Our Team
Our founders & advisors are published and experienced professionals active in the fields of veterinary care, technology, and animal science.
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Ken Lambrecht, DVM Ceo & CO-founder Dr. Ken Lambrecht received his DVM from University of Missouri in 1981. He is the Medical Director and owner of West Towne Veterinary Center in Madison, Wisconsin USA which has been AAHA accredited since 1995 and a Gold Level Designated Cat Friendly Practice since 2015. His primary practice interests are preventive care, feline medicine especially chronic care, dentistry and feline & canine preventive nutrition, in particular obesity prevention and management. Dr. Ken is a current board member of The Veterinary Cooperative (TVC) and previous board member with the Feline VMA (formerly Association of Feline Partitioners) American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA), Marketlink and the Pet Nutrition Alliance (PNA) and the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition (AAVN). Recently, in collaboration with Dr. Barr Hadar at the University of Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College, the team has published 2 papers and 5 posters looking at how home pet health technology can help pet weight management. Dr Ken shares his lakeside Madison home with his 4 cats Annie, Georgie Roo and Bug who have taught him the fine details of preventive care and keeping pets at their ideal weight! Bug of course has also taught him much about the care and handling of an adventure cat! Follow the adventures on Facebook In a “previous life” Dr. Ken was an endurance athlete completing well over 50 cross country ski marathons (over 50K) and has crossed 2 Great Lakes (Superior & Ontario) and circumnavigated many islands (up to 25 miles) on a stand-up paddle board. He likes to compare building a startup to doing about 100 endurance events back-to-back! 
Megan Sprinkle DVM NutrITION ADVISOR/MEDIA lead Dr. Megan Sprinkle is a veterinarian, dog mom, and entrepreneur and DACVIM diplomat in Nutrtion She received her DVM from Auburn University and completed a clinical nutrition residency at the University of Missouri. Dr. Sprinkle has worked in clinics as well as worked over 6 years in the pet nutrition industry with Royal Canin and currently with BSM Partners, the largest pet industry consulting firm. With BSM Partners, she serves as a nutrition consultant, marketing and business strategist, and podcast host of The Pet Industry Podcast. Dr. Sprinkle is also the founder and podcast host of Vet Life Reimagined. Dr. Sprinkle is co-founder of a 3D printing company with her husband and loves working with startups. She is also president of the American Academy of Veterinary Nutrition (AAVN). 
Eli Rego veterinary assistant Eli Rego is a veterinary assistant at West Towne Veterinary Center has a BA in Zoology from UW-Madison with a specialization in Animal Behavior and Evolutionary Biology. He will be in charge of onsite improvement of the healthy Pet Connect app & dashboard and the development of a cat & dog boarding subscription that allows easy sharing of data while pets are boarded to a veterinary dashboard. Spudgie, Aspen and all the boarding cats in Bugs Cat Gym are helping him as is Chase Doebert, our cat boarding care specialist. Pets include 2 cats, Gatsby and Walter, 1 dog, a dachshund named Olive, 1 California kingsnake named Yvie, 2 goldfish named Mango and Dumpling, a Pleco named Sheldon, a school of Danios named Greg, and a Mexican Fireleg Tarantula named Pearl. Professional goals include expanding his studio space to multiple rooms. Eli also wants to tour the US with his band alternative rock band EMTN. |
Barr Hadar, DVM CHIEF SCIENTIFIC OFFICER & CO-FOUNDER Barr Hadar received a DVM from Colorado State University. He has experience working in small animal clinics and a large animal ambulatory practice, as well as operating his own small animal mobile service. During this time, he explored and incorporated new technologies, including 3D printing (surgical planning/client education from CT images), practice management software, communication platforms, client satisfaction analysis, and health monitoring devices. Barr Hadar is currently an epidemiology PhD candidate at the University of Guelph, continuing to build his knowledge on the application of technology to veterinary practice as part of a unique research lab, Popmatix, that focuses on health informatics, digital health, and emerging technology in veterinary medicine. He leads research on the use of technology in the home setting, with the development and analysis of a pet health technology ecosystem as a tool in feline weight management and other chronic conditions. 
