Meet Our Team
Meet the veterinarians and team at River Ridge Animal Hospital! We’re pleased to provide exceptional vet care for your pets!
Get to Know Our Team
We are solely dedicated to your pet’s care! We look forward to getting to know you, and we hope you’ll take the time to scroll down and get to know us.
Meet Our Veterinarians
Dr. Nathan McClain
Veterinarian
Dr. Nathan McClain grew up in Dixon, Illinois, and graduated from Dixon High School. He earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from the University of Illinois Champaign-Urbana in 2000, then went on to receive his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Illinois in 2004. Dr. McClain joined the staff at Dixon Veterinary Hospital in 2004. He is an avid outdoorsman and enjoys hiking, fishing, and boating on the Rock River. He is excited to once again see old friends and make new ones as he becomes active in the community he grew up in.
Dr. Chris Gunnon
Veterinarian
Dr. Chris Gunnon was born and raised in Dixon, IL. He served in the US Navy from 1989-1993 and graduated from the University of Illinois in 2002 with a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Gunnon currently sits on the Board of Directors and is the acting treasurer for the Northern Illinois Veterinary Medical Association. He practiced both large and small animal medicine in Princeton, IL before moving back to Dixon with his wife and three children. He enjoys practicing small animal medicine and has a special interest in surgery and orthopedics.
Dr. Phil Fassler
Veterinarian
Dr. Phil Fassler was born and raised in Sterling Illinois. He received his veterinary degree from the University of Illinois in 1989 and his master’s degree in Parasitology shortly after that. His work was with the safety of Ivermectin as a heartworm preventative in the sensitive collie breed. He first practiced at the Noyes Animal Hospital in Barrington, Illinois before joining our practice in 1991.
Dr. Phil enjoys the challenge of difficult medical cases and working with the pet owners to ensure they are deeply involved in their pet’s care and understand the choices involved. Surgery is a special interest and he is one of our hospital orthopedic surgeons and especially enjoys the challenge of surgical treatment of cancers that can affect the pets in our practice.
Dr. Phil has been a Northern Illinois Veterinary Medical board member since 2004 and was the board president from 2010-2012. He also became a member of the Illinois State Veterinary Medical executive board in 2010 working to improve Veterinary medical care in our state.
Dr. Erin Graves
Veterinarian
Dr. Erin Graves was born and raised on a small farm in Belvidere, Illinois. She served as an officer in the U. S. Army Veterinary Corps in Corpus Christi, Texas, and graduated from the University of Illinois in 2004 with a Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine and a Masters Degree in Science. Dr. Erin is married with 2 children and lives in Sterling. She enjoys small animal medicine and has a special interest in dentistry. Dr. Graves is excited to be home in Illinois in private practice and looks forward to serving the people and pets of the Sauk Valley area.
Dr. Trisha Cooper
Veterinarian
Dr. Trisha Cooper was born and raised in Chillicothe, Illinois. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in biology from Bradley University in 2009, and her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Illinois in 2014. She practiced mixed animal medicine at a practice in Effingham, Illinois for one year before moving to Dixon to join the staff at River Ridge Animal Hospital in 2015. She enjoys the everyday challenge of small animal medicine and strives to provide the highest quality of care to her patients.
In her free time, she is fascinated with do-it-yourself projects and has built some of the furniture and home decor in her house. When she is not dabbling in carpentry, she enjoys the outdoors, especially boating, fishing, hiking, and running, and hopes to participate in triathlons in the future. She shares her house with Jaxx the husky, Scarlett the pitbull, Saddie the yorkie, and Emmersyn the cat.
Dr. Lauren Robinson
Veterinarian
Dr. Lauren Robinson was born and raised in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science from Iowa State University in 2012. She continued her education at Iowa State and received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 2016. She practices for 2 years at a small animal practice in Moline before joining the team at River Ridge Animal Hospital. She enjoys working with small animals and is interested in preventive care and ultrasound. Dr. Robinson enjoys spending time outdoors whenever she can, including hiking, camping, fishing, and tennis. She spends the rest of her time at home relaxing with her husband and her dog.
Dr. Justin Hohlen
Veterinarian
Dr. Justin Hohlen was raised in Dixon, Illinois. After graduating from Dixon High School, he attended Iowa State University and graduated with a Bachelor of Science degree in animal ecology in 2017. Dr. Hohlen received his Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine from the University of Illinois in 2021. He joined the staff of River Ridge Animal Hospital in 2021. Dr. Hohlen wants to help the pets of the Sauk Valley area live their best lives. He has interests in exotic companion animals, orthopedics, and companion animal reproduction.
Dr. Hohlen lives in Dixon with his wife and their Great Pyrenees dogs. When not at work, he enjoys gardening, hiking, cooking, and working on automotive projects.
Dr. Melissa Corson
Veterinarian
Bio coming soon!
Meet Our Team
