
Veterinary InternDr. Sarah knew she wanted to work with animals from an early age. She grew up in a semi-rural setting in King George, Virginia, and spent most of her time reading, playing with her dogs and cats, and hanging out by the river. She graduated from Bridgewater College in 2009 with a BS in biology. She went on to receive her DVM and MPH from the University of Tennessee in Knoxville in 2013, where she gained experience in a variety of zoos and spent time in South Africa working on canine rabies research from a One Health perspective. From there, Dr. Sarah has had a variety of experience with small-animal and exotic medicine in Richmond, Virginia, and Santa Fe, New Mexico, as well as a variety of volunteer roles in wildlife medicine. Most recently, she was a regular volunteer with the New Mexico Wildlife Center, and she spent time with the New Mexico Department of Game and Fish taking samples and learning about how a state agency is run. She enjoys working with all types of wildlife in the clinic and in the field, and she would be happy to talk about One Health all day long. Her hobbies include hiking, spending time with family, and beekeeping.
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Dr. Cameron Berg
Veterinary InternDr. Cameron grew up in suburban Wisconsin and developed a fascination with science and animals. He received a degree in biology and chemistry from UW-Platteville and attended the University of Wisconsin for vet school until 2019, alongside his twin brother. He is particularly interested in clinical wildlife medicine and pathology and has done a rehabilitation internship at the Wildlife Center of Minnesota, several externships at zoos and wildlife centers, and worked at a diagnostic lab during vet school. After vet school, he did a one-year internship in emergency medicine and greatly enjoys being in Virginia working with wildlife, especially bats. In his free time, he enjoys drawing, hiking, and playing Dungeons and Dragons.
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Kelsey Pleasants
Wildlife Rehabilitation SupervisorKelsey was born and raised in Waynesboro, Virginia and has always had a passion for animals. She earned a Bachelor of Science in biology from Longwood University in 2013. During her time at college, Kelsey completed a wildlife rehabilitation externship at the Wildlife Center of Virginia and upon graduation, she completed a year-long wildlife rehabilitation internship. It was during her time at WCV that she realized her biggest passion was working with wildlife. From 2014-2017, Kelsey worked at a wildlife center in south Florida doing wildlife rescue and rehabilitation. She returned to Virginia in the fall of 2017 to re-join the team at the Wildlife Center as a wildlife rehabilitator, eventually becoming the wildlife rehabilitation supervisor. In this role, Kelsey oversees the staff rehabilitators and students, and the care and rehabilitation of the thousands of patients the Center receives each year. Kelsey loves working with Black Bears, baby opossums, and American Robins. In her free time, Kelsey enjoys attending concerts and traveling.
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Shannon Mazurowski
Wildlife RehabilitatorShannon is a Virginia native who has always been fascinated by animals. In 2016, she earned a Bachelor of Science degree in animal and poultry sciences from Virginia Tech. During her time at Virginia Tech, she took an ornithology course which ultimately sparked her passion for wildlife. After graduating, Shannon completed a rehabilitation externship at the Center, followed by a one-year rehabilitation internship ... soon after, she returned yet again as a full-time staff wildlife rehabilitator in May 2019. As a rehabilitator, Shannon helps oversee the daily care and rehabilitation of the many patients admitted to WCV every year. Shannon is happy to permanently be a part of the team and enjoys with the Black Bear cubs and baby Chimney Swifts. When she is not working, Shannon can be found attending kickboxing classes and exploring trails with her dogs.
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Katie Attas
Wildlife RehabilitatorKatie is originally from St. James, New York, and has always been passionate about animals of all types, both wild and domestic. In 2015, she graduated from Alvernia University with honors with a B.S. degree in biology. In 2016, Katie completed a wildlife rehabilitation internship at Sweetbriar Nature Center in Smithtown, New York. During her internship, she traveled to Costa Rica to gain additional experience with wildlife rehabilitation and learn more about the importance of conserving both wildlife and the environment. After her internship, Katie worked for the New York State Department of Environmental Conservation, where she performed recreational fishing surveys and collected catch data to aid in fisheries management. She also obtained her personal wildlife rehabilitation license in New York. Katie joined the Wildlife Center team in November 2019 as a wildlife rehabilitator and is excited to work with native Virginia species. In her free time, you can find Katie traveling in her converted school bus, hiking, and spending time with all of her furbabies.
