OUr Team
Dr Trevor Cannell
Trevor was born and bred in the UK. After qualifying as a vet in 1986, he spent his first year working and travelling Australia, before heading back to the UK and settling into a career in companion animal practice in Southampton.
In 2009 Trevor and his family moved to Melbourne, and settled in Canterbury. When Hawthorn Vet Clinic came up for sale, there was no hesitation in returning to practice ownership.
Away from work, aviation has consumed a lot of Trevor’s leisure time. Staring with a single parachute jump in the early university years, skydiving became a major passion for 20 years, and Trevor was part of the British formation skydiving team, competing at world championships. He is also a pilot, and holds a commercial pilots licence here in Australia. On terra firma, Trevor is also a keen golfer, and also enjoys motorcycling, and the joys of a 1960’s Lotus sports car (which emigrated to Australia with the family!)
In the practice, Trevor works as a “GP”, but has also always taken a keen interest in soft tissue surgery. In an increasingly corporate world, as more and more clinics are being swallowed up into larger groups, Trevor believes strongly in the values of the traditional, independently owned, “family GP” style of practice – where our clients get to know the staff (and vice versa), and can ask to see the same vet – who in turn get to know you and your pets over the longer term
Dr Sharon Rowland
Sharon graduated from the University of Melbourne in 1990. After graduation, she worked in mixed animal practice, treating 'all creatures great and small' in South Australia. Since then however, she has pursed her interests in companion animal medicine. This has included practice in the United Kingdom, back in Australia where she established the Kensington Veterinary Clinic and completed a Masters of Veterinary Studies; and in the USA and New Zealand.
With a young family, Sharon has happily settled back into Melbourne, where she is excited to be once again back in a small, client focused clinic. All areas of veterinary science continue to interest her, but she particularly enjoys small animal medicine and surgery, dentistry and dermatology.
Dr Gianne Ficatas
We are thrilled to welcome Dr Gianne Ficatas to the team at Hawthorn Veterinary Clinic.
Having grown up in Melbourne’s inner east, Dr Gianne is particularly excited to return to the local community and provide veterinary care in an area that has always been close to home. She graduated from the University of Melbourne in 2020 and has spent the past six years working as a small animal veterinarian.
Dr Gianne has a particular interest in internal medicine and the management of chronic and complex conditions, including gastrointestinal disease, diabetes and other ongoing medical cases. She has undertaken extensive further education, including advanced training in abdominal ultrasound.
We are excited to now offer comprehensive abdominal ultrasound examinations in house, allowing patients to access advanced diagnostic imaging alongside their ongoing veterinary care. Having this service available within the clinic helps minimise the stress and inconvenience of travelling elsewhere for investigations, while providing continuity of care for both patients and their owners.
In 2025, Dr Gianne completed her Memberships in Small Animal Medicine with the Australian and New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists (MANZCVS), following extensive postgraduate study and examination.
Outside of clinical practice, Dr Gianne is passionate about veterinary education and public pet health. She is a regular veterinary contributor over the last few years on 3AW radio, where she discusses a range of pet health topics with Denis Walter.
Dr Gianne also has a strong passion for animal welfare and international veterinary outreach. She regularly volunteers in Lombok, Indonesia, working alongside local veterinary teams on stray dog management and population control programs. She also enjoys mentoring veterinary students from the University of Melbourne and working alongside local veterinarians to share knowledge and improve veterinary care.
Dr Gianne is delighted to begin this new chapter at Hawthorn Veterinary Clinic and looks forward to caring for the pets and families of the local community.
Dr James Taylor
We are excited to announce the addition of Dr James Taylor to our veterinary team at Hawthorn Vet Clinic. James brings a wealth of experience having undergone extensive training in orthopedic surgery along with advanced medicine an ultrasonography. James performs TPLO, the gold standard technique for cranial cruciate ligament repair in dogs and we are excited to be able to offer this to our patients. He has also worked for a specialist mobile imaging / medicine service for 4 years and is able to perform advanced abdominal ultrasound along with echocardiography in both dogs and cats. He is currently spending the majority of his time working as head vet a Brighton Vet Hospital but on Fridays his services are available here at Hawthorn. In his spare time James loves to play sport and has already established a golving rivalry with our dual owner Trevor.
Marie Hirst
Marie has worked at Hawthorn Veterinary Clinic for a number of years. Previously she worked as a graphic artist, made cat related items for the Art Centre Market and volunteered at the Collingwood Children’s Farm. During Marie’s time at the clinic, she has got to know many of the clients and developed a special bond with their pets.
She has a love of all animals, especially cats and has a very beautiful Ragdoll called Lucy, who supervise her every move.
Marie is proud to be part of such a caring and compassionate team.
Alice Armstrong
Alice has always been very interested in animals. Growing up her pets included guinea pigs, cats, birds, hens, mice, rabbits, lizards, frogs, hermit crabs and a dog. She has volunteered in vet practices from a young age, gaining valuable ‘hands on’ experience. She commenced working at Hawthorn Veterinary Clinic in 2013 and is on her way to completing her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing.
Alice’s current pets include a Devon Rex cat named Peggy and a whippet called Lois.
Katherine 'Kat' Gekas
Katherine graduated with an Associate Degree of Veterinary Nursing from La Trobe University in 2019, gaining valuable placement experience at the RSPCA and Lort Smith Animal Hospital before joining Hawthorn Veterinary Clinic in 2020.
Kat has a particular interest in ophthalmic surgery and TPLOs, and brings a strong passion for patient care to everything she does. She's an excellent support in theatre, confident scrubbing into surgery and assisting with handovers, and highly skilled in catheterisation, blood collection and in-house testing. A versatile team player, Kat especially enjoys monitoring surgeries and performing dental procedures — she loves seeing a good clean-up job on a set of teeth!
Before veterinary nursing, Katherine completed a Bachelor of Information Technology (Multimedia) at Swinburne University and worked at Channel 31. She's also a dedicated musician, playing piano, percussion and bouzouki, with 11 years in the Australian Youth Band Southern Stars (performing alongside artists including Keith Urban) and 17 years with the City of Melbourne Highland Pipes and Drums Band, including performances at the Edinburgh Military Tattoo. Katherine has completed all three Duke of Edinburgh Awards, and her love of animals began through volunteering with the RSPCA at school. At home, she's owned by Fozzie, her ginger cat with a flair for dressing up.
Layla Davide
Layla has been passionate about veterinary nursing from a young age, beginning her journey in the veterinary field at just 16 through after-school volunteering. Her dedication and enthusiasm for animal care led her to secure her first position at a veterinary clinic at 18, where she continued to develop her skills and knowledge within a clinical environment.
Layla has experience working in general veterinary practice and has recently begun working casually in an emergency setting, allowing her to broaden her clinical knowledge and gain valuable experience in emergency and critical patient care. She completed her Certificate IV in Veterinary Nursing in 2025.
Her professional interests include exotic animal care, emergency and critical care, surgical anaesthesia, and building strong relationships with clients and their pets. Layla also has a passion for clinic social media and enjoys showcasing the wonderful work that happens behind the scenes — proudly embracing her role as the clinic’s “clinical social media girl!”
Outside of work, Layla enjoys volunteering with wildlife, baking, and pet sitting for clinic clients. At home, she shares her life with her two rabbits, Mav and Theo, her German Spitz, Caesar, and her blue-tongue lizard, Lizzy.
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