Dr. Cynthia Zikes received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from Oregon State and Washington State Universities in 1990.  Dr. Zikes completed a rotating internship in small animal medicine and surgery at The Rowley Memorial Animal Hospital in Springfield,     Massachusetts in 1991.  She completed the first Ciba-Geigy small animal internal medicine residency at The Angell Memorial Animal Hospital in Boston, MA in 1994.  Her internship and residency programs included direct training with radiologists and cardiologists in abdominal, thoracic, and cardiac ultrasound.  She also received training in a variety of endoscopic procedures.

Dr. Zikes returned to her native Portland, Oregon in 1995 to practice internal medicine and is board certified by The American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. 

After returning to Portland, Dr. Zikes continued to develop her ultrasound skills by participating in private ultrasound courses, including echocardiography instruction at Colorado State University.  She also developed more intense interest in endoscopy and minimally invasive surgery.  In 2002 she joined the practice of Dr. Timothy McCarthy, a leading expert in veterinary endoscopy, and received daily one-on-one training in advanced endoscopic procedures including laparoscopy and thoracoscopy. 

In 2007 Dr. Zikes made the decision to pursue board certification in small animal surgery. She began a 3-year surgical residency in private practice and is now board certified by The American College of Veterinary Surgeons.

In addition to internal medicine and surgery, Dr. Zikes has spent 2014 and 2015 practicing medical oncology and radiation oncology under the direct supervision of a board certified oncologist in the Portland, OR metropolitan area.

Dr. Zikes is a member of the HVMA, AVMA, and the OVMA, and is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and the American College of Veterinary Surgeons.