Highsmith Animal Hospital

Please carefully review a list of policy changes effective July 15, 2024 (posted in Latest News under "Policy Updates Summer 2024"). This information was emailed to all clients with a current email address on file.
IF YOU HAVE AN AFTER-HOURS EMERGENCY, PLEASE CALL WILMINGTON ANIMAL EMERGENCY & TRAUMA HOSPITAL 910-791-7387 LOCATED @ 50 GREENVILLE AVE WILMINGTON, NC
The outside of our veterinary hospital in Wilmington, NC
  • 3335 Wrightsville Avenue
  • Wilmington,NC 28403
  • Phone: (910) 799-5587
  • Fax: (910) 799-8545
  • Email Us
  • Get Directions
  • Mon-Fri: 8:00am - 6:00pm
  • Dr's Hrs: 8:15am - 11:30am
  • & 2:00pm - 5:30pm
  • Sat: 8:00am - 12:00pm
  • Dr's Hrs: 8:15am - 11:30am
  • Sun: Closed
  • David W. Highsmith

    David W. Highsmith, Doctor of Veterinary Medicine

    Practice Owner
    Dr. Highsmith grew up in Raleigh, North Carolina where he attended N.C.State University at Raleigh as an undergraduate. Since there was no veterinary school in North Carolina at that time, he attended the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia in Athens, Georgia, graduating in 1975.

    Returning to the Raleigh area upon graduation, he went to work as a staff veterinarian in Garner, NC where he had worked as a kennel assistant while attending undergraduate school.

    After 10 years as an employed veterinarian, Dr. Highsmith moved to Wilmington, NC in 1985, where, after a year, he purchased an existing veterinary practice known as Hardison Animal Hospital. Changing the name to Highsmith Animal Hospital, the practice has continued to thrive and grow along with the city of Wilmington.

    Dr. Highsmith now employs a staff of 4 veterinarians, 3 certified veterinary technicians, and 10 other receptionists and assistants.

    After several years of planning and design, in December of 2008 Dr. Highsmith broke ground on a new building for his veterinary practice and relocated to the new facility in August of 2009. With the new and larger space, the clinic is able to continue to provide the best of veterinary services for all our patients and clients.

  • Dr. Jennifer Anderson, DVM

    Veterinarian
    Dr. Anderson grew up in the Richlands, NC area and attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she received her undergraduate degree. After working for a short time in the private field, she applied to and was accepted at N.C. State College of Veterinary Medicine where she graduated in 2002. Upon graduation, she joined the staff at Highsmith Animal Hospital where she has honed her skills in diagnostic veterinary medicine. She is a co-founder of Coastal Pet Hospice, offering mobile pet hospice consultation as well as in home pet euthanasia services.

  • Dr. Meghan Tayloe, DVM

    Veterinarian

    Dr. Tayloe grew up in the area of North Carolina fondly referred to as Little Washington. She attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where she received her undergraduate degrees in Biology and Chemistry. She then attended the N.C. State University College of Veterinary Medicine and received her doctorate in veterinary medicine in 2000. After graduation she practiced for 7 years at Hillsborough Veterinary Clinic until moving to Wilmington, NC in 2007. In the winter of 2007 she joined the veterinary staff at Highsmith Animal Hospital where she enjoys all aspects of practice from surgery and medical diagnostics, geriatric patient care and working with clients to improve the health and well being of their special pets. She is a co-founder of Coastal Pet Hospice, offering mobile pet hospice consultation and pet euthanasia services.

  • Dr. Molly Reger, DVM

    Dr. Reger received her bachelor's of science at UNC Asheville and then graduated from NCSU CVM in May 2023. She enjoys surgery, building relationships with clients, and animals of all shapes & sizes.  She has a special place in her heart for marine mammals and exotics. She loves going to the beach, fishing, playing tennis and lacrosse, bike riding, and of course having her own 2 dogs "Cosm" and "Scully". She is so excited to start her new journey with the Highsmith AH family!

  • Kristina Edmiston, DVM

    Dr. Edmiston grew up in central Pennsylvania and attended Penn State University where she received her undergraduate degree in biomedical sciences. She attended the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine and received her doctorate in veterinary medicine in 2024. Wilmington has always had a special place in her heart, and now she is excited to make it her home. Currently, she has two cats, “Sami” and “Yogi”. Dr. Edmiston is excited to join the Highsmith Animal Hospital family and create long lasting client-patient bonds.

  • Rebecca Boney- Office Manager

    Rebecca has been part of the Highsmith team since 2011. She is originally from Winston- Salem, NC. Rebecca aka Becca started work in the veterinary field in 1993, graduated from Central Carolina Community College in 1998 with a degree in Veterinary Medical Technology.  Prior to Veterinary Medicine she attended Brevard College in the beautiful NC mountains.

    In 2002 she moved to Wilmington, NC and has worked in a few practices in town, while continuing to volunteer with The Turtle Hospital in Topsail, NC, The Serpentarium here in Wilmington, and The NC Aquarium.  She enjoys volunteer work and keeping things green. She also enjoys teaching the new students that come in new to Highsmith and watching them grow into amazing team members. We have several pre-vet students that come and go and being part of their journey is amazing. Rebecca also volunteers with the Domestic Violence women’s shelter, The Rape Crisis Center and giving back to the community.

     This is her work family and she is very passionate in what she does. Helping the clients and their patients is what she has always loved doing. She has moved over into the Management side of veterinary medicine here at Highsmith AH.


