About
Dr. Morris

Lawrence S. Morris, DVM, MBA, is a skilled and compassionate veterinarian with three decades of experience caring for dogs and cats. In addition to his clinical focus on veterinary preventive care and wellness, he’s dedicated to creating a practice environment of warmth and kindness to make all pets comfortable and even look forward to their visits.  

Prior to founding Freckles and Friends Pet Clinic in 2021, Dr. Morris headed his own practice at the same Long Beach location from 2001 to 2016. Then, he moved on to pursue other opportunities with a large corporation, discovering that he missed the challenge and satisfaction of running a business, developing and mentoring employees, and the freedom to select the tools he deemed necessary for high-quality medical care, one pet, and family at a time.

Dr. Morris earned his DVM from the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine in 1992 and has undertaken additional training in orthopedic surgery as well as abdominal and cardiac ultrasonography. He also has received Fear Free Certification, a testament to his commitment to giving pets the best possible veterinary experience.

In addition, he earned an MBA from the DeVry University Keller School of Management in 2008, then completed additional specialized training in leadership from the Disney Institute.

Dr. Morris is married to Armida, a second-grade teacher, and they have two children: Nathan, who is an aerospace engineering student at Cal Poly Pomona, and Nicole, who is a microbiology student at UC San Diego—and a future veterinarian. He’s also best friends with Cassie, a six-year-old Labrador, and cats June and Scurry.

When he’s not caring for dogs and cats at Freckles and Friends Pet Clinic, Dr. Morris enjoys gardening, cycling, hiking with Cassie, and traveling to new places around the world with Armida.