Our Team

Special Interests: General medicine and surgery, acupuncture, herbal and alternative medicine, orthopedics, cardiology

Education: The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine

Hometown: Strongsville, Ohio

Pets: Cooper and Skippy (dogs), Kaya and Simon (cats)

Dr. Nicole Sheehan has always had a love for and ability to communicate with animals since she was a young girl. After graduating from veterinary school and moving from Ohio to North Carolina, she felt at home in the area but not in her profession. She was blessed with mentors as a new graduate who pushed her to practice detailed and advanced medicine, but she wasn’t happy with her quality of life. As she started a family and also alternative treatments such as acupuncture, she sought different opportunities to improve her medicine and also her life. She found herself frustrated by inefficient systems and poor work cultures. Although her son was only one year old and she was pregnant with her daughter, she decided she had to do it differently. So she set up Whole Pet Veterinary Hospital in 2013 to create a place where she could pay her bills and still love going to work. Little did she know this would create so much more!

What resulted was a place where EVERYONE liked coming to work—where people are free to develop their skills and talents in an environment that is encouraging and supportive. Being free to learn and try new treatments, her clients were pushing her harder and harder to move beyond standard treatments that weren’t working to discover new medications that actually reversed the disease. As animals were healing permanently from chronic diseases, she joked that she was “the worse business owner in the world” because her patients were getting better and only needed to come back for yearly check-ups. She was wrong—her results brought her new clients from all over the state and eventually, phone consults all over the United States, as well as Europe, Australia, and Asia.

In seeing mostly second opinions (or what we lovingly call “sixth opinions”), with a careful history, thorough physical exam, and subtle changes in lab work, she has identified a handful of triggers for common diseases in animals. The mainstay of her practice is “Food First,” where high-level nutrition is used first to improve the health and balance of the body. Any signs of toxins or disease triggers are treated with herbal or pharmaceutical medication. While she identifies herself as a holistic Vvterinarian, she is willing to use whatever treatments give the best results, and so she still does surgery and chemotherapy when necessary. In the hospital, she will often use laser, ozone, PRP, and acupuncture to improve mobility and treatment outcomes.

After years of reversing chronic diseases that typically are considered irreversible, such as skin allergies, autoimmune disease, kidney failure, and paralysis, she has become convinced all diseases are treatable, including cancer. For example, she has successfully and fully treated her own dog’s heartworm disease with homeopathy, her cat’s kidney failure and hepatitis with herbal medicine, and her own autoimmune disease with herbs and meditation. This outlook on healing has greatly impacted the outlook of her clients and coworkers on their own health as well as the health of their animals. A common saying you will hear around here is, “Once you see it, you can never unsee it”.

Advanced Courses and Certifications:

• Veterinary acupuncture
• Chinese food therapy
• Veterinary Chinese herbal medicine
• Meridian autonomic testing (muscle testing)
• Detoxification medicine
• Tick- and vector-borne diseases
• Abdominal and cardiac ultrasonography

Publications and Appearances:

• Glycoflex National Commercial
• VetriScience National Advisory Board
• Veterinary Practice News
• VetFolio Podcast
• Fox News Rising
• Charlotte Today

She recently has developed a way of sharing her treatment strategies outside of Whole Pet Veterinary Hospital through Nicole the Vet, where she highlights cases, offers classes to vet professionals, and speaks out about problems within the industry. Visit her on Facebook and Instagram at @nicolethevet and see videos on pet care and nutrition on YouTube at @nicolethevet. Be on the lookout in 2020 for her book on healing animals naturally, as well as new holistic veterinary hospitals in the area to serve more animals and people!

Christine is a Wilmington local, born and raised. She has been in the veterinary field for 11 years. She loves helping all the fur babies and being involved in surgery is her passion!
Christine has a french bulldog mix named Piggy who is an excitable little thing, and lives in Wilmington with her husband.

Outside of work, she likes to hang out with friends and enjoys reading, gaming and working on her garden.

Nate grew up in the small farm town of Waynesville, Ohio and moved to Wilmington, NC in 2020. Through attending Sinclair Community College, he became a registered veterinary technician(RVT) in 2014 but has been in the field since 2011. Through the University of Tennessee, he furthered his career and became a Certified Canine Rehabilitation Practitioner(CCRP) in 2016 and also got certified in Companion Animal Pain Management(CAPM) in 2022. He enjoys working with the geriatric and feline patients and providing alternative treatments to help them live their most comfortable lives. He also enjoys working with the sporting and working canines to help them recover from injuries and make sure they are at their peak performance.

Nate has 2 cats named Pete and Cao and a French Bulldog named Larry. While Nate loves all animals, he is a cat person at heart! Especially if they are tuxedo cats!

In his spare time he enjoys baking and sharing his baked goods with all of his coworkers. He also enjoys video games and rock climbing!

Natalie was born and raised in the heart of Wilmington with many animals of all shapes and sizes. She grew up with a passion for science, but her passion for animals has always been greater. She has found a career that allows her to thrive in both the sciences and with animals which has been a dream come true! It’s been six years and counting that Natalie has been both a Veterinary Assistant and a Customer Care Representative, helping her to provide not only patients with the best care possible, but also their families.

Outside of work you can usually find Natalie playing with her three fur babies, Frankie (poodle), and her two foster fail kitties, Clark and Poppy.

Originally from Mississippi, Leif graduated from Mississippi State University with a Masters in Animal Physiology. With her experience in the field, the area of veterinary medicine that peaks her interest the most is Animal Rehabilitation.

When she’s not taking care of patients or hanging out with her cat, Mogli, Leif is usually soaking up the sunshine while relaxing on the beach with her latest book of choice in hand.

Jo grew up on Harkers Island in the original Down East community of Carteret County and moved to Wilmington in 2011. Jo has always had a love for all things cat, she is a very proud Crazy Cat Lady, so much so she founded her own non-profit Gracie’s Serenity Sanctuary in 2020. She currently cares for over 80 cats, 4 rabbits, 4 dogs and a squirrel named Dauphine. Jo has been in veterinary medicine for 13 years and wouldn’t trade it for anything… except maybe an orange tabby polydactyl. Jo is excited to be a part of the Whole Pet Family, to have the opportunity to learn about and share all integrative veterinary medicine has to offer. Jo is a whiskey enthusiast and when she can acquire free time, she loves to spend it with friends and family.