Program

Dr. Captain is a nationally board certified (NCCAOM) Doctor of Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine and the lead practitioner at the Sarasota Center for Acupuncture and Nutrition which she founded in 2000. She earned her Masters degree in Acupuncture & Oriental Medicine from the East West College of Natural Medicine, Sarasota, Florida and completed her Doctoral specialty with focus in Integrative Medicine at AOMA’s Graduate School of Integrative Medicine, Austin, TX.  Dr. Captain is the former chief administrative officer, senior faculty member, and advisory board chairperson for the East West College of Natural Medicine.  In 2014, she earned a Master of Science degree in Human Nutrition from the University of Bridgeport, CT.  Dr. Captain has received additional training in acupuncture including training at M.D. Anderson in pain management and integrative cancer therapies. She is also qualified by the state of Florida to provide injection therapies. In 2014, Dr. Captain co-authored a textbook “Laboratory Analysis for the TCM practitioner” which was published by Jessica Kingsley publishing, UK.

Prior to becoming a practitioner of Oriental Medicine, Dr. Captain earned a Master’s degree in Speech Language Pathology and Communication Disorders from the University of Central Florida, Orlando, Florida. She remains an actively licensed speech pathologist in the state of Florida. Dr. Captain is a qualified instructor of AIT and currently travels throughout the U.S. qualifying Acupuncturists in injection therapy.

Dr. Bonnie Wright was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She accomplished her DVM at Colorado State University and a residency in Anesthesia and Critical Patient Care at The University of California, Davis.  She has lived in Colorado since 2001.

Dr. Wright is board certified in Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia.  She has earned certificates in Medical Acupuncture, Veterinary Pain Practitioner, Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner and Therapist and canine musculo-skeletal imaging.

She works and teaches in the areas of anesthesia, pain medicine, medical acupuncture and regenerative medicine and rehabilitation.   She has two adult sons, several wonderful dogs and a retired horse. She spends time exercising and building her off-grid Hawaiian farm with her life partner.

Dr. Jenny Liu graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in animal science from Cornell University.  She completed her veterinary training at Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine in 1991.  Jenny started out her career in mixed animal practice, caring for large (mostly horses, cattle and the occasional small ruminant) and small animals (dogs and cats).  Over time she has narrowed her practice to small animals.  She took a small detour in her career to obtain a bachelor’s degree in fine arts at The Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) in 2007.

Dr. Liu has training in Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine (TCVM) which encompasses Acupuncture, Food Therapy, Tui-na (massage), Herbal medicine, as well as Life style.  Dr. Liu began her training in TCVM at the Chi Institute in Reddick Florida in 2004 and continues to advance her studies there. In 2018 she received her master’s degree in TCVM.  She has lectured on behalf of the Chi Institute on basic TCVM principles and is a Lab TA for the Basic Acupuncture lab course.  She continues to practice small animal Integrative medicine, bringing the best of both Western and Eastern medicine.

Dr. Susan Neary is a veterinarian as well as a veterinary acupuncturist with over 20 years of experience, and is also a licensed acupuncturist in the human field.  She revels in the success of acupuncture in conditions that medications cannot solely manage.  Dr. Neary has owned and operated two veterinary hospitals in the Seattle area for a dozen years before deciding to sell both practices and pursue Masters’ degrees in Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine (MOAM) and Pain Research, Education and Policy (MS-PREP).  This skill set coupled with a strong commitment to bridge eastern and western medicine allows her to use integrative approaches to the complex problem of pain management with special interest in osteoarthritis, degenerative and neurological conditions, post-surgical and palliative care patients.

Dr. Neary is a member of the Board of Governors for the International Veterinary Association of Pain Management (IVAPM.org), President of the Cape Cod Veterinary Medical Association and clinical preceptor in CRI’s acupuncture course.  She is recognized for her visionary and pioneering attributes and enjoys her progressive veterinary experiences to improve the quality of life in both animals and people.

Dr. Lara Sypniewski is the Henthorne Clinical Professor of Small Animal Medicine and a Clinical Associate Professor in Small Animal Community Practice.  Dr. Sypniewski is a 1998 graduate of Purdue University and has been teaching at OSU’s Veterinary Medical Hospital for 8 years.  She is a diplomate of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (canine/feline), a certified acupuncturist and a certified canine rehabilitator. In addition, she is a founding member of Pete’s Pet Posse, OSU’s nationally recognized therapy dog program.  Dr. Sypniewski’s research interests are in animal assisted therapies, photobiomodulation, and the pharmacology of pain medications in small animal and exotic species.

Dr. Vargas received her DVM from Tuskegee University in 1994. In 1996 she established her AAHA accredited Orchid Springs Animal Hospital in Winter Haven, FL. In 2009 she started her studies at Chi Institute, eventually garnering certifications in Acupuncture, Chinese Herbal Medicine, Food Therapy and Tui Na. She has also achieved the following: Certified TCVM practitioner, Certified Veterinary Medical Manipulator, Certified Balance Method Acupuncturist, Fellowship of the American Academy of Veterinary Acupuncture and has a master’s degree in TCVM. She teaches at Chi Institutes of Florida, Peru, and Costa Rica campuses and has worked as a consultant for Disney’s Animal Kingdom.

