Dr. Urbina is the owner of Escaya Veterinarians and has been providing veterinary care to pet owners and their pets in the Otay Ranch community since 2014. She graduated in 2008 from Western University of Health Sciences and since then has practiced general small animal medicine in the San Diego area at various hospitals.

Why did you decide to open Escaya Veterinarians? I have a vision for my veterinary clinic to be a great example of individual care and attention- to pets, their families, and my staff. I am proud to be one of the minority- and female-owned small businesses servicing this community that I love.

What do you enjoy most about being a veterinarian? Aside from being able to help the animals, it’s really the relationships that I build with the owners that provides me with motivation. I feel a huge responsibility to take care of these valued members of my clients’ families and that is never lost on me. Sometimes it keeps me up at night, worrying about a particular patient!

What fields do you hold a special interest in? I like anything that exercises my brain and analytical skills- internal medicine, behavior, clinical pathology, and research. And I enjoy the fine skill of dentistry too! I have a particular passion for birds of prey. Establishing a local rehab center for these majestic animals is one of the things on my bucket list.

What do you like to do in your free time? The past few years I’ve been training my middle dog to do agility! For both of us it’s so much fun and a great way to get outside and exercise a little. I love how we are both in tune with each other, communicating in that special non-verbal way.

Tell us something unique about yourself. I am a clinician-scientist! I work part-time at a biotech company developing rapid tests for both human and veterinary diagnostics.

Javier is originally from Riverside County and now resides in Tijuana. He has been in the veterinary field for 6 years and graduated from Platt College in Riverside in 2018. Javier is a licensed veterinary technician in the state of California. He has extensive experience in both ER, shelter medicine, and general practice. He really enjoys the nursing aspect of being a technician. When there is an extremely sick pet and owners don’t know what to do, he loves to see how quality of care can make a difference and transform them from dull and sick to energetic and full of personality. Javier has a 5 year old rescued Pitbull mix named Tigger. An interesting fact is that Javier originally wanted to be a professional chef but he’s happy he became a veterinary technician instead! Javier is excited to be a part of helping to open Escaya Veterinarians from the ground up.

Naomi has been working in the veterinary field for 6 years. She has worked in a private practice, corporate practice, and the non-profit San Diego Humane Society. Naomi’s philosophy is to provide a voice for the voiceless using compassion. She enjoys educating clients about preventative care recommendations or helping them understand anything in regards to their pet. She particularly enjoys assisting on internal medicine cases and surgeries, as well as scaling and polishing pets’ teeth so they can go home with a cleaner mouth! Naomi lives with 4 Pugs, 1 cat, and 1 Chihuahua. It's definitely a full house with all the fur babies, but she wouldn’t ask for it any other way. She hopes to have the pleasure of treating your pet at Escaya Veterinarians!

Kayla was born in Los Angeles county and made her way to San Diego during her younger years. Kayla has always had a passion for animals. Bringing home kittens was a common occurrence much to her mothers dismay. Growing up, her house was always filled with animals from cats and dogs, to turtles, birds and hermit crabs. Kayla finished a veterinary assistant program and is now working on furthering her education by pursuing her technician license. Working with animals alongside a great team had always been her dream and Escaya Veterinarians has helped paved the path to that goal. In her free time, Kayla likes arts and crafts, hiking with her dog, spending time with her family and binge watching series with her partner.