  • Kim - Receptionist

     Kim . left the corporate world to persue a more fulfilling career working with animals. She started working at Highsmith Animal Hospital over 29 years ago and has been caretaker for over 17 dogs and cats. She currently lives with two Toy Poodles (Raisin And Peanut). Kim enjoys music, reading and a wide range of physical activities including yoga and running. She is rarely seen without her faithful companion Raisin.

  • Sue- Receptionist

    Sue moved to ILM from Smith Mountain Lake, Va. In the fall of 2010. She had worked in real estate and property management for 24 years and was ready for something new.

    Her daughter and her family live near the water and it was important to her to live here too. She was originally born in Michigan on Lake Erie. In early 2011 she walked into Highsmith Animal Hospital. While waiting for Dr.Speck Guppy, one of the hospital cats, jumped into her lap then climbed into her purse. She knew right then she wanted to be part of this family. The clients and their pets are awesome. There is not a day that goes by that one of the animals doesn’t teach her something about kindness, trust and unconditional love. In her spare time, she likes to spend time with her 3 grandchildren, reading, going to the beach and enjoying life!

    Her motto: Treat people the way you want to be treated!

  • Courtney- Licensed Vet Tech (RVT)

    Courtney graduated from Bergen Community College in 2012 from the Veterinary Technology program. She moved to Wilmington in 2014 and joined the Highsmith family. In her spare time, she enjoys spending time with her daughter Kiara and her cats Ella and Doctor Muffin McStuffins.

     

  • Anna- Veterinary Assistant

    Anna grew up in Phoenix Arizona and moved here in March 2007, after graduating from Phoenix College with an AA in Theatre.

    After being in the restaurant business for 10+ years, she found a brand new start at Highsmith Animal Hospital in Feb 2017. Starting in the kennel, she has now worked her way up to vet tech asst. Getting to share her love of animals with so many people and pets is the best part of this new chapter at Highsmith.

    She is also involved in the local theatre scene and other shenanigans within the city of Wilmington!

    At home she has the loving support of her husband Jake and her special fur baby Marshmallow.

  • Jessica- RVT (Licensed Veterinary Technician)

    Jessica was born and raised here in Wilmington NC. Ever since she was a kid, she loved to help animals and knew she wanted to work with them. She graduated from the CFCC Veterinary Technician program earning her associates degree in veterinary medical technology in 2021. Joining Highsmith Animal Hospital after graduation Jessica has become a vital part of the team. She has a passion for all animals especially dogs and horses. In her free time, she enjoys drawing, spending time with her family, traveling, and listening to music. 

  • Clara- Receptionist

    Clara moved to Wilmington in 2019 to work on her middle grades MAT at UNC-Wilmington after graduating from UNC-Chapel Hill. However, during Covid, she found she needed a change. She has always loved being around animals and currently has three cats: “Lionel”, “Bagel”, and "Chip".  Most of her free time is spent getting snuggles from them, but she also enjoys reading, writing fiction, and playing the piano. She is excited about this new chapter in her life and ready to share some snuggles with more patients at Highsmith.

  • Renee- Veterinary Assistant

    Renee grew up in Winston-Salem NC and moved to Wilmington to attend UNCW in 2015. She has her B.S. in Exercise Science and taught human anatomy at UNCW for two years. She started her vet assistant career back in 2015 and plans to continue! She lives with her daughter, Scarlett, and their four animals, Aubi, Arye, Amie and Azie. When not working, she enjoys spending time with her daughter and her family and friends. She enjoys traveling and hopes to bring her daughter to her favorite travel destination, Osa, Costa Rica, someday.  She is excited about this new chapter!

  • Olivia- Veterinary Assistant

    Olivia was born and raised in Wilmington, NC. When she was little she always knew she wanted to work with animals and help them. She graduated from CFCC in 2021 with an associate’s degree in Arts. She now attends Appalachian State to earn her Bachelor’s degree in Veterinary Technology. She has 2 dogs “Reese” and “Miller”. During her free time she enjoys going to the beach, traveling and hanging out with her friends. She is excited to meet all the sweet patients here at Highsmith Animal Hospital and learn more!!

     

  • Nicole- Veterinary Assistant

    Nicole was born in St. Augustine Florida and later moved to Hickory NC in 2016.  It was then that she began her passion for animals. Her family began a farm where they raised and took care of cows, horses, goats, chickens and more. Nicole rodeoed for about 4 years as a hobby. She began working in veterinary medicine in 2020. In August of 2023 she moved here to Wilmington as a transfer student to UNCW. She is in school for Marine Biology. She is excited to join Highsmith Animal Hospital for her next journey!!


  • Joey- Receptionist

    Joey hails from Gaithersburg, Maryland and moved to the Wilmington area in 2022. He graduated from St. Mary’s college of Maryland in 2021 with a B.A. in Political Science and History. He lives with the two-family cats Cocoa and Pippin. In his spare time, you could find him playing video games or discussing history facts and knowledge.
    Years in Practice:
    May 10, 2024

  • Brooklynn- Veterinary Assistant

    Brooklynn grew up in Athens, Ga and moved to Wilmington in 2021 to pursue her bachelor's degree in biology at UNCW. During her time here she became a member of the university’s Marine Mammal Stranding Program as well as the first supplemental instructor for Animal Physiology. Through these programs she discovered her passion for both animal care and teaching. After undergraduate school, Brooklynn hopes to pursue a career as Veterinarian, and in doing so, educate others about a field she loves so much. Brooklynn grew up on a farm with horses, goats, chickens, and even a llama. She currently has a Pit bull "Kirko" and a cat “Mr. Fish”. She is a new addition to the Highsmith Animal Hospital team and couldn’t be more excited about it!


    Years in Practice:
    May 10, 2024