Our Team

The team at Cleary Lake Veterinary Hospital is comprised of highly trained and experienced animal health professionals who have a genuine love for working with animals. Our staff treats every patient with the highest quality of medical care as well as a gentle touch.

Equine Veterinarians

David R. Hermann D.V.M.
Dr. Hermann was raised on a small hobby farm in Prior Lake, MN. He was active in 4-H with his brothers for many years. He began working for Dr. Bill Sweeney at Equine Medical Center as a high school student in 1977. After graduating from high school, he went on to Iowa State University and graduated from veterinary school in 1986. He returned to Equine Medical Center as a veterinarian. Dr. Kathy Ott and Dr. Hermann were married in 1995. In 1998, they purchased the clinic from Dr. Sweeney. In 2004, they moved the facility to its current location, changing the name to Cleary Lake Veterinary Hospital. Dr. Hermann’s medical interests include surgery, dentistry, and practice management. In his free time, he enjoys reading and book collecting, hiking, cross country skiing, and working around the farm (he can often be found on his John Deere tractor). Dr. Hermann has a husky cross named Kryle and two cats, Socks and Phantom.

Heidi N. Terwey D.V.M.
Dr. Terwey joined Cleary Lake in 2006. She graduated from the College of St. Benedict in 1999 and from the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine in 2004. She works exclusively with horses and has a strong interest in providing comprehensive veterinary care. She enjoys building relationships with clients and their horses to provide the best continued health care possible. Her professional interests are dentistry and emergency medicine.

Jennifer L. Selvig D.V.M.
Dr. Selvig grew up in Webster, Minnesota, and after learning to ride on her mom’s Arabian and her own rescued pinto pony, began competing in eventing, dressage and polocrosse. She was active in Pony Club, earning her HA rating, and spent several years in high school working at Equine Medical Center at its old location before starting college. She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Bachelor of Science degree in Ecology, Evolution and Behavior in 2003, and with her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 2007. She joined Cleary Lake as a veterinarian in 2007 and worked several summers at Canterbury Park as a racetrack practitioner. Her professional interests include equine sports medicine, chiropractic, rehabilitation, lameness, pet goats, pot-bellied pigs and alpacas. She enjoys riding and competing her own ex-racehorses, Chief Magistrate and Hopscotch Ali, in eventing. The rest of Dr. Jen’s menagerie includes three dogs (Ghost, Cricket and Elton) and two cats (Serena and Frank), an off-the-track goat (Kelso), a rescued miniature horse (Gauge), a donkey (Ariel), a pot-bellied pig (Libby), a Suri alpaca (Bravo), a wallaby (Roo), and two rescued sugar gliders (Mad Max and Zulu). In her “free” time, Dr. Jen enjoys boot camp fitness classes, yoga, and watching the races at Canterbury Park. She runs a nonprofit organization, the Minnesota Retired Racehorse Project, which rehomes off-the-track horses.

Kathryn M. Ott D.V.M.
Dr. Ott has been a veterinarian at Cleary Lake since 1987. She and Dr. Hermann purchased the practice in 1998 and she has been the “Boss Mare” ever since! Her professional interests include equine sports medicine, equine reproduction, behavior and acupuncture. In her spare time, Dr. Ott shows hunters and jumpers and raises one or two foals each year at her farm, Wild Horse Hill. She also enjoys cross-country skiing and hiking. She has an enthusiastic German Shepherd, Myrtle, as well as two cats, Yertle and Abra-cat-dabra. She also serves as the Zone Chairman of the United States Equestrian Federation Jumper Committee.

Renee Jaklitsch D.V.M.
Dr. Jaklitsch joined Cleary Lake Veterinary Hospital in 2017. Dr. Jaklitsch is a board-certified Theriogenologist, which means she specializes in animal reproduction. Her veterinary interests include breeding problem mares, frozen semen, embryo transfer, neonatal care and more. Dr. Jaklitsch did her pre-veterinary studies at Colorado State University and worked at the CSU Equine Reproduction Lab, which is where she was inspired to pursue advanced training in reproduction. Following vet school at Oklahoma State University, she did an internship at a private practice in New Zealand before her theriogenology residency at Mississippi State University, which she completed in 2013. She spent the summers of her youth riding as much as she could, attending and later working at a summer camp in Northern California and riding hunters at a few local barns. In her free time she enjoys exploring the Great Outdoors, usually with a camera in tow. Hiking, skiing (mostly downhill) and snowshoeing are all on the list. She loves visiting the U.S. and Canadian National Parks. She is originally from California and grew up with Yosemite just hours away.

Support Professionals

Barb
Barb has been the Practice Manager at Cleary Lake since 2005. She is a member of the Veterinary Hospital Managers Association and the American Animal Hospital Association. She has an exuberant mixed-breed dog, Jazzy, and a cat named Chase. Before working in the veterinary industry, she used to own, race, and train thoroughbreds. She has two children, Holden and Joey. In her spare time she enjoys fishing, golf, cooking, and working in her yard.

