Today we’d like to introduce you to Alissa Anderson.
Hi Alissa, please kick things off for us with an introduction to yourself and your story.
I grew up in south-central Texas. I was obsessed with animals from a young age (especially dogs and horses!) and knew I wanted to make caring for them my vocation. I received a Bachelor’s degree in Biology and Psychology from a small liberal arts school, Hendrix College. In 2014 I graduated from Oklahoma State University with my Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree.
I started my veterinary career as an equine veterinarian in North Texas. Next I transitioned to a mixed animal practice, where I discovered that I really enjoy working with all kinds of animals! Starting out as a large animal vet, I was used to making farm & house calls, and quickly found out just how much in home end-of-life care can mean to families. I then joined a small mobile veterinary practice where I learned how to provide exceptional euthanasia and hospice services to dogs and cats. In early 2020, I moved to the upstate of South Carolina to found Faithful Hearts and provide these much needed services to pets in the region.
I believe as a doctor one should always strive to learn and improve skills through continuing education and training (truthfully, many veterinary schools provide minimal training in best euthanasia care). I have completed advanced training in companion animal euthanasia, including especially difficult euthanasias. I have also completed a 15-month+ post-doctoral training program for certification in veterinary end-of-life care and a year of post-doctoral acupuncture studies and hands-on training to become certified in veterinary medical acupuncture.
Certifications:
CHPV (Certified Hospice and Palliative Veterinarian), IAAHPC
cVMA (Certified in Veterinary Medical Acupuncture), Curacore
Low Stress Handling Certified Silver
VBMC (Certified Veterinary Botanical Medicine Consultant), Curacore
Personally, I have been through the end of life care and decision processes with my own pets, and I deeply believes that certified, compassionate, and highly skilled end-of-life care in the home should be available to pets and their owners. A peaceful passing is one of the greatest acts of kindness we can show our beloved animals when it’s time, and often humane euthanasia is the best choice to provide this peaceful transition. I have been dedicated to providing exclusively end-of-life veterinary care for nearly 8 years now.
I’m sure it wasn’t obstacle-free, but would you say the journey has been fairly smooth so far?
It has definitely been a challenging journey to get to where I am today. It took a while to find my place in the veterinary field and in the early years we moved often for jobs. It’s not easy moving a menagerie, including a pot belly pig, but no one gets left behind!
I launched Faithful Hearts in April 2020, in the midst of COVID. We experienced many of the usual small business challenges and growing pains. In December 2023 we finally launched our sister company (after 2 tough years of working extremely long hours, planning & saving). Our Furever Faithful Pet Aquamation offers water-based pet cremation. Aquamation is a gentler alternative to traditional flame cremation, and offers 90% energy savings over it. We are committed to keeping the Upstate beautiful!
In 2024 I was diagnosed with an advanced cancer. I worked close to full time around surgery & recovery, chemo, and radiation. I am currently cancer free but treatments extend for up to 10 years and they continue to be a struggle.
Staying independently-owned as our costs have risen, including the added cost of cancer treatments, has been a challenge and we continuously work hard to find ways to keep things sustainable.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Faithful Hearts Mobile Veterinary Services is a local, privately-owned veterinary service that provides compassionate in-home pet euthanasia and cremation care for dogs and cats in Greenville, Anderson, Simpsonville, Easley, Greenwood, and nearby Upstate South Carolina communities.
Our personalized care is led by the Upstate’s first certified hospice veterinarian, Dr. Alissa Anderson. We offer the highest level of expert care in your pet’s most fragile moments. Also unique to Faithful Hearts is our continuity-of-care with gentler, greener cremation services through our Furever Faithful Pet Aquamation. We have a strong grief support program to continue helping the families we serve, even after their pet’s transition – that is one of the things I am most proud of!
Private equity and venture capital firms have heavily infiltrated veterinary medicine in recent years, including the end-of-life care realm, Being independent, we are happy to offer more personalized care and give families a non-corporate choice. When you contact Faithful Hearts, you’re speaking directly with our small, dedicated team, not a national call center. Every conversation is personal because every pet and every family matters to us.
We’d love to hear about any fond memories you have from when you were growing up?
When I was little I wanted to be a jockey. Unfortunately I grew too tall for that. But I had a lot of fun growing up racing my horses around the fields and riding in the country.
Contact Info:
- Website: https://www.faithfulheartsvet.com
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/faithfulheartsvet
