Growing up in Kona, Hawaii, Dr. Sharman Elison spent a lot of time on her grandfather’s ranch. There, she cared for horses, spent plenty of time in nature, and developed a deep appreciation for animals of all kinds. For Dr. Elison, there wasn’t deliberation when it came time to choose a career path: a veterinarian was all she’d ever wanted to be!

After graduating Kamehameha Schools, Dr. Elison attended Oklahoma State University for three years to study in their pre-medical science program. Afterward, she spent a year in Washington State University’s veterinary program before transferring to the University of Illinois for her last three years of veterinary training. Having earned two Bachelor’s degrees in pre-medical science and her veterinary degree, Dr. Elison married her husband and returned to Hawaii. In her “free” time during her first pregnancy, Dr. Elison organized and opened Haiku Veterinary Clinic in 1977.

Dr. Elison loves to see people, pets, and families grow together over the years. Working with enthusiastic people and solving problems together is the ultimate reward for her. Medically, she’s passionate about integrating Eastern remedies, like acupuncture and herbal medicine, and state-of-the-art treatments like cold laser therapy into the clinic’s care regimen. She finished Colorado State University’s Veterinary Acupuncture program in 2002, and completed the Chi Institute’s Traditional Chinese Veterinary Medicine course in 2013.

Dr. Elison and her husband Ed have three grown daughters; two live in Hawaii and one lives in Wexford, Ireland. When she has time, Dr. Elison loves to travel, take international trips, and meet up with friends and family whenever possible. At home, Dr. Elison and her husband keep two dogs and a cockatoo. Their cat, Tigger, lives here at the clinic.

Outside of her clinic duties, most of Dr. Elison’s interests still revolve around animals. She is a member of the Aloha State Dressage Society of 2017, and is the immediate past-President of the Hawaii Veterinary Medical Association. She’s also associated with the Kailua Hawaiian Civic Club, which works to provide curatorship of the ancient Ulupo Heiau temple in Oahu.

Dr. Joy Yasuda, originally from Aiea, developed a passion for animals early in life, when her father introduced her to her first dog and allowed her to keep a pet pig in the backyard.

After graduation from Aiea High School, she earned her degree in Animal Sciences from the University of Hawaii at Manoa before pursuing her veterinary education at Washington State University. While attending Washington State, she further honed her expertise with a summer fellowship in veterinary pathology at Johns Hopkins University Medical School. Since 1999, she has been dedicated to practicing veterinary medicine in Hawaii.
When she's not caring for animals, Dr. Yasuda enjoys spending quality time with her family, which includes her husband, their twins, as well as Umi, a rescue dog from the Humane Society, and Sushi, an adopted cat, also from the Humane Society. At the end of her busy days, when she has spare time, she enjoys watching K dramas on Netflix.