Meet Our Veterinary Team

Cuddles

Practice Cat

Every animal hospital needs a resident animal to keep the mood light and everyone on their toes. That’s exactly what Cuddles the Cat provides for Good Friends Animal Hospital. Cuddles can be a sweetheart who everyone loves to pet and play with, but every now and then you might also find him getting into some mischief!

Cuddles arrived at the animal hospital years ago in need of assistance. Once he got there, he immediately noticed what a warm, welcoming environment it was that was filled with smart, funny people, so he decided to stick around for a while. Not only that, he also realized that the hospital needed his help and would be utterly lost without him.

Animal hospitals can be places where you find pet owners sad or anxious while waiting for their pets. To comfort them, Cuddles lovingly purrs and even rubs his face on theirs. The truth is, Cuddles has become somewhat of a celebrity at the hospital and has even developed a legion of fans who he enjoys interacting with. Pet owners routinely visit the hospital asking about him and vie for his attention. Everyone on the staff plays an important role in keeping the hospital running smoothly, but so does Cuddles.

When he’s not busy being a rock star at the hospital, you can catch Cuddles pretending to be asleep. Then once everyone’s guard is down, he’ll push their things off the counter. He’s pretty sure they find it as hilarious as he does!

Tori

Veterinary Assistant

People sometimes turn their childhood passions into their future careers. Take Tori, for example. She grew up loving animals. Today, she’s a vet assistant at Good Friends Animal Hospital, so she literally turned her passion into her career!

Tori was born and raised in Champaign County. As a youngster, she enjoyed exploring the outdoors and loved learning new things. She would gradually zero her focus on animals.

Tori lists her childhood dog, Natal, as her greatest inspiration for entering the veterinary field. She considered the gentle German Shepherd/black lab mix to be her best friend, as he had a sweet soul and a great listening ear. He was always there for her, and he initiated her love for large dogs. As the years passed and she worked in different clinics, she would gradually bond with animals of all sizes.

When it comes to experience, Tori’s first time working with animals came as a kennel worker at Quarter C Pet Resort. She worked there for five years, soaking up knowledge of various pets, wildlife, and farm animals. She would eventually attend Southern Illinois University and earn her bachelor’s degree in zoology. After graduating, she moved back home and found a position at Good Friends Animals. The rest is history!

Tori’s favorite part about working at the animal hospital is witnessing the growth and maturation of each of the young animals as they return for visits. She’s amazed to see these animals morph from tiny puppies and kittens into adults with their own unique personalities. She also enjoys the challenge of making progress with any animal that comes into the office scared, nervous, or apprehensive.

When she’s at home, Tori is kept busy by her 2 pets. She has a German Shepherd/pit bull mix named Oakley, and a spunky cat named Moschi. Just like in her younger days, she still enjoys exploring the great outdoors—you can catch her hiking with her dog, fishing, kayaking, and camping!

Abby

Practice Manager

The seeds of a person’s career are usually planted during their youth. This is definitely the case for Abby, who is currently a veterinary assistant at Good Friends Animal Hospital. Abby can remember the exact moment in her life when she decided that she wanted to devote her life to helping animals!

When she was younger, Abby would go hunting with her dad and she’d be accompanied by her Brittany Spaniel named Sebastion. One day, she noticed her dog badly limping and discovered that he had cut the pad of his foot. She cleaned and bandaged his wound every day for the next week, and the dog began to look at her more lovingly. This made Abby feel amazing, and it was then she knew that this was her calling.

Abby grew up in a small town, and as an only child, she took a liking to sports and hunting time with her father. She landed a job at the local humane society, which would be her first experience working with animals. Her most memorable moment was helping save the life of a young pitbull who came to the hospital with a terrible mange. She took the dog (which she named Bella) back home and nursed it back to health. Once Bella was back on her feet, Abby put her up for adoption.

As much as Abby loves to help save animal lives, she also loves working closely with her Good Friends Animal Hospital family. She loves meeting and dealing with new clients and their pets, and has taken a liking to seeing cats. Whether it’s dealing with the unpredictable nature of cats or learning about skin issues in animals, Abby is constantly seeking knowledge and learning.

In her free time, Abby is kept busy by her husband, their two sons, and a whopping 7 (8 if you count her fish) pets! To decompress, she enjoys going to concerts and taking quick getaway trips to the mountains.

Dr. Jack Fergenbaum

Veterinarian

Bio Coming Soon

Dr. Maggie Goeckner

Managing Veterinarian

Animals are vulnerable, voiceless creatures, so it’s extremely important that we have enough veterinarians around who can speak their language. Dr. Maggie is one of these people. As a veterinarian at Good Friends Animal Hospital, she is able to effectively be the “voice” that injured and sick animals desperately need!

Dr. Maggie was born and raised in Peru, IL to Polish parents who migrated to America. While she participated in activities like Taekwondo and ballet growing up, her true passion always revolved around animals.

While Dr. Maggie knew that she wanted to get into veterinary medicine, an incident while shadowing a veterinarian solidified her decision. One day, a badly abused dog was brought into the hospital. The animal had serious wounds that needed to be tended to, so Dr. Maggie got to work. She carefully cleaned, debrided, and treated its wounds, hoping to bring the dog back to health. While difficult, that moment would stick with her for the rest of her life and inspire her to help animals who are in helpless situations.

Dr. Maggie completed her undergraduate studies at Loyola University of Chicago. Then she pursued and earned her doctorate from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine. Because she’s learned so much from her years of schooling and doing externships in different places, she feels it’s important to pass it on to others. That’s why she enjoys client education.

Nothing brings Dr. Maggie more joy than teaching new pet owners the best way to care for their pets. She also enjoys the dental aspect of dealing with animals and stresses how important teeth are to an animal’s health. That’s why she makes sure to inform pet owners that their animals may need annual or biennial dental.

When Dr. Maggie has some free time, you can catch her hanging out with her boyfriend and their two rescue dogs, Pepper and Raya. You may even find her curled up on the couch reading a good book, outdoors taking a hike, or playing video games!

Dr. Susan Norris

Veterinarian

Dr. Susan is a doctor of veterinary medicine and the proud owner of Good Friends Animal Hospital. Her love of medicine and embracing the challenges presented by handling different animal cases led to her pursuing a career in veterinary medicine. Safe to say she’s accomplished that and beyond!

Dr. Susan grew up in Lisle, IL, a suburb of Chicago. She was raised in a household with two siblings, her parents, and her semi-feral cat, Rusty. Her experience with the pet feline also helped her develop a passion for assisting feral cats.

So exactly why did she decide to enter the veterinary field? Well, first of all, Dr. Susan loves the world of medicine. She has taken a special interest in emergency care, oncology, and cardiology to help animals through various ailments related to those fields. Second, she has always had a passion for rescuing animals. So much so that she started her own rescue!

One of Dr. Susan’s favorite parts of being in the world of veterinary medicine is interacting with people. She relishes the chance to meet new clients and work with wonderful and interesting people who she genuinely enjoys getting to know. Dr. Susan realizes the importance of relating to people and their difficulties, which is why she does her best to push affordable plans that help pet owners and their pets. She believes that no matter how dire or difficult a situation looks, there is always something that you can try, and she’ll never give up!

When she’s not at the hospital, Dr. Susan has 3 pets who keep her occupied at home. She has a Shih Tzu mix named Pudge, whom she lovingly calls her “baby,” and a goofy pug named Charlotte who passes gas a lot. Then there’s Poppy the cat, who Dr. Susan rescued after being struck by a car as a kitten. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree in forensic veterinary medicine and continues to help animals who are victims of abuse and neglect.