Dr. Erika Sullenberger, DVM, CCRT, CVA

My Story:

For as long as I can remember, working towards a career that would be rewarding, and one that I enjoy and love doing was always the ultimate goal in my life. Veterinary Medicine became that for me. Of course, today my biggest success that I work towards is being a good mother to my two children and fur babies, but a good and honest veterinarian is what I’ll always strive for by never becoming complacent with antiquated techniques and continuing to improve my skills and knowledge by staying up-to-date on evidence-based medicine. Since graduating from Western University of Health Sciences, College of Veterinary Medicine in 2008, my initial objective was to hone my craft in preventing, identifying, and curing disease in my patients. As veterinarians, we come to a point in our career where we are able to recognize and treat anything that walks through the door before laying hands on our patients, but I have found that even the most common diseases do not always respond to treatments that are routinely performed. This was frustrating to me. This is how I became so enthused and compassionate about integrative medicine such as physical therapy, acupuncture, chiropractic adjustment, and proper pain control.

Thanks to the Canine Rehabilitation Institute (CRI), I was able to take the time to really understand proper gait patterns in quadruped species and thereby know how to identify issues in their mobility and correct them. CRI taught me the skills and also introduced me to additional treatment modalities such as acupuncture. I had to keep expanding upon this knowledge for the benefit of my patients, so I took more time to attend the rigorous certification course directed by the International Veterinary Acupuncture Society (IVAS). IVAS taught me how to approach my pet patients in a holistic manner which enables the ability to perform a thorough assessment as they cannot communicate what they are feeling. With these skills, I hope to offer additional therapeutic modalities in support of your exceptional general veterinarian.

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Dr. Haleh Siahpolo, DVM, CCRT, CVA

Dr. Haleh Siahpolo enjoys integrating Eastern and Western medicine to provide the best possible treatment for her patients. She obtained her veterinary degree from the University of California Davis. During veterinary school, she became interested in holistic medicine and trained with a third-generation traditional Chinese medicine practitioner to learn acupuncture, herbal, and food therapy for animals. She completed a one-year internship at the University of Florida School of Veterinary Medicine in Rehabilitation and Integrative Medicine. During her internship, she became certified as a canine rehabilitation therapist by the Canine Rehabilitation Institute. She then entered private practice and has been caring for patients locally for over a decade. She enjoys caring for pet’s medical needs in all life stages and in the past few years has developed a special interest in dentistry.

Dr. Siahpolo grew up in Campbell and now calls Santa Cruz home. She enjoys spending time outdoors with her family. You might find them playing with their dogs at the beach.