Meet the veterinarians
About Dr. Layne Norlund
I grew up on a small family farm in the beautiful hills of the Napa Valley, in northern California, with a short stint on the equally beautiful island of Kodiak, Alaska. I spent my youth roaming and exploring in California and Alaska, with my border collie, Thor, at my side.
At the age of 14, I began spending my summers working on a cattle ranch on Kodiak Island, and continued through high school and into college. There I gained an interest in veterinary medicine, spending much of one summer caring for calves poisoned by eating lupine, and cattle injured by Kodiak bears.
I prepared for veterinary school as an undergraduate at Brigham Young University in Utah, and attended veterinary school at Purdue University in Indiana, graduating in 1987. I have worked in many areas of the veterinary profession, from small and large animal practice, to laboratory animal medicine in the US Army Veterinary Corps and the pharmaceutical industry, to food safety assurance with the USDA, to teaching in veterinary technician training programs.
During my private practice years, I enjoyed engaging with pet owners as much as with pets. I have cherished the poignant opportunities to advise and support families through difficult decision periods, when they must balance their ill or injured pet’s well-being against their desire to have their pet with them for as long as possible. As pet guardians, we have the privilege and responsibility of providing a peaceful passing for our pets, in order to protect them from avoidable suffering.
I am thrilled to be part of the Lap of Love family, where I can provide a loving and peaceful passing for pets, as I have been able to do for mine. I currently share my life with my rambunctious parti-color poodle, Moseley, and my precious Welsh corgi, Babu. I am unable to fathom the time when I must say goodbye to either of them, hoping that they are either taken swiftly, or are provided a peaceful passing on my Lap of Love.
About Dr. Casandra Huelin
I grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, which resulted in a love of wild animals and the great outdoors. Although I wasn’t one of those kids that always knew they wanted to be a veterinarian when they grew up, I always knew I wanted to work with animals.
After high school I moved to northern California to study Zoology at Humboldt State University. I spent my time exploring the redwood forests and tide pools. It was while studying abroad in New Zealand that I realized I wanted to become a veterinarian. It seemed like a rewarding career that would enable me to help both people and animals.
I moved again, to Massachusetts, to attend the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. It was there that I learned about the importance of the human-animal bond and the benefits it provides us. I worked with my dog, a golden retriever named Mickie, to become a pet therapy team with Pet Partners and visited with people in need of the unconditional love that only our pets can give.
It is this respect and love of the human-animal bond that drives me in my career. I hope that my role as a veterinarian helps strengthen that bond. It is an honor that I get to help families make one of the most important decisions they must make for their best friend - when to say goodbye. Every pet deserves to pass away peacefully in a loving environment, surrounded by their family.
I have been living in the Salt Lake City area since 2016. I continue to do pet therapy visits with Mickie and enjoy Latin dancing during my free time. As much as I can, I spend my time hiking with Mickie in the Wasatch mountains. My cat, Jingles, is not a fan of the great outdoors and spends her time at home.
Pronouns: She/Her
About Dr. Andrea Hafar
I was born and raised in Montana, where I always had a dog (or two) by my side exploring the mountains, and a cat waiting at home for affection. In our home growing up, our pets were always family, and I experienced firsthand the unconditional love that our pets offer us during all of life's ups and downs.
I stayed in Montana for college, where I graduated with a degree in Philosophy from the University of Montana with plans to go to law school after fulfilling a lifelong dream to volunteer with the Peace Corps. While serving in Honduras, I had the opportunity to help translate for visiting doctors from the United States who came to provide specialized surgeries and other medical care for my Honduran neighbors. I was captivated by the resilience of life, and utterly fascinated by the procedures and medical principles that those doctors taught me. My interest did not go unnoticed, and one of the nurses told me she was certain I was in for a career change.
