Veterinary Surgeon | Pain Management & Rehabilitation Specialist | CCRP

Dr. Siobhan Menzies is an experienced veterinary surgeon with a special interest in pain management, rehabilitation, and complementary therapies. She graduated from the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies in Edinburgh in 1990 and began her career in mixed practice in Northern Ireland before focusing on small animal medicine.

Her passion for integrative care led her to train in veterinary acupuncture with the Association of British Veterinary Acupuncturists (ABVA), where she later served as a council member. In 2007, she became the first veterinary professional in Ireland to achieve the Canine Certified Rehabilitation Practitioner (CCRP) qualification through the University of Tennessee, a gold-standard, RACE-approved certification in canine rehabilitation.

Inspired by her training, Siobhan founded HolisticPet, Northern Ireland’s first dedicated veterinary pain management clinic, introducing the region’s first underwater treadmill to support physical rehabilitation. She holds a GP Certificate in Western Veterinary Acupuncture and Chronic Pain Management, with additional training in Canine Sports Medicine under world-renowned specialist Dr. Chris Zink.

Siobhan is committed to a multimodal approach to pain relief, combining advanced techniques such as acupuncture, laser therapy, PEMF, hydrotherapy, and physiotherapy. In 2023, she relocated to Kent, where she established a new multimodal pain clinic at the Holistic Vet Medicine Centre in East Hoathly HMVC, http://www.hvmc.info, and launched HolisticPet Kent Veterinary Rehabilitation Clinic in Goudhurst—a multidisciplinary centre dedicated to improving quality of life and mobility in pets.

She is an active member of several professional organisations including the ABVA, BVRSMA, IAVRPT, and BSAVA. She has served on the council of the Association of Veterinary Surgeons Practising in Northern Ireland (AVSPNI) and is an advisory board member for the Veterinary Osteoarthritis Alliance (VOA).

A sought-after speaker, Siobhan regularly lectures on veterinary acupuncture, chronic pain management, rehabilitation, and medicinal cannabinoids for organisations such as VOA, BVNA, BSAVA, Hills, and Longview Veterinary Services. She has developed a practical rehabilitation course for veterinary professionals to help expand access to these vital therapies across the UK and is working with Dr Hannah Capon of Canine Arthritis Management to produce a course for animal professionals.

Elsa qualified from Leon University (Spain) in 2011, and immediately showed an interest in the field of animal rehabilitation. Once she had finished her veterinary degree, she studied a course in Small animal rehabilitation. She then worked in the rehabilitation area of a veterinary referral hospital in Spain for a year until she moved to Belfast where she met Siobhan who introduced her to the world of acupuncture and pain management. Elsa combined her work at HolisticPet NI along with first opinion clinic for a long time until she decided to dedicate herself full time to the Pain clinic, as she felt she could do so much for the animals suffering from chronic pain. She has a special interest in feline medicine, especially pain in the geriatric cat.

She lives with her husband, Jorge (also originally from Spain), and her cat, Elvis, who arrived to her life as a stray who had to recover after being hit by a car. He also required acupuncture treatment but he has made an amazing recovery and is now hard to believe he was so lame then.

Helen qualified from the University of Bristol in 2018 and spent several happy years working in a small animal clinic in Comber. After a decline in her health, she left general practice to work as an in-home Hospice Veterinarian. It was here she developed her true passion for improving her patient’s quality of life and helping support owners in managing chronically ill pets. Through her work here she met Elsa and Siobhan and soon transitioned into the team at Holistic Pet NI.

Helen has been working alongside our team since July 2024 and completed the Foundation Course in Western Veterinary Acupuncture in October. As a disabled veterinarian she has a unique outlook on managing chronic disease and enjoys improving the quality of life for her patients to give them back their joy for life.

Helen is also remotely studying Clinical Animal Behaviour at the University of Edinburgh. She is keen to employ this training in her work with rehabilitation and chronic pain patients as behavioural changes are very common in our painful pets. Her inspiration for this further study was her own challenging spaniel, Fergus. She lives locally with Fergus and her other cocker, Charlie, as well as her husband Dermot.

Emma is a registered veterinary nurse and qualified at Greenmount Campus in Antrim in 2015. She is extremely experienced having worked as head veterinary nurse in her previous clinic for over 12 years. Her keen interest in pet rehabilitation lead her to complete a foundation course in Western Veterinary Acupuncture in Scotland in March 2020. Last year she completed the Practical Canine Rehabilitation in Veterinary Practice.

Emma is a member of the International Association of Animal Hospice and Palliative Care. She has been working alongside the team at Holistic Pet NI over the last three years perfecting her skills in laser therapy, acupuncture, rehabilitation, and hydrotherapy.