Doc HollywoodJanuary 14, 2011 California veterinarian James Peddie makes a name for himself on TV and movie sets. For the upcoming movie “Zookeeper,” starring Kevin James, the production company needed to move a menagerie of exotic animals to the set, Boston’s Franklin Park Zoo. But introducing an unfamiliar elephant, giraffe and bears—even the highly trained, medically pampered specimens that work in the film industry—into the zoo population worried the zoo’s veterinarian. The zoo wanted a barrage of tests done on the animal actors. The animals’ handlers balked. It seemed like an impasse that couldn’t be breached. Enter James Peddie, DVM—the “Hollywood Vet.” Having worked on dozens of film sets and with hundreds of exotic animals over the past two decades, Dr. Peddie understood why the zookeepers needed solid proof that the new arrivals wouldn’t bring disease with them. He also understood that the trainers were fiercely protective of their valuable charges and would not allow any overly invasive exams, especially one that would require anesthesia, a considerable risk in an exotic. Working closely with both sides, he brokered a level of tests acceptable to all. Next, he …
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George Kukor, DVM, And Lonnie King, DVM, Receive Service Above Self AwardsNovember 30, 2010 George Kukor, DVM, and Lonnie King, DVM, each received Service Above Self Awards during the 16th annual Lake Erie Walleye Fishing & Golf Seminar in Port Clinton, Ohio. This year is the first time two award winners were named. Dr. Kukor, a retired veterinarian, was honored for his 40 years of service to the Ohio Veterinary Medical Association. Dr. King, dean of The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine, received the award for his “unfaltering dedication, leadership and selfless initiative within the community.”
Charleston Veterinary Referral Center Set To Open In MarchNovember 30, 2010 Charleston Veterinary Referral Center of Charleston, S.C., is set to open in March. The 16,000-square-foot facility will include an intensive-care unit with 24/7 emergency and critical care; a referral service, with specialties in surgery, internal medicine, neurology, cardiology, critical care, as well as interventional radiologic and cardiac procedures; and an imaging center that will include MRI, CT scan, ultrasound and color flow Doppler, digital radiology and fluoroscopy.
Domenico Bianco, DVM, Ph.D., And Renee Fenty, DVM, Join Veterinary Specialists Of The ValleyNovember 30, 2010 Domenico Bianco, DVM, Ph.D., and Renee Fenty, DVM, have joined Veterinary Specialists of the Valley in Woodland Hills, Calif. Dr. Bianco previously worked at Red Bank Veterinary Hospital of Tinton Falls, N.J. Dr. Fenty was previously at Tufts Veterinary Emergency Treatment & Specialties, which is affiliated with Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.
CARES Names Edwin Darrin, VMD, Dipl. ACVIM, Head Of NeurologyNovember 30, 2010 The Center for Animal Referral and Emergency Services (CARES) of Langhorne, Pa., has named Edwin Darrin, VMD, Dipl. ACVIM, as head of neurology. Dr. Darrin offers services such as MRI, pain management, spinal surgery, brain surgery and electrodiagnostic testing. He comes to CARES from Veterinary Specialty Center in Buffalo Grove, Ill.
Tammy Beckham, DVM, Ph.D. Named Director Of FAZD CenterNovember 30, 2010 Tammy Beckham, DVM, Ph.D., has been named the new director of the National Center for Foreign Animal and Zoonotic Disease Defense (FAZD Center) at Texas A&M University. Dr. Beckham, who has served as the FAZD Center’s interim director since March, will continue to serve as director at Texas Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory.
Abaxis Inc. Welcomes Andrew Rosenfeld, DVM, Dipl. ABVP, To Advisory BoardNovember 30, 2010 Abaxis Inc. of Union City, Calif., has welcomed Andrew Rosenfeld, DVM, Dipl. ABVP, to its advisory board. Dr. Rosenfeld has practiced small-animal critical care and emergency medicine for 18 years, and served as hospital director for Paradise Valley Emergency Animal clinic in Scottsdale, Ariz., for three years.
Horse SenseNovember 22, 2010 After graduating with a biology degree from Mount Holyoke College in 1975, Ann E. Dwyer went to work in a lab, doing immunology research. She soon discovered two problems: The work wasn’t her calling, and she wasn’t very good at it. It was really for the best, she recalls, when her boss gently let her go after a year. So Dwyer, who’d been a horse-crazy kid, went to work at a racetrack while she figured out what to do next. She stayed three years, discovering what she should have been doing all along. “It was the classic story that there’s always opportunity in failure,” Dwyer says now, cheerfully. Inspired by what she was learning by working with horses all day, every day, Dwyer decided to pursue veterinary medicine, and graduated from Cornell University’s veterinary school in 1983. Since then, she has practiced at Genesee Valley Equine Clinic in Scottsville, N.Y., and became the majority owner in 1995. This month, Dr. Dwyer will be sworn in as vice president of the American Association of Equine Practitioners at its convention in Baltimore. The position puts her on the path to become …
Agent Of ChangeOctober 18, 2010Health scare gives Brett Cordes new direction as a veterinarian By the time Brett Cordes, DVM, was in his mid-30s, he had worked in veterinary practices for the better part of two decades. He started in high school, worked his way through college and veterinary school, then spent 10 years as a practicing vet. The way he handled potentially hazardous materials, particularly chemotherapy drugs, was often cavalier during these years, he admits. He wore little or no protective gear when handling chemotherapy agents and often dumped pills into his ungloved hand when dispensing them. He poured oncology drugs down the sink, even after noting how some left an angry red stain that lingered for days. Then in 2006, a specialist diagnosed an almond-sized lump on his neck as a rare form of thyroid cancer. One of the first questions the doctor asked: Was Dr. Cordes ever exposed to chemotherapy? Suddenly everything changed for Cordes, from the way he practiced veterinary medicine to the way he thought about workplace safety. “Most veterinarians really do everything. We’re our own oncologist, radiologist, pharmacist, dentist,” says Cordes, now 39, who is careful to note that although he and his physicians strongly suspect his exposure …
Healing AfghanistanOctober 5, 2010 A modern dairy plant sits down the road from where U.S. Army Capt. Ryan K. Miller, DVM, is stationed. Built five years ago near Kabul, Afghanistan, the plant was to produce pasteurized milk and ice cream and create jobs for local Afghans. But after just three years, the plant shut down because the cooperative no longer could afford the diesel fuel needed to keep the factory running. The idled plant is a daily reminder of the challenges that face Dr. Miller and the multinational coalition as they rebuild and improve Afghanistan’s infrastructure and economy. And it signals a shift in focus, he says, from expensive, sophisticated agricultural projects to simpler, sustainable ones that better suit the needs, capabilities and culture of Afghan farmers. An Afghan man requesting treatment for his sick camel turns up after a training seminar in Helmand Province. “The [dairy plant] was great, but now we can see that it was too complicated and too expensive to operate and make a profit,” says Miller, who works with the army’s Cooperative Medical Assistance unit, which provides technical advice on livestock and agriculture across Afghanistan. “In the last couple of years we’ve …
