Dr. Michelle Tilghman has been practicing veterinary medicine since 1982. She is a member of American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), International Veterinary Acupuncture Society (IVAS), American Acupuncture Veterinary Academy (AAVA) and the American Holistic Veterinary Medical Society (AHVMA). A graduate of the University of Georgia’s Veterinary School, she has focused her career on complementary modalities, utilizing her Western education coupled with her knowledge of Eastern medicine. She has been certified as an acupuncturist through IVAS since 1984. In 2004, she received certification as a canine rehabilitation practitioner (CCRP) at the University of Tennessee.

As an international educator, she has taught in Brazil, Belgium, and Germany (to name a few), where she instructed veterinary students and doctors in over 40 sessions on the topics of acupuncture, rehabilitation, and complementary modalities. She was also an adjunct professor at Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine. In 2010, she was invited to be a guest lecturer at Grand Rounds at Purdue University’s School of Veterinary Medicine. She is a contributing author of the second edition of Veterinary Acupuncture: Ancient Art to Modern Medicine (Schoen Am, St Louis, 2001, Mosby).

Dr. Michelle has lectured on acupuncture, Chinese herbs, tongue and pulse, geriatric medicine and physical therapy at IVAS, AHVMA, AVMA and many state veterinary meetings in the United States. She has taught acupuncture for IVAS from 1999 to 2012. In 2012, she was invited to present at the Traditional Chinese Veterinarian Conference in Su-zhou, China.

She has been the president of the AHVMA, has served on the board for the AAVA, and was a former chair of international education for IVAS. She is currently on the conference committee for the AHVMA.

Dr. Michelle is the owner of Loving Touch Animal Center, which focuses on integrative medicine, blending Eastern, Western and Physical Therapy for complete patient care.

Dr. Michelle is the mother of daughters Naia and Rosemary, a student at Ross Veterinary School in St Kitts who will graduate in 2018. Her hobbies include organic gardening and underwater photography. She is a research diver with Mote Marine Aquarium in Sarasota, FL.