Veterinary TeamRancho San Carlos Pet Clinic

Veterinarian

Dr. Rodriguez is a home-grown Veterinarian from La Mesa. She grew up in Fletcher Hills and graduated at the top of her class from Grossmont High School. As a child, she was inspired to become a Veterinarian after seeing the family’s beloved labrador saved from snail bait poisoning. After high school, Dr. Rodriguez received both her Bachelor of Science in Genetics and her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine from UC Davis.

She returned to San Diego and has been in general practice working with dogs and cats ever since.

Dr. Rodroguez strongly believes in the bond between people and animals and feels that it is the doctor’s job, as a veterinary professional, to foster and enhance that bond through education and compassionate care. She has extensive training in fear-free methods to help your pet feel their best at the vet.

She is married, has two beautiful children, and continues to enjoy the local neighborhoods.

Veterinarian

Dr. Fransioli earned her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California, Davis, the top-ranked Veterinary Program in America, where she served as the Vice President of her graduating class.

She was selected for an elite rotating internship at the Veterinary Medical Surgical Group, where she refined her approach to clinical care ranging from general wellness to emergency trauma. As a life-long animal lover, her formative academic years were focused on excelling in Veterinary Medicine. Before obtaining her Doctorate in Veterinary Medicine, she obtained a BS in Marine Biology and Chemistry at the University of Miami, Florida, and an MS in Physiology at San Diego State University.

Today Dr. Fransioli can be found hiking with her husband, daughter, and two dogs or curled up on the couch with a medical journal and her cat, O’ren.

Veterinarian

Dr. Herman was drawn to animals at a young age but was inspired to pursue Veterinary Medicine after watching a documentary with the message of “Do what you’ve always wanted to do, no regrets.” She immediately changed majors and dedicated her career to Veterinary Medicine.

Dr. Herman received her undergraduate degree at the University of California, Davis, and her Doctorate from the University of Kansas School of Veterinary Medicine in 2010. After veterinary school, she completed a one-year intensive emergency and specialty internship at California Veterinary Specialists. This solidified her passion for small animal medicine, and she has been working with San Diego dogs and cats ever since. Her focus is on working with families to keep their pets happy and healthy, through sickness and in health, and in celebrating illness recoveries and milestones. She also has a soft spot for golden retrievers.

Dr. Herman is also certified in fear-free and brings this training into each patient experience. When not at work, Dr. Herman enjoys getting out with her golden retriever and human family.

Dr. Perez grew up in Northern San Diego County. She completed her undergraduate at SDSU with a Bachelor of Science in Biology in 2013. After working as a veterinary technician for 10 years at general practice and ER, Dr. Perez set her sights on veterinary school. She graduated from St. George’s University, Grenada Magna Cum Laude in 2022. In addition, Dr. Perez attended the Chi University of Acupuncture as well as completed wildlife externships in Kenya and South Africa.

In her spare time, Dr. Perez enjoys traveling and Hawaiian dancing, which she has done for 19 years. Her furry family consists of Appa (10 year-old chihuahua/shih tzu mix), Dion (3 year-old jack russel/lab/american bulldog mix), Cloudy (11 year-old bichon frisé), Nossa (6 year-old mini schnauzer), and Yato el Chico Vato Gato (3 year-old orange tabby). Dr. Perez and her husband love taking their dogs on their hiking adventures.

Veterinarian

Dr. Basso is originally from the Bay area. She went to undergraduate school at Cal Poly San Luis Obispo, where she studied Animal Science before attending the University of California, Davis, to earn her Doctorate of Veterinary Medicine. After graduating, Dr. basso moved to San Diego and completed a 1-year internship in Small Animal Emergency and Speciality Medicine. Next, she moved to Knoxville, Tennessee, where she spent several years practicing in Emergency Medicine.

Dr. Basso was extremely happy to get the opportunity to move back to San Diego. Dr. Basso really enjoys connecting with pets and their people and takes great pride in being a part of promoting long and happy lives.

Her special interests include Ophthalmology, Preventative Medicine, and Hospice Care.

Dr. Basso loves to spend her free time with her husband, who is also a veterinarian, their three dogs, Sebastian, Gwen, and Nimbus, and their cat, Ginny. Dr. Basso also enjoys traveling, running, reading, hiking, camping, spending time with her family, and anything to do with the ocean.

Veterinarian

Dr. Laura Halsey grew up in San Diego and was inspired to become a veterinarian as a way to combine her love of animals and science with her passion for wanting to create positive change. After graduating from UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine in 2010, she returned to San Diego to complete a rigorous internship in emergency and specialty medicine. Dr. Halsey proceeded to general practice to help pets during their time in need and also to help enough maintain health and wellness through preventative care. During these years, it became apparent that traditional medicine was not always enough to help her patients, so Dr. Halsey spent a year becoming trained and certified in veterinary acupuncture and has incorporated this into her general practice. Dr. Halsey seeks to evaluate the patient as a whole and has a special interest in surgery, dentistry, pain management, ultrasonography, and behavior.

