Team Members
Larry D. Cowgill, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Internal Medicine)
Professor Emeritus
Dr. Larry Cowgill received his DVM degree from UC Davis, and completed his internship and residency training at the University of Pennsylvania. He was a National Institutes of Health Special Research Fellow at the Renal and Electrolyte Section of the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine and earned a PhD in comparative medical sciences. He is board certified in small animal internal medicine and professor in the Department of Medicine and Epidemiology. He oversees the clinical nephrology programs and the companion animal hemodialysis units at the VMTH and the UCVMC-SD. Dr. Cowgill has more than 35 years of experience in veterinary internal medicine, nephrology, and teaching, and has trained many of the leading veterinary nephrologists throughout the world. He is a pioneer in the application of hemodialysis in companion animals, and remains a leading authority in the development of blood purification therapies for renal diseases in animals and people.
Cedric Dufayet, DVM - Renal Medicine and Extracorporeal Therapies
Dr. Cedric DUFAYET is originally from France where he obtained his veterinary degree from the Alfort School of Veterinary Medicine in 2001. Upon graduation, he completed a rotating small animal medicine & surgery internship at the Alfort School Veterinary Teaching Hospital, where he remained as a member of the Nephrology and Urology consultation group until 2004. Over the last 10 years Dr. Dufayet has practiced in French specialty hospitals, with a particular focus in nephrology & urology.
Dr Dufayet has a long standing interest in veterinary hemodialysis. After completing a degree in human hemodialysis in France, he graduated from the first session of the UC Davis Hemodialysis Academy in 2016. In April 2018 he joined the Advanced Urinary Disease Service at the UC Veterinary Medical Center - San Diego as a Fellow in Renal Medicine and Extracorporeal Therapies.
Dr Dufayet has lectured to veterinarians and authored several scientific papers in his home country and enjoys teaching and sharing knowledge. He is especially interested in management of chronic kidney disease in dogs and cats, minimally invasive management of urinary stones and extracorporeal therapies such as hemodialysis and therapeutic apheresis. Dr Dufayet & his family are now happy to live in San Diego. They are all cat lovers but have also been a host family for service dogs.
Andre Le Sueur, DVM, MS, PhD - Fellow in Urinary Disease and Extracorporeal Therapies
Dr. Andre Le Sueur received his veterinary degree in 2012 from Centro Universitario de Rio Preto in Brazil. Following veterinary school, he completed an Internal Medicine residency at São Paulo State University, where he also earned Master’s and PhD degrees in Small Animal Nephrology, focusing on extracorporeal therapies and kidney biomarkers. Furthermore, Dr. Le Sueur was trained by the IRIS – Hemodialysis Academy, class of 2018-2019. Most recently, he was a Fellow in Advanced ECC and Extracorporeal Therapies at North Carolina State University from 2022-24. Before moving to the U.S., Dr. Le Sueur worked as a guest postgraduate professor at several veterinary schools throughout Brazil, where he had the opportunity to teach Small Animal Nephrology and Urology. Lastly, in 2022, Dr. Le Sueur was recognized as the Brazilian ambassador by the International Renal Interest Society (IRIS), and his research interests include kidney biomarkers, extracorporeal therapies, acute kidney injury, and chronic kidney disease.
Tracy Allen, RVT, VTS (ECC)
Tracy became a registered veterinary technician in 2000 and earned her Veterinary Technician Specialist credential in Emergency and Critical Care in 2005. Prior to arriving at UCVMC-SD in 2013, she worked in emergency and intensive care at various specialty hospitals in San Diego. Tracy's special interest in veterinary medicine includes working in advanced therapies and extra-corporeal modalities offered by UCVMC-SD.
Melissa P. Galvez-Alvarez, RVT
Melissa has been in the veterinary medicine field for since 2006. She started her career in general medicine as a veterinary assistant. Soon after, Melissa completed a two-year veterinary technician program at PIMA Medical Institute and received her associate’s degree in applied sciences in 2013. In 2014, she became a licensed registered veterinary technician. Previously, Melissa worked as an emergency and critical care technician for the Veterinary Specialty Hospital for several years prior to joining the UCVMC-SD team.
Erin Geier, Animal Health Technician
Erin was born and raised in San Diego and initially worked in human medicine as a phlebotomist but has been working in the veterinary field since 2018. She worked at an ER and specialty clinic as well as a general practice clinic. She switched her focus to pre-vet and then decided to further her experience by working in emergency medicine, veterinary dentistry and large animal and equine medicine. She recently attended RVT school and is planning to get her technician license in the next year. Her interests include emergency medicine, anesthesia and cardiology and is very excited to further her knowledge in the field.