Dr. Sharon Vanderlip is a veterinarian who has loved Collies since she was a child. Her dream of raising her own Collies became a reality in 1977, when she established Rainshade Collies. For more than 30 years, Dr. Vanderlip has dedicated her efforts to improving the Collie breed in health, genetics, temperament, and conformation. Her Rainshade Collies are world renown and highly sought after, by Collie fanciers and breeders around the globe, for their exquisite beauty and genetic quality.

For 29 years, Dr. Vanderlip has provided veterinary care to domestic and exotic animal species. She has owned her own veterinary practices; served for many years as clinical veterinarian for the School of Medicine at the University of California San Diego; collaborated on reproductive medicine research projects with the Zoological Society of San Diego;

was Chief of Veterinary Services for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA); and is Director of the International Canine Semen Bank (ICSB) in San Diego. Today Dr. Vanderlip's practice is dedicated exclusively to animal reproductive medicine and surgery (domestic and exotic mammals) and exotic mammal medicine and surgery.

Dr. Vanderlip gives seminars, lectures, and training courses worldwide and is available for private consultations through her website www.sharonvanderlip.com.

Dr. Vanderlip has published articles in  peer-reviewed scientific journals, as well as numerous articles in general audience magazines. She has written numerous books about animal care. She is the author of The Collie - A Veterinary Reference for the Professional Breeder (Biotechnical Veterinary Consultants, 1984). The book has been out of print for many years, but she is currently writing a new Collie book with an anticipated release date of late 2009.

Dr. Vanderlip lives with her husband (who is also a veterinarian), their lovely daughter, and their Collies and saddle mules, in sunny San Diego County.