Meet Our Team
Dr. Kara Breinin
Veterinarian
Dr. Breinin is proud to be a graduate of the University of Missouri with both a B.S. in Animal Science and a doctorate in veterinary medicine. Up to now, she has spent most of her career in the Kansas City metro; however, as a recent transplant back to Nebraska, she is excited to experience Lincoln and all it has to offer! She has professional interests in dentistry, surgery, palliative/hospice care, and small animal exotics. Additionally, she has taken advanced training in fear-free medicine to help alleviate your patient’s anxieties and fears and make everyone more excited to see the veterinarian!
Personally, she is the proud owner of three amazing pets-a sassy red Australian Cattle Dog, an opinionated Russian Blue feline, and a hilarious rabbit named Hareiet. In fact, in the past, Hareiet has been known to come with her to work to serve as an emotional support animal for children.
She has several passions outside of work. She likes to think of herself as a foodie, and in her free time, she can often be found trying out new recipes, especially specialty desserts. She loves to travel and to date, Jamaica and Scotland have been some of her favorite places to visit. She would love one day to make it to Australia. She loves creating things as well and can often be found with a camera in hand, making a new quilt (Halloween ones in particular), or attending a concert.
She looks forward to serving you and all your pet care needs at Cotner!
Dr. Meredith Cruse
Veterinarian
Dr. Meredith Cruse is originally from Omaha, NE, and is a 2011 graduate of Kansas State Veterinary University. She has special interests in preventative care, dermatology and internal medicine. Outside of work, she volunteers as a track and field coach at the Malone Center. She also enjoys reading, watching movies and spending time with her family.
Lauren
Veterinary Assistant
Lauren has been at Cotner Pet Care as a veterinary assistant for a couple years, and she is Fear Free Certified! Lauren is working towards finishing her degree in Veterinary Nursing and will soon be taking the VTN exams to obtain her Veterinary Technician License! Lauren is especially fond of cats and has two of her own: Lord Dashington and Butter, whom she rescued from our clinic last year! You may remember seeing him around our clinic being called "Calves"! In her free time, Lauren enjoys reading, watching Grey’s Anatomy, and playing video games.
Kara
Receptionist
Kara is our fabulous receptionist at Cotner Pet Care! She has lived in Lincoln all her life. She prides herself as being a great pet mom who adores her fur babies, and regularly watches her parents' dogs that she considers furry siblings. She enjoys spending time with friends and family, reading, as well as crafting any ideas her friends and coworkers come up with. She is excited to be the first person to greet you and your pet when you come to visit us!
Ashley
Practice Manager / Veterinary Assistant
Ashley is our Practice Manager and is currently in school to become a licensed technician. She came to us with an extensive background in management, HR, and doggie daycare experience, as well as a love and passion for rescue animals. She is most excited to work with behavioral cases and works tirelessly to help make the clinic fear free. She currently has a house full of dogs, Max, Luna, Dominic and Ruby, as well as two cats, Cricket and Kitty. Free time, outside of work, school and being a mom to two little girls is scarce, but live music or around a bonfire with good friends is where you will find her.
Charli Apple
Veterinary Assistant
Charli is one of our assistants at Cotner Pet Care! She is from Western Nebraska and graduated from the Nebraska College of Technical Agriculture in May 2022. She received her Associates Degree of Applied Science in the Veterinary Technician Program and is currently working on taking her VTNE test to become a certified Veterinary Technician. She has a husky named Gunner and a cat named Rocky. She enjoys working out, traveling, and hanging out with friends and family. She especially loves cheering on the Huskers!
Helena
Veterinary Assistant
Bio coming soon!
Kylie
Veterinary Assistant
Bio coming soon!
Momma Ellis Cotner
Clinic Ambassador
Momma Ellis is one of our three clinic ambassadors! She takes her job very seriously of alerting the staff to any creature comfort issues. She is famous for her laid back and can nap attitude. She can be found spending her free time making others aware that diets are overrated, throwing her mane around to garner votes on Instagram, and pondering deep thoughts on how to avoid any treat supply chain issues.
Meredith Cotner
Clinic Ambassador
Meredith is one of our three clinic ambassadors! She and her sister Cristina first applied to work for us when they decided they would prefer a better home than a cold local trash compactor. She takes her job very seriously and just loves to greet ALL our clients and patients. She can be found spending her free time socializing with anyone who asks her too, cleaning up any extra fear free treats, and catching up on Grey’s Anatomy.
Cristina Cotner
Clinic Ambassador
Cristina is one of our three clinic ambassadors! She and her sister Meredith first applied to work for us when they decided they would prefer a better home than a cold local trash compactor. She takes her job very seriously, but prefers to do her work behind the scenes so she may not always be up front to say hello. She is famous for her ability to give cuddles and extra attention to the staff. She can be found spending her free time searching for leftover Churro, working on her personal self-care, discussing cases in depth with Dr. Breinin, and catching up on Grey’s Anatomy.
