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Animal Care Hospital
Call us today! 319-378-9000
Call us today! 319-378-9000

1146 Blairs Ferry Rd NE
Cedar Rapids, IA 52402

Our Veterinarians

Meet the folks who make it all happen. We see big potential in every moment, & care deeply about what we do every day.

Dr. David E. Graeff

Dr. David E. Graeff

Owner, Veterinarian

Dr. David Graeff grew up on a farm in a small Missouri community where he developed a fascination with animal care early in life. Shadowing his family’s veterinarian only deepened his passion. Now, he’s able to make a difference in the lives of the area’s families every day as the Owner and Chief Veterinarian here at Animal Care Hospital.

Dr. Graeff studied biochemistry and animal nutrition at the University of Missouri at Columbia before receiving his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the university in 1983. He moved to Iowa shortly after graduation, and has been caring for area pets for more than 25 years! Owner of Animal Care Hospital since 1986, Dr. Graeff is particularly passionate about diagnostic work and problem-solving. For him, the greatest reward of his work is getting to see healthy pets reunited with their happy owners.

Dr. Graeff is past president of both the Downtown Kiwanis Club and the Board of Directors for the Cedar Rapids Area Friends of the Zoo. He’s volunteered with the Hugh O’Brian Youth Foundation and the Boy Scouts Veterinary Explorer Post, and has also served as a volunteer classroom business consultant in the Junior Achievement Project business program. Dr. Graeff was even an international exchange professional to Tanzania, East Africa as a part of the Rotary International Group Study Exchange, and has fond memories of observing wildlife in various parks across the Serengeti.

At home, Dr. Graeff and his partner, Kathy, have one pet: a very vocal black cat named Natalie Coal who doesn’t do anything without talking about it! When he isn’t spending time with family or tending to pets’ needs here at the hospital, Dr. Graeff loves following baseball, college football, and college basketball—his favorite teams are the Kansas City Royals and the Missouri Tigers—and logging nearly 100 rounds of golf per year.

Dr. Sarah Hickey

Dr. Sarah Hickey

Surgical Director

Dr. Sarah Hickey developed a passion for animals during her early years growing up in Dubuque, Iowa, where she spent countless hours on horseback. It didn’t take her long to decide that her purpose in life was to help animals in any way possible, and to strengthen the special bonds between people and their pets. She’s proud to continue pursuing that goal as an Associate Veterinarian here at Animal Care Hospital.

As an undergraduate student, Dr. Hickey had the opportunity to study abroad in Central America and spent time in underdeveloped and overpopulated areas that were littered with trash, starving livestock, and stray dogs and cats.

Her experiences there made a permanent impression on her, and as a result, while attending Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine, she became an ambassador for a non-profit veterinary service organization. Dr. Hickey soon traveled back to developing countries in both Central and South America to provide veterinary care and relief services. Today, she continues to visit developing countries and Native American reservations to provide veterinary care to those in need.

Dr. Hickey received her DVM from Iowa State University in 2015 where she developed a strong interest in integrative medicine and surgical work. Shortly after graduating, she became a certified veterinary acupuncturist through the Colorado State College of Veterinary Medicine, and later, a certified veterinary chiropractitioner. In the years following, she worked diligently to complete surgical courses and mentorships to develop her skill sets in orthopedic and advanced soft-tissue surgery.

When she’s not busy helping animals, Dr. Hickey enjoys riding her fat-tire bicycle, renovating and woodworking, traveling, and spending time with her family, friends, and her dog, Bentley.  Bentley is a rescued, toothless Cavalier King Charles Spaniel that can often be seen riding in his special backpack while he and Dr. Hickey bike around town or snoozing in the front of her kayak on the lake.

Dr. Tyler Zylstra

Dr. Tyler Zylstra

Veterinarian

For many people, there comes a time in their lives when they realize the career paths they chose weren’t meant for them. Such was the case for Dr. Tyler Zylstra. Born and reared in northwest Iowa, Dr. Zylstra initially pursued a career in engineering. He quickly discovered, however, that sitting behind a desk staring at a computer all day simply wasn’t going to work for him. It was at that moment that he decided to follow his heart and work with animals and their owners.

In pursuit of that goal, Dr. Zylstra attended Iowa State University where he completed his undergraduate studies and received his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in 2018. After graduation he relocated to Cedar Rapids where he began working in emergency as well general veterinary medicine. Over time, Dr. Zylstra realized his primary interest was general practice where he can see cases through from start to finish. He also prefers it because he believes that staying a step ahead of illness is the key to helping pets enjoy long, happy, and healthy lives.

Dr. Zylstra and his wife, Ashley, have three dogs: Maggie, a rescue shepherd mix and Dr. Zyltra’s first pet, Missy, a Border Collie mix who enjoys napping on the couch, and Mozzie (a.k.a. “Moose),” another shepherd mix who also loves napping as well as running around chasing his giant purple ball and playing in the snow. In his spare time, Dr. Zylstra enjoys woodworking, sporting clays, spending time outdoors, and playing golf. He is currently remodeling his basement to add a wet bar and media room.

Dr. Allison Culver

Dr. Allison Culver

Veterinarian

A Cedar Rapids native, Dr. Culver has always had a passion for animals and science. As an inquisitive 4-year-old, they demanded to learn the water cycle because “it dried up” was not a satisfactory answer to the question of what happened to puddles, and they would go out of their way to learn about any new critter that crossed their path. Dr. Culver soon realized veterinary medicine provided the perfect opportunity to combine both interests.

Dr. Culver attended Iowa State University where they completed their undergraduate studies and received their DVM in 2022. It was there that they developed a passion for internal medicine, particularly cardiology. Ultimately, a love of problem-solving pushed Dr. Culver to pursue general practice, and they greatly enjoy personalizing veterinary care to best meet the needs of each client and their pet.

Outside of the hospital, Dr. Culver likes to kayak, hike, write fiction, and spend time with family and friends. They hope to eventually inspire their cat, Georgia, to love the outdoors as much as they do—only time will tell if she and Dr. Culver will ever be able to go hiking together.