VCA - Key Persons
Dr. Cabrera was born in Ciego de Avila, Cuba, and he is a second-generation veterinarian. Cabrera and his family fled to escape Castro's communist regime when he was just 8 months old. He attended public school in Miami, then later attended Christopher Columbus High School. After graduation, Dr. Cabrera attended Miami Dade Community College for one year and transferred into the school of veterinary medicine at Universidad Nacional Pedro Henriquez Urena in Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. Upon graduating, Dr. Cabrera attended the prestigious Animal Medical Center in New York City as an international post-graduate intern. He then moved to West Lafayette, Indiana to attend the Purdue University foreign graduate program.
In 1994, Dr. Cabrera moved back to Miami to run and manage his father's veterinary practice. Upon attaining licensure, Dr. Cabrera took over his father's practice and expanded it from a small, one-doctor clinic to one of the largest veterinary hospitals in Miami Dade County with accreditation from the American Animal Hospital Association.
Dr. Cabrera continued to expand his knowledge and expertise in both veterinary surgery and pain management, with training and certification in veterinary acupuncture from the University of Florida's Chi Institute and through many advanced surgical courses.
In 1999, Dr. Cabrera started to serve on the Board of the South Florida Veterinary Medical Association and was instrumental in organizing the SFVMA Fishing Tournament. This fundraiser helps both the SFVMA and the South Florida Veterinary Foundation with much-needed funds for education and community outreach.
In 2001, Dr. Cabrera was elected President of the SFVMA and was also presented with the Gold Star award from the Florida Veterinary Medical Association for outstanding service to the veterinary field.
Dr. Cabrera sold his practice in 2005 to VCA Animal Hospitals, the largest veterinary group in the United States with over 500 hospitals and became a medical director for VCA. During his tenure at VCA, Dr. Cabrera showed his passion and expertise in surgery and eventually became the in-house surgeon for all the VCA hospitals in South Florida.
In 2009, Dr. Cabrera opened his present company, Cutting Edge Surgical Referrals, Inc. He now exclusively limits his practice to surgery and is presently performing surgery for more than 100 hospitals from the Palm Beaches to the Florida Keys. In September 2018, Dr. Cabrera was involved in organizing and Chair of a session at the World Veterinary Orthopedic Conference in Barcelona, Spain. Dr. Cabrera is a longstanding member of the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Florida Veterinary Medical Association, the South Florida Veterinary Medical Association, and the Veterinary Orthopedic Society. In January 2019, Dr. Cabrera was appointed by Governor Rick Scott to serve as one of the 5 veterinarians on the Florida Board of Veterinary Medicine.
On his down time, Dr. Cabrera enjoys spending his time with his five children: Kassandra, Katerina, Karolina, Matthew, and Sophia. He is a parishioner at St. Thomas the Apostle Catholic Church and is married to Diane Montoya.
Julio was born and raised in the Dominican Republic. He attended veterinary school at the Universidad Nacional Pedro Henriquez Urena and graduated with honors in 1990. He then continued his studies at the Universidad Central de Venezuela where he received his master's degree in animal reproduction. Julio moved to the United States in 1997 and has been working alongside Dr. Cabrera ever since.