Team Members
Larry D. Cowgill, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (Internal Medicine)
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.
Metzere Bierlein, DVM, MS, DACVIM - Fellow in Urinary Disease and Extracorporeal Therapies
Dr. Metzere Bierlein is a 2013 graduate from Iowa State University where she obtained her DVM & MS. She then went on to a complete a small animal rotating internship at VCA Arboretum View in the Chicagoland area. In 2018, Dr. Bierlein worked full time as an ER doctor at Veterinary Specialty Center in the Chicago suburbs for one year, and then went to a residency in Small Animal Internal Medicine at North Carolina State University. She finished her residency and earned board certification (DACVIM) in the summer of 2022 prior to starting her fellowship in Advanced Urinary Disease Service at the UC Veterinary Medical Center - San Diego.
Dr. Bierlein’s interests include therapeutic plasma exchange for the treatment of immune mediated diseases. She also enjoys cystoscopy for the treatment of urinary incontinence, stones, and other obstructive diseases.
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.
Emily Belshin, Animal Health Technician
Emily graduated from UC Davis in 2020 with a degree in animal science. In college, she worked as a student technician for the UC Davis School of veterinary medicine and was also involved in animal behavior research. She is currently pursuing her master’s degree in clinical research at UCSD. Emily’s favorite part of working at the UCVMC-SD is the opportunity to learn new things every day. After completing her masters, Emily plans to attend veterinary school and hopes to follow in the footsteps of her mentors by becoming a veterinary specialist.