Michelle, Receptionist
Michelle started part-time at Cleary in May 1997. She now works full-time as a client care specialist at the equine desk. When she’s not working, she expends time with her menagerie of animals, showing her horse, and hiking. Michelle shares her home with her husband, her terrier mix Shrimpie, a barn cat April, & her horses Cal, and China.



Tammy
Tammy has been with Cleary Lake since 1990. Tammy’s favorite part of working in veterinary medicine is that every day is different and she is always learning something new. Tammy lives with her husband Ben in Webster at their Combined Horsepower Farm. They enjoy drag racing, 4×4 trucks, and caring for their many animals – cats, dogs, miniature horses, chickens, goats and sheep. Tammy is also an avid quilter and makes beautiful quilts and keepsakes for her friends and family.

Veterinary Technicians

Amber, V.T.
Amber joined the Cleary Lake team in August of 2021 as an Equine veterinary technician. She will finish her degree at the end of this year from Dakota County Technical College Veterinary Technician program. Shortly after completing her degree, she will take her certification test in the year 2022. She loves to rollerblade, jog, snowboard, teach 4 and 5-year-old kids at her church, and volunteer at This Old Horse. She also has spent 3 summers (2018, 2019, 2021) as a wrangler at a Christian camp in Chetek Wisconsin called Camp Chetek. She lives in Cottage Grove, MN with her mom, dad, and 2 brothers. She also has 2 cats, Milo who is an orange tabby, and Otis who is a brown, orange and white who also has a lazy eye. In the future, she hopes to own her own hobby farm with lots of animals including a couple of horses, chickens, goats ducks, cats, and a dog.

Dani, V.T.
Danielle Larson (Dani) completed her veterinary technician internship at Clvh in April 2015. We liked her so much that we offered her a full time position. She loves dogs,horses, and goats. She mainly practices on the equine side but loves to help out in all departments around the hospital. Dani has a chocolate lab named Bailey, a Springer named Nelli, a horse named Maci, and a goat names George.

Deb, V.T.
Deb Chellsen is a veterinary technician who does overnight patient care and hospital maintenance at Cleary Lake. Deb is a lover of all animals but especially dogs, cats and horses. She grew up in Lakeville and has lived in the Elko area on a small hobby farm with her husband, Keith, for the past 28 years. They share their home with a whole pack of pets and a small herd of horses. Deb has been employed in the animal care business for the past 24 years, with 22 of those in the veterinary field. In Deb’s free time she likes to be with family, friends and pets; especially her dogs. Deb’s hobbies include reading about animals, flower gardening, animal art and photography and anything outdoors

Debbie, C.V.T. I graduated from Argosy University in 2013 as a certified vet tech. My special interests include anything equine, small animal dentistry, and lab work. I live in Northfield with my husband, two sons, a mini dachshund named Tugboat, and a lab/hound mix named Moose. Outside of work I enjoy spending time riding and showing my Irish Draught horse Roary in eventing and dressage. I also enjoy hiking, skiing, and camping with my family.

Jess, V.T.
Jess joined the Cleary Lake team in 2007 as an equine reproduction assistant, and was hired as an equine veterinary technician in August 2009 after graduating from Globe University. Jess manages the reproduction center at the clinic and has a special interest in stallion and mare management. She lives in Inver Grove Heights with her husband David, two dogs (Rocky the Golden Retriever and Buster the mutt), three cats (Bella, Carlos and Sophie) and bunnies. When not at work Jess enjoys spending time outdoors and riding her horse, Sky the Arabian.

Kelsi, V.T.
Kelsi joined the Cleary Lake team in 2011 and enjoys working as a technician for both the equine and small animal hospitals. She especially enjoys phlebotomy and working in the in-house laboratory. In her free time, Kelsi loves to play both sand and indoor volleyball, running 5K races, hunting, going to her family’s cabin, snowmobiling, shopping and spending time with her family and friends. Kelsi lives in Faribault with her husband Andy, daughter Adi and her black labrador named Bela.

Mary, V.T.
Mary joined our team in March 2013, after graduating from Argosy University. Mary is excited to start her career as a veterinary technician, and is still deciding what her favorite parts of veterinary medicine are. Mary moved home to Minnesota after living in the Vail Valley of Colorado for 8 years, to pursue her education as a veterinary technician. Outside of work she enjoys volleyball, bowling, yoga, camping, and spending time with family. Mary lives in Hampton with her three dogs, and two cats.

Tuula, V.T.
Tuula joined Cleary Lake in 1996 as an equine veterinary technician, after graduating from the Medical Institute of Minnesota (now called Argosy). Tuula is our hospital barn manager, and especially enjoys anesthesia, neonatology, and emergency care. She shares her home with her two miniature dachshunds Eddie, and Remy, and too many birds. She also has a pony, Mona. Outside of work, Tuula practices feng shui for chickens works on tricks with her four-legged friends enjoys bonsai and loves learning about canary and finch color genetics.