Laci Schaible, DVM STRATEGY, MARKETING & LEGAL ADVISOR Dr. Laci Schaible is a veterinarian, Internet entrepreneur, speaker, and published author. After graduating veterinary school from Texas A&M University in 2006, she owned and managed two veterinary hospitals for a handful of years prior to launching the world’s first 24/7 Internet-based veterinary telehealth company. She has successfully launched and grown several Internet-based veterinary and pet companies to acquisition over the past decade and currently provides strategic, legal, and marketing consulting services for veterinary startups. A published author and Certified Veterinary Journalist, she writes for a number of companies, from Hill’s Science Diet, to the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine, and everything in between. She graduated law school from Wake Forest University School of Law in 2020 with her Masters of Studies in Law, though she remains firmly rooted and committed to advancement of veterinary medicine and animal welfare. She lives in sunny Florida with her son, two feline divas, and the world’s largest standard poodle (unofficially, of course). 
Bug CFO Chief Feline Officer Bug was the inspiration and genesis of Bug Ventures the new beginning in 2012 when Dr. Ken moved on from creating 4 Paws Swim & Fitness & Westside Family Pet Clinic. Bug’s Cat Gym (a foster, boarding & cat socialization center) and West Towne Veterinary Center was created and Pets Reducing for Rescues was continued. An adventure cat before it was even “a thing” Bug goes everywhere with Dr. Ken, venturing as far as Spain, Portugal, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Canada, and Mexico. She has as many good travel stories as any of us! Along with Dr. Ken’s other cats, she has truly taught him more about feline behavior, feeding and preventive care than any textbook. All systems, products and services MUST have her final approval! |
Joey Goldthorpe, DVM ChiEF VETERINARY OFFICER & CO-FOUNDER Dr. Joey Goldthorpe grew up in a small town in Wisconsin. She obtained a psychology degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Following graduation, she visited and camped in all the lower 48 states in her Geo Metro. Through her travels, she found Oregon to be her favorite state, so she moved there to attend veterinary school at Oregon State and graduated in 2002. During the next 17 years in Oregon, she worked in a variety of clinical settings. This included working at a 24-hour emergency clinic, working at a cat exclusive practice, she was involved in a spay/neuter program at her local shelter for 15 years, she volunteered with the Feral Cat Coalition of Oregon, and started her own house call veterinary practice and end of life care. During her 20+ years in practice she has adopted over 50 special needs cats into her family. She has learned something from all of them including both how to be a better veterinarian as well as how to be a better person. An important part of caring for these special needs and oftentimes frail cats, is weighing them on a weekly basis. Frequently, changes in their weights, even minimal changes of a couple ounces, is the first/only indicator of any changes in their health status. She brings this clinical and personal experience in chronic care monitoring to her advisory role at Healthy Pet Connect. She has been a member of the Humane Society of the United States and the American Association of Feline Practitioners for over 20 years. When she is not taking care of cats, she enjoys spending time gardening, paddle boarding, traveling, cooking, camping and making chocolates. 
Tina Karls DVM Fit Pets for Rescues co-founder Dr. Tina Karls graduated from the University of Wisconsin - Madison School of Veterinary Medicine after receiving her undergraduate degree in Natural Science and Business Administration from Saint Norbert College. Following graduation from veterinary school, Dr. Karls completed a rotating internship in small animal medicine, surgery and emergency medicine in Colorado. Eventually returning to her home state of Wisconsin, Dr. Karls joined the team at West Towne Veterinary Center. She is proud to work at an AAHA-accredited and Gold Level Cat Friendly Certified hospital and appreciates the many forms of community outreach. Dr. Karls enjoys many aspects of veterinary medicine, particularly dentistry, preventive care, weight management and client education. She values the relationships she develops with her clients and patients as they partner to make the best health decisions for their pets. In addition to veterinary medicine, Dr. Karls enjoys spending time with her family and pets, exploring the beauty of Wisconsin, gardening and cooking. 
