Meet the Team
Dr Mia Farr BVSc
Veterinarian
Dr Mia Farr qualified in June 2000 from Onderstepoort. From there she worked in the United Kingdom, South Africa and Botswana. She has a keen interest in animal welfare and has spent 7 years working at various animal welfare societies where she developed an interest in surgery.
In her search to improve her skills as a vet she enrolled and completed a certificate in veterinary acupuncture through the Chi Institute of Florida. She is passionate about integrating her skills as a western medical practitioner with complementary medicine such as acupuncture and herbal medicine.
Dr Angelique Smit BVSc
Veterinarian
I graduated from Onderstepoort, the Veterinary Faculty of the University of Pretoria in November 2002, so I can hardly believe that I have been in practice for over 20 years already.
As a young vet, I worked at several practices in South Africa and in the United Kingdom before moving to Somerset West in 2005. I also completed the North American Veterinary Licencing Exam in April 2006. I got married in 2013, my husband is Schalk Smit. It did cause some confusion changing from Dr Smith to Dr Smit J. I have worked at several practices in the Helderberg Basin since 2005 as well as at the Animal Research Facility of the Department of Physiological Sciences, Faculty of Natural Sciences of Stellenbosch University.
I am pleased to now be a member of the amazing team at Animal Matters Veterinary Hospital. I joined the team to work as a veterinarian in January 2023. It is a pleasure to work with pets, who are much more than pets, but more fur-babies in our clients’ homes. These fur-babies are part of our homes and families for up to 18 years (and in some cases even longer). As a Veterinarian, it is a great reward to be playing a small role in ensuring that this special human-animal bond is a long lasting one.
I am also an avid runner. This includes both road running and trail running. I feel that it is very important to have a good work-life balance and I also feel that a healthy body is home to a healthy mind.
Animal Matters Veterinary Hospital has an amazing team (It is so good, it deserves to be mentioned twice). They all strive to serve the community of Somerset West, and the fur-babies to the best of their ability. Here you will find an abundance of care, compassion and always a warm welcome.
Danica Bagley
Veterinary Nurse
Anje Liebchen
Receptionist
Jenise Looyen
Practice Manager
My passion for animals started at a very young age, from nurturing baby birds to saving drowning ants. My passion grew for horses and dogs even more so, I grew up on a plot of farm animals and I have a very strong passion for animal well being and know this would be my career focus. I Qualified as an Equine Bodyworker in 2014. As a teenager I used to volunteer at Wildlife Sanctuaries as well as numerous outreach projects. Working at Animal Matters is a dream come true as I would like to pursue a career as a Veterinary Nurse.
Fredrick Bowa
Kennel Assistant
I have always loved Animals and when the opportunity of working at a Veterinary Hospital came up, I knew I had to grab it with both hands. I started working at Animal Matters in 2019 and have not looked back since.