Dr. Robert Hargarten grew up on a farm in northwest Indiana where he developed a love for animals and a desire to alleviate their suffering and solve their health problems. He attended Purdue University and received a BS degree in animal science, during which he was accepted into the Purdue Veterinary School, receiving his DVM degree in 1979. Dr. Hargarten is married to Julie and has 6 children and 9 grandchildren, two German Shepherd's named Sammie and Kira, and a bird-Norman.

Dr. Dave Hargarten joined our team in May 2010 after graduating from Purdue University. He grew up in northwest Indiana on a small family farm where his love for animals started. Dr. Dave attended Purdue University for 9 years where he graduated with a Bachelor's degree in Biology, Master's in Meat Science, and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM). He has spent numerous summers at Auburn Hills shadowing his uncle, Dr. Robert Hargarten. Dr. Dave and his wife Gina have three children Nicolas, Logan and Beau.

Dr. Thomas Hitzeman graduated from Purdue University in May 2013. He attended Purdue for 7 years and received a Bachelor's degree in Animal Science and a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM). Dr. Tom grew up in Auburn and has wanted to be a veterinarian as long as he can remember. He began to volunteer at Auburn Hills Animal Hospital in early high school. He enjoys the outdoors, specifically kayaking and fly fishing. Dr. Tom loves spending time with his wife Tracy and 4 children. He has 3 dogs Luna, Supernova and Jax and 2 cats Butterscotch and Theo.

Dr. Therese started here in 2017 while working toward her dream of following in her grandfather’s footsteps of being a veterinarian. She picked up a degree in Medical Imaging and a BGS along the way to becoming a Purdue DVM Candidate for the class of 2023! She is also working on acquiring her Fear Free certification and enjoys trying to make medical care as calm as she can for all patients she meets. Therese has now completed her schooling and has returned to the Auburn Hills family as our newest DVM and has plans to practice on large and small animals. She loves spending her time tending to her many animals including guinea pigs, cats, dogs, horses, chickens, goats and pigs.