Veterinarian in Brampton, Ontario

Dr. Ashna Varma BVM&S MRCVS

Education: University of Western Ontario Bachelor of Science, University of Edinburgh: Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies; Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine and Surgery, Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons

Dr. Varma graduated from the University of Edinburgh Veterinary School in Scotland in July of 2014, where she took advantage and travelled around the UK for veterinary student volunteer opportunities during her veterinary studies. She began her full-time career at Heartlake Veterinary Hospital in May of 2019 but has done some relief work with us for several years! Her medical interests lie in internal medicine and dentistry. Her hobbies include running, reading, and spending time with her family. Dr. Varma also dedicates time annually to volunteering with First Nations Communities to provide veterinary care where needed.

Dr. Varma dearly misses her dog, Kenya, her first Golden Retriever puppy, and has since adopted a 9-year-old abandoned but very loyal German Shepherd, Sam, who sadly succumbed to an incurable bone disease. Dr. Varma now houses 2 kitty fur babies, Moshi and Kibo.

Dr. Varma believes in creating an important bond between client, patient, and veterinarian in order to ensure a great quality of life for our pets. By focusing on preventive medicine for each individual patient, she believes that our pets can live the longest, healthiest, most comfortable lives possible.

Chelsie – Veterinary Assistant

Chelsie is passionate about animals and has been working in the field for many years caring for all loving pets since she graduated from Sheridan Colleges Animal Care Program. She has two cats of her own named Princess and Max, along with many different species of fish (Yes they all have names also). She is very passionate about large to extra-large dog breeds as she has previously owned many and knows how loving they can be. Chelsie is also currently going into her second year in Sheridan Colleges Veterinary Technician Program training to become a Registered Veterinary Technician one day soon.

Dr. Vanessa McDonald DVM

Dr. McDonald graduated from the University of Melbourne in 2020. She joined the team at Heartlake in 2011 as a veterinary assistant before leaving for veterinary school in Australia in 2016. She rejoined our team in 2020 as a DVM. Her interests in veterinary medicine include small animal general practice, emergency medicine, behaviour medicine and working with exotic animals such as birds, reptiles and rabbits. When not at the hospital, she enjoys horseback riding, swimming and binge-watching horror movies. She currently shares her home with her fur family Bear (Doberman x), Brice (Chihuahua), Shiloh and Chandler (cats), Hannibal, Freddy (fancy rats) and Leo (leopard gecko). Dr. McDonald believes strongly in using fear-free principles to ensure a positive environment and positive interactions with animals during consultation. She believes strongly in the preservation of the human-animal bond and therefore recognizes that animals are an integral part of their humans’ lives. By making her patient’s health and well-being top priority, she can also help to better the lives of their human counterparts.

Dr. Yash Varma – DVM, MVSc

Dr. Varma graduated as a veterinarian in 1980 from the University of Nairobi (Kenya). At that time, his special interest was in African wildlife. He spent the next 3 years working as a wildlife research veterinarian in Kenya. This was “real” wildlife like hyenas, lions, water-buck, eland, and buffalo. In 1984 he received a scholarship to do a Master’s Degree in Veterinary Science at the University of Edinburgh (Scotland). Dr. Varma then immigrated to Canada in 1987 and worked for a few months at the Ontario Veterinary College while preparing for his Ontario licensing exams. He worked at various clinics in Toronto and Brampton before finally setting up Heartlake Veterinary Hospital in 1995.

Dr. Varma is proud to be a veterinarian and endeavours to give back to the profession by mentoring veterinary students and foreign graduates to acquire local licenses. He has held the following positions

• Past President of the Brampton Veterinary Association
• Past President of The Highway 10 & Wexford Emergency Veterinary Clinic serving Georgetown, Milton, Orangeville, Bolton, Caledon, and Brampton.
• Council member for the College Of Veterinarians Of Ontario, the regulatory body for the veterinary profession in Ontario.
• Treasurer of the Kenya Overseas Veterinary Association, whose mandate includes helping veterinary students and the profession in Kenya.
• He is a co-owner of the Erin Mills Pet hospital in Mississauga.

He shares his home with his wife, Poonam, and their two children, Ashna and Vishal.

When not at work, Dr. Varma likes to travel and spend his few free minutes at the gym.

Andrea – Registered Veterinary Technician

Andrea graduated from the Registered Veterinary Technician (RVT) program at Seneca College in 2004. She has been working in small aminal practice in Brampton for the last 20 years. She started at HLVH in November 2021. Her interests are divided equally between medicine and surgery. She considers herself fortunate to be as enthusiastic about her job today as she was when she began her career. She remains passionate about improving the quality of our pets’ lives and enjoys applying her wide variety of skills, experience and education to the ever-changing daily demands of being an RVT. In her leisure time, she enjoys spending time with family and close friends while being active outdoors. She has had dogs since she was young and is currently the pet parent of two incredible dogs.

