Meet our veterinary team

Meet the veterinarians & team of The Village Animal Clinic. We’re pleased to provide exceptional vet care for your pets.

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ALBANY VETERINARIANS

We are solely dedicated to your pet’s care! We look forward to getting to know you and hope you’ll take the time to scroll down and get to know us.

Michael P. McCarthy

DVM, Chief of Staff

A native of Michigan’s Upper Peninsula, Dr. Michael P. McCarthy earned his bachelor’s degree in business and biology at Lake Superior State University and then went on to earn a degree in veterinary science and a Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine. After relocating to New York’s Capital District in 2004 with his wife and two sons, Dr. Mike spent six years at a small animal practice in Guilderland.

Over the course of his career, Dr. McCarthy has spent a large amount of time training and acquiring professional experience with many types of non-traditional pets, including birds, rabbits, pocket pets, reptiles, chelonians (turtles), ferrets, chinchillas, hedgehogs, sugar gliders, and others. He has a deep professional interest in providing quality health care to traditional companion animals as well as pocket and exotic pets.

Dr. McCarthy is a member of the Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians, Association of Sugar Glider Veterinarians, Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians, Hedgehog Welfare Society, and American Ferret Association.

Kristen Bevilacqua

DVM

Despite once wanting to be an astronaut, Dr. Kristen Bevilacqua wisely chose to pursue her childhood dream of becoming a veterinarian. With her compassionate and gentle pet care philosophy, Dr. Bevilacqua is a perfect fit for The Village Animal Clinic.

At three years old, Dr. Bevilacqua voiced her decision to be a veterinarian when she grew up. She stuck with this early goal and earned her bachelor’s degree from Muhlenberg College in 2008 and then her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from Kansas State College of Veterinary Medicine in 2012. While attending veterinary school, she studied with the preeminent and nationally recognized expert in exotic animal medicine, Dr. James Carpenter. Dr. Kristen absorbed his expertise and now shares her valuable insight and knowledge with our team of exotic pet practitioners.

When not at the office, Dr. Bevilacqua can usually be found participating in some type of sport. She enjoys tennis, volleyball, golf, and softball and has encircled herself with friends who share the same interests. She is determined to form a sports team made up of her colleagues. In conjunction with Dr. McCarthy and Dr. Cheever, Dr. Bevilacqua is a sponsor of the local Voorheesville athletic scene and participates in The Village Animal Clinic’s sponsorships, including local Kiwanis baseball and soccer teams and an annual run for the Voorheesville School and Community Foundation.

At home, Kristen relaxes with her snuggly cat Gus and her rambunctious kitten Neil, who relishes her superb caregiving skills.

Roxanne Coulter

DVM

Dr. Coulter was raised in the Capital region and followed her childhood dream to become a veterinarian. She received her undergraduate degree from Cornell University in the field of Animal and Biological Sciences (2012) and her professional Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Ross University (2016,) which included a final year of clinical training at Cornell’s prestigious College of Veterinary Medicine.

Not only does Dr. Coulter have impressive clinical skills, but also—and every bit as important in our practice—she is a compassionate advocate for animal welfare, and spent hours volunteering with animal rescue groups in her adolescence and educating the residents of the island of St. Kitts, both pet owners and farmers, on proper animal care, the importance of veterinary intervention, and preventive medicine. Her childhood exposed her to a wide range of animal friends, including guinea pigs, rabbits, cats, Great Danes, and horses, giving her invaluable first-hand familiarity with these species.

Dr. Coulter looks forward to a long tenure at our practice and in the Albany community. She and her fiancé are planning their dream home on their property and spend their free time camping. Additionally, Dr. Coulter enjoys horseback riding (she was a competitive rider in the hunter-jumper circuit in her high school and college years,) running, and caring for her family’s various companion animals.

Sierra Goodfellow

DVM

Dr. Goodfellow joined The Village Animal Clinic in June of 2021. She grew up in Freehold, NY, attended school at Greenville High School, then went on to Union College in Schenectady, graduating with the highest honors. She majored in biology and earned the admiration of her faculty, who felt she would be an ideal candidate for the veterinary medical profession. Her veterinary degree is from Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine.

Dr. Goodfellow’s informal education included close relationships throughout her childhood with a range of species, including cats, dogs, guinea hens, and horses; she even found time throughout her busy school and college course loads to compete in horse shows. Her other interests include hiking, camping, tennis, and volleyball.