Dr. Halsey is honored to follow in the footsteps of Dr. Jeff & Dr. Shannon as the owner of Rancho San Carlos Pet Clinic. 

Dr. Halsey shares her home with her husband, two human children, and a rambunctious dog named Quila.

Our Client Service Supervisor

Lisa has been helping pets and their owners as a Client Service Representative for over 15 years. Lisa lived in Hawaii, Oregon, and San Diego as a child, and has spent time in Virginia. She is married, with a daughter and a son, and Finn (her Labrador Retriever). She enjoys her family time, traveling, music, and reading.

Client Service Representative

Sara is a native San Diegan and grew up loving animals. She is also a big fan of Disney and Soccer, both of which she shares with her beautiful family. Sara has been in the veterinary field for over 10 years and enjoys helping strengthen the bond between client and patient with each interaction.

Client Service Representative

Luna loves all animals, and despite growing up in the city of San Diego, she dreams of having a farm sanctuary someday. Luna loves spending time with her family, soaking up the sun, and playing sudoku. She stays busy with work, college, and caring for her cat Caleb.

RVT, feline well-being advocate

Sam was born in raised in Michigan. She graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the University of Findlay, and obtained a degree in Veterinary Technology from the University of Michigan in 2002. She has been working with small animals as a veterinary technician ever since and moved to San Diego to seek warmer weather in 2015. She has a special interest in feline health and well-being and is our resident “cat whisperer.” Sam and her significant other share their home with Irony, a senior kitty, and have been able to bring Porch Cat indoors after being abandoned by neighbors.

Heather is from Washington, D.C. but grew up in San Diego since she was 8 years old. She graduated from Mesa College in 2011 from the RVT program. Heather enjoys video games, hiking, going to the playground with her son, and watching scary movies when her son goes to sleep. She has a 4-year-old black and white cat named Strawberry who she adopted 3 months ago.

Erika is from Dundee, New York. She graduated from Alfred State College with an associate degree in Veterinary Technology and also received her Bachelor’s degree at Suny Oswego. She is licensed and worked in New York, North Carolina, and Colorado and has been in the field for 7 years. Erika enjoys walking, hiking, kayaking, going on motorcycle rides, and crocheting. Erika and her husband moved to California because of the Marine Corps. She has a Great Dane Tucker Winston Kirkendall and he is their whole world and he knows it!

Veterinary Assistant

Andrea is one of the Veterinary Assistants at Rancho San Carlos Pet Clinic. She grew up in San Diego and graduated from PIMA. Andrea became a Certified Veterinary Assistant in 2019 and hopes to become an RVT in the future.

In her free time, she enjoys going to Disneyland, but if she is staying local, she enjoys going to the San Diego zoo, museums (the Natural History Museum), walks along the beach to catch the sunsets and photography. Andrea is a big music fan, so she also really enjoys seeing her favorite artists perform at local venues. At home, she has 2 sisters, and they all grew up exploring San Diego with their wonderful mother and father. Andrea has 3 cats, an adorable and awkward 2-year-old orange cat named Mango, a sweet but sassy 9-year-old named Cleo, and a mischievous but sweet 9 month old named Tino. Her favorite snacks include acai bowls, potato chips, dark chocolate, veggie pizza, iced coffee with hazelnut, and almond/oat milk.

Veterinary Assistant

Evelyn grew up in Tijuana, Mexico and Baja, California. She graduated as a veterinarian in 2018 from UABC, Mexico, and has been working as a veterinary assistant in the USA for over 5 years. She loves to dance, sing, work out, play the piano, and go to the beach. She enjoys going for walks with her dogs and her husband. Evelyn has three dogs (a golden retriever named Nani, a lab mix named Dina, an English Bulldog named Pepito), and one cat named Ludovico “Ludo.” All of Evelyn’s pets were adopted, and she loves them so much!

Veterinarian

David Demner, DVM, Diplomate, ACVS (Board certified veterinary surgeon), graduated from the National University of Colombia in 2003. Upon graduation, he joined their soft tissue surgery department for advanced training in surgery for two years and then became an assistant professor. David moved to California, and after a rotating internship, he completed his residency in surgery at a private practice in Southern California. He passed the certifying examination and became Board Certified by the American College of Veterinary Surgeons, and after 5 years of working as a surgeon in private practice, he founded Veterinary Mobile Surgical Specialist – VMSS.

Dr. Demner’s vision is to offer excellent care to patients that need surgical care at a reasonable price. He enjoys all aspects of surgery, but his specific interests include orthopedic and soft tissue surgery.

Veterinarian

Dr. Render grew up dreaming of becoming a zoo veterinarian at the San Diego Zoo. Cardiology pulled on his heartstrings after having the opportunity to work with great mentors, all of whom are cardiologists. The zoo and exotics veterinary field is still near and dear to his heart, as Dr. Render enjoys evaluating the hearts of all animals, big and small.

Dr. Render enjoys all aspects of small animal cardiology with particular interests in congenital defects and cardiac tumor evaluation. When not treating patients, Dr. Render enjoys watching sports and movies OR movies about sports, all things comedy, and cooking shows.