Meet Our Team | Yorktown, VA | York Veterinary Hospital

Anita R. Weidinger, DVM

Dr. Weidinger was born and raised on a dairy farm in central Ohio. From a very early age she knew that caring for animals was her true calling in life. She graduated from The Ohio State University with a degree in Veterinary Medicine in 1987 and completed an additional year of internship at Colorado State University in 1988. Dr. Weidinger has been practicing in Central and Tidewater Virginia for over 30 years with York Veterinary Hospital being her labor of love since 2000.

Dr. Weidinger is an active member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Virginia Veterinary Medical Association, the Greater Peninsula Veterinary Association and currently serves as Secretary of The Peninsula Veterinary Associates.

An avid proponent of the "Fight Against Cancer", Dr. Weidinger actively participates in fundraisers that motivate, educate, and search for cures.

Dr. Weidinger lives in York County with her husband and their four-legged kids. In her spare time, she enjoys hiking and spending time with her extended family.

Kijona F. De Fratis, DVM, PhD

Dr. Kijona DeFratis joined the team at York Veterinary Hospital (YVH) in the summer of 2009. Being raised in a military family she spent a good amount of her youth throughout the U. S. and Europe but finally settled in Yorktown. After beginning her veterinary career in Richmond, she was pleased to be able to return home to practice.

Dr. DeFratis attended veterinary school at Virginia Tech earning her DVM in 2005. She continued on to complete a Ph.D. in molecular virology in 2007 working on assay and vaccine development for an emerging viral disease. Her professional interests include infectious diseases and endocrine disorders.

When not caring for the lovely critters at YVH, Dr. DeFratis enjoys spending time with her own two dogs, Sebastian, a spaniel mix, and Syndey, a boxer, as well as her cockatiel Neo.

Jennifer Graham, DVM

Hailing from California, Dr. Jennifer Graham obtained her Bachelor of Science degree in Zoology at Humboldt State University in 2002. She earned her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine in 2007 from Colorado State University College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences. She began her career in Wyoming for 2 years, then spent 8 years in Texas and arrived in Virginia in 2017. She has worked as an Associate in private practices and as an emergency clinician at several Emergency & Critical Care hospitals. Dr. Graham has a special interest in dentistry and is continually advancing her knowledge and experience to provide high quality dental care for her patients. She joined York Veterinary Hospital in 2017 as a part-time relief veterinarian, but signed on full-time in April of 2019. She can also be found working the occasional emergency shift at Peninsula Animal Referral Center.

She and her husband reside in Fort Monroe with their rambunctious son, their scrappy mutt Perry (pictured), their patient Jack Russell Terrier Bret, and their domineering 2.5 lb Chihuahua Joe.

Laura S. Ward, DVM

Dr. Ward was raised in the foothills of Virginia and moved to the Hampton Roads area in 2005. She completed her degree in Biology from The University of Richmond in 1999. In 2005, she completed her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from Ross University and her clinical year of study at Virginia Tech (VMRCVM).

She loves spending time on the water in all ways- fishing and clamming, boating and exploring. But she also enjoys returning to the mountains to explore and hike with her family. Her family consists of her husband, twin sons, 3 cats, and one (very jealous) dog.

Her special veterinary interest is soft tissue surgery, especially involving complicated mass removals. Other professional interests include internal medicine and end of life hospice care. She is very excited to have joined the York Veterinary Hospital team fall of 2019.

Kelsey Wilding, DVM

Dr. Wilding is originally from Beaufort, South Carolina where she grew up fishing, shrimping, and crabbing. She attributes her love for animals to her late father.

Dr. Wilding received her undergraduate degree from Clemson University in Wildlife Biology in 2012. She worked for a veterinary hospital for 2 years, before applying to vet school. She graduated from Auburn University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2018. Dr. Wilding joined the YVH team in June of 2018.

When she is not treating creatures at the hospital, she enjoys spending time outdoors, gardening, watching college football, and being active. Currently, she resides in Gloucester with her husband, two children (Emmie and Addie), four dogs, and three cats. She has a special place in her heart for yellow labs and Cavalier King Charles Spaniels.

Niki Brown, LVT, VDT

Niki started working in veterinary medicine in 1995. She graduated from the Blue Ridge Community College Veterinary Technician program in 1998. She came to York Veterinary Hospital with Dr. Weidinger in 2000. She enjoys being in the great outdoors, paddle boarding, and running, including 5K and 10K races, even a 13.1 Half Marathon!

She has a loving husband and one beautiful daughter who help her run her home zoo of two dogs, several chickens, guinea pigs, and fish.

Wendy McCarty, LVT

Wendy graduated from the Blue Ridge Community College Veterinary Technician program in 1991. She joined the York Veterinary Hospital team in 2008.

She enjoys walking, hiking, playing in her flower bed, yoga, live music and 5K races. While she no longer carries a Wildlife Rehabilitation permit, she still enjoys an occasional abandoned squirrel baby. She shares her home with an amazing bullmastiff named Hazel, 2 kitties and on occasion, her grand-kitty.

Jennifer Lawson, LVT

Jennifer graduated from The Blue Ridge Community College Veterinary Technician program in 1991. She has been part of the York Veterinary Hospital family since Dr. Weidinger took over in 2000.

She loves family trips to Corolla, North Carolina to drive their Jeeps on the beach. She has a great husband and two wonderful kids, a Labrador named Chipper Jones and a cat named Dash. They are all Atlanta Braves fans.

Elizabeth Bowles, LVT

Elizabeth came to us all the way from Vermont! She graduated from Blue Ridge Community College in 2014 and joined the YVH team in March of 2019.

Lizzy can almost always be spotted in the back with a cup of coffee but there's nothing she loves more than spending time with her family. She is happily married and has one beautiful little girl. They also have two dogs, two cats and a flock of chickens at home.