Dr. Rafael Castro is originally from Little Rock, Arkansas, and grew up canoeing down the river, hiking the state parks, and tubing at the lake. He received his Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of Central Arkansas in 2017, but his interest in veterinary medicine began before that. He worked as a kennel technician at 15 years old and ultimately decided during his time at UCA that he wanted to pursue a career in veterinary medicine [citation].