Dr. Vargas is also a sought out speaker and author of the book Alt-Vet: the revolutionary pet care and longevity solution.

Her passion for helping animals and her volunteerism has awarded her state and national recognition. Among her awards is the Purina National Pet Care Award, Bay News 9 Medical Hero Award, Winter Haven Chamber of Commerce Business Award, Bright house Regional Business Finalist, Girls Inc “She knows where she is going award” and the FVMA Gold award. She was honored by the American Veterinary Foundation as “America’s Favorite Veterinarian” in 2015. In 2018 she was awarded “Veterinarian of the Year” by the FVMA.

She lives in sunny Winter Haven, Florida with her husband, two teenage daughters and a menagerie of pets!

San Francisco State University, San Francisco, California, Bachelor of Science in Chemistry, Magnum Cum Laude,1976.  University of California, Davis, Dept. of Pharmacology and Toxicology, Masters in Pharmacology and Toxicology, 1981.  University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, D.V.M. with honors 1984.  CHI Institute of Chinese Medicine, 9700 west Hwy 318, Reddick, FL 32686, Certified Veterinary Acupuncturist,9/2/2002.  Certified Veterinary Tui-Na Practitioner, 10/31/2003.  Certified Veterinary Chinese Herbalist, 4/23/2004.  FAAVA 6/20/16.

Dr. Winter works in Southern California as a mixed animal veterinarian treating companion animals.  She also volunteers her time as the shelter veterinarian at the Northwest SPCA.  It is her mission to diagnose and treat the symptoms and underlying root deficiencies in her patients.  Dr. Winter does this by integrating Western and Eastern Veterinary Medicine.  She has had great success utilizing both principles and finds private practice very satisfying.  Dr. Winter is the only veterinarian in her area that she knows of, that treats mixed animals in this fashion.

Dr. Bonnie Wright was born and raised in Albuquerque, New Mexico. She accomplished her DVM at Colorado State University and a residency in Anesthesia and Critical Patient Care at The University of California, Davis.  She has lived in Colorado since 2001.

Dr. Wright is board certified in Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia.  She has earned certificates in Medical Acupuncture, Veterinary Pain Practitioner, Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner and Therapist and canine musculo-skeletal imaging.

She works and teaches in the areas of anesthesia, pain medicine, medical acupuncture and regenerative medicine and rehabilitation.   She has two adult sons, several wonderful dogs and a retired horse. She spends time exercising and building her off-grid Hawaiian farm with her life partner.

Dr. Lori Bidwell is a 2001 graduate of Michigan State University, a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia and a certified veterinary acupuncturist.  She did her internship at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital in Lexington, Kentucky and completed her anesthesia residency at Michigan State University.  She was the head of anesthesia at Rood and Riddle Equine Hospital and Lexington Equine Surgery and Sports Medicine and has been on faculty at Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine and Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine.  In 2105 she co-founded East West Equine Sports Medicine, a practice that involves consulting and covering veterinary services for hunter/jumper circuits on the West and East Coasts.  Dr. Bidwell also consults in anesthesia for equine practices, teaches part of a study abroad program in Thailand and South Africa and speaks and teaches nationally and internationally.

Dr. Carole Holland is a private practitioner in Wellington, Fl. She practices TCVM, chiropractic, and Equine sports medicine year round in Florida and New York. She started her practice out of veterinary school at the University of Ga in 1986. From there she worked in at the thoroughbred race track in New York and Florida before moving to Wellington to work with show horses and polo in 2003.  She studied chiropractic at Options for Animals and acupuncture, tui-na and herbal medicine with the Chi Institute. She has given talks on “Acupuncture, A Quick Fix for Race Horses.”, and ‘The Practical Approach to Equine Sports Medicine and Acupuncture” at the TCVM International Conference. She also authored the two chapters: The Practical Approach the Equine Sports Medicine and Acupuncture and The Practical Approach to Equine Dermatology and Acupuncture.

1980-graduated from Texas A&M University School of Veterinary Medicine
1988-IVAS Certified (Acupuncture)
1992-AVCA Certified (Chiropractic)

Currently-Partner in El Cajon Valley Veterinary Hospital, El Cajon, CA where my primary function was integrative equine ambulatory medicine, but recently limited my practice to primarily equine and canine acupuncture and herbal medicine.

Dr. Steph is a dairy and poultry veterinarian at the Abbotsford Veterinary Clinic. She graduated from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine in 2010 and then went on to pursue her interest in acupuncture with a certification in the modality from the Chi Institute. She then became certified in veterinary spinal manipulation and also began to use herbs and laser to increase the health and welfare of dairy cows on Small and large dairy farms alike. When she is not working, she enjoys exploring the outdoors with her husband and 2 kids.

Dr. Nell received her DVM at the University of Illinois, became a certified veterinary acupuncturist through IVAS in 2012, and earned her FAAVA advanced certification in 2019.  She practices integrative medicine on companion pets of all shapes and sizes in Portland, Oregon. Nell also founded People and Pet Integrative Therapies which is her own consulting and training company aimed at helping other vets integrate acupuncture into practice more smoothly and effectively, especially in the areas of finances, employee engagement and marketing. Her mission is to promote integrative medicine as the gold standard of care for both people and pets around the world.