Village Vet Animal Clinic Team

Curly

Yellow Naped Amazon Parrot

If you have ever walked into Village Vet Animal Clinic and were greeted twice, we can guarantee that one of those welcomes came from Curly. His cage is behind our reception desk. He loves to talk to clients and repeat the receptionists. If anyone in the clinic is laughing, Curly will join, whether he can see them or not. Interestingly enough, Curly LOVES babies. He loves kittens, puppies, wildlife, and anything that can fit in your hands. When we show him baby animals, he says, “Awwww”.

While Curly loves being an active part of the team, he has a special bond with Michelle, our practice manager. He watches for her car and will start screaming, “Hi! Hello! How are you?” as soon as he sees her arrive. Another interesting habit Curly has is voice imitation. When speaking to or around women, he uses a high-pitched, friendly tone. When speaking to or around a man, Curly drops his voice and attempts to sound like a man. We haven’t told him that it sounds like he is attempting to growl. We encourage growth on all levels at Village Vet Animal Clinic.

Chester

Clinic Cat

Oh, Chester! This silly cat keeps us on our toes all day long. He is obsessed with the printer and is quite sure that the papers coming out are just for him. Most of the time, he can be found in the office with the practice manager diligently monitoring the printer for activity. Like all cats, he loves to nap. Of course, he likes to nap across the keyboard. In order to prevent him from interrupting our workflow, we gave him his own keyboard that is not connected to anything. He is sure he just received a promotion.

Chester is a relatively new team member and is adjusting to clinic life. Soon, you will be able to see him throughout the clinic. First, we want to make sure to keep him and all of our patients safe while he learns how to be a clinic cat.

Buddy

Mealy Amazon Parrot

If a bird could be the representation of a grumpy neighbor screaming at you to get off his lawn, Buddy would happily fill that role. Buddy has been with Dr. Setser for many years after a client was unable to care for him any longer. He loves to chat and hates to be touched. Buddy’s pride and joy is his orange bowl. He carries it all over his cage and gets extremely stressed if removed from it. When our team members clean the bowl, you can be sure that it is only under the watchful eye of Buddy.

While Buddy is not in the lobby for client interaction, you may hear him talking throughout the clinic. We love this grumpy guy more than you know.

Freda

Cockatoo

Freda is a Cockatoo and is happy to let you know it. Cockatoos are very vocal and often scream in the early evening. This behavior is normal and is the way that Cockatoos call the flock home for the night. Like many birds, Freda was originally thought to be a male. When Dr. Setser informed the client that her Cockatoo, Fred, was a female, Freda gained the letter to her name. Freda’s owner passed away in 2019, and Village Vet Animal Clinic became her home.

She LOVES Katherine and will do just about anything Katherine asks of her. Because she is a loud Cockatoo, she lives in the treatment area of the practice. This is especially fun for her because she gets to sing and dance with the team during the day.

Bentley

Quaker Parrot

Bentley is a Quaker Parrot. Quakers are small parrots that do not have the size or vocalization of the larger parrots. He is sweet and loves to be talked to. His little quiet voice can be heard repeating, “Freda, Freda, Freda!” He has lived in a home with Freda his entire life and shares a special connection with her. He and Freda continued to support one another after they joined the Village Vet Animal Clinic team. We enjoy his silly antics every day.

Nikki

Red Lored Amazon

Occasionally, we meet an animal that just didn’t get a fair start in life. Nikki is one of those animals. She was hatched with some minor deformities, and her feathers didn’t come in on her body. Her wings and head have feathers. She has no idea that she is naked and lives her best life. She does tend to stress easily, so she lives in the office. She can still see people and interact there, but she is not bombarded with the stress of the animals coming and leaving.

She is relatively quiet for an Amazon but does enjoy chatting with the male technicians.

Alana

Veterinary Assistant

Alana (she/her) has grown up surrounded by veterinary medicine. As soon as she was old enough, she started working for us assisting the medical team with cleaning and patient care. She quickly decided that she wanted to pursue a career in veterinary medicine. When Alana decides she wants to do something, she works non-stop to achieve that goal. She graduated high school a year and a half early and began working full time as a veterinary assistant. She starts her college journey this fall to study Medical and Molecular Biology before applying for vet school.

