About Us

Hernando Umana

CHIEF MARKETING OFFICER ~ CBD EXPERT

Father of Blanche an 8-year old mini Shih Tzu and senior rescue Linda, Hernando Umana is a Broadway performer in New York City and works tirelessly to share the benefits of CBD for dogs and cats with pet parents across the country.

Hernando first met Angela as a 15-year-old performing at The Miami Children’s Theater. Coming from a very low income family, he couldn’t afford the fees to be part of the production, but Angie never let a kid miss out on being in a show due to financial issues, so she made him a deal: if he helped paint sets, work in the costume shop or anything else needed for the production, he would be part of the show. She taught him the very important lesson that you can do and have everything and anything you want if you work hard. With her help, he went on to study in one of NYC’s best musical theatre programs, AMDA, where he graduated at the top of his class.

Carter Easler

DIRECTOR OF EDUCATION AND OUTREACH ~ CBD EXPERT

Carter is a cannabis educator and holistic practitioner with certification in the use of Cannabis Therapies for Veterinary Medicine by The College of Integrative Veterinary Therapies. He continues to study and share his knowledge of cannabis therapeutics through written articles, educational videos and live speaking engagements across the country. 

Growing up in a family of veterinarians, Carter developed a deep love for animals and saw first hand how holistic medicine could change both their lives and his own. As Director of Education for CBD Dog Health, Carter now travels North America educating pet parents, business owners and veterinarians about the benefits and science behind cannabis therapeutics and holistic medicine.

Joe Straughan

CHIEF OPERATING OFFICER

Father of Odie the mini-schnauzer, Nina the Doberman, Jolene the mix-breed mutt, Daisy the rescue senior chihuahua mix, Maza the rescue Australian Shepard mix, and countless ducks, chickens, roosters, geese, bunnies and one pig at Fire Flake Farm.

Joe is a native of Springfield, Missouri, and earned a Bachelor of Science degree with double-major in Marketing and General Business from Missouri State University. Since college he has developed extensive experience in experiential marketing, event planning and production, and non-profit association management.

For well over a decade, Joe has been instrumental in development and execution of promotional campaigns for numerous consumer brands, having worked for several marketing agencies in Los Angeles and New York City. Some of his clients have included Crown Royal, Nintendo, Red Bull, Absolut, Sephora, Pandora Jewelry, Unilever, and iHeart Radio. Joe relocated to the Tampa Bay area in 2016, where he played an instrumental role in the planning and execution of Canna Conference, an educational event to teach healthcare providers, veterinarians, and patients about proper use of medical cannabis for treatment of a host of adverse health conditions.

Today Joe oversees day-to-day operations for House of Alchemy, LLC, CBD Dog Health, Beautify the Beast grooming and boarding spa, and Fire Flake Farm pet resort and rescue farm. Having witnessed first-hand the healing power of CBD oil for dogs and medial cannabis, Joe is excited to share the benefits of this natural medicine with pet lovers everywhere.

Samantha Gordon

MARKETING DIRECTOR ~ WEBSITE ADMINISTRATOR

Sam is the mother of Chelsey, the 11-year-old Golden Retriever and Tucker, the 6-year-old Black Lab. With a passion for marketing and a life-long love for animals, she landed herself in the pet industry right after graduation. 

Sam is our Canadian girl who attended Brock University in St. Catharines, ON. Graduating in honors, she received her Bachelor in Business Communications and her Post Grad in Public Relations. 

Right before graduation, she got the job at Dogs Naturally Magazine as the Junior Digital Marketing Specialist. Within the first year, she moved up the ranks and wore a lot more hats. While running the Dog’s Naturally Market, handling emails, and all other digital marketing projects she could get her hands on – Sam learned a lot and truly found her passion for marketing. During her 3 years at Dogs Naturally Magazine, she also got the opportunity to meet a lot of amazing people in the pet industry like Angela Ardolino. 

