To operate a 24 hour facility you need a great team, and a lot of them. Taylor ER Veterinary Emergency Hospital has a wide variety of staff in various departments including Kennel Attendants, Technician Assistants, Registered Veterinary Technicians (R.V.T.’s), Veterinary Assistants, Receptionists, Department Managers and of course our Veterinarians.
Dr. Craig Brooks was raised in the Central Valley of California in the apricot capital of the world, Patterson. His family farmed (you guessed it) apricots and he had the privilege of growing up with many different animals on the farm. He was an avid FFA member and enjoyed caring for and showing animals. His desire to become a Veterinarian arose in Jr. High, and with hard work and perseverance he realized his dream when he graduated from UC Davis in 1986 as a veterinarian.
Dr. Brooks has practiced equine medicine his entire tenure as a veterinarian. He owned and operated a mobile veterinary practice for his first 10 years out of school. He opened Taylor Veterinary Hospital in 1996, building a full in-house equine and small animal hospital facility. Now he was able to provide the quality veterinary medicine he so desired in the setting of a full service hospital. His current focus is small animal orthopedic surgery, equine surgery, and practice management.
Dr. Brooks and his wife Samantha have been married for over 25 years and have five wonderful children. His faith and family, he would tell you, are the two most important things in his life. Horses and caring for them will however take a close 3rd.
Dr. Ram grew up in New York and graduated with an associates in agriculture science from SUNY Cobleskill and later a bachelors in animal science and biology from Cornell University in 2013. His interest in veterinary medicine grew from managing equine facilities and his position as a dairy herdsman. From 2013-2017 he attended The Ohio State University and focused his studies in equine and bovine medicine. Following veterinary school, Dr. Ram interned at Brock Veterinary Clinic in Lamesa, Texas, a mixed animal practice focused predominately on performance horse medicine. After completing the internship, he moved back to his home state and started working in a busy mixed animal practice. It was here where he found his special interest in small animal medicine and surgery. Dr. Ram really enjoys soft tissue and orthopedic surgery.
Dr. Ram recently moved to California in September of 2019 to be close to his family who all live in the San Joaquin county. He now is excited to be helping members of his new community through veterinary medicine!
In Dr. Ram's free time, he enjoys riding his horse, working cattle, hiking and camping. He also enjoys all aspects of home remodeling.
Dr. Sylvia Cushman has been with Taylor Veterinary Hospital since 2015. She had known since the 6th grade that she wanted to work with animals, and in 2000 she started working as a kennel technician at Olive Animal Clinic where she was trained on-site for technician duties. In 2005 she graduated from UC Davis with a bachelor’s degree in animal biology, and in 2008 she graduated from Cosumnes River College in Sacramento with an associate’s degree in veterinary technology. From 2009 to 2014 she worked as an RVT at an emergency hospital in Wisconsin, which became a part-time position in 2011 when she began attending the St. George’s University School of Veterinary Medicine in Grenada. After graduating from St. George’s in 2015 with her DVM, she made the decision to come back to California after reading about a practice that was looking for a small animal emergency veterinarian intern. She has since become a staple in our overnight emergency practice, and is one of our most experienced emergency surgeons. When she isn’t working, she attends veterinary conferences all over the country, avidly collects and watches movies, and tackles home improvement projects on her house in Turlock. She also likes going to see her family in Wisconsin on holidays so she can enjoy some real Wisconsin cheese. She has three pets – Sophie, the three-legged pit bull Dr. Cushman rescued when she was 8 weeks old; Lestat, a 13 year old Ragdoll mix who likes leaving his stuffed animals in random places around the house; and Ophelia, a Tortoiseshell brought home from Grenada who is in charge of the house and is not afraid to remind you of it.
Dr. Mike Stanford is our Certified Acupuncturist for our dog, cat and horse patients. He started working with Taylor Equine Hospital in 2017 as an equine veterinarian and has also taken on administering acupuncture treatments for our small animal patients. Dr. Stanford grew up in Cape Cod Massachusetts and attended the Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine for his veterinary degree. He has been practicing equine medicine for 19 years and in 2018 completed the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society Certification course where he learned acupuncture for dogs, cats and horses.
