An Integrated
Approach to Healing

Dr. Mark Ottinger’s interest in medicine came during high school while taking a physical therapy elective. Around this same time, he started working at a pet store and fell in love with working with people and their pets. After receiving a degree in microbiology, he then went on to obtain a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Oklahoma State University.

After graduation, he started working as a general practitioner and, during this time, continued to explore his interest in physical rehabilitation and pain management. He eventually obtained a certificate in canine rehabilitation and started incorporating physical rehabilitation into his everyday practice. After a few years of doing rehab part-time, he is excited to practice physical rehabilitation exclusively.

His current areas of interest include neurologic diseases, diagnostics, and feline patients, but is up to any challenge. 

When Dr. Ottinger isn’t treating patients, he can be found bicycling, hiking, playing in arcades, working in his vegetable garden and homebrewing.

The privilege of watching heart surgery done on a puppy was what tipped the scales for Dr. Cynthia “Cindy” Knapp to finally pursue her dream of veterinary medicine. She began her studies and earned her DVM from The Ohio State University in 1998. Dr. Knapp then completed a one-year internship in small animal medicine in Irving, Texas, eventually making Washington State her home. It was during her internship that Dr. Knapp realized she had a passion for caring for pets in crisis, leading to 19 years of practicing emergency medicine.

Over time, Dr. Knapp observed many clients who were concerned about their older/geriatric animals who were painful even taking multiple medications. It was hard for her to see clients having to make tough decisions about their loved ones’ quality of life when their pet still had so much spirit in them. Wanting to make a difference, Dr. Knapp decided to change her focus and began training to help manage pain for geriatric animals, but with a more holistic approach. She became a certified rehabilitation therapist through the Canine Rehabilitation Institute and a certified small animal massage practitioner at the Northwest School of Animal Massage. Dr. Knapp has also finished her certification in small animal acupuncture at the Chi Institute and hopes to become certified in small animal spinal manipulation in the near future.

When Dr. Knapp is not helping animals, she is spending time with her husband, dancing with her two daughters and running around after her rambunctious golden retrievers, Bentley and Maui.

Vanessa is a Seattlite, born and raised in West Seattle. Before she found her calling as a rehab technician she had a pretty diverse resume. She worked for the U.S. Coast Guard for almost five years and for Sound Transit as a Safety Technician. She even owned her own bookstore in Greenwood.

When Vanessa first started in veterinary medicine, she worked at a clinic in both general and emergency medicine. It wasn’t until her 5-year-old mixed-breed dog, Megan, tore her cruciate ligament that she became interested in veterinary rehabilitation. She read everything she could get her hands on about the subject and became Megan’s very own rehab tech. It was then that Vanessa decided to get serious about her newfound folly, so she enrolled in the Northeast Seminars/University of Tennessee rehabilitation certification program and received her CCRP.

For fun, Vanessa loves to hike and sell books and spends long hours combing the woods for truffles with her truffle-hunting dog, Rocky.

Teresa joined SOUND in 2018, relocating from Southern California. She was born and raised in Santa Fe Springs, CA, and knew she wanted to work with animals since her own dog was diagnosed with cancer when she was in high school. Teresa graduated from California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, with a degree in animal science. For a little change in scenery, she moved to the Caribbean nation of St. Kitts and Nevis for veterinary school. It was in veterinary school that she learned about rehabilitation and she was immediately excited about the idea of options other than medication for injured/geriatric animals. After learning more about rehabilitation, Teresa realized this was where her true passion was and followed a new path and attended Mt. San Antonio College near Los Angeles for her veterinary technician license, followed by the Canine Rehabilitation Institute to become certified in rehabilitation.

Teresa came to us from a clinic in California where she led the rehabilitation program. One of Teresa’s favorite things about rehabilitation is that the field is always growing and changing to develop new modalities, therapeutic exercises and procedures like joint injections and shockwave treatment.

Teresa’s sister lives in the Seattle area, so she was excited to make the move up here to be closer with her and her family. In her spare time, she enjoys playing softball, hiking, going to the lake and just spending time with friends. We think she chose the right place to be! She is a big Raiders fan, though, so we still have a few kinks to work out.

Peggy was introduced to the field of rehabilitation as a multisport athlete with five knee surgeries under her belt by the age of twenty. After logging countless hours in physical therapy clinics, it was an easy career choice. She attended the University of Washington and obtained her Bachelor of Science in Physical Therapy in 1984.  

Peggy has enjoyed a successful and rewarding career as a human PT for nearly 35 years. She has committed to extensive continued education focusing on manual therapy treatment of the spine and extremities, running and cycling biomechanics and rehabilitation of injured athletes.

After closing her private practice in 2016, she finally had the time to pursue her interest in animal rehabilitation. To get more familiar with behavior management and the training of dogs, she began volunteering at Seattle Humane. That wonderful experience confirmed that Peggy’s career was headed for a furry caseload. Peggy became a Certified Canine Rehabilitation Therapist (CCRT) through the Canine Rehabilitation Institute in 2020. She is thrilled to be working with animals alongside the incredible staff at SOUND Veterinary Rehabilitation Center.  

When she’s not working or walking dogs, you will find Peggy riding her bike, hiking, skiing, kayaking or participating in some kind of outdoor adventure.

