Meet Our Team
Gayle Roberts, DVM
Dr. Gayle Roberts graduated from Los Altos High School in Hacienda Heights. She attended UC Davis for 8 years, earning her Bachelor's degree in Animal Science in 1976 and her DVM in 1980. Dr. Roberts has practiced in Orange County ever since. She loves working with all animals, and even served as park veterinarian at Lion Country Safari. She was staff doctor at Crown Valley Animal Hospital when she gained national notoriety for her care and work with the pelicans that were maimed off of Dana Point in 1982 and 1983. Dr. Roberts received the Lorne Greene New Wilderness Award for this work. She then worked in the referral surgical practice that did the beak prostheses on the pelicans for just over a year. She purchased Northwood Animal Hospital in 1986. Dr. Roberts especially enjoys surgery, dentistry and working with exotic animals.
Dr. Roberts lives in Lake Forest with her husband, Jim. They have two children, Dustin, 26, and Diana,21. The whole family shares her love for animals which includes their own large animal family; Blackjack, an Australian Shepherd; Wink, their cat; and Dark Crystal, a cockatiel. In her limited spare time, Dr. Roberts enjoys running and tae kwon do.
Ora Fife, DVM
Dr. Ora Fife graduated from Farmerville High School in Farmerville, LA. She studied Business Administration at Louisiana Tech University and earned her DVM from the School of Veterinary Medicine at Louisiana State University in 1981. She practiced in Louisiana for 5 years, then moved with her family to California. She joined Northwood Animal Hospital in 1990. Dr. Fife's special interest is surgery.
She has one son, Will, who is a computer programmer and security specialist. Her "fur children" include her domestic shorthair cat Fiana, and Riches Chance and Notorious, both Dutch Warmblood Horses. Dr. Fife spends her spare time riding and working toward her next karate belt.
Jennifer Pursley, DVM
Dr. Jennifer Pursley grew up in Orange County and graduated from Saddleback High School. She received her Bachelor's Degree in Biological Sciences from UCI and her DVM from UC Davis in 1997. She also completed an externship in exotic pet medicine with Dr. Doug Mader. Dr. Pursley joined the Northwood Animal Hospital team shortly after her graduation. Dr. Pursley especially enjoys working with ferrets, rabbits, birds and all types of exotic pets.
Dr. Pursley lives with her husband, Greg, and their many "children" which include: Strider, an Australian shepherd mix; Jet and Yogi,schipperkes;and Anise, their cat. In her spare time, she enjoys scrapbooking and other crafts.
Cindy Lehmann, RVT
Cindy was born in Youngstown, Ohio and moved to the Orange County area in 1988. She received her RVT license in December of 2009, and has worked at Northwood Animal Hospital for 14 years. She is passionate about assisting clients and their pets in maintaining optimal healthcare, and loves the positive working environment Northwood has to offer, which consists of a team that resembles the closeness of a family.
Cindy's personal family include her fiancé, Howard, who works as a horseshoer, her son Eric, 26, who lives in Aliso Viejo, and Kelly, 23, who just moved to Ft. Worth, Texas with her husband Todd. Cindy also has a large animal family, all of which are very dear to her heart! Tanner, a teacup Chihuahua is 3 1/2 years old, and comes to work with Cindy every day. Cindy references him as the best dog ever! Cindy also has two cats, Meredith, a Himalayan mix, and Georgia, a white and gray short hair. Both of her cats were acquired as kittens at Northwood from an employee who was fostering them.
In her spare time, Cindy enjoys horseback riding, bike riding, and going to off road races several times throughout the year. Northwood Animal Hospital is thankful to have Cindy as a part of our team, and appreciates her dedication to clients and their pets for the past 14 years!
Joni Leonhardt, Receptionist
Joni was born in Pittsburg, CA and moved to the Orange County area shortly after. She has worked at Northwood Animal Hospital as a receptionist for 3 ½ years and states that she’ll work here for thirty more years if possible! Joni loves working at Northwood because she loves her fellow co-workers and just as importantly, cherishes every client that comes through the door as well as their animals, big and small. She states that her favorite aspect of her job is being able to witness happy pets going home to their families!
