Meet Our Doctors

Dr Mari McLean, DVM

Mari McLean, DVM

Dr. Mari McLean graduated from Oklahoma State University with a BS in Zoology in 2002, and then received her DVM degree from OSU College of Veterinary Medicine in 2006. She moved to North Carolina and practiced in Durham for 8 years before opening Healing Paws Veterinary Hospital with her sister, Dr. Eva Welch, and Vets Pets. She has a passionate interest in geriatric animal care, internal medicine, and integrative medicine. She is certified in Veterinary Acupuncture through the Chi Institute and continued her studies to complete the Advanced Acupuncture course in 2020. She often incorporates acupuncture, low level laser therapy, and herbal therapy as adjunct treatments for many of her patients (including small mammals and reptiles).

In her free time, she enjoys spending time with her family including her two dogs 14-year-old Italian spinone-mix and a 13-year-old Japanese chin-mix, three cats, and a leopard gecko.  You will often find her and her children swimming at the Sportsplex or wandering the trails at the Eno River and Battle Park in Chapel Hill. Dr. McLean also nurtures her life practicing yoga and as an artist, most recently canine oil portrait paintings.

Dr Amy Edwards

Caroline Brewer, DVM

Dr. Caroline Brewer was born and raised in New Orleans, Louisiana. She attended Louisiana State University for her undergraduate work, obtaining a BS in Psychology in 2008. She then obtained her Masters Degree in Industrial and Organizational Psychology from UNC Charlotte in 2011. After working as a consultant for a few years, Dr. Brewer returned to school to pursue her passion for Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Brewer attended North Carolina State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and graduated in 2019. Her professional interests include internal medicine, dentistry, nutrition, anesthesia, and surgery. Dr. Brewer is excited to work with you to keep your pets as healthy and happy as possible!
Outside of work Dr. Brewer loves to spend time with her husband, Dustin, and their fluffy rescue pup Hailey. Her favorite activities include being outdoors, hiking, reading, gardening, and spending time in the kitchen trying out new recipes!
Dr Amy Edwards

Thea Carter, DVM

After graduating with a BS in Biology and a minor in Chemistry from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, Dr. Carter received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in 2003 from Oklahoma State University, where she met Drs. Welch and McLean. She has been in private practice over the last 13 years and joined the Healing Paws team in 2018.As a child on her parents’ farm located in Reidsville, NC, she always volunteered to care for and feed their animals. She knew she wanted to be a veterinarian since she was 5 years old, as it was a career that combined her love of animals with her interest in science.

The opportunity to combine healing companion animals with educating clients on a daily basis is the reason Dr. Carter enjoys being a veterinarian.  She is a member of the AVMA, NCVMA, AEMV (Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians), and ARAV (Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians). Dr. Carter’s professional interests include working with all types of pets, internal medicine, and animal behavior.

Dr. Carter lives in Hurdle MIlls on a mini-farm with her husband, her step-daughter, and a wide variety of animals (including goats, chickens, geese, emus, a turkey, a potbelly pig, 6 dogs, 7 cats, and a collection of reptiles – lizards, snakes, and tortoises).

In her free time, Dr. Carter enjoys hiking with her dogs, reading, vending at reptile and exotic animal shows with her family, and caring for her menagerie of animals.

She never has a dull moment at her house, as one of her critters is always doing something memorable!

Dr. Hodinka

Tyler Hodinka, VMD

Dr. Hodinka grew up in the suburbs of Philadelphia and earned his Bachelor of Science degree from Wofford College in South Carolina. He completed his veterinary education at the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia where he graduated with honors and moved to North Carolina shortly after graduation in 2014. His professional interests include small animal internal medicine, dentistry, surgery and exotic companion animal medicine.

Outside of work, Dr. Hodinka enjoys spending time with his wonderful wife, Katharine and hiking with their two dogs, Oscar and Luna. He also enjoys woodworking and gardening in his spare time. He is excited to join Healing Paws as a full-time member of the team.

Dr Eva Welch, DVM

Eva Welch, DVM

Eva Welch, one of the founding “sisters” of Healing Paws Veterinary Hospital, was born and raised in Tulsa, OK. Following undergraduate studies at Hendrix College in Conway, AR, she graduated from Oklahoma State College of Veterinary Medicine in 2004.  She and her husband, Brandon, were excited to make their way to North Carolina and currently live in Hillsborough with their 2 children (Logan and Raimi), 2 dogs (Astrid and Ralph), 2 cats (Boy and Willow), and 2 small critters (Hazel the hedgehog and Popcorn the Syrian hamster).

Dr. Welch’s veterinary interests include internal medicine, exotic animals, and incorporating integrative modalities (such as low level laser therapy and targeted pulsed electromagnetic field therapy) to patient treatment.  She enjoys swimming, yoga, reading, and hiking in addition to spending time with her family.

Dr Eva Welch, DVM

Kayley Peters, DVM

Dr. Peters was “Tar Heel Born” and raised in Chapel Hill, NC where she later received a BS in Biology and a BA in Spanish at UNC Chapel Hill in 2018. She went on to complete her veterinary degree at NC State College of Veterinary Medicine in 2023, where she received multiple leadership awards for her work on student government and as president of the NCSU chapter of the Veterinary Business Management Association.

Dr. Peters has been working in small animal clinics since she was in high school and fell in love with Healing Paws during her time as a veterinary assistant here over several summers. Her professional interests include internal medicine, dermatology, and ultrasound. Outside of work, she enjoys gardening, yoga, reading, and cross stitching.

Dr. Peters lives in Hillsborough with her partner Ryan, black lab Nas, and tortoiseshell cat Palomita. You can find Dr. Peters at Healing Paws Veterinary Hospital in Hillsborough, NC.

Dr Eva Welch, DVM

Kathryn (Kat) Kammerer, DVM 

Dr. Kathryn (Kat) Kammerer grew up in the beautiful Wasatch Mountains of Salt Lake City, Utah
where she graduated with a BS in Biology from Westminster University while working as a
Veterinary Technician. She then obtained her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from
Washington State University (WSU). After graduation, she co-founded Red Barn Mobile
Veterinary Services, where she practiced throughout the Palouse region of Eastern Washington
and Northern Idaho until recently relocating to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Dr. Kammerer has a
strong interest in preventative medicine, geriatric care, internal medicine, and dentistry. She
also feels integrative veterinary medicine is an important tool in bettering our care for animals,
therefore, she has begun training to become a Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist.

Outside of work, you can find her exploring the beautiful triangle area of North Carolina. She
enjoys spending time with her family, hiking, skiing, gardening, scuba diving, and traveling. Dr.
Kammerer shares her home with her husband Matt, daughter Evalyn, three-legged Red Heeler
mix Siena, and two cats: Barley and Jaffa.

Healing Paws Veterinary Hospital

540 Hampton Pointe
Hillsborough, NC 27278

Call or Text: (919) 245-3437
Fax: (919) 245-3502

Email: [email protected]

Hospital Hours

Mon-Fri: 8:00 AM – 6:00 PM
Saturday: 8:00 AM – 12:00 PM
Closed Sundays