She was right! From that moment, I shifted my focus to medicine, and my lifelong passion for animals guided my focus to veterinary work as my life's calling. Upon returning to the US after finishing my volunteer service, I immediately jumped into a Post-Bacc Pre-Medical program at Montana State to prepare for Veterinary School. Then life took to me to Pullman, Washington, to finish my doctorate at Washington State University. While there, I adopted a sweet senior shelter dog named Bernice to keep me sane through all the studying and to remind me of the importance of taking time to play in the mountains.
Bernie and I moved to Park City in 2016 to start my career as a companion animal veterinarian. Slowly, she started to lose her energy, and we traded our trail runs for leisurely neighborhood strolls. When she was losing her battle with cancer, I made the difficult decision to help her pass away peacefully. We said our final goodbye on a sunny patch of grass with her face covered in cake and fried chicken. It still brings me comfort to know that I gave my best friend a proper farewell.
The most impactful experiences I have had as a veterinarian are during end of life care, when families invite me into this deeply personal moment in their lives. It is an honor to help guide pet parents through their most difficult decisions, and to help their beloved pets say goodbye in comfort and dignity of their own homes.
In my free time, you can find me in the mountains playing with my rescue dog, Tigo, trying to enjoy life like he does.
About Dr. Layne Norlund
I grew up on a small family farm in the beautiful hills of the Napa Valley, in northern California, with a short stint on the equally beautiful island of Kodiak, Alaska. I spent my youth roaming and exploring in California and Alaska, with my border collie, Thor, at my side.
At the age of 14, I began spending my summers working on a cattle ranch on Kodiak Island, and continued through high school and into college. There I gained an interest in veterinary medicine, spending much of one summer caring for calves poisoned by eating lupine, and cattle injured by Kodiak bears.
I prepared for veterinary school as an undergraduate at Brigham Young University in Utah, and attended veterinary school at Purdue University in Indiana, graduating in 1987. I have worked in many areas of the veterinary profession, from small and large animal practice, to laboratory animal medicine in the US Army Veterinary Corps and the pharmaceutical industry, to food safety assurance with the USDA, to teaching in veterinary technician training programs.
During my private practice years, I enjoyed engaging with pet owners as much as with pets. I have cherished the poignant opportunities to advise and support families through difficult decision periods, when they must balance their ill or injured pet’s well-being against their desire to have their pet with them for as long as possible. As pet guardians, we have the privilege and responsibility of providing a peaceful passing for our pets, in order to protect them from avoidable suffering.
I am thrilled to be part of the Lap of Love family, where I can provide a loving and peaceful passing for pets, as I have been able to do for mine. I currently share my life with my rambunctious parti-color poodle, Moseley, and my precious Welsh corgi, Babu. I am unable to fathom the time when I must say goodbye to either of them, hoping that they are either taken swiftly, or are provided a peaceful passing on my Lap of Love.
About Dr. Casandra Huelin
I grew up in Anchorage, Alaska, which resulted in a love of wild animals and the great outdoors. Although I wasn’t one of those kids that always knew they wanted to be a veterinarian when they grew up, I always knew I wanted to work with animals.
After high school I moved to northern California to study Zoology at Humboldt State University. I spent my time exploring the redwood forests and tide pools. It was while studying abroad in New Zealand that I realized I wanted to become a veterinarian. It seemed like a rewarding career that would enable me to help both people and animals.
I moved again, to Massachusetts, to attend the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University. It was there that I learned about the importance of the human-animal bond and the benefits it provides us. I worked with my dog, a golden retriever named Mickie, to become a pet therapy team with Pet Partners and visited with people in need of the unconditional love that only our pets can give.
It is this respect and love of the human-animal bond that drives me in my career. I hope that my role as a veterinarian helps strengthen that bond. It is an honor that I get to help families make one of the most important decisions they must make for their best friend - when to say goodbye. Every pet deserves to pass away peacefully in a loving environment, surrounded by their family.