Rebecca Stanclift

DVM, DACVS

Dr. Stanclift is the owner and surgeon for Northeastern Veterinary Surgery, a practice dedicated to increasing the availability of advanced surgical services for pets by bringing these services to the local veterinary hospital.

Dr. Stanclift is a native of the northern Adirondacks. She obtained her undergraduate degree from the John Wiley Jones School of Business at S.U.N.Y. Geneseo in 1992. She went on to complete her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine at Cornell University’s College of Veterinary Medicine in 2001.

Following graduation, Dr. Stanclift continued her education with an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at Sonora Veterinary Specialists in Phoenix, AZ. She then served as a clinical instructor at Washington State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. Her formal surgical training includes a one-year surgical internship at Affiliated Veterinary Specialists in Maitland, FL, and a residency in small animal surgery at the Red Bank Veterinary Hospital in New Jersey. She achieved board certification from the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 2009.

Dr. Stanclift has a strong interest in continuing education. In addition to regularly attending CE, she has authored numerous publications and lectured in both local and national forums. She is a member of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons, the Veterinary Orthopedic Society, the Eastern Veterinary Orthopedic Society, the American Veterinary Medical Association, the New York State Veterinary Medical Society, and the Capital District Veterinary Medical Society.

Dr. Stanclift offers a full complement of surgical services that can be provided to patients of The Village Animal Clinic, including TPLOs (Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy), anal sacculectomies, tail fold caudectomies, TECABOs (Total Ear Canal Ablations) among many others.

Ron Scharf

DVM

Ron Scharf has been practicing veterinary medicine since earning his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Cornell College of Veterinary Medicine in 1985. He is originally from Long Island. He graduated from Columbia College of General Studies in NYC in 1981 after traveling through the United States (by “thumb”) as well as parts of Europe and the Middle East.

While beginning private practice as an employee for eight years, he learned veterinary acupuncture with the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society and homeopathy studying under Dr. Richard Pitcairn. He then bought & ran a veterinary hospital in the Capital Region for 27 years. Still in love with veterinary practice, he now enjoys working part-time at the Village Animal Clinic with dogs and cats and hopes to maybe pick up some exotic animal experience from VAC’s accomplished veterinarians and staff.

He has a wife, Robin, a social worker, and two grown daughters, one an entrepreneur and the other about to begin a residency in pediatrics in NYC. He enjoys bicycling, hiking, and reading in his spare time and has a dog, Louie (a very good boy), and a cat, Nora (who loves her mom very much).

Jacob T. LaVarnway

DVM

From a very young age, Dr. Jacob was always passionate about animals. Growing up in the Adirondacks on the family horse farm helped fuel this. As a child, he spent many years competing with his horses in 4-H. This helped guide him to the decision that veterinary medicine was the right track for him. After he graduated from Saranac Central High School, he attended SUNY Delhi’s veterinary science technology program. He became a licensed veterinary technician graduating in 2016. To finish his undergraduate education, he returned home to SUNY Plattsburgh to earn a Bachelor’s degree in biology in 2019. When it came to deciding on a vet school to attend for the next four years his decision was easy. He graduated from Virginia Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech in 2023. During his veterinary education he was able to explore his passion for exotic animal medicine. He spent many of his externships during vet school with some of North America’s leading exotic animal veterinarians. Avian medicine is something he is particularly passionate about. He is a member of the Association of Avian Veterinarians, the Association of Exotic Mammal Veterinarians, and the Association of Reptile and Amphibian Veterinarians.
Outside of veterinary medicine, he spends his time with his Morgan horses, hiking, camping, traveling, and caring for his chihuahua, Fritos. He is very excited to be joining The Village Animal Clinic, where he can serve the local community.

Erica Delles

DVM

Dr. Delles is originally from northern NY. She attended the Rochester Institute of Technology as a first-generation college student. She majored in biology and minored in American Sign Language. Dr. Delles graduated summa cum laude and went on to pursue her lifelong dream of becoming a veterinarian. She attended Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts, where she received her doctorate in veterinary medicine. At Tufts, Dr. Delles became interested in exotic companion animal medicine and solidified her interests in canine and feline medicine. She then returned to upstate NY to join the team at Village Animal Clinic. She has interests in surgery, dentistry, and spectrum of care. Her other interests include hiking, swimming, reading, and staying in with her cat, Pierogi.