Danielle – Registered Veterinary Technician

Danielle graduated from the Veterinary Technician program at Seneca College in 2021 and has been working as an RVT since then. Some of Danielle’s favorite interests in veterinary medicine include dentistry, surgery, and nutrition. Some of the things she loves most about her career are taking care of her furry patients and having continuous learning opportunities. Growing up, Danielle had many animals, ranging from snakes to rabbits, and has always been a huge advocate for animal welfare. Currently, she has three Holland Lop rabbits (Zelda, Juuzou, and JoJo), as well as a Rottweiler mix named Cannon. Outside of work, Danielle has many hobbies, including weightlifting, playing piano, playing video games, and reading Japanese comic books.

Chantel – Registered Veterinary Technician

Chantel graduated from Sheridan College Registered Veterinary Technician (RVT) program in 2018 and prior to that completed the Animal Care program in 2016. Chantel has worked in exotic animal medicine and Neurology prior to joining our team in 2023. She has a special interest in Animal Physical Rehabilitation, Surgery medicine and Nutrition especially allergy based cases. Chantel is really passionate in using a multi-modal approach to medicine which includes cold laser therapy, physiotherapy, natural supplements, diet in conjunction with medicine.

Chantel currently has two pups: Blue the Husky Lab from Texas and Kyla the Pekingese whom she loves dearly. In her spare time, Chantel enjoys gardening, yoga & meditation, and various creative projects. Chantel also spent many years’ prior as a French Pastry Chef before pursuing her second career in Veterinary Medicine!

Brigitte – Veterinary Technician

Leah – Veterinary Technician

Leah started with HLVH in September as a Veterinary Technician. She started with Animal Care in 2009 and worked her way up to a technician in clinics. She has 3 cats, Skittles, Peach, Moxxie, and a dog named Dori. In her spare time, she enjoys playing co-op-style video games.

Victoria – Receptionist

Victoria started at Heartlake Veterinary Hospital in September 2022 as a receptionist. She studied at York University and graduated with a degree in English with a minor in French. She has always had a passion for animals, even wanting to be a veterinarian growing up! She loves broadening her knowledge of all animals and catering to each creature’s unique and lovable personality. Outside of work, she likes classic cars, reading, and drawing.

Zelema – Receptionist

Zelema started Heartlake Veterinary Hospital in March 2021 and has since graduated from Sheridan College in Animal Care. She is currently studying to go back to school for Animal Physiology. Zelema has three pets – two cats named Joey and Raven and one rabbit named Imogen, aka Genie. In her spare time, she loves to go on hikes and try new food!

Riza – Veterinary Assistant

Bio coming soon!

Manya – Veterinary Assistant

Bio coming soon!

Anel – Veterinary Assistant

Anel has been part of the Heartlake Veterinary Hospital team since March 2022. Even though she recently joined the team, she believes Heartlake has already become her second home. Anel loves being the person responsible to hold and keep your pet comfortable and happy when they are feeling a bit nervous during their visit. She has always been passionate about animals and is very happy to work in the field of animal care. For the past few years, Anel has completed multiple pet care courses and has gained experience with animals in many different areas. She is thrilled to be studying Animal Welfare & Law while being part of the team, and she hopes to pursue a veterinary technology diploma in the future. In her free time, Anel enjoys crafting new things, going to the arcade, and spending time with her husband and furry babies: Maple Syrup the pug, Larry the mouse, and her Siamese cat, Sky.

Katherine – Veterinary Assistant

Katherine has been working with animals since a young age and she is passionate about all animals. She pursued her education as a Veterinary Assistant, and there is nothing else that she would rather do.

Linoy – Veterinary Assistant

Linoy joined the Heartlake Veterinary Hospital team in 2013 as a high school co-op student. Since then, she attended Trent University and obtained her Honors of Biology while working at Heartlake Vet during summer breaks.

During her university career, she learned to work with many different animals, such as cattle and small mammals, reptiles, and amphibians – providing animal care.

Linoy always had a passion for the veterinary field from a very young age. She aspires to support as well as further her passion with education and clinical experience. The most rewarding aspect of her job is assisting with treatment and being a part of her patient’s healing process.

When she’s not at work, she enjoys travelling, as well as spending time with family and friends.

You will most likely meet Linoy at the reception desk or in the treatment area, providing care for your furry family members!

Chanel – Client Care Coordinator

Olivia – Client Care Coordinator