Meet Nicole, the newest extern at Craig Road Animal Hospital!

Hailing from Apple Valley in Southern California, Nicole knew from an early age she wanted to become a veterinarian. She volunteered at a local, small animal clinic in her hometown in high school, and was also a veterinary assistant and receptionist for the same clinic after she graduated from the University of California, Davis with a Bachelor’s in Animal Science.

After working in Apple Valley for about two years, Nicole applied for veterinary school and was accepted to Ross University in St. Kitts. During her time there, she was acquaintances with Dr. Moore and Craig Road fellow extern, Jernea. Currently, Nicole is in her “graduation month” and will be graduated from Ross University after completing her externship.

Nicole is interested in primary care. She said she likes seeing pets before “they get referred off somewhere.”

“I like being on the first line and telling people how to take care of their pets,” Nicole said. She learned about the program at Craig Road from a newsletter sent out by the university.

“I’m excited to learn as much as I can from people in the field, and being hands-on, only because COVID had a real impact on my hand-on learning during my clinical year,” she said. “So I’m hoping to get a little more experience before I start working in the next couple of weeks.”

In her spare time, Nicole enjoys cooking and playing video games, especially on the Nintendo Switch and Playstation 4. During the quarantine lockdowns, she started hiking as a way to get rid of her cabin fever. She owns three dogs; a Lab-mix named Shilo, a Chow-mix named Ramsey, and a Pitbull-mix named Harley.

Welcome to the team, Nicole!