Featured veterinary clinic: Cuddle Paws Veterinary, a chic California practice built on grit and vision
Dr. Geoff Carullo, DVM, FPCCP, DPCVSCA
- Featured Veterinarian
- 3 min read
Way back in 2015, one of our resident veterinarians at Greenwoods Pet Hospital was Dr. Camille Virtucio.
I still remember her as one of those young veterinarians who clearly wanted to go somewhere.
She was smart, of course. She graduated from UPLB College of Veterinary Medicine. But what stood out to me was not simply her academic ability.
She was street smart. Resourceful. Practical. Independent. A real go-getter.
When she wanted something, she did not just wait for an opportunity to come. She figured out how to create one.
Eventually, she decided to pursue veterinary practice in the United States. She took the NAVLE, passed it, moved abroad, got married, and began building an entirely new chapter of her veterinary career.
But she did not stop there.
She eventually created her own mobile veterinary practice, bringing veterinary care directly to pet owners.
And now, years later, she has built Cuddle Paws Veterinary in Culver City, California.
Looking at the photos of the clinic today, I could not help but smile.
It is modern, bright, clean, organized, and beautifully designed. More importantly, it looks like a clinic built with intention.
From the reception area to the laboratory and treatment spaces, you can see attention not only to medicine, but also to the comfort and experience of pets and their owners.
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That is why I wanted to feature this clinic.
Not simply because it is beautiful.
But because there is a story behind it.
Success in veterinary medicine is not always about who had the highest grades or who knows the most textbook answers.
Knowledge matters.
But building a career and eventually building a practice also require courage, adaptability, perseverance, people skills, business sense, and street smarts.
Dr. Camille had to leave what was familiar, qualify to practice in another country, adjust to a different veterinary environment, build a clientele, establish a mobile practice, and eventually create a clinic of her own.
None of that happens overnight.
You build it one patient, one client, one decision, one risk, and one opportunity at a time.
Today, when I look at Cuddle Paws Veterinary, I do not just see a chic veterinary clinic in California.
I see what determination can build.
For young veterinarians who are still figuring out where their careers will take them, Dr. Camille’s journey is a good reminder:
Where you start does not determine where you will end up.
Sometimes the clinic you are working in today is only the first chapter of a much bigger story.
Dr. Geoff Carullo is a Fellow and the current President of the Philippine College of Canine Practitioners.
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