Dr. Bosire earned his DVM at the University of Nairobi, Kenya. He grew up on a farm and enjoyed working with all the different animals. It was there that he found his passion for making animals feel better and happy. Wanting to grow and expand his knowledge, he decided to move to the U.S. in 2005 where he pursued the rigorous ECFVG program for foreign veterinary graduates. Dr. Bosire is a relief veterinarian for Taylor Veterinary Hospital and helps provide care for our patient’s emergency needs.
Dr. Julie Damron is a graduate of UC Davis for undergrad, graduate, and fellowship programs. She has been practicing for over 20 years on a wide array of animals. She has written pet columns for local newspapers for many years and has a weekly video program on The Voice of San Joaquin. She is a strong community advocate and is a member of several boards and service clubs. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her husband, horses, dogs, and llamas at her ranch.
Emergency medicine is her area of passion. She wants to be there when both people and animals are in crisis. She offers high quality care and comfort for all her patients. She also provides general wellness care and looks forward to meeting all of you, hopefully under the best of circumstances.
Christa was raised in Hughson, CA where she continues to live and raise her family. She is the daughter of the practice owner and has therefore been immersed in practice since childhood. She began working as a front desk assistant in high school and continued to move up in the business from receptionist, to head receptionist, to assistant manager, and now practice manager. She continued to work at Taylor Vet while completing her bachelor’s degree in Communications at CSU Stanislaus and graduated in 2012. Being that the practice started being built when she was 6 years old, she has grown up with the business and been a major part of the evolution of Taylor Vet and the 24 hour emergency care it now offers. Her favorite things to do while not working are cabin trips with her family, skiing, and walks to the park with her husband, children and dogs Everest and Sky.
Kim Morris was raised in San Jose and has always has a passion and love for animals. After graduating high school she studied Zoology at San Jose State and then completed her schooling at Hartnell College where she obtained her veterinary technician degree. During her studies at Hartnell she volunteered at the Monterey Bay Aquarium with their Sea Otter Rehabilitation program. In 1999 Kim and her husband moved to the Central Valley and settled their roots in Turlock. She began working for Taylor Veterinary in 1999 and has been with us ever since. She has grown with our practice and has been a big part making us the 24 hour emergency hospital that we are now. When she is not working, she is spending time with her husband and watching their son play baseball and football for Pitman Highschool. She has 2 cats, Ely and Jazz, a dog River and an African Spurred Tortoise Leo.
Tina was raised in Huntington Beach, CA and came to the Central Valley in 2011. In 2012 she completed a dental assisting program and began looking for a job in a dental office. While she was looking for a job, she started working part time as a kennel assistant in a veterinary hospital. After a few months of working there the owner saw her potential and move her to a reception position at the hospital. She then grew a love for veterinary medicine and decided to stay in the field instead of continuing to pursue a job in the dental industry. In 2016 Tina came to work for Taylor Vet and is now our Assistant Manager. While working here she completed a technician assistant certification program which has helped provide her more medical knowledge in the veterinary industry. She manages the front desk and all our customer service needs. She enjoys building a personal relationship with our clients and their pets and strives to provide the best experience for our clients during their visits. During her spare time Tina enjoys being with her husband and their two children, raising awareness and advocating for law enforcement and first responders, and loving on her pets Justice, a Belgian Malinois, and her cats Bobby and Link.
Dave is a born and raised local to Turlock, CA. He started his family with his wife Janelle and their sons Elsie, Cody and Colton. Dave originally worked in construction but in 2008 he decided to change careers and wanted to enter the veterinary industry. He began the veterinary technician program and Modesto Junior College and started doing student work experience hours at Taylor Veterinary. In 2010 Taylor Vet hired Dave to start working as a technician assistant. Since then Dave has been an integral part of Taylor Vet’s technician assistant department and helping to keep the hospital functioning for quality patient care. In 2018 Dave became the head of the technician assistant and kennel attendant department. In his spare time he enjoys skiing with his friends and family, hosting BBQ’s and target practice.
