Founder, Veterinarian
Although Dr. Kelly Harper adored animals since her earliest days and constantly tried to rescue as many pets as she possibly could, she didn’t consider pursuing veterinary medicine until her college years. When she decided to pair her talent for helping animals stay healthy with her deep-rooted passion for bettering the lives of their loving owners, there was no turning back—Dr. Harper knew that she was destined to help others as a veterinarian! Now, she’s the proud owner and operator of Tuscan Ridge Animal Hospital.
Dr. Harper was born and raised in Fairfax, Virginia in a family full of animal lovers. It was there that her veterinary journey started—she signed up as a Kennel Attendant at a local hospital, and it wasn’t long before she was observing surgeries and helping out wherever she could. Dr. Harper then joined a mixed-animal practice in rural New Jersey, splitting her work hours between helping the veterinarian in the hospital and venturing out on farm calls to help livestock. She also explored medical research while working at the Department of Small Animal Medicine & Surgery at the National Institutes of Health and the Walter Reed Army Institute of Research.
Dr. Harper earned her Bachelor’s degree in laboratory animal science from Delaware Valley College of Science and Agriculture in 1992, and her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine at Virginia-Maryland Regional College of Veterinary Medicine in 1997. Over the course of her career, Dr. Harper has worked multi-doctor veterinary practices in Ohio, New York, and North Carolina. Always looking for the next challenge, Dr. Harper decided that she wanted to use her wealth of experience to make a difference in her own way and start her own practice. Tuscan Ridge Animal Hospital opened in March of 2014, and Dr. Harper and her team have been caring for pets in Wake Forest and beyond ever since!
As a vet, Dr. Harper loves the wide variety of patients and clients she gets to serve on a daily basis. Her professional interests include surgery, dentistry and dermatology work. Dr. Harper is also USDA-APHIS certified to write health certificates. Above all, she likes knowing that she’s able to make a lasting impact on the community’s families.
Outside of work, Dr. Harper enjoys traveling, reading and spending quality time with her family and friends. She and her husband, Brian, have two grown daughters, Rachael & Lauren, and several pets: Marley, and Delta who are Brian’s duck-hunting partners; a mischievous Beagle who goes by Penny; and three cats named Chester, Sammy, and Persie.
