What education are you bringing with you to this position?
I am a veterinarian from Costa Rica, with a Ph.D. in production animal epidemiology from the University of Calgary, specializing in dairy cattle. I have both practical and research expertise in the areas of herd health, udder health and milk quality, lameness, cow comfort, animal welfare, disease prevention and farm economics.

Please describe your agricultural background.
As the daughter of a dairy farmer, I have known the joys and challenges of dairy farming for many years. Through my experiences on our farm in Costa Rica, as well as my veterinary and Ph.D. studies, I have come to understand the dairy industry from a veterinarian, researcher and producer perspective. I have also studied and worked on farms in various countries throughout Europe and North America, increasing my understanding of the dairy industry worldwide.

What territory will you cover?
Most of my work will be done in western Canada, but I am flexible and open to providing services in other areas.

What are your new responsibilities?
I am responsible for managing and delivering dairy animal care extension programs. I also provide consulting services on assessments of facilities and management practices to improve animal care and, ultimately, the performance and profitability of dairy farms.

What previous positions have you held?
I worked as a private veterinary practitioner on our family-operated dairy farms, at a small animal veterinary clinic and as a nutritional advisor for a feed company.

Who has made the biggest impact on your career?
I have been very fortunate to have had several mentors throughout my life, though my father has made the biggest impact on my career. He taught me what it means to work hard and love what I do, but I have also learned a lot from him as he probably is the most demanding client I deal with.

How will you be of most help to producers in your region or area of expertise?
By integrating my knowledge of veterinary medicine, applied research and epidemiology, I bring a varied skill set including effective communication, agricultural extension, teamwork and project management. I will use this skill set to assist producers in identifying herd health issues, developing and implementing action plans to prevent and control these issues within and between farms.

Why did you choose this company?
With this new enterprise that I have established with my partner, Steve Mason, I can continue working directly with farmers and industry in animal care. This position aligns with my interests in extension and outreach, and gives me flexibility to extend beyond services like magazines, internet, meetings or workshops, and provide individual, customized, on-farm services to help improve farm performance.

What goals would you like to accomplish while in this position?
The main goal is to assist and provide tools and resources to farmers in the adoption of best management practices for animal health and welfare, and with that, support farmers to have profitable operations that meet animal care standards and succeed in mandatory programs.