I have been living in the Salt Lake City area since 2016. I continue to do pet therapy visits with Mickie and enjoy Latin dancing during my free time. As much as I can, I spend my time hiking with Mickie in the Wasatch mountains. My cat, Jingles, is not a fan of the great outdoors and spends her time at home.
Pronouns: She/Her
About Dr. Andrea Hafar
I was born and raised in Montana, where I always had a dog (or two) by my side exploring the mountains, and a cat waiting at home for affection. In our home growing up, our pets were always family, and I experienced firsthand the unconditional love that our pets offer us during all of life's ups and downs.
I stayed in Montana for college, where I graduated with a degree in Philosophy from the University of Montana with plans to go to law school after fulfilling a lifelong dream to volunteer with the Peace Corps. While serving in Honduras, I had the opportunity to help translate for visiting doctors from the United States who came to provide specialized surgeries and other medical care for my Honduran neighbors. I was captivated by the resilience of life, and utterly fascinated by the procedures and medical principles that those doctors taught me. My interest did not go unnoticed, and one of the nurses told me she was certain I was in for a career change.
She was right! From that moment, I shifted my focus to medicine, and my lifelong passion for animals guided my focus to veterinary work as my life's calling. Upon returning to the US after finishing my volunteer service, I immediately jumped into a Post-Bacc Pre-Medical program at Montana State to prepare for Veterinary School. Then life took to me to Pullman, Washington, to finish my doctorate at Washington State University. While there, I adopted a sweet senior shelter dog named Bernice to keep me sane through all the studying and to remind me of the importance of taking time to play in the mountains.
Bernie and I moved to Park City in 2016 to start my career as a companion animal veterinarian. Slowly, she started to lose her energy, and we traded our trail runs for leisurely neighborhood strolls. When she was losing her battle with cancer, I made the difficult decision to help her pass away peacefully. We said our final goodbye on a sunny patch of grass with her face covered in cake and fried chicken. It still brings me comfort to know that I gave my best friend a proper farewell.
The most impactful experiences I have had as a veterinarian are during end of life care, when families invite me into this deeply personal moment in their lives. It is an honor to help guide pet parents through their most difficult decisions, and to help their beloved pets say goodbye in comfort and dignity of their own homes.
In my free time, you can find me in the mountains playing with my rescue dog, Tigo, trying to enjoy life like he does.
About Dr. Layne Norlund
I grew up on a small family farm in the beautiful hills of the Napa Valley, in northern California, with a short stint on the equally beautiful island of Kodiak, Alaska. I spent my youth roaming and exploring in California and Alaska, with my border collie, Thor, at my side.
At the age of 14, I began spending my summers working on a cattle ranch on Kodiak Island, and continued through high school and into college. There I gained an interest in veterinary medicine, spending much of one summer caring for calves poisoned by eating lupine, and cattle injured by Kodiak bears.
I prepared for veterinary school as an undergraduate at Brigham Young University in Utah, and attended veterinary school at Purdue University in Indiana, graduating in 1987. I have worked in many areas of the veterinary profession, from small and large animal practice, to laboratory animal medicine in the US Army Veterinary Corps and the pharmaceutical industry, to food safety assurance with the USDA, to teaching in veterinary technician training programs.
During my private practice years, I enjoyed engaging with pet owners as much as with pets. I have cherished the poignant opportunities to advise and support families through difficult decision periods, when they must balance their ill or injured pet’s well-being against their desire to have their pet with them for as long as possible. As pet guardians, we have the privilege and responsibility of providing a peaceful passing for our pets, in order to protect them from avoidable suffering.
I am thrilled to be part of the Lap of Love family, where I can provide a loving and peaceful passing for pets, as I have been able to do for mine. I currently share my life with my rambunctious parti-color poodle, Moseley, and my precious Welsh corgi, Babu. I am unable to fathom the time when I must say goodbye to either of them, hoping that they are either taken swiftly, or are provided a peaceful passing on my Lap of Love.