Dr. Katie Spaulding, DVM, MPH

Dr. Katie Spaulding began practicing shelter medicine at Dakin Humane Society in 2010 as the sole Adoption Center Veterinarian, and is particularly interested in infectious disease prevention and control, and antimicrobial resistance. She also has a special interest in alternative sterilization methods to traditional spay/neuter for the management of free-roaming cat populations. She graduated with a BS in Wildlife Biology and Ecology from UMass Amherst and holds a dual DVM/MPH (Master’s in Public Health) degree from Iowa State University/University of Iowa.

She is passionate about One Health, which is a collaborative, multidisciplinary approach to health, recognizing that human, animal, plant, and ecosystem health are deeply interconnected. In 2017, she moved to Hawaii to work with various animal welfare organizations across the islands to provide accessible veterinary care and perform surgical sterilization, particularly for the free-roaming cat populations there. She also worked as a marine animal stranding volunteer veterinarian with NOAA/Hawaii DLNR and was hired as a veterinarian for the Marine Mammal Center’s Ke Kai Ola Hawaiian Monk Seal hospital.

Throughout the pandemic, Dr. Katie worked as an Infection Preventionist for the Hawaii State Department of Health and served as a One Health Subcommittee Member for the Council of State and Territorial Epidemiologists’ Antimicrobial Resistance Surveillance Task Force.

In 2025, she rejoined the Dakin family as Medical Director and Adoption Center Veterinarian and is very excited to once again be serving the animals and people of the Connecticut River Valley.