Alana is part of our community crew and attends all community events that Village Vet Animal Clinic participates in.

Alana has a three-legged dog and a four-legged dog. She also owns a bearded dragon and corn snake.

Jenna

Veterinary Assistant

Jenna (she/her) grew up ranching alongside her father. She naturally had a love for animals and began her work in veterinary medicine. She treated horses and cattle before transferring her skills to small animal medicine. Jenna prides herself on her staying current with the advances in veterinary medicine.

Jenna has easily adapted to exotic animal medicine alongside Dr. Tarpalechee. It is so fun to watch Jenna’s determination in providing the perfect patient experience. We rely on her knowledge and experience every day. She is a natural teacher and we love our time with her.

Don’t be fooled by all the talk of her brains, her sense of humor is just as quick as her wit. Her future plans include continuing to better veterinary medicine and spending time outdoors. She spends time in her garden and hanging out with her dogs.

Michelle

Veterinary Assistant

Michelle (she/her) became a veterinary assistant in 2015. She started as an intern at a local hospital where she developed skills and experience. Michelle worked her way up to being the office manager there. She spent a great amount of time and effort helping the doctor sell his practice and prepare for retirement in 2022. Luckily, Michelle chose Village Vet Animal Clinic as her next career stop.

Michelle is experienced with both dogs and cats and is known to be a great cat handler. She is a fantastic teacher and shares her experience and knowledge freely. While Michelle did not have exotic pet experience, she is enjoying learning more about exotic medicine. She has become quite the aficionado at bearded dragon health!

Michelle is part of our community crew and attends all community events that Village Vet Animal Clinic participates in.

When Michelle is not working, you can find her hanging with her 2 cats and reading a book. Sometimes, she leaves the cats and book at home, so she can hang out with her nephew. We hear he is the cutest nephew ever to exist!

Mason

Veterinary Assistant

Mason (he/him) is one of our most versatile employees. He began working as a hospital attendant where he helped the assistants with cleaning and laundry. Quickly, we realized that Mason’s dream to be a veterinarian was not simply a goal, but his mission in life. He dove head first into training and now works as a veterinary assistant.

You know that friend that knows random facts about everything? Mason is that friend. While we love that he has chosen veterinary medicine, sometimes we wonder if he missed his calling in philosophy. His consuming curiosity and creativity are sources of great conversation between the team members.

Currently, he is studying Medical & Molecular Biology. His next step will be vet school! His dream is to work with aquatic species.

Javier

Veterinary Assistant

Javi (he/him) was born in Venezuela and lived there until he was 5 years old. His family moved to the United States, and they lived in several locations during his adolescence. In all of the adventures he and his family shared, animals were always a part of the equation. He has two dogs that he spends time training and taking on outdoor adventures.

Javi is currently finishing his Bachelor’s degree in Environmental Health and Safety Management. He plans to earn his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine specializing in exotic medicine. In the practice, we can rely on Javier to handle any and all species that enter our door. He has a special interest in reptiles and can often be found perusing articles on their care. We love to hear Javi and Mason sharing interesting science facts they recently learned.

Javier is friendly and calm and brings balance to our clinic. He is another team member who brings laughter to the day. People and animals alike trust him immediately, and we are thankful for his impact here. In addition to his skills as a veterinary assistant, Javier ensures that our Spanish-speaking clients get the same service as everyone else. He works closely with our student volunteers and helps them feel comfortable to learn and broaden their horizons.

MyKayla

Veterinary Assistant

MyKayla is the life of the party! Wherever MyKayla is, laughter is sure to follow. Since she grew up around horses, she strives to become a large animal veterinarian. While her love of horses runs through her veins, you can’t tell that to Doc. Just like laughter, there is a small dachshund named Doc who follows her on every adventure.

Although she has only worked in the veterinary field for a year, she is just a natural. We are so proud of how fast she has learned new skills, and we are so excited to be a part of her journey. She is eager to learn about exotic animal medicine. Her next career goal is enrollment in a Registered Veterinary Technician program to earn her license while she works toward her dream of becoming a large animal veterinarian.

MyKayla is a born athlete. She played center forward in soccer until she suffered too many ankle injuries to continue. Now, of course, she spends time with her two horses Rayne and Roanoake. As an avid outdoor adventurer, MyKayla (and Doc) can often be found spending time at regional lakes and rivers.

