Alum Spotlight

My parents are Japanese and Colombian/French and I grew up moving between the USA and Japan. As a child I always wanted to be around animals and my future dream evolved from farmer to veterinarian to finally ethologist after reading King Solomon’s
Ring by Konrad Lorenz at the age of 15. From there on I decided I would learn to talk to animals and have yet to look back.

Like many kids, I grew up loving animals—but for me, that love only deepened over time and evolved into a curiosity about biology and how animals function. I didn’t know exactly what I wanted to do in the field, but I knew I had to keep learning. When I got accepted to UC Davis, choosing a biology major was a no-brainer. The only problem? Many majors felt rigid, built for a specific, cookie-cutter path I wasn’t sure I wanted to follow. How do you choose a career path when you don’t even know all the options yet?

My name is Sasha Montero-De La Torre and I graduated from UC Davis in Spring 2017
with a B.S. in Animal Biology and Minors in Psychology and Music. From a very young age, I
have always wanted to help, learn more and conserve animals, especially endangered species.
I knew I wanted become a researcher and obtain a post-graduate degree to achieve those
goals. When beginning my journey at Davis, the ABI major was a no-brainer as it provided me
with the tools to learn how to conduct research and write a practicum! It was a rigorous 4 years,

My name is Jamie Nakatani, and I graduated from UC Davis in 2012 with a major in Animal Biology and a minor in Entomology. After college I worked in the zoo field for several years, starting as an animal care volunteer, progressing to a paid zookeeper, then earning an Associate of Science degree in Exotic Animal Training and Management from Moorpark College in 2016. During my time in that program, I realized I was primarily drawn to the older animals or those with interesting medical issues and spent as much time with the veterinary staff as I could.

My name is Tahmina and I graduated from UC Davis in 2019 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Animal Biology and was also in the University Honors Program. I am a first generation college student, and having to navigate higher education was a significant challenge for me. I knew from a very young age that I wanted to work with animals and eventually become a veterinarian. I chose to pursue the Animal Biology major because I wanted to challenge myself to participate in research and form connections with my peers and faculty.

Hi! I’m Iris Rivas and I graduated from the UC Davis Animal Biology program in Spring 2022. I continue to progress professionally and academically since graduation as a Junior Specialist at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. I utilized what I learned at UC Davis and turned my profession into my hobby.

My name is Lauren Ober. I graduated UC Davis with a B.S. in Animal Biology in Fall 2021 and an M.S. in Nutritional Biology in Spring 2023! When I found ABI, I felt I could truly explore my passion for Animal Nutrition and share the experience with other undergrads with similar passions.

I am part of the graduating class of 2022 with a Bachelor's in Animal Biology and Wildlife, Fish and Conservation Biology. I am originally from Stockton, CA, and I at first chose UC Davis because I wanted to be a veterinarian (while sticking close to home). However, over the course of my undergraduate experience, I learned more about the world around me and what kind of research opportunities are available with an Animal Biology degree.

Hi everyone, my name is Nayeli Echeverria and I just graduated! Woot woot! I transferred to UC Davis in the Fall of 2020, during the pandemic. I was lucky to begin my first quarter working at the 

Hello ABI Majors! My name is Kimberly Aguirre, I graduated from UCD in spring 2022 as an Animal Biology major with a minor in Public Health Sciences. As part of my practicum, I had the opportunity to work with Dr. Alda Pires in her Food Safety and Urban Agriculture lab, under the Department of Population Health & Reproduction at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. My project was on comparing fecal microbiomes in grazed and ungrazed sheep, and seeing if there were any associated changes in food-borne pathogen-shedding.