Patricia Ann Pillsbury, DVM, (January 5, 1962 – July 23, 2019)

Dr. Patricia (Patti) Pillsbury passed away on July 23 after a long courageous battle with ovarian cancer. She was born on January 5, 1962 in Detroit to Donald and Marilyn (Morris) Pillsbury of Grosse Pointe, Michigan.

Dr. Pillsbury loved animals and knew from a young age that she wanted to be a veterinarian and pursued her dream and passion to reality. She graduated from Grosse Pointe South High School in 1980, attended Michigan State University where she earned her Bachelor of Science in Physiology in 1984, and then her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Michigan State’s prestigious College of Veterinary Medicine in 1990.

Post-graduation, she briefly practiced in New York before returning to Michigan. She tended to many four-legged friends in Birmingham and Grosse Pointe before joining Oakland Animal Hospital in Rochester, Michigan, in 2000.  Her special interests included feline medicine and animal behavior.  She was a member of the American Veterinary Medicine Association and the Southeast Michigan Veterinary Medical Association.

Dr. Pillsbury is survived by her beloved husband, Alexi Neverovich, of West Bloomfield. They enjoyed saber fencing, which is how they met, and were world travelers and adventurers. Africa, Ireland, Scotland, England, Germany, Italy, Hawaii, and the great American West are just some of their favorite places they visited. She treasured the Leelanau Peninsula in Northern Michigan and all its beauty. She enjoyed riding her horse, Rose, playing with Yeti, her white chihuahua, and four cats. Dr. Pillsbury was an avid reader and often had a book in progress at every comfortable reading spot in their house.

She is also survived by her parents, Donald and Marilyn Pillsbury; her sisters Dr. Nancy Pillsbury, DVM, (Brian) and Pamela Flores (Daniel); her mother-in-law, Ada Neverovich; her brother-in-law, Vitaly Neverovich (Alena); and nieces, Marnie, Sydney, Madison, Maria, Mila, and nephews, Gregory and Nicholas.

In lieu of flowers, Dr. Pillsbury requested that donations be made to the ASPCA, Big Cat Rescue, Snow Leopard Trust, World Wildlife Fund, Feral Kitty Trappers, and the Leelanau Conservation Society.

A Celebration of Life event for Dr. Pillsbury will be planned for later in the summer with an announcement to follow to allow her countless friends, clients and all those whom she has touched through the years a chance to celebrate her life as a great doctor, champion of all animals, wife, daughter, sister, aunt, friend and woman.