Matt joined us from the human physical therapy space, after graduating with a doctorate in physical therapy and treating humans. He knew his passion for animals should forge his path ahead and hopes to become certified in canine rehabilitation. In his spare time he enjoys the great outdoors and spending time with his wife and 3 small doggies!

Christie has worked in the veterinary field for the past 15+ years. She originally hails from Nashville, Tennessee, and contrary to what most recent transplants claim, the reason for her recent relocation to our area had nothing to do with our economic boom and everything to do with our weather! She found that in her search for the best places to live with chronic asthma, Seattle came on top, so she and her husband and kitty Bizzy moved.

A self-proclaimed “cat addict,” (Yes, she’s the one with the stroller), she’s also an avid reader, Karaoke enthusiast, (she auditioned for The Voice and American Idol – that’s how good she is!), enjoys painting, arts and crafts and she studied music in college. She brings her experience, her care, and her exceptional communication skills to our practice. And who can resist that warm southern drawl!

Shinya is originally from Osaka, Japan, and moved to Hawaii when he was 18. He graduated from Hawaii Community College and moved to Seattle in 2015. Shinya’s childhood dream was to work in the veterinary field, and he is incredibly excited to be living his dream. Prior to joining SOUND in 2020, he worked as a veterinary assistant in a local general practice.

Shinya shares his home with his wife and their 16 lb. tabby cat Lily, 

who loves people and purrs for pets. When he isn’t playing with Lily or caring for the pets at SOUND, Shinya enjoys art (drawing) and sports, especially cheering on the Hawks!

Kathy, originally from southern California, has been living in Washington for 40 years now – that seemed to have gone fast!

In 1997 Kathy earned an A.A. degree in the Physical Therapy Assistant Program from Green River Community College and has worked as a Physical Therapy Assistant among several clinics in the Seattle area. Her patient load was quite diverse and stretched from working to rehabilitate high school athletes to increasing the mobility and function of senior adults. Kathy’s infectious enthusiasm and focus on her patients’ health goals were deeply appreciated within the practice.

While she immensely enjoyed working with people and building her knowledge base in this field, she was always an animal person and looked to use her skill set in the veterinary field. She enjoys working with her furry patients and getting them on the road to recovery.

In her free time, Kathy loves to bike, ski, and hike throughout the Pacific Northwest, camp with friends and family or relax at home gardening or hanging out with her aging cat, Lenny.

Natasha hails from Manchester, England, where she spent the first half of her professional life as a graphic designer and illustrator.  She made her way to Seattle when her husband was offered a position at Boeing.

Before settling down in the PNW, she and a best friend traveled the world. An animal lover since childhood, she explained that the highlights of her trips were observing animals in their natural environments, from Orangutans in Borneo to sharks in the Great Barrier Reef.

When Natasha first arrived in Seattle, she volunteered at the Woodland Park Zoo and studied Natural Science Illustration at the University of Washington, which is where she thought she would resume her career. But, her heart kept returning to a story she had seen years earlier on a local news station in the UK. It featured a physical rehabilitation program for dogs who were suffering pain from injuries or illnesses. She was so inspired by their transformation into happy, healthy, pain-free pups that she decided to pursue veterinary rehabilitation as a career in her “next” life.

After being a stay-at-home “mum” for a while, she successfully completed the Veterinary Technician Program at PIMA. During her internship at ASOC, she spent time with the rehab team, learning as much as she could and hoping to finally land her dream job. Her dream came true in the fall of 2017.

Natasha shares her home with her four lovely boys, husband Mark, son Archie, Buddy, “the best cat in the world,” and their most recent addition Monty, a miniature Australian Shepherd.

Her interests include traveling, camping, movies, bike riding, movies and she still loves to pick up a pencil and doodle.

Bio TBA

Annabel was born and raised in Los Angeles, where she studied Biology while volunteering at animal shelters and competing in show choir. In late 2019 she traded never ending sunshine for the beautiful Washington landscape, and after working as a barista for over half a decade, she decided to put her years of animal volunteer work to use with SOUND. At home Annabel has 2 black and white cats named Ace and Toby, both of which were rescued from a shelter in Southern California, though she grew up with 2 dogs who were very important members of her family. When not at work, she can be found playing her favorite video games such as Animal Crossing and Red Dead Redemption 2, singing cheesy Broadway tunes, or spending time with her loved ones. Never be afraid to ask her questions, sharing information is one of her favorite hobbies!

Issy, short for Isabella, hails from Nottingham, England, where she inherited her love of animals, big and small. She has been working with animals since she was 17 years old. She became a certified Animal Care Assistant for the Royal Society for the Protection of Animals (RSPCA) and after completing her certification she moved to Thailand where she managed a small street animal clinic named PhaNgan Animal Care. It was there where she met her American-born husband, Chase, and the two of them took off to China where they both taught English to children in Beijing and Chongqing.

After a while, they both yearned to put down roots, so they moved to the Seattle area where her husband is originally from. She dove right back into the animal care field and worked at PAWS as Animal Care Lead before making her way to ASOC.

Issy may have settled down, but her adventurous spirit remains. She has climbed Mt. Rainier and is currently in training to become a marathon runner! She shares her love of corgis with The Queen and enjoys spending time with her spunky corgi, Arthur. She also enjoys cooking, trying exotic cuisines and traveling. She believes that if you dance for 10 minutes a day, you’ll increase your happiness by at least 50%. When you encounter Issy, be prepared to be charmed by her English accent and her infectious positivity!