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DVM, DACVS

Celia Valverde

Celia Valverde

DVM, DACVS

Celia Valverde

Background & Education

Veterinary School: School of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics, University of Sao Paulo, Brazil (1985); American Veterinary Medical Association, Educational Commission for Foreign Veterinary Graduates (1991) Residency Training: Small Animal Surgery, University of California, Davis Fellowship: Don Low California Veterinary Medical Association Practitioner Fellowship, Anesthesia and Pain Management, UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Certification: Diplomate American College of Veterinary Surgeons (2003)

Dr. Celia Valverde’s passion for healing animals has taken her to every corner of the globe. She earned her DVM degree at the School of Veterinary Medicine and Zootechnics, University of São Paulo, Brazil in 1985.

Since 1991, Dr. Valverde has worked with primarily with small and exotic animals’ species at veterinary hospitals across the United States, including the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis where she was on the faculty in various positions from 1990 to 2013. She also completed her Small Animal Surgical residency at UC Davis and received extensive training in soft tissue, orthopedic and oncological procedures, as well as minimally invasive surgery. Dr. Valverde became a board-certified surgeon in 2003. She has lectured widely across the United States, Brazil, Guatemala, Honduras, and South Africa on topics ranging from minimally invasive surgery, wound management and bandaging to wildlife medicine rehabilitation.

Dr. Valverde’s volunteer efforts have been extensive and global. Early in her career, she volunteered as a field biologist and data collector in the Cantareira Rainforest State Park in Brazil, where she identified avian species across the coastal rainforest. Her rehabilitation work with avian species continued for years in Brazil, as well as in Alaska, where she studied breeding biology of Pacific White-fronted geese. During her years in Alaska, Dr. Valverde also served as a wildlife veterinarian working with seabirds and the Bald Eagle Recovery Program following the Exxon Valdez Oil Spill. During breaks from her day job, Dr. Valverde traveled to Honduras to volunteer as a wildlife veterinarian in charge of rehabilitating endangered parrots and macaws. She has also been a veterinary volunteer with the Alaska Iditarod dog sled race and more recently during the Camp Fire rescue effort in Northern California.

Dr. Valverde is deeply committed to providing less invasive surgical options, exceptional pain management, and compassionate care to all her patients. When she’s not practicing medicine, she enjoys rowing on a team, ice climbing, fly fishing, kayaking, cycling, cooking, bird watching and gardening. Her pets are chickens who give her fresh, organic eggs!