Our Veterinarians

Leann Kuebelbeck, DVM, Diplomate ACVS

Surgeon and Practice Owner

Dr. Leann Kuebelbeck, board-certified surgeon, received her veterinary degree from Kansas State University and completed her internship and surgical residency at Peterson and Smith Equine Hospital in Ocala, Florida. She then came to Brandon, Florida to co-found Brandon Equine Medical Center, then known as Surgi-Care Center for Horses, in 1995. She became the sole owner of the practice in March 2009. In 2014, she changed the name of the practice to Brandon Equine Medical Center to fully encompass all of the services the practice has to offer. Dr. Kuebelbeck’s professional interests include both orthopedic and soft tissue surgery. Dr. Kuebelbeck was the 2009 President of the Florida Association of Equine Practitioners (FAEP) and serves on the Symposium Committee for the American College of Veterinary Surgeons (ACVS).

Ruth-Anne Richter, BSc (Hon), DVM, MS

Surgeon

Dr. Richter received her veterinary degree from the Atlantic Veterinary College on Prince Edward Island, Canada in 1995 after finishing a Bachelor of Science (Hon) degree. Dr. Richter did an equine internship at Mississippi State University, and following a year in private practice, she began a surgical residency at the University of Illinois. She completed her surgical residency and concurrent Master of Science degree in 2000. Since then, Dr. Richter has worked as a staff surgeon at Reid and Associates in West Palm Beach, the Equine Specialty Hospital in Ohio, and East End Equine in Long Island, New York. Dr. Richter joined Brandon Equine Medical Center in 2005 as a staff surgeon. Prior to attending veterinary school, Dr. Richter was farm manager for Christilot Hanson-Boylen, a member of Canada’s Dressage Team. Dr. Richter’s specialties include equine sports medicine, diagnostic imaging⁠—particularly ultrasound⁠—lameness, and surgery.

Michael Maher, DVM, DACVS-LA, CVMMP

Surgeon and Certified Veterinary Medical Manipulation Practitioner

Dr. Michael Maher is a native Floridian who grew up with his three sisters on a small hobby farm in Plantation, Florida. The joys of farm life and growing up with horses left him with no doubt that veterinary medicine was the only path he wanted to travel.

And travel he did! He left the warmth of Florida for Colorado where he earned his bachelor’s degree in animal science and his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree at Colorado State University.

From Colorado, Dr. Maher went to California to intern with Pioneer Equine in Oakdale, California, a practice with a predominantly performance horse clientele that sees approximately 5,700 horses annually. There, he honed his veterinary skills and took a particular interest in surgery, which led him to pursue a surgical residency.

Melissa Restifo, DVM, DACVIM

Internal Medicine Specialist

Dr. Restifo is a self-proclaimed “barn rat” and has been surrounded by horses since long before she could walk. After spending much of her childhood with her grandparents on the back stretch of a Standardbred race track, in middle school, a move to the country found her neighbors with a herd of Shire draft horses. It wasn’t long before she jumped elbow deep into helping with breeding, showing, and training the Shires, in addition to unknowingly having her love of veterinary medicine cultivated by their owners, a wildlife biologist and a small animal veterinarian.

After completing her undergraduate training at Cornell University, Dr. Restifo completed her veterinary degree, internship, and internal medicine residency at the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. During this time, her love of horses kept her anchored firmly in the barn when she wasn’t in the classroom.

Christopher Merren, DVM

Ambulatory Clinician

Dr. Christopher Merren dreamed of becoming a veterinarian from a very young age. Through assisting his father with horseshoeing, he gained respect and knowledge that every part of the animal is vitally important. His family always had various pets, including dogs, goats, rabbits, chickens, and horses, which helped him understand that husbandry is a key component of health in animals. While in middle school, Dr. Merren witnessed a local veterinarian treat a horse in severe pain. It quickly became obvious that the horse had colic and that even with surgery, there would be no hope for a positive outcome. The horse was euthanized to stop his suffering, and Dr. Merren’s drive to become a veterinarian was cemented.

Dr. Merren obtained his Bachelor’s Degree in Animal Science at Angelo State University in San Angelo, Texas, and went on to earn his veterinary degree at Texas A&M University’s School of Veterinary Medicine. Upon becoming a veterinarian, Dr. Merren practiced in the food animal industry in west Texas and then worked in mixed and small animal medicine before opening his own equine and food animal mobile practice. He operated his mobile practice throughout Texas for several years before joining the team of Brandon Equine Medical Center.

Whitney Cutrone, Surgeon 

Surgeon

Dr. Whitney Cutrone was born in Virginia. However, she moved all around the U.S. growing up and considers Texas her adopted home. After obtaining a bachelor’s degree at Texas A&M University, Dr. Cutrone completed her veterinary degree at Oklahoma State University Center for Veterinary Health Sciences in 2016.

Shortly after vet school graduation, Dr. Cutrone moved back to Texas to complete a rotating internship at Equine Sports Medicine and Surgery in Weatherford, Texas. It was during this year Dr. Cutrone discovered that her true passion was within surgery and sports medicine. Following completion, Dr. Cutrone then went on to complete a specialty second internship in Equine Sports Medicine and Surgery, and ultimately completed a Large Animal Surgery Residency at the University of Minnesota. During her surgery residency, Dr. Cutrone served the Large Animal Hospital as Chief Resident and was awarded the Excellence in Clinical and Diagnostic Teaching Award by the student body. She was also selected to present her research at the ACVS Surgery Summit Resident Forum. After completing her surgery residency, Dr. Cutrone stayed on as a Clinical Instructor Emergency Surgeon in Large Animal Surgery at the University of Minnesota.

After 5 years of Dr. Cutrone being perpetually cold, she was itching to get back to warmer weather and joined the team at Brandon Equine Medical Center in summer 2022. While Dr. Cutrone enjoys a multitude of aspect within equine veterinary medicine, her specific professional interests include emergency/colic surgery and upper airway surgery. She is excited to be a part of the team at Brandon Equine, to serve the central Florida horse communities, and form lasting relationships with horse and owners alike.