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Jess Dyer
Licensed Veterinary TechnicianJess is originally from Baldwinsville, New York, a small suburb outside Syracuse. She graduated in 2015 from Unity College, with a B.S. in captive wildlife care and education and a minor in zoology. After graduating from Unity, she completed a six-month fellowship at the Clinic for the Rehabilitation for Wildlife (C.R.O.W.) in Sanibel, Florida, which solidified her love of wildlife and veterinary medicine. After completing her fellowship at C.R.O.W., Jess went back to school to pursue a degree in Veterinary Technology at Genesee Community College in Batavia, New York. Upon graduation from GCC, she was hired on at the Wildlife Center of Virginia as the LVT diagnostic intern for the 2018-2019 season and was then subsequently hired as one of the full- time LVT staff in July of 2019. Jess loves working with all wildlife but is especially fond of Barred Owls. In her spare time, Jess enjoys spending time outdoors with her fiancé, Anthony, and her beloved dog, Bonnie-May.
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Grace Eid
Licensed Veterinary Technician -
Alyssa Lakota
Veterinary Technician InternAfter years of working in film, television, and radio on shows such as "Free to Good Home" and "PAWS to Consider," Alyssa changed careers to become a valuable team member in the health and welfare of animals, especially wildlife. She obtained a Veterinary Technology degree from Colorado Mountain College in May of 2019. After graduating, she volunteered in Uganda with Mission Rabies and Clinician’s Brief, vaccinating more than 4,000 dogs in some of the most remote villages where people, mostly children, die each year from this deadly virus. She then spent 10 months working as a CVT at The Animal Hospital of Telluride before heading home to Vermont in preparation for a 13-month internship at The Wildlife Center of Virginia. During her few years in Colorado, Alyssa volunteered at Pauline Schneegas Wildlife Foundation, caring for orphaned and injured wildlife species, as well as Colorado Animal Rescue. Alyssa helped relocate 44 cats and 14 dogs when Targhee Animal Shelter in Idaho closed their doors after running out of operational funds. Here at WCV, Alyssa Lakota’s dreams are truly in motion. “Sometimes it's necessary to go a long distance out of the way in order to come back a short distance correctly.” – Edward Albee, Zoo Story.
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Lydia Sancetta
Wildlife Rehabilitation InternLydia is originally from the suburbs of Boston, Massachusetts where she first recognized her passion for wildlife. Lydia graduated from Beloit College in 2018 with a B.A. in Animal Behavior. While completing her degree, she worked at a variety of rehabilitation facilities including Care for Wild Africa Rhino Orphanage in South Africa, Fox Valley Wildlife Center in northern Illinois, Medicine River Wildlife Center in Alberta, Canada, and Treehouse Wildlife Center in southern Illinois. In her free time, she enjoys cuddling with her cat and spending time with friends. Lydia came to the Wildlife Center of Virginia in January 2020 for a one-year rehabilitation internship. She is excited to be a part of this dedicated team and learn from everyone she meets here.
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Ben Cole
Wildlife Rehabilitation InternBen is a Charlottesville, Virginia native who grew up hearing field guides instead of bedtime stories and visiting the Wildlife Center of Virginia on field trips and open house days, making the opportunity to be a part of the team at WCV an absolute dream come true for him. Ben graduated from The University of Hartford in 2012 with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Acting, which launched him into seven years of working as a New York-based professional actor, appearing in theatrical and film productions all around the country. Returning to the central Virginia area after the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020, Ben completed the Center's rehabilitation externship in the late summer/early fall, thrilled to have the opportunity to explore a passion previously deferred. He is now very excited to have the opportunity to continue that exploration through the WCV’s one-year wildlife rehabilitation internship, which he began in January 2021. Ben is thrilled to get to work with such a remarkably wide variety of native Virginia species but particularly enjoys working with raptors. In his free time, he enjoys fishing, watching bad movies, and cheering on his beloved University of Virginia Cavaliers.
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