Janna

Receptionist

In early 2021, Janna (she/her) joined Village Vet Animal Clinic. Her medical reception experience in human medicine made her an asset to our clinic almost immediately. Janna is organized, empathetic, and incredibly bright. We rely on her attentiveness to keep the day flowing. Clients love Janna and will often ask about her if someone else is helping them.

Janna is part of our community crew and attends all community events that Village Vet Animal Clinic participates in. Our favorite part of working with Janna is her quiet humor. Although she is not loud, she is hilarious. Curly, the amazon, loves Janna almost as much as he loves the practice manager.

Janna has a pit bull/boxer mix and spends time hiking with him and her boyfriend.

Wendy

Receptionist

Wendy (she/her) joined our team in 2023. While Wendy had never worked in veterinary medicine before, she quickly became an invaluable member of our team. Wendy is another team member that we rely on to provide quality service to our Spanish speaking clients. We love how inquisitive Wendy is and she is always learning.

In her spare time, Wendy enjoys scenic drives. Wendy loves cars! She spends time with her family when she is not working or driving. Something interesting about Wendy is her love of cleaning. She actually tries to be the one to sweep and mop at night when we are closing the clinic. Not surprisingly, she usually wins that task.

At home, she has a big rottweiler.

Emily

Receptionist

Emily (she/her) came to Village Vet Animal Clinic as a high school student through the Career Connect program through Union Public Schools. She shadowed for an hour and a half each day. She knew immediately that she had found her calling. Impressed with Emily’s work ethic and personality, we offered her a kennel position. She started in the kennel in 2015. Over the years, she has worked as a veterinary assistant and receptionist.

She is invaluable to our practice. While she works as a receptionist, her biggest influence in the practice is inventory management. Emily has helped streamline the ordering/receiving process, and we rarely encounter an inventory concern that she does not have an answer for. Emily’s business sense and client relation skills have only continued to develop. To say that we are proud of Emily would be an understatement. We feel so fortunate to have a role in her career development.

Emily has a pit mix and a cat at home. She spends time with her friends and family traveling when she has the chance.

Emily Meyers

Inventory Specialist/Lead Receptionist

Emily came to Village Vet Animal Clinic as a high school student through the Career Connect program at Union Public Schools. She shadowed for an hour and a half each day. She knew immediately that she had found her calling. Impressed with Emily’s work ethic and personality, we offered her a kennel position. She started in the kennel in 2015. Over the years, she has worked as a veterinary assistant and receptionist. She is now our lead receptionist, and clients love having a familiar face always there to greet them.

She is invaluable to our practice. While she works as a receptionist, her biggest influence in the practice is inventory management. Emily has helped streamline the ordering/receiving process, and we rarely encounter an inventory concern that she does not have an answer for. Emily’s business sense and client relation skills have only continued to develop. To say that we are proud of Emily would be an understatement. We feel so fortunate to have a role in her career development.

Emily has a 4-year-old pit mix and a cat at home. She spends time with her friends and family traveling when she has the chance.

Michelle Daniel

Practice Manager

Michelle (she/her) has been in the veterinary industry all of her adult life. Like many people in the veterinary industry, Michelle started as a kennel technician. Most of Michelle’s veterinary nursing career was spent with dogs and cats until she joined the Village Vet Animal Clinic team in 2013.

While her love of animals got her into the veterinary field, her love of people is the reason she is still in veterinary medicine. She has a special interest in leadership. Most of her days at the clinic are spent making sure that the doctors and staff are set up for success. She doesn’t spend as much time with the animals, except for the occasional reptile case that she just can’t walk away from.
The staff appreciates her breadth of knowledge and resources. Michelle can often be heard saying, “I have a resource for that.” A successful day for Michelle includes someone on her team reaching a goal or learning a new skill. By supporting the people that serve our clients, Michelle’s influence can be experienced throughout the entire practice.

She is currently working on her Master’s degree in Organizational Leadership. When she is not working or studying, she spends time outdoors with her family. Michelle has dogs, cats, turtles, and crested geckos.

