Operation Kindness is excited to announce recent additions to our team in support of our mission to care for homeless cats and dogs!
Veterinarians Dr. Rachel DeBender and Dr. Zachary Koontz join our life-saving shelter in North Texas to provide medical care for animals. The new hires are due to our increased investment in medical care to allow us to seek out vulnerable animals in need of life-saving treatment.
Rapidly growing and wanting to meet the demand to save the lives of more dogs and cats, we are bolstering the team at The Rees-Jones Foundation Medical Wing, the on-site medical facility caring for dogs and cats in need of medical treatment.
From exams to vaccinations, to X-rays and major surgeries, our facility can care for up to 120 pets each day. With the addition of Dr. DeBender and Dr. Koontz, Operation Kindness can provide medical services for more sick and injured animals from our rescue partners.
Dr. Rachel DeBender
Joining the team after 11 years at Hillside Veterinary Clinic in Dallas, Dr. DeBender will focus on medical care, including exams, prescribing medication, heartworm treatments, internal medicine, and treatment for infectious disease. She has an extensive background in the medical field for animals, with her career beginning at Texas A&M’s College of Veterinary Medicine and graduating in 2007. After an internship at the Bergh Memorial Animal Hospital of the ASPCA in New York, NY, she spent two years at a clinic in the Boston area before moving back to the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex. As a native Texan growing up in the Fort Worth area, Dr. DeBender has a passion for animal welfare and enjoys spending time with her two dogs, Eleanor and Ally, and cat named Mongo.
“I am honored and thrilled to join the dedicated team at Operation Kindness,” said Dr. DeBender. “I look forward to providing life-saving medical care to dogs and cats in need so that they can find loving homes.”
Dr. Zachary Koontz
Focusing on surgeries, including spay/neuter, amputations, enucleations, growth removals, and dentistry procedures, Dr. Koontz also joins the team in support of homeless animals. Having graduated from Oklahoma State University with a B.S. in Animal Science, he also graduated from Oklahoma State University Center for Veterinary Health Sciences with a DVM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine). In 2013, he moved to North Texas to practice small animal medicine and surgery, mostly with nonprofit organizations, before joining Operation Kindness in August 2021. Dr. Koontz enjoys spending his free time with his two rescue dogs named Betsey and Oatmeal.
“Joining the team at Operation Kindness is a wonderful opportunity to provide care to animals in need of support,” said Dr. Koontz. “I’m excited to be a part of an organization working to better the lives of dogs and cats.”
The Operation Kindness mission aligns with Dr. DeBender and Dr. Koontz’s interests to care for animals and give them the lives they deserve.
“I am extremely excited to welcome Dr. Debender and Dr. Koontz to Operation Kindness,” said Dr. Tiffany Tobaben, Chief Veterinarian at Operation Kindness. “Our ability to care for more dogs and cats that need medical attention before finding their new families will greatly increase with them joining our medical team. This is an exciting time at Operation Kindness, and we are grateful for all of their expertise!”