The next step in her career belonged right here at CBD Dog Health. After trying the products herself for Chelsey’s arthritis and Tucker’s digestive issues – she couldn’t believe the difference. “I need to tell everyone about these products.” And now she does through all our digital marketing channels. Sam runs our email marketing platform and strategy for CBD Dog Health, Beautify The Beast and Your Natural Dog. While also contributing to our affiliate program, graphics, leads, website, blogs, and helping our customers find the information and products they need. Sam is excited to be a part of a team that values natural healing in our pets. 

Christie Gonzalez

SEO MANAGER ~ CONTENT WRITER

Mom of Bennet, a very vocal one-year-old shih-tzu, Christie is a long time animal lover and cannabis advocate. She currently resides in Miami, Fl.

After losing her ‘heart dog’ Darcy in 2019, Christie knew it was time to learn more about holistic pet wellness and CBD for pet health. Cannabis was already helping her with her own mental health, and she knew animals could benefit as well.

Christie received her certification on Cannabis Science & Medicine from the University of Vermont, in order to continue educating people on the amazing benefits of cannabis as medicine. She now shares that knowledge with pet parents as CBD Dog Health’s SEO Manager and Content Editor.

Jeni Basden-Porter

VETERINARY TECHNICIAN ~ CLIENT SUCCESS MANAGER

Jeni is the mom of 15 year-old Harley, a Great Dane/Pitbull mix, a 9 year-old Great Dane, Moxie, and 6 year-old Wednesday, who is 45 pound mutt.  She has always had a passion for the welfare of animals and decided to make that her career starting in 2009.

While attending Veterinary Technician school in St. Louis, MO, Jeni worked for the local Humane Society.  There, she helped with the general, daily care of every animal while adopting out animals to worthy people.  As Jeni’s education furthered, she oversaw caring for new animals that came to the shelter; making them ready for potential adoption. She also went on animal rescues.  One of those rescues was featured on Animal Planet when over 90 dogs were removed from the property.

After passing the Veterinary Technician National Exam, Jeni went on to work for a veterinary diagnostics company.  During her 10 years with the company, she ran the St. Louis laboratory; analyzing specimens for over 100 veterinary hospitals daily. Jeni also helped manage client relationships; making sure clinics succeeded in their endeavors.

After using CBD Oil for Harley’s arthritis, Jeni began researching the different CBD products that were acceptable for animal usage.  She came across CBD Dog Health and incredibly, a Vet Tech position was available!  After exploring the company and products, she decided that CBD Dog Health was the place she belonged!

Amy Osborne

SOCIAL MEDIA MANAGER

Amy is the proud guardian to a wrinkle of Shar-Pei, which she lovingly refers to as her Crinkle-Cut crew, residing in sunny Fort Lauderdale, FL. When she’s not coordinating rescues, she happily sits on the Board of Directors as Secretary of the Chinese Shar-Pei Club of America.

While Amy graduated cum laude from Edinboro University of Pennsylvania with a degree in Speech Communication, she is most passionate about sharing holistic and natural approaches to canine’s health and wellness, inclusive of cannabis and medicinal mushrooms.

Her motto is, “It’s better to be proactive than reactive”. Although she feels as though she stumbled into the pet industry by accident (ie. by sharing her adoration of dogs), Amy’s never felt more excited by doing something she loves, connecting with other pet guardians.

De’Andrea Cherry

VETERINARY TECHNICIAN ~ CUSTOMER SUCCESS REPRESENTATIVE

Meet De’Andrea, proud mom to Myla, a spirited 9-year-old Shiba Inu. Her journey into the veterinary scene kicked off in high school when she joined the FFA program’s veterinary technology track. She went on to work as a Veterinary Technician in both emergency and small animal practices for the next 6 years.
While working in Los Angeles, she became increasingly interested in the therapeutic potential of both plants and fungi and their derivatives for humans and animals. This led her to pursue my interests and gain additional education and training, specifically in the cannabis industry. She is now certified in cannabis cultivation, extraction, and product development and has demonstrated her expertise while working professionally in the cannabis industry as a budtender and assistant dispensary manager. The intersection of her love for animals and her expertise in cannabis led her to the doors of CBD Dog Health, where she discovered like-minded individuals who shared her dual passion. Since then, De’Andrea has wholeheartedly embraced this community, never looking back as she continues to contribute her unique blend of veterinary and cannabis expertise.