Max Rust, DVM

Veterinarian

Anyone who knows Dr. Rust can tell you how incredibly larger-than-life he is. He is large in stature, towering well above 6 feet tall. He has a large booming voice that is still soothing as he cuddles kittens. He grew up in Muskogee, Oklahoma. Young Max was always interested in math and science and enjoyed learning new things. After graduating high school in 1963, he served as a United States Marine. He did a tour in Vietnam and came home safely.

Max enjoyed bodybuilding and performed well. His love of science, animals, and the people that love them drove him to pursue veterinary medicine. He graduated from Texas A&M College of Veterinary Medicine Magna Cum Laude in 1977.

Dr. Rust treated small animals, horses, and exotic pets in New Orleans for a few years before coming to Oklahoma. For years, Dr. Rust and his wife, Leann, owned and operated their own private practices in the Tulsa area. Over those same years, they raised three daughters. We were lucky enough to have Dr. Rust join our team in 2014.

His love of science has only grown, and his incessant reading and researching keep us all learning. Dr.Rust is a joy to have in the clinic. He is a natural caretaker and teacher. The staff and clients learn a tremendous amount from him, and the animals get all of his love. If you have the time, we highly recommend you spend some time talking to Dr. Max Rust. If you’re not learning, you’ll certainly be laughing.

Layna Tarpalechee, DVM, MBA

Veterinarian

Dr. Tarpalechee (she/her) is a Muscogee (Creek) tribal citizen from the Tulsa area. She received her DVM and MBA from Oklahoma State University. She has strong interests in reptile medicine, soft tissue surgery, wound care, and community outreach. Her interest in reptile medicine has led her on a journey to become a specialist. Dr. Tarpalechee is currently working toward becoming a board-certified specialist in Reptile and Amphibian medicine.

Dr. Tarpalechee strives to have a fun and professional environment. We spend a healthy amount of time laughing at Village Vet Animal Clinic. Dr. T’s laugh is the loudest. She can often be heard throughout the clinic. Client education is important to her so she spends quality time with the team ensuring that they have the best education and experience to share with the clients.

In her free time, she enjoys crafting, reading, watching anime, and spending time with her husband. They have two dogs, four reptiles, three tarantulas, and three chickens.

Courtney Manly, DVM

Veterinarian

Dr. Courtney Manly (she/her) has always had a love of animals and a dream of becoming a veterinarian. She grew up in Broken Arrow, Oklahoma. She Graduated with a Bachelor of Science from Oklahoma State University and then attended St. George’s University School of Veterinary Medicine.

She has an interest in soft tissue surgery, reproductive health, and client education. Dr. Manly loves bright colors and is often sporting neon green shoes or fingernails. When performing surgery, Dr. Manly prefers Disney songs coming through the speakers. If you are ever at the clinic and hear the team singing Disney tunes in the treatment area, you’ll know that Dr. Manly is in surgery. Creating lasting relationships with patients and clients is very important to her.

When not in the clinic Dr. Manly loves spending time with her 2 dogs. She also enjoys attending Oklahoma state sporting events and going to the lake.

Mark Setser, DVM, MS

Founder/Medical Director

Dr. Setser is our founder and medical director. He earned his Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine and his Master of Science in Pharmacology from Oklahoma State University. He has served the Broken Arrow community for 40 years. Dr. Setser has a special interest in wildlife and exotic pet medicine and is regionally known for his experience in non-domestic animal medicine, surgery, and care. Frequently, he consults with other veterinarians from across the country to help them with a case.

The staff lovingly refer to Dr. Setser as a human encyclopedia. Over the years, he has spent time teaching other veterinary professionals, including Veterinary Technician students at Tulsa Community College, Oklahoma State University College of Biological Sciences, and Oklahoma State University College of Veterinary Medicine. In addition, he has been a veterinary educator for Fort Dodge, Ceva, and Zoetis. We welcome veterinary students on externships every semester.

Dr. Setser’s willingness to share his vast knowledge is what drives the practice. There is never a day without learning at Village Vet Animal Clinic. His belief that the practice should work as hard for its people as they do for our patients allows everyone to have a supportive and rewarding experience.

When Dr. Setser opened Village Vet Animal Clinic, he penned the motto, “Where you go when it matters.” Every day he and the team strive to make this motto your reality.