Meet Our Team

Dr. Kandra L. Jones, DVM

Dr. Kandra Jones is a Jacksonville native. She graduated from the University of Florida in 1974 and continued her education at Auburn College of Veterinary Medicine where she graduated in the top of her class in 1978. She established Mandarin Veterinary Clinic in 1985. Dr. Jones’ pursuit of excellence in the treatment of small animals, utilization of the latest technology, and standards of care have placed Mandarin Veterinary Clinic among the top 12% of hospitals in the United States certified by the American Animal Hospital Association.

Dr. Jones has been on the State of Florida Board of Veterinary Medicine since 1988 and is Chairperson of its Committee on Standards of Care.  Furthermore, she is a member of the American Animal Hospital Association, the American Veterinary Medicine Association, the Florida Veterinary Medicine Association, and the Jacksonville Veterinary Medicine Society.  Dr. Jones also received the FVMA Gold Star Award in 2004 for outstanding contributions to veterinary medicine.

Dr. Jones’ focal interests are in the areas of internal medicine, dermatology, and dentistry.  She works with several spay-neuter organizations and multiple rescue groups.  Dr. Jones also donates time to local pet charities as well as treating injured or abandoned wildlife.

Personally, Dr. Jones enjoys pets at home as much as at her practice.  Dr. Jones has 2 cats, Loki and Rocky who live with her 3 dogs, Ace, Joker, and Lulu.  When you come to the clinic, you may see Joker and Lulu sitting on their bed in the receptionist area.  She also has a ferret named Zoomer and, recently, a pet frog named Froggy who lives on her planter on the front porch.

Oh, and did we mention that she is an avid gardener? If you ever come across an unusual plant, think of Dr. Jones. She loves growing things!

Dr. Ashley L. Benson, DVM

With over six years of experience as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Dr. Benson is passionate about delivering top-notch care and is a perfect match for Mandarin Veterinary Clinic.  Dr. Benson excels at building lasting relationships with both clients and team members. She not only provides exceptional medical care but also offers comprehensive education to ensure pets live long, healthy lives. She is eager to collaborate with our team and deepen her connection to the community she already calls home.

Jennie Gagnon, Hospital Administrator

Jennie has been working with us since October of 2000. She was born and raised in Ocala and moved to Jacksonville in 1999 to attend the University of North Florida. In 2003, she graduated with a degree in Criminal Justice but decided to stay at Mandarin Veterinary Clinic and follow her passion for animals. Jennie is a proud Navy wife and Navy mom. She is a devoted mother to her three children, Dakota, who recently joined the Navy, Connor, and Randie.

Jennie’s areas of responsibility encompass veterinary practice administration, operational plans, training of staff, funds and resource management, data automation, staffing, safety and security, and the review/evaluation/analysis of the past performance of the practice.  Jennie strives to effectively use all available resources to provide the best possible patient care to animals treated by the hospital.  She understands the critical balance between the administrative and clinical functions in the veterinary health care delivery system and possesses the ability to coordinate and control programs and resources to achieve this balance.

Jennie enjoys camping, fishing, boating, swimming and spending time outdoors with her family. She also enjoys cooking, reading, taking naps, and watching crime documentaries. She is also a UF fan… GO GATORS! Jennie and her family have a Catahoula Leopard Dog, Hank, and three cats, Jabba, Gremlin, and Grogu.

Libby Murphy, Administrative Assistant

Libby initially joined Mandarin Veterinary Clinic in 2006 and worked for us until 2013. She left for a few years to attend FSCJ to pursue a degree. She graduated with honors and received her AA. Afterwards, Libby excitedly rejoined Mandarin Veterinary Clinic in 2019.

She grew up in El Paso, Texas and moved to Tallahassee, Florida after graduating high school. She eventually moved to Jacksonville in 2006. She has 4 grown children, three sons, Tom, Scott, and Jamie, and one daughter, Samantha. She has 6 grandchildren, Adrian, Gabriella, Payton, Brycelyn, Samantha, and Santiago.  Libby also has one dog Snoopy, a chihuahua mix.

Libby wears two hats working for Mandarin Veterinary Clinic. She is lead receptionist and is often the first smiling face that greets you when you bring your pet to the clinic or just come in for a question. She is also one of the friendly voices you hear on the phone when you call the clinic. She helps keep track of your furry family members’ appointments and reminders. She helps all of us remember that this practice is focused on the care of your family members, and as such, we want everyone to feel comfortable and welcome inside our doors.

Libby also assists the hospital administrator by answering and directing phone calls and by organizing and scheduling business appointments and meetings. She also helps with all correspondences; printing regularly scheduled reports and she maintains the filing system.

When Libby isn’t working, she enjoys spending time with her family and watching college football. GO FLORIDA STATE SEMINOLES! She also has a third-degree black belt in Taekwondo.

