By Marilee Griffin

Dr. James W. Lloyd

James W. Lloyd, D.V.M., Ph.D., has been named dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Florida.

“I am confident that our internationally recognized veterinary college, hospitals and clinics will flourish under Dr. Lloyd’s leadership,” said David S. Guzick, M.D., Ph.D., senior vice president for health affairs at UF and UF&Shands Health System president. “He brings a wealth of expertise to our team. I look forward to working with him in continuing our tradition of excellence as the state’s only college of veterinary medicine.”

Lloyd was chosen after a nationwide search led by co-chairs Teresa A. Dolan, D.D.S., M.P.H., a professor and dean of UF’s College of Dentistry, and John P. Hayes, Ph.D., a professor and dean for research at the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

“Dr. Lloyd will make an outstanding addition to the leadership team at the University of Florida,” said Hayes. “I am particularly excited by his vision to position the College of Veterinary Medicine at the forefront of efforts to link health sciences, agricultural sciences and veterinary medicine to address some of the most important issues facing our society. He brings a tremendous set of skills to the table, and we are very excited that he will be joining us at the University of Florida.”

Lloyd will officially begin his new job in July, when he will become the college’s sixth permanent dean.

“I’m thrilled with the opportunity to lead the College of Veterinary Medicine at UF,” said Lloyd. “It’s an outstanding institution with a core of exceptional faculty, staff and students. Together with the leadership team, I look forward to working with both internal and external stakeholders to build on the college’s existing strengths in research, teaching and service and to expand the college’s recognition as a respected leader in academic veterinary medicine.”

The unique opportunity to collaborate with the Health Science Center and UF’s Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences is exciting, Lloyd said. He’s also looking forward to active engagement with alumni and practitioners in the Florida Veterinary Medical Association, and to working closely with Florida’s diverse animal-owning public — including pet owners, horse owners and the livestock industries.

“We look forward to working with Dean Lloyd to grow the size, scope and diversity of these programs and bring ever greater visibility to the College,” said Jack Payne, Ph.D., senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources at IFAS. “IFAS is very proud of its partnership with the College of Veterinary Medicine in our joint research and Extension efforts, such as the Extension efforts in livestock, aquatic animal health, environmental toxicology, the Food Animal Reproduction and Medicine Service and the Food Animal Residue Avoidance Databank.”

Lloyd most recently served as the associate dean for budget, planning and institutional research at Michigan State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine. He maintained joint appointments as a professor in the departments of large animal clinical sciences and agricultural economics at MSU, and was an adjunct professor at MSU’s Eli Broad College of Business.

He earned a doctorate in veterinary medicine from MSU in 1981 and a Ph.D. in agricultural economics from MSU in 1989.

Lloyd has published more than 165 journal articles, technical reports, proceedings and book chapters. He has successfully secured grant funding for veterinary education and animal health projects, as well as for his research interests, which include non-technical behaviors that contribute to veterinarians’ success, markets for veterinary medical services and financial dimensions of veterinary medical education.

In addition, Lloyd has delivered more than 330 presentations and workshops nationally and internationally, including sessions on leadership development, teaching hospital management, curriculum, academic admissions and various scientific topics at 22 of the 28 U.S. colleges/schools of veterinary medicine.

During this time, he also taught extensively in both pre-clinical and clinical courses, with an emphasis on epidemiology, food safety, herd health management, production medicine, veterinary medical career development and veterinary practice management.

Lloyd is an active member of professional veterinary organizations, including the American Veterinary Medical Association, the American Association of Bovine Practitioners and VetPartners. He served on the executive committee of the Michigan Veterinary Medical Association for four years and was its president in 2010.

“Dr. Lloyd’s experience as an agricultural economist, veterinary practitioner, educator and associate dean responsible for budget, planning and institutional research have prepared him well for the leadership position as dean,” said Dolan. “I have no doubt that he will work to develop an outstanding leadership team and advance the College of Veterinary Medicine to one of the top programs in the country.”

