Staff

Douglas O. Thal DVM Dipl. ABVP

Raised on a cattle ranch in Northern New Mexico in a family of horse enthusiasts, Doug Thal has been riding and training horses since childhood.  Dr. Thal attended the University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, where he received his DVM degree in 1993 with an emphasis on equine and large animal medicine and surgery.  Following veterinary school, Dr. Thal was the resident intern at Littleton Large Animal Clinic (now called Littleton Equine Medical Center) in Littleton, Colorado in 1993-1994.

Littleton was and remains one of the largest private equine hospitals in the Rocky Mountain region.  As an intern living on site, Dr. Thal assisted with a heavy caseload and gained valuable experience that he used in forming his own practice and practice philosophy.  Littleton is highly regarded for its in-depth and precise lameness diagnosis, and Dr. Thal maintains a keen interest in that area.

In 2010 Dr. Thal became a Diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners, and is board certified in Equine Practice.  For more information about the ABVP see http://www.abvp.com/.  Dr. Thal is very committed to client education and has published numerous articles on various aspects of equine healthcare.  He also regularly conducts workshops and seminars on equine healthcare for his clientele.  For more information about Dr. Thal see Dr. Thal’s CV. 

Brian Van Der Wege

Brian is our facilities manager and a veterinary assistant at Thal Equine.  He was raised in East-Central New Mexico and began working with and riding horses at an early age.  Brian has a fine mind, predisposed to understanding mechanical systems.  Brian keeps everything running smoothly around here, from the tractor to the anesthesia machine, to the computer network.  We appreciate his broad skill set! In the last few years, Brian has perfected the art of composting horse manure, yielding high quality “black gold” compost for us to use in our landscaping projects.  For more information see our For the Planet page (link above).  In his free time Brian races sports cars and rides his motorcycle.

Kendel Dreyer

Kendel Dreyer is our receptionist.  A native of New England, Kendel moved to New Orleans just in time for Katrina.  There she met her husband, Troy, and they moved to Santa Fe in 2007.  Although Kendel spent 15 years in the Boston banking industry, her dream job was to be a veterinarian.  On their 10 acre “ranch” Kendel and Troy now surround themselves with critters and live with 2 horses, 2 goats, 7 chickens and 4 cats.  Their adobe is also a foster home for cats in the Felines & Friends Program, so the number of cats in the household fluctuates weekly.

Akara Moser RVT

Akara is a registered veterinary technician.  She recently graduated from CNM with an emphasis on veterinary physical therapy.  Akara grew up in Freiburg, Germany and spent much of her childhood on her grandparents’ farm amidst a variety of animals.  In addition to working and riding horses, Akara enjoys rock climbing, yoga, and driving a bit fast – European style.

Tomas Medrano

Tomas is our senior barn hand and a veterinary assistant at Thal Equine.  Tomas cares for our boarded horses daily and is regularly of great help with our veterinary patients.  Tomas is originally from Chihuahua, Mexico.  He was a jockey for several years in California.

Octavio De Zaldivar

Octavio helps with the boarded and hospitalized horses at Thal Equine.  He is a Yaqui-Apache Indian and is pursuing a degree in studio arts at the IAIA.  Octavio was raised with horses all of his life, and enjoys caring for them because they are a nice change of pace from his academic and artistic studies.

Ruth Bourgeois

Ruth worked for Thal Equine for several years when our practice was located in Taos, New Mexico.  She continues to assist us with marketing and website management.  Since 2008, she has owned and operated Equine Spirit Sanctuary, a horse rescue located in Taos at our former veterinary facility. For more information about ESS see http://www.equinespiritsanctuary.org/.

Kristin Potter Thal JD MA

Kristin is our business manager at Thal Equine.  A double alma mater of the University of New Mexico, Dr. Thal persuaded her to return to New Mexico from her hometown of Denver in 2005. Luckily, she likes both green and red chili.