Roo AKT Adventure kitten in training Roo AKT (Adventure Kitten in Training) Roo was a foster failure at West Towne Veterinary Center during Covid bringing true joy to a team that needed it. Another foster failure followed quickly after as she adopted Aspen (Aspy) a weight management foster as her favorite buddy (toy) Roo epitomizes the challenge of keeping all kittens at their ideal (1 yr weight) for their entire life to prevent health problems. Like Bug she is a fearless feline with a true zest for life and a challenge to all she meets! |
Ryan Wheeler FINANCIAL & STRATEGY ADVISOR An International Man of Mystery, Ryan’s career has had a singular focus on advancing healthcare accessibility, affordability and quality through technology, data analysis and process improvement. Over 25 years in healthcare, he has played salesman, CEO, investor, founder, repairman, and board member. Prior to leading Ambershore Group’s Global Healthcare Practice, he funded and co-founded HealthBridge Financial, a venture-backed Insurtech company that created a financial safety net for US employees seeking care through high-value providers. Prior to HealthBridge, he recapitalized and helped focus RespondWell, a gamified tele-rehabilitation company, on improving the experience of patients undergoing knee and hip replacements. RespondWell was sold to Zimmer Biomet to help providers improve clinical and financial outcomes. Prior to RespondWell, Ryan served as Vice President of Enterprise Solutions for MedAssets, a healthcare performance improvement company that provided technology and services to 4,400 hospitals and 122,000 non-acute healthcare providers. Inspired by studying evolutionary biology and biochemistry at the University of Wisconsin, he often looks to biomimicry to solve vexing problems. Ryan currently serves on the Board of Directors for HealthBridge Financial, Concorde Health and Portal Telemedicina. His happy place is rolling or gliding in the mountains with his family. 
Albert Dirienzo ADVISOR In a career spanning nearly 30 years in academia, government and industry, Al has held positions with the Forensic and National Security Sciences Institute at Syracuse University as a Professor of Forensic Science, One Health Group, RedSky, Blue Highway, National Biodefense Science Board, Welch Allyn, Philips Medical Systems, Siemens Medical Systems, Honeywell/Sperry Aerospace and General Dynamics . During his career, Mr. Di Rienzo has been responsible for hundreds of billions in revenues via the release of well over 100 successful products. Currently, Mr. Di Rienzo is a Cofounder of One Health Group, which is the developer of a comprehensive health & wellness solution call Voyce.. Most recently Al/OHG was 1 of 3 Platinum winners of the Pepperdine Most Fundable Company in the United States out of more than 4,000 companies that went through a six- month due diligence process. OHG also just won the 2023 Pet Innovation Award for the Overall Health Product of the Year for Voyce which is currently being tested to do RR, HR, BP, intrathoracic fluid & Core Body Temperature in animals of all sizes. 
Spudgie the one and only Spudgie is a foster from the Dane County Humane Society who came to Bug's Cat Gym weighing 37# in June of 2021, just 2# less than the world's heaviest cat. Today he weighs 12# losing a total of 25# average of 1.5% a week since June 2021 using our HPC platform which coincidentally launched just one week before Spudgie arrived! Click here for an article the Dane County Humane Society wrote about his amazing 25# weight loss journey. HPC has donated over $500 to DCHS as part of its mission to give back to rescues for all scale sales & subscriptions. Dr Ken officially adopted him in June 2023 having fallen in love with his fun loving nature. He now routinely joins the WTVC team downstairs and shares his loveable nature & demeanor. The WTVC staff is closely watching Spudgie and to date he is still within 1/2 lb of his ideal weight of 12# |
IN MEMORIAM
Elizabeth Colleran, DVM, MS
The profession lost an amazing soul & contributor to feline medicine on September 30th, 2023.
Dr Ken met Dr Colleran while serving on the AAFP board. They became instant friends, and she served as his academic & business mentor from 2019 to 2023. Her focus on feline nutrition, unintended weight loss, frailty, osteoarthritis, pain management and chronic care and exploring those feline medical areas was a journey they traveled together. Dr Colleran was HPC’s first angel investor. She was an author, keynote and veterinary conference speaker, consultant and feline specialist board certified by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners.
She successfully created and managed two feline medicine veterinary practices. Her practice in Portland, Oregon was the first feline-only practice in Portland Oregon and her practice, the Chico Hospital for Cats, celebrated its 24th birthday this year. Dr. Colleran chaired the Cat Friendly Practice for the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP). She served on the AAFP board for several years including as president in 2011 and treasurer from 2007-2009. She also served on the American Veterinary Medical Association Welfare Committee, and served her profession as a volunteer for other veterinary organizations. She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine. Later, she received her Master of Science in Animals and Public Policy with the thesis, “Politics, Economics and Biology of the California Mountain Lion” graduating with honors.
