Team

Dr. Stevenson is a graduate of the University of Florida Veterinary Medical School and has practiced in Jacksonville for over 30 years. She is board certified by the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners in avian specialty and has owned and operated the Exotic Bird Hospital since 1995, where over 12,000 patients were seen last year. Rhoda has written articles for national magazines and presented seminars for international organizations. She is also involved with community education appearing on local television and presenting to schools, libraries and several Florida bird clubs. She has worked with the Jacksonville Zoo, is a member of the Zoo Animal Health Committee, and is a frequent consultant for Marineland. Rhoda lives in Mandarin with thirty birds including pet and aviary birds, and her dog Rocky.

Dr. Smith is an experienced exotic animal veterinarian specializing in birds, reptiles, and small mammals. She is passionate about providing compassionate, high-quality care to every patient.

Dr. Tony was born, raised and educated in the Midwestern United States. He graduated from Iowa State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 2013. Dr. Tony traveled extensively during his education, pursuing preceptorships and externships in exotic animal medicine from experts in Australia and throughout the United States. While in veterinary school, he was the President of both the Iowa State’s Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians and Association of Avian Veterinarians clubs. Dr. Tony heavily supplemented his own education and the education of others interested in exotic animals with hands-on exotic animal clinical experience, clinical reference materials and lectures from experienced exotic practitioners. His passion for reptile and avian medicine burns as strong as ever, and he seeks to maintain a high-quality, current knowledge-base and skill set in these areas. Following graduation, Dr. Tony spent a year working as a crocodile veterinarian in the Philippines, dividing his time between two facilities on opposite ends of the county. In 2014, he returned to the U.S. to practice exotic animal medicine in beautiful coastal California for two years before returning to his home city of Chicago to join one of the busiest, most reputable exotics-only practices in the state. After two years of failing to cope with the land-locked Midwest and its miserable winters, his yearning for the tropics and the beach brought him to sunny Florida. He shares his life with a ball python that he has had since age 17, a Russian tortoise, an Indonesian blue-tongued skink, a lovely Citron cockatoo and a gentlemanly Goffin’s cockatoo.

Dr. Borger graduated in 2015 from St. Matthew’s University School of Veterinary Medicine in Grand Cayman. She then completed her clinical year at the University of Illinois Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Dr. Borger was born and raised in Belleville, Illinois. Among having dogs growing up, Dr. Borger also had chinchillas, snakes and a guinea pig. For the past three years, she has lived in Florida with her faithful dog Crystal, who has been by her side ever since she adopted her during week one of veterinary school. Dr. Borger is a small animal veterinarian with a special interest in exotics and surgery.

Dr. Hannah Hipkiss is a 2023 graduate from the Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine and recent Florida transplant. In veterinary school, she was the president of the ZEWA (Zoo, Exotics, Wildlife and Aquatics) club, and completed 4th year clinical externships at the San Diego Zoo, Smithsonian and Conservation Biology Institute, and Brookfield Zoo. She was inspired to pursue advanced training in large animal medicine (horses, livestock, camelids, pigs) and completed a large animal internship at Iowa State University following graduation. With a specialized interest in anesthesia, she completed a specialty internship in anesthesia at the University of Missouri soon after. During these internships, she was able to apply her training at many zoos and aquarium facilities across the country, including the U.S. Navy Marine Mammal Program, where she currently serves as a relief veterinarian. She has a special interest in avian and aquatic medicine, but she is happy to see all beasts big and small, feathered or scaled. Dr. Hipkiss feels blessed to have the ability to join an expertise team that cares about patients first. Her favorite thing to do is dance and read at the beach with her dog, Yogi.