By MARTIN ESPINOZA
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT

Several years ago, Angie Law, 18, made a pretty big choice in her life — trying to decide which high school to attend.

Her neighborhood school, Maria Carrillo, had a great cross country running program, while Santa Rosa High School had an amazing agriculture program, particularly for those with no family history of ranching or farming.

Angie Law is studying to become a veterinarian at Santa Rosa Junior College. (JOHN BURGESS / The Press Democrat)

Angie, who was a rather shy girl, took her mother’s advice and opted for Santa Rosa High. The school’s strong ag program, with its own farm and vineyard, was her entry into the world of agriculture. And she soon became active in Future Farmers of America.

“It really helped me build my self confidence. It helped me become the person I was meant to be,” Law said. “That’s why I feel honored to have gone to Santa Rosa High. With Santa Rosa FFA, a lot of the kids don’t come from ranches, but we have the opportunity to do the same things.”

Law graduated from Santa Rosa High last spring and now is attending Santa Rosa Junior College. Her goal is to transfer to UC Davis in two years to study veterinary sciences.

That’s no surprise to her grandfather, Richard Muzio of Santa Rosa, who’s “been at her side” since she was born.

“Angie is very much into animals and has been ever since she was big enough to walk,” Muzio said. “First it was bugs. Her first pet was a white rat. She would let it walk all over . . . she would read to that white rat at night. I swear to God, the thing would just sit there and stare at her like it was really listening to her.”

Angie took top honors at the recent Sonoma County Fair, including the grand champion market goat and reserve grand champion market poultry pen. She also got a second place in advance market goat showmanship.

It was her third time raising market livestock at the fair, she said.

She started raising animals in her sophomore year and won reserve grand champion market goat. She said she chose to raise market goats rather than sheep because she “fell in love” with the species.

“I didn’t really want to raise sheep,” she said. “Not many people in our program really raise market goats yet. It’s more of a unique species. I think they have great potential in the market world.”

Angie is a strong student whose love of animals is guiding her career endeavors. She works part-time at Lakeside Pet Hospital in Santa Rosa while taking a full academic load at SRJC.

She knows she wants to become a vet, but isn’t sure if she’ll eventually become a small or large animal vet. A specialty in small animals, or pets, could take her anywhere in the country, she said.

“In the Bay Area, 90 percent of vet jobs are small-animal related,” she said.

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