Dr. Rachel Kagan

As a child, Rachel was very interested in medicine and always wanted to help animals live long and healthy lives. She knew she was too tall to be a jockey, so she decided to become a veterinarian!

Dr. Kagan grew up in Sherman Oaks, California, and started working in a veterinary hospital when she was 16 years old. She attended UC Berkeley to major in biological sciences before transferring to Cal Poly SLO, graduating in 1992. She went to the University of California Davis’s School of Veterinary Medicine and graduated in 1997. After a year-long internship in San Diego, she stayed in the area to work. In 2003, on a recommendation from her husband, Dr. Kagan started at Carlsbad Animal Hospital. Dr. Kagan loves client interaction—she enjoys taking care of animals and learning about their families in the process. She likes to think of herself as a friend to clients, not just a doctor. At home, Rachel lives with her husband John, a veterinary internal medicine specialist, and their children Cassidy and Nate. They have two dogs, Tucker and Cam Newton; two cats, Jack Sparrow and Booker; two guinea pigs, Patrick and Teddy; a crested Gecko named T Rex; a ball python named DJ; and Sydney the horse. Between her family and work, Dr. Kagan says she doesn’t have much time for hobbies. When she does have a spare moment, she loves horseback riding, yoga, and walking and hiking with her husband and friends.