Dr. Mike Walsh

Anyone paying attention to entertainment news these days knows about the new movie, Dolphin Tale, which opened Sept. 23 in theatres and tells the true story about Winter, a dolphin that survived entanglement in a buoy line by subsequently being outfitted with a prosthetic tail. What’s perhaps less commonly known is that the character of Winter’s veterinarian, played by Harry Connick Jr., is loosely based on none other than the University of Florida’s Dr. Mike Walsh.

Walsh, who is associate director of the College of Veterinary Medicine’s Aquatic Animal Health program, also performs veterinary services at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium, which is where Winter has resided since being rescued by scientists from the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute in Fort Pierce back in 2005. Aquarium staff contacted Walsh, who was director of veterinary services at Sea World in Orlando at the time, to ask his advice about how to best obtain blood samples from the impaired dolphin.

“I first had contact with Winter when she was a baby, and because she was missing her tail, there was confusion as to how to get blood samples from her on a regular basis to keep track of what was happening with her,” Walsh said. “The probability of infection was high, so we needed to monitor blood on a regular basis.”

Winter, shown at the Clearwater Marine Aquarium.

Winter had lost her tail because the blood supply to it had been cut off when she was tangled in the buoy line, Walsh said. He recommended that samples be taken from the peduncle, the area between the dorsal fin and the tail since it could not be obtained from the tail, which is standard for obtaining blood samples from most dolphins but was impossible in Winter’s case.

A year or so later, Walsh was serving as the park’s veterinarian. Many companies and individuals had approached the park about creating some type of prosthetic tail, but deciding whether this was a feasible option – as an alternative to euthanasia – and what the safest approach was, took some time, Walsh said. Eventually the park wound up working with a company called Hanger Prosthetics and Orthotics of Waterville, Maine.

“They had the best idea for achieving the goal without hurting Winter’s skin or causing other problems, and we thought that working with David Yates’ team at Clearwater was going to be a long term benefit for Winter,” Walsh said. He added that Winter’s success from a medical perspective was greatly impacted by Dr. Janine Cianciolo, who took care of her after her injury and nursed the dolphin, along with other members of the aquarium’s team, through infection, wound healing and growth.

Five years later, Winter is doing well, Walsh said. However, he cautions that managing her tail is an ongoing, lifetime issue.

“We still have a great need to continue to make progress and to make things even better over the long run,” he said, adding that as Winter grows, the needs of her tail change also.

Winter’s prosthetic fin is “like a sock made for a certain sized shoe,” Walsh said. “Her tail has been modified many times by the Hanger group team headed by Kevin Carroll and Dan Strzempka, and we have gone through numerous prototypes as a result as the need for change. Each time we introduce a new tail, we have to go through a readaptation process, depending on how well it fits and the degree of propulsion she gets from it.”

Veterinarians need to make sure not only that Winter is moving properly and building her muscles, but also that she can function well in a multiple animal environment with individuals that have normal tail structure, Walsh said.

“The challenge with Winter is coming up with solutions to a problem that no one has dealt with before,” Walsh said. “This is where the College of Veterinary Medicine excels.”

When filming took place for the movie, Walsh spent a day at the park with Harry Connick, Jr., talking to him about various medical issues experienced by animals there, including showing the star how some stranded sea turtles were being treated.

For his involvement, Walsh was offered two tickets to the movie’s premier in Los Angeles, although he turned them down due to other obligations.

Others from UF  have also played an important role in Winter’s care over the past few years, including Dr. Carolina Medina, chief of the college’s acupuncture and rehabilitation service, and Dr. Nicole Stacy, a clinical pathologist.

Medina said she had gone to see Winter several times in the past two years, adding that she performed acupressure, laser therapy and therapeutic ultrasound, and in addition, showed Winter’s trainers how to perform massage and stretching exercises.

Stacy has been involved in processing and interpreting diagnostic samples from Winter since 2009, “two to three times a week and more frequently during the time of filming last year for the purpose of monitoring her health during the process,” Stacy said.