Research

Companion Animal Health Care and Management

Companion animal health research is a growing interest area that involves a dynamic group of WCVM researchers from a wide variety of specialized disciplines.

Research activities cover subjects such as the refinement of minimally-invasive surgery techniques and investigations of infectious and vector-borne diseases. WCVM-based scientists are involved in studies of genetic conditions in the disciplines of internal medicine and ophthalmology, while other projects focus on improved diagnostic testing for cancer, signs of endotoxemia and acute abdominal pain. New WCVM faculty members are also developing projects in the specialized areas of veterinary oncology, dentistry, anesthesia, and emergency and critical care.

What's exciting is the growing number of collaborative research teams that focus on pet health issues. Researchers in basic sciences are joining forces with clinicians at the WCVM as well as in human medicine to tackle multi-layered health problems in pets - such as obesity, cardiovascular diseases and antibiotic resistance - whose solutions may offer potential alternatives to human health researchers.

The WCVM's Companion Animal Health Fund has provided key support for many of the College's small animal-related research projects for more than three decades. Research teams have also been successful in securing funding from pet food and pharmaceutical companies. Pet health organizations such as the Morris Animal Foundation have also supported projects, plus WCVM researchers have attracted funding from human health groups for translational health studies.

• Carr, Anthony (Tony)
  Cardiovascular disease, hypertension, congestive heart disease and multi-media teaching, immune-mediated disease, hemostasis and endurance training in sled dogs.  
• Chaban, Bonnie
  Detection and characterization of Campylobacter in companion animals.
• Duke, Tanya
  analgesia, inflammation and anesthesia and physiological effects of anesthesia
• Forsyth, George
  The activity of ion transport proteins involved in the pathology of diarrheal diseases and cystic fibrosis.
• Grahn, Bruce
  Dr. Grahn's research interest is in surgical therapy of glaucoma, retinopathies and ocular pathology.
• Hill, Janet
  Microbial ecology, livestock and human disease, phylogenetics and taxonomy, molecular diagnostics and development of cpnDB, a chaperonin sequence database.
• Jackson, Marion L.
  Applied studies in veterinary clinical pathology, molecular aspects of feline leukemia virus infection and retroviral oncogenesis.
• Kidney, Beverly A.
  Clinical pathology, viral oncogenesis and molecular oncology.
• Linn, Kathleen
  Avian and canine orthopedic and soft tissue injuries.
• Loewen, Matthew
  Investigations of the mechanism and effects of calcium activated chloride channels as they modulate human and animal diseases.
• Lowe, Candace
• Mayer, Monique
  Veterinary radiation oncology.
• Montgomery, James
• Myers, Sherry L.
  Diagnostic clinical pathology, dermatohistopathology and surgical pathology.
• Parker, Dennilyn
  Avian, exotic and wildlife medicine including projects related to avian renal portal system, ferret diseases and the rabbit's gastrointestinal system.
• Pharr, John W.
  General ultrasonography, cardiac diagnostic imaging, orthopedic radiology, magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography.
• Post, Klaas
  Small animal reproduction.
• Sandmeyer, Lynne
  Antiviral agents against feline herpesvirus, and hereditary retinal disease of horses and dogs.
• Shmon, Cindy
  Soft tissue surgery and orthopedics, neurosurgery, lumbosacral disease, and diseases in working dogs.
• Silver, Tawni
  Medical imaging.
• Singh, Baljit
  Cell and molecular biology of lung inflammation. Dr. Singh's projects focus on mechanisms of neutrophil and monocyte migration into inflamed lungs, biology of pulmonary intravascular macrophages and environmental pulmonary toxicology.
• Smart, Marion (Meg)
  Small animal nutrition.
• Snead, Elisabeth
  Canine and feline diabetes mellitus, feline mycoplasma and oncology.
• Taylor, Susan
• Tryon, Kimberly
  General radiology, computed tomography and magnetic resonance imaging; and ultrasonography (general and cardiac).
• Weber, Lynn
  The effect of environmental toxicants on the cardiovascular system in mammals and fish; the effects of glycemic index, obesity and second-hand tobacco smoke on cardiovascular function in dogs; and the effects of uranium mining effluents on fish cardiovascular development, swim performance and energy utilization.