MALIBU CA - Key Persons
Dr. Chris Shule recently relocated to southern California from Illinois, where he grew up in a rural farming community outside Chicago. As a youngster, he looked up to and admired "Doc" Smith, the town veterinarian, the way other boys wanted to be a fireman or a pro baseball player. This led him to the University of Illinois for both undergraduate and veterinary school. After graduating with high honors, he practiced general small animal medicine in Chicago for 18 years. Dr. Chris has special interests in internal medicine, ultrasound, dentistry, oncology, surgery, reproduction services and emergency medicine.
Outside of the animal world, his philanthropic efforts focus on volunteering with brain injury survivors. When he is not busy working, Dr. Chris enjoys spending time with his teenage son and pet, Frankie, a rat terrier. He also spends time barbecuing, hiking, going to the beach, listening to music and playing sports with his son. Dr. Chris has always been very active in sports, having started golfing at age five, and playing baseball, football, and basketball in his youth. He is now an avid volleyball player, both indoor and sand. As a Chicago native, he is a dedicated Bears and Cubs fan.
Dr. Dana DePerno was born and raised in a suburb of Detroit, MI. As a child she wanted to be a veterinarian, and pursued her passion at Michigan State University where she earned a Bachelor of Veterinary Science in 1997. She then graduated from Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine in 1999.
Upon graduation, Dr. Dana moved to Los Angeles after she was accepted into an internship program in emergency medicine and surgery at California Animal Hospital (now known as Animal Surgical and Emergency Center).
After the completion of her internship, Dr. Dana joined the California Animal Hospital general practice and worked alongside Drs. Daniel Didden, Robert Fisher and Alex Moller for five years, during which she affirmed her belief that the human-animal bond is a powerful relationship that deserves to be nurtured and protected.
In 2004, Dr. Dana joined the team at Malibu Coast Animal Hospital where she continued to focus on general medicine and surgery, with a special interest in complementary and alternative therapies, nutrition and preventative medicine.
Dr. Dean Graulich grew up in Long Island, NY. Interested in pursuing a career in medicine, he studied anthropology and zoology at the University of Michigan and graduated with a Bachelor of Science in 1991. Deciding to puruse his long-time love of animals, Dr. Dean applied and was accepted to Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine.
Upon graduation in 1995, Dr. Dean wanted to continue his training and began an internship in medicine and surgery with California Animal Hospital in Los Angeles. After completing a year of intensive training with Drs. Stephen Ettinger, Bob Lusk and David Feldman, he began his small animal practice at Bay Animal Hospital in Manhattan Beach.
In 1999, Dr. Dean moved to Malibu where he finally settled into Pacific Coast Animal Hospital on Malibu Road. Looking forward to the opportunity of establishing a state-of-the-art practice to serve the Malibu and the surrounding communities, he proudly opened Malibu Coast Animal Hospital in its current location in 2005.
Dr. Dean has special interests in orthopedic surgery, endoscopy, laparoscopy, and cardiology. He was certified to perform the Tibial Plateau Leveling Osteotomy (TPLO) procedure for the treatment of cranial cruciate ligament tears in 2008.
Dr. Julia Csaszar was born in Palo Alto, CA and is of Hungarian origin. At age two her family moved to Budapest, Hungary where she was raised with her two sisters. She has always shown exceptional interest in animal health and medicine, even from a very early age, and decided to become a Veterinarian when her family adopted their first kitten, Kitty, who accompanied her through childhood and even into her years of Veterinary School where she attended the University of Veterinary Medicine, Budapest.
In 2015 she was awarded a scholarship to a small animal clinical rotation training in Nantes, France and in 2016 graduated as a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. After graduation she followed her passion for surgery and completed a year of surgical internship while working part-time at a small animal hospital in Budapest. In 2017, Dr. Julia moved back to California and joined Malibu Coast Animal Hospital as a Veterinary Technician while completing the ECFVG certification and became an AVMA accredited Veterinarian in California in 2018.
Dr. Julia currently resides in Calabasas and in her free time she enjoys traveling and learning about different cultures and languages.
Dr. Lisa Newell was born and raised in Santa Monica, CA and expressed an interest in being a veterinarian at a very early age, telling her mother she was going to be a "Doggie-Doctor" at age four. She started in veterinary medicine by volunteering at local animal hospitals when she was just eight years old.
Dr. Lisa graduated with an Associates of Arts degree from Ventura College. She then took a long break, which included a period of ten years spent working as a technician in this office before it was Malibu Coast Animal Hospital, prior to going back to school to pursue her dream. Dr. Lisa was accepted to Ross University College of Veterinary Medicine and graduated in 1997 after the completion of her clinical training at the University of Missouri Columbia.
She is currently a board member for the California Wildlife Center, a local non-profit organization that works to rescue and rehabilitate sick, injured and orphaned native wildlife. She also serves as a board member for the World Dog Alliance in addition to being the President of their American Chapter.
Dr. Lisa has served on the advisory board for K9 Connections, an organization, whose programs in continuation high schools offers teens the chance to break through learning and life barriers by training and bonding with homeless dogs.
Dr. Sheila Nathan is a California native who has always been compassionate and inquisitive by nature. Having an interest in better understanding how people and animals think and process emotion, she earned a Bachelor's degree in Psychology from Lewis & Clark College in 2004. While working at an animal hospital in Oregon, her passion for veterinary medicine was ignited, and she proceeded to earn a Bachelor's degree in Biology from Portland State University in 2008. Leaving the misty woods of Oregon, Dr. Sheila returned to southern California to be closer to her family and attended the Western University of Health Sciences School of Veterinary Medicine.
Upon her graduation in 2015, Dr. Sheila was accepted into a one-year small animal internship at Southern California Veterinary Specialty Hospital in Orange County. During this time, she had the opportunity to work alongside boarded specialists in the Cardiology, Neurology, Surgery, Internal Medicine, Oncology and Critical Care departments to cultivate keen analytical and diagnostic skills. In the summer of 2016, Dr. Sheila joined the Malibu Coast Animal Hospital family and is dedicated to her goal of providing owners with an understanding of their pets' needs and how to provide them with the care and support they need to live long, happy, healthy lives.
Dr. Sheila is certified by OneHealth Scientific Integrative Medicine (SIM) to perform veterinary acupuncture. She enjoys volunteering her time and her previous involvement includes assisting with equine therapy lessons for children, being a zoo guide, and volunteering with the Humane Society and Spay and Neuter Project LA to bring veterinary service to low income communities.