Joni has been married to her husband Jerry, who works as an electrical engineer, for twenty-four years. They have two sons, David, 21, who is currently in college and also works as a personal trainer, and Kenny, 16, who is a junior in high school and plays soccer and volleyball.
Joni also has an extensive animal family! This includes, T-Bone , a 17 year old black and white Domestic Short Hair, Sherman and Crunch, which are both orange kitties, Muffin, who Joni references as her “precious little girl” dog, Katie, a female Shepherd, and Tug, her “big baby boy” dog. Needless to say, Joni loves animals and acknowledges their importance as family members.
In her spare time, Joni enjoys spending time with her animals, hiking, going to the beach, bike-riding, and gardening. Northwood Animal Hospital is thankful to Joni for her genuine commitment to clients and their animal family members for the past 3 ½ years! Here’s to 30 more!
Rigoberto Torres, Kennel Supervisor
Rigoberto Torres, also known around the hospital as “Rigo", has worked for Northwood Animal Hospital for 15 years as the kennel supervisor! Rigo is reputable for his beautifully done body shaves and terrific toe-nail trims! Rigo loves working at Northwood Animal Hospital because of how close the staff is with one another, just like a family! Specifically, he loves working with the animals, who are always at such ease when in his gentle and trustworthy care.
In his spare time, Rigo enjoys baseball, working on his house, and spending time with his family. Rigo’s family includes his wife, Teresa, two daughters, Paulina and Fatima, son Rigoberto, Jr., or “Berto” for short, and their Pomeranian, Owen!
Northwood Animal Hospital is so thankful for Rigo’s dedication to our clients and patients, as well as his willingness to go above and beyond for the past 15 years!
Michelle Bielby, Receptionist
Michelle was born in Poway, CA, and has moved around quite a bit since finding her way to the Orange County area. She has worked at Northwood Animal Hospital for 1 year as a receptionist, but has worked in an animal hospital setting for 8 years! Michelle enjoys working at Northwood because of how close the team is. She notes that the staff resembles the closeness of a family, and that everyone truly cares about each other and all of the patients.
Michelle loves her family! She is married to her husband Josh, and they have an amazing two year old daughter, Caprice. Michelle’s animal family is also very close to her heart. She has two pit bulls, named Bam and Karuna, three cats – Keagan, Kira, and Forest, as well as a leopard tortoise named Master Oogway. Michelle states Bam and Caprice are best friends, and that she feels very blessed that everyone in her family gets along as well they do.
In Michelle’s free time she enjoys going on walks with her dogs, and watching movies with her family. She also spends a lot of time at the playground with Caprice! Needless to say, Michelle is a wonderful mother!
Northwood Animal Hospital is so thankful to have Michelle on our team! Her knowledge of the veterinary field, commitment to clients and their pets, positive attitude, and willingness to do whatever it takes to assist her fellow co-workers and clients is greatly appreciated!
Featured Team Member of the Month
Emma Choi, Kennel Attendant
Emma was born in San Jose, CA and moved to the Orange County area to study Biology at UCI. She has worked at Northwood for 11 months as a kennel attendant, and specifically loves the friendly environment. Emma began working at Northwood as a volunteer because she wanted to receive more clinical experience in pursuit of applying to Veterinary school. Her first day at the hospital stands out in her mind because she had so many questions, and the staff members were always willing to answer all of the questions she had. She notes that she came into Northwood knowing little about the veterinary field, but because everyone was so generous and patient with her, she has learned so much, more than she ever expected to!
Emma’s experience with animals is extensive due to her large animal family! Although the majority of Emma’s pets live in San Jose with her parents, they are still very dear to her heart! Her pets include Mimi – a Senegal, Shiny – a Samoyed, Happy – a mini Scottish terrier mix, Ally – a pug, and Gui-Gui – a Red-Ear Slider. Emma is also fostering four guinea pigs!
In her free time, Emma involves herself in very noteworthy endeavors! She enjoys sewing and also loves Science, and is currently an undergrad researcher at UCI. Needless to say, she spends a lot of her time in the laboratory. Emma also volunteers as an outreach/street counselor for “Stand Up For Kids”, which helps homeless teens in various parts of Orange County.
Northwood Animal Hospital is so grateful to have Emma on our team! From her warm spirit to her love of animals, she is an absolute delight! Thank you Emma for all of your hard work and dedication!