I can truthfully say that being a veterinarian was my first career goal as a child. I grew up in California in a small house in the city with a big collection of pets. After graduating from the University of California, Santa Cruz with a degree in biology, I became distracted by travel and bicycling and ended up spending several years bike touring and racing semi-professionally. After meeting my husband and starting a family, I eventually made my way to veterinary school at Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts. After graduating a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, I accepted a commission into the US Army and served four years as an Army veterinarian. Stationed at Holloman AFB, I fell in love with beautiful southern New Mexico and decided to make the Alamogordo area my family’s permanent home. I currently serve in the US Army Reserves. In my spare time, I enjoy gardening, camping, and trying to keep up with our small herd of Nigerian Dwarf Goats, an off the track thoroughbred mare, and a growing collection of house pets!