Veterinarian Overview
I am the owner and veterinarian of Best Friends' Veterinary Hospital. I opened my practice in 1992. Ever since I was a little girl, I wanted to be a veterinarian. I graduated from UMUC, with honors, in 1984 and from Tuskegee University in 1988, as a member of the Phi Zeta Veterinary Honor Society. I did an externship program at Zoo Atlanta between my 2nd and 3rd year of vet school. I worked at NIH from 1987 to 1997, starting as a rodent and rabbit colony veterinarian at the Veterinary Resources Branch of the National Center for Research and Resources. I eventually became the Animal Program Director at the National Center for Human Genome Research. While commissioned officer at NIH, I worked part-time in several private practices. I am an avid lover of all animal life and work with animal rescue operations for Montgomery County as well with wildlife at Second Chance Wildlife Sanctuary. My husband, Bill Ponton, and I, have a wonderful son, Grant.
