Veterinary Specialties
Each SAGE hospital is equipped with a 24-hour critical care unit for hospitalized patients with serious and life-threatening conditions. Critical care is the continuous support and monitoring of the animal’s needs. Those needs can include oxygen delivery, IV fluids, blood or plasma transfusions, surgery, nutritional delivery, pain control, and of course, TLC. These treatments enhance the quality of care your pet receives during this crucial time, improving the chances of a good outcome.
SAGE has specialists who are board-certified in emergency and critical care. They work closely with our emergency team of doctors at all locations. Our Criticalists have received extensive training in treating patients experiencing trauma, shock, respiratory issues, and other life-threatening conditions.
SAGE Dublin Critical Care Team
Background & Education
Veterinary School: University of California, Davis
Dr. Zuhal Elhan started her veterinary career in 2003 at UC Davis’ Dairy Cattle Teaching and Research Facility, where she worked for several years managing the herd and educating the public. Several years later, she earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Science at UC Davis and began working as a veterinary technician. In 2012, she earned her DVM at UC Davis, and she has worked as an emergency veterinarian at regional hospitals ever since.
Zuhal likes the fast pace and variety of emergency care; other areas of special interest include dermatology and neo-natal care. She has cared for and fostered hundreds of kittens and “bottle babies” over the years and is very well-versed in the different treatment strategies that help these animals thrive.
Zuhal also has a passion for volunteerism and helping people and animals in need. Her volunteer experience includes working in a children’s orphanage in Costa Rica, assisting World Vets in Nicaragua and serving as an intake coordinator at a regional clinic for the homeless. Since 2008, she has worked with Fix Our Ferals and other organizations that spay and neuter cats.
In her free time, Zuhal enjoys tennis, salsa dancing and hiking. She also enjoys skijoring with her Malamute. Skijoring is fun for Zuhal and her dog (who has been trained to mush). He pulls her while she skis behind him. Zuhal’s pets include another dog and two cats, and many foster kittens. She has a kitten room in her home that is dedicated to helping kittens get the best start possible.
Background and Education:
Veterinary School: University of California, Davis
Dr. April LeBlanc attended Mount Holyoke College, earning her BS in Biology with a minor in Studio Art (bronze sculpting). After graduation, Dr. LeBlanc spent time studying depression in economically challenged communities and the positive effect that pet ownership can have on those residents. Dr. LeBlanc received her DVM from UC Davis (1992). Prior to joining SAGE, Dr. LeBlanc worked for several years in the San Francisco Bay Area, beginning her career with the SF SPCA Animal Hospital, before turning her focus to emergency medicine.
When not practicing, April enjoys home improvement projects, gardening, good food, and motorcycles/cars. She is also the proud owner of two cats (Mildred and her sister Abigail) and two dogs (Frida and Chester). April knew that she was going to pursue a career in a veterinary medicine by the time she was seven years-old, and even told her mother so.
Residency-trained in Emergency/Critical Care
Background and Education:
Veterinary School: Western University of Health Sciences, Pomona, CA
Veterinary Internship Training: VCA, West Los Angeles
Diagnostic Pathology Graduate Training: University of Connecticut Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory
Residency Training: Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, Angell Animal Medical Center
Dr. Beth Lieblick has worked in many facets of veterinary medicine, starting as a kennel assistant at a specialty hospital on the East coast when she was in high school. Her focus eventually shifted to pathology, and she spent several years assisting veterinary pathology residents in diagnostics at the University of Connecticut. From there, she moved to general practice, where she worked as a veterinary technician while earning her B.A. in Biology and Microbiology at Hampshire College in Amherst, MA. She continued working as a veterinary technician while earning her M.S. in Pathology and Veterinary Science at the University of Connecticut.
Dr. Lieblick later moved to California, where she earned her DVM at the Western University of Health Sciences in Pomona. She stayed in California for several years, working in emergency hospitals and veterinary referral centers in Norwalk and Los Angeles. In 2015 she returned to the East coast to complete her Emergency and Critical Care Residency at Angell Animal Medical Center, a branch of the Massachusetts Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals.
In her free time, Dr. Lieblick enjoys hiking, backpacking, kayaking, and enjoying the great outdoors with her dogs Ty and Poppy. She has two other pets – a tabby named Sharkbait and a turtle named Louie who has been in her life since she was nine years old.
Background and Education:
Veterinary School: Michigan State University
Dr. Bob Lukas graduated as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Michigan State University (MSU) in 1982. Born and raised in Detroit, Dr. Lukas returned there after veterinary school to practice for six years, the first two in general practice. Then he discovered the complexity, and the intensity of emergency veterinary work.
Dr. Lukas’ last position in Michigan was as Chief of Staff for an emergency practice. He moved to California in 1988 where he worked as a co-manager of an emergency practice in San Leandro for sixteen years. Dr. Lukas then came to Concord to co-manage Contra Costa Veterinary Emergency Center (now part of SAGE Concord) from 2004 until the end of 2007, when he became a partner in SAGE Veterinary Centers and helped establish a veterinary emergency facility in Dublin.
Bob has been a Tri-Valley resident since the early 90s with his wife, two kids, an English bulldog named Mabel, a French bulldog named Stitch, and guinea pigs named after various Star Wars characters (no cats due to family allergies for now). He is a booster for the Danville Mustang Fury soccer team and can be seen at area youth track meets and football games.
Background and Education:
Veterinary School: Tufts University
Internship Training: Angell Memorial Animal Hospital, Boston, MA
Dr. Lynne E. Morris attended the University of Maine where she earned her BS in Animal Science with a minor in Zoology. She graduated from Tufts University School of Veterinary Medicine in 1990, and then completed an internship in medicine and surgery at Angell Memorial Animal Hospital, which is part of the MSPCA. The next 20 years were spent living a somewhat nomadic existence accompanying her Navy husband from duty station to duty station. Fortunately, she was able to practice emergency medicine almost everywhere they called home. Prior to joining SAGE in 2012, Dr. Morris practiced emergency medicine at the Veterinary Emergency Referral Center in Pensacola, Florida. After her husband’s retirement from the Navy, Lynne and her family spent a gap year traveling in Asia, South America, and Europe. They have settled in the Bay Area, and plan to make it their last move!
When not practicing, Lynne enjoys traveling, outdoor activities, cooking, and reading. Besides two boys and a husband, the family includes a chocolate Labrador mix, Samwise Gamgee the Brave; terrier mix Blondie; and a tabby cat named Woody.
Background and Education:
Veterinary School: University of Minnesota, College of Veterinary Medicine, St. Paul, Minnesota and St. George’s University, College of Veterinary Medicine, St. George’s, Grenada
Internship Training: BluePearl Veterinary Partners, New York
Dr. Gurdip Singh started his career in veterinary medicine working with cats and dogs at the Humane Society of Silicon Valley and eventually landed at the Wildlife Center of Silicon Valley where he primarily rescued avian species. He finished veterinary school in 2016 and moved into general practice, where he provided preventative care to animals. In June 2017, he began a Medicine and Surgery internship with a veterinary group in New York City, where he focused on emergency cases and stabilizing patients in the Intensive Care Unit. He enjoys the challenge and variety of cases in emergency medicine. Dr. Singh also appreciates the opportunity to stabilize patients, move them towards recovery, and help them return to their families.
Upon completion of the program in New York, Dr. Singh moved back to California to be closer to his family and friends.
In his free time, Dr. Singh enjoys many pastimes, including visiting with family, running, camping, dancing, and spending time with his Pit bull-Boxer mix, Johnny