Nikki Henry, Dr. Mike Barnett Join Suzanne Shindle in Leading U.S. Hospital Divisions


LOS ANGELES – VCA Animal Hospitals announced today it has welcomed Nikki Henry as Senior Vice President, Hospital Operations for the West Division of U.S. Hospitals and promoted long-time VCA Associate Dr. Mike Barnett to Senior Vice President for the Central Division. Nikki and Mike join Suzanne Shindle, Senior Vice President, Hospital Operations for VCA’s East division, creating a powerful team to support our Associates, clients and pets across VCA’s U.S. hospitals.

“We couldn’t be happier to have Nikki and Mike take on these roles within our VCA community,” said Todd Lavender, DVM and President of VCA Animal Hospitals, a part of Mars Veterinary Health. “They bring a legacy of leadership and a commitment to developing our teams. Our clients can expect experiences rooted in hometown care.”

Nikki Henry joined VCA in July, and her leadership team covers Northern and Southern California, Northwest U.S., and Hawaii. Nikki was raised in upstate New York, attended college in New York City, and has more than 15 years of retail leadership experience with Target Corporation and Abercrombie & Fitch. She found her passion in fast-paced management and the impact it made on people, which led her to continue helping animals and people at VCA.

Dr. Mike Barnett  moves into his new role in October, covering the Mountain Southwest, Heartland and Southwest. Mike has been with VCA for 30 years in roles ranging from Regional Medical Director to Group Vice President, with a consistency of goals to support, serve, and care for VCA’s hospital teams. Mike came to VCA directly after graduating from the University of Illinois College of Veterinary Medicine, joining VCA Detwiler Animal Hospital as an associate veterinarian.

Nikki succeeds David Ridgley in the Western role—David now leads Business Development at VCA—and VCA has since expanded to three divisions to cover the U.S., bringing the company closer to clients across our communities.