Dr. Xaria von Rassler joined VCA Rock Creek in August of 2024. She graduated with a BS in Biochemistry from the University of California at Santa Cruz. She then received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) from Midwestern University in 2024.

We asked her some questions so you could get to know her before you come visit!

Do you have any pets?
I have 5 cats! Gandalf, Rasputin, Kyoshi, Cheese (aka Stout) and Howl (aka Mr. Silky Smooth)

Where are you from originally?
San Jose, California

Any special interests outside of work?
I love to maintain an adventurous, curious, and meditative array of interests in life, trying new foods and teas, learning new studies and skills, hearing new music, hiking new trails, running longer distances. Running and traditional tea ceremony are what keep me grounded and give me important time to shed so many of life's daily distractions and be intentionally thoughtful.

What do you like most about your job?
I just love that I get to wake up every morning and go to work with animals. Even if it's the hundredth cat or dog or turtle I've seen that week, seeing animals every day has not gotten old to me in the nearly 10 years I've spent in the veterinary field. Medicine is complicated and challenging, but my love for it is the simplicity of the direct good I can do for something I love, animal companions and the people who care for them.

Do you have any professional special interests or certifications?
During vet school I became Fear Free Handling certified and I have a strong passion for implementing it as thoroughly into my practice as possible because I have seen in my years of experience how the fear free approach benefits everyone involved: pet owners, veterinary staff, and of course the pets themselves.

I developed a real interest in soft tissue surgery during vet school as well. I always get excited by an interesting surgical case.

I also have a real love for and interest in dentistry that goes way back to even before vet school; the satisfaction of a good teeth cleaning or treating a painful tooth never gets old either.