Most recently, Dr. Colleran lectured around the world including a four-day course in internal medicine topics in Chengdu, China. She taught a day long series of lectures in feline medicine, behavior and enrichment in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2019. She loved teaching and believed it is one important way to improve health care and quality of life for felines. Dr. Colleran was a well published author and frequent contributor to several peer-reviewed publications. She was been a media spokesperson on a number of feline topics for communications campaigns and has proudly mentored many aspiring feline practitioners.
Her next book for veterinarians, “The Senior Cat: Medicine and Management in the Golden Years” (working title) will hopefully be published posthumously
I shared these thoughts with her AAFP colleagues at our Memphis Conference
“Like our favorite species she had a unique relationship with each of us. For me she was a powerful mentor, insightful business advisor, friend and amazing human to know and learn from. There seemed to be no limits to her energy, no boundaries to what she wanted to accomplish for our beloved felines.
She made me feel special whenever I was able to get even a few minutes of her attention like those selective cats we all know. When it occurred it was always a laser focused listening and a hard question or two or three. I always walked away thinking about things just a bit differently. My glimpse of her life outside of vet medicine confirmed how much she loved life. My dream was always to have her come visit or bike together, drink another glass of wine or just hang out to learn more about her, about cats or just about life. A friend at my dad’s funeral had these words to share “ He will be with you more after his death than before” I tried hard to follow her lead in improving the lives of cats as I know many of you do as well. That means we all have a lot of work to do to honor her and the cats we love”
We will all miss her dearly. - Dr Ken
Elizabeth Colleran, DVM, MS
The profession lost an amazing soul & contributor to feline medicine on September 30th, 2023.
Dr Ken met Dr Colleran while serving on the AAFP board. They became instant friends, and she served as his academic & business mentor from 2019 to 2023. Her focus on feline nutrition, unintended weight loss, frailty, osteoarthritis, pain management and chronic care and exploring those feline medical areas was a journey they traveled together. Dr Colleran was HPC’s first angel investor. She was an author, keynote and veterinary conference speaker, consultant and feline specialist board certified by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners.
She successfully created and managed two feline medicine veterinary practices. Her practice in Portland, Oregon was the first feline-only practice in Portland Oregon and her practice, the Chico Hospital for Cats, celebrated its 24th birthday this year. Dr. Colleran chaired the Cat Friendly Practice for the American Association of Feline Practitioners (AAFP). She served on the AAFP board for several years including as president in 2011 and treasurer from 2007-2009. She also served on the American Veterinary Medical Association Welfare Committee, and served her profession as a volunteer for other veterinary organizations. She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine. Later, she received her Master of Science in Animals and Public Policy with the thesis, “Politics, Economics and Biology of the California Mountain Lion” graduating with honors.
Most recently, Dr. Colleran lectured around the world including a four-day course in internal medicine topics in Chengdu, China. She taught a day long series of lectures in feline medicine, behavior and enrichment in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 2019. She loved teaching and believed it is one important way to improve health care and quality of life for felines. Dr. Colleran was a well published author and frequent contributor to several peer-reviewed publications. She was been a media spokesperson on a number of feline topics for communications campaigns and has proudly mentored many aspiring feline practitioners.
Her next book for veterinarians, “The Senior Cat: Medicine and Management in the Golden Years” (working title) will hopefully be published posthumously
I shared these thoughts with her AAFP colleagues at our Memphis Conference
“Like our favorite species she had a unique relationship with each of us. For me she was a powerful mentor, insightful business advisor, friend and amazing human to know and learn from. There seemed to be no limits to her energy, no boundaries to what she wanted to accomplish for our beloved felines.
She made me feel special whenever I was able to get even a few minutes of her attention like those selective cats we all know. When it occurred it was always a laser focused listening and a hard question or two or three. I always walked away thinking about things just a bit differently. My glimpse of her life outside of vet medicine confirmed how much she loved life. My dream was always to have her come visit or bike together, drink another glass of wine or just hang out to learn more about her, about cats or just about life. A friend at my dad’s funeral had these words to share “ He will be with you more after his death than before” I tried hard to follow her lead in improving the lives of cats as I know many of you do as well. That means we all have a lot of work to do to honor her and the cats we love”
We will all miss her dearly. - Dr Ken
