Dr. Laura Whitehead has joined the staff of Pinetree Animal Hospital as associate veterinarian.

She was born and raised in Huntington Beach, Calif. After high school, she served four years in the U.S. Marine Corps and was stationed at Quantico, Va.

Whitehead graduated from Northern Virginia Com-0munity College and then returned home to California to complete her undergraduate education at California State University-Long Beach. She then attended the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine.

After graduating, she completed a one-year rotating internship in small animal medicine at the North Carolina State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital. She has been practicing veterinary medicine for the last two years in Northern Virginia.

Whitehead lives in Southern Pines with her husband, Tony, and their three cats. Her hobbies include music and sports.

Pinetree Animal Hospital is now offering ultrasound diagnostics for companion animals. Whitehead has a special interest in small animal ultrasonography.

Although most people think of ultrasound as only a way to confirm pregnancy, there are many other uses, including study of the heart, the liver, spleen, kidneys, pancreas, adrenal glands, urinary bladder, prostate gland and other internal organs. There have been no problems associated with the proper use of diagnostic ultrasound, according to a news release.

Anyone interested in learning more about this service can call Pinetree Animal Hospital at (910) 944-7892.