Shannon Menke, Lead Nurse

Shannon was born and raised in Edina, Minnesota. In 2004, she made the move to Jacksonville, Florida and started at the University of North Florida. She graduated from UNF in 2007 with a B.A. in Sociology and a minor in Social Welfare. While attending school, she worked as a veterinary technician gaining experience assisting doctors with surgeries, emergency situations, patient exams, laboratory tests and many other aspects of veterinary medicine.

Shannon’s passion has always been working with and helping animals, so in February 2016, she gladly accepted the position as a lead nurse at Mandarin Veterinary Clinic. She is ready and eager to assist Dr. Jones and continue her career in the veterinary field.

She has a house full of furry family members at home: Addison Mae, a three-legged Leopard Catahoula, and her brother Jake, 4 cats, Autumn, Moose, Kitten, and Cletus, and little Gus, a one-eyed Guinea Pig.  It’s sometimes a zoo at the house but everyone gets along and plays well together.  18 year old Autumn and little Gus rule the roost and keep everyone in line.

When not at work, Shannon enjoys spending time with her family, swimming, boating and paddle boarding with the dogs in Black Creek, just being outside in the Florida sunshine as much as possible.  If not outside, she’s usually enjoying some quiet time watching a movie or cheering on FSU, her favorite team, GO NOLES!

Brennan Chandler, Veterinary Nurse

Brennan was born in Alabama and raised in Alford, FL. She attended Polk State College and studied Animal Science. Brennan began working for Mandarin Veterinary Clinic in November of 2021.  She has always had a passion for animals even before she could walk. With her godmother being a Veterinarian, Brennan always knew that her goal in life was to work with animals.

Brennan has three fur babies, a Dachshund, and two cats, all adopted from Mandarin Veterinary Clinic.  For the last 5 years, she has groomed many kinds of animals and continues to do so for our clients. If she is not spending her free time with her animals, she is spending it going to the local animal shelters, giving love and comfort to the animals.

Savannah Pepitone, Veterinary Nurse

Savannah was born in Jacksonville but has spent most of her life in MacClenny, Florida. Her passion for animals blossomed here, nurtured by a variety of pets, including amphibians, reptiles, birds, and domesticated animals. With unwavering support from her friends and family, Savannah’s dream of caring for animals has always been encouraged.

Her grandfather, a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine who graduated from the University of Bologna in Italy, along with other veterinarians like Dr. Jones, has profoundly influenced her pursuit of a career in veterinary medicine. Currently, Savannah is studying Biomedical Sciences at the University of North Florida, with plans to apply to vet school in the future.

Savannah loves spending time outdoors, whether at the river or the beach, enjoying the company of her family and friends. She also enjoys watching her favorite football team, the University of Florida. Go Gators!

Julie Marcano, Veterinary Nurse

Born and raised in Orlando, Florida, Julie has always had an incredible passion for animals!  She was that enthusiastic kid in middle school, always carrying a big book about animals around and sharing random animal facts with everyone.  Julie’s passion grew so much that she started a club in high school, where they made toys and treats for the animal shelter and volunteered at fundraisers and animal events.

After high school, Julie decided to dive into hands-on work with animals, earning certifications in dog grooming and dog training.  Currently, Julie is studying to become a Veterinarian, driven by her lifelong dream of helping animals of all sizes, from the tiniest to the most exotic.  Her ultimate goal is to open her own clinic and rescue center, creating a space where people can come together to help each other and animals.

In her free time, she’s a jack of all trades: baking, making bread and pasta from scratch, creating natural juices, drawing, painting, sketching, crocheting, sewing clothes and costumes, and crafting little clay charms.  She occasionally goes for runs on trails with her dog and enjoys playing basketball or volleyball with friends.  Julie is also a big sports fan, rooting for the Miami Heat in basketball and the Arizona Diamondbacks in baseball.

Shannon McLaughlin, Receptionist

Shannon has worked at Mandarin Veterinary Clinic since March 2002. She works hard at maintaining the patient files, stocking supplies and ensuring that the pet waiting rooms are clean and comfortable for our four-legged clients. Shannon has overcome many obstacles in her life, one of which is being born with cerebral palsy. This has not prevented her from achieving many lifelong goals. With the help of her co-workers and job coach, she has realized her primary goal of working with animals.

In addition to working at Mandarin Veterinary Clinic, Shannon also enjoys competitive swimming, karate, YMCA exercise, cheering on the FSU football team and spending time with family and friends.

Cadie Jordan, Veterinary Receptionist

Cadie grew up in Jacksonville, Florida. She moved to Middleburg with her family in 1996 and attended Middleburg High School. Cadie has 3 kids, twin girls, and a son. She also has 2 dogs, 5 cats, and a rooster named Henry. Every client and patient that comes into our clinic is greeted with a smile by Cadie. She tries to make sure they are as comfortable as possible when they come to the clinic and assures them that they will be cared for by our staff.

Cadie joined our team in 2022. She says, “Since I was little, I’ve known that I want animals to be a part of my career.” Her goal is to make sure that every client knows that we are doing everything in our power to keep their animals healthy and happy while they are here with us.

In her spare time, Cadie likes to hang out with her kids playing board games. She is a self proclaimed “Home Body”.