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.”

Come one, come all to the UF College of Veterinary Medicine’s traditional Open House! The event will be held from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the college, 2015 SW 16th Ave., in Gainesville. The college and the Student Chapter of the American Veterinary Medical Association work together to put on this wonderful, fun and education event each year for the community. And it’s all free!

Our Open House is an opportunity to learn more about the veterinary profession and what our Small and Large Animal Hospitals have to offer, engage in learning opportunities, see cool stuff and even adopt an animal from a local shelter. Come learn more about us! What a great way to spend a Saturday!

* Educational Demonstrations (Small Animal Endoscopy, 10 a.m.-2 p.m.; Underwater Canine Treadmill,  (11 a.m. 1 p.m. 3 p.m.)

* Dialysis, ventilator and CPR Demonstrations (ongoing)

* Radiographs and ultrasound (ongoing)

* V.E.T.S. Disaster Team: (Starts at 10 a.m., runs every 30 minutes)

* “Tips on Getting into Vet School” lectures (11:45 a.m. and 1:30 p.m.)

* Tours of the Small and Large Animal Hospitals and the Shelter Medicine Clerkship area (ongoing)

* Police and Sheriff’s Office K-9 Demonstrations (Bite, Bomb Sniffing and Odor Detection):  (11 a.m., 1 p.m. and 2:30 p.m. for various activities)

* Pet Adoptions from local rescue groups (ongoing)

* Educational games and Prizes

Large Animal Hospital

* Equine Treadmill Demonstrations ( 11 a.m., 11:30 a.m., 12 p.m., 12:30 p.m., 1 p.m., 2 p.m., 3 p.m.)

* Pregnant Mare Ultrasound (ongoing)

* Name a baby horse (ongoing – come by and drop the name you want of the next foal into a drawing. The name drawn at the end of the day will be given to the next foal born.)

* ECG monitoring of a horse (ongoing)

* Rumen Fluid Collection (ongoing

* Large Animal Surgery “game show” (ongoing)

* Food Animal Medicine Presentation (ongoing)

* Boon, the Breyer Horse (ongoing)

Kids can bring their torn or ripped stuffed animals and veterinary students in the Class of 2014 will repair them in our ever-popular Teddy Bear Clinic!

Food and drinks will be available for purchase. Proceeds from products sold will benefit veterinary student organizations.

In addition to our students and all from the college, the hospitals and the community who help make this event possible, we are very grateful to our sponsors for their support!
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Check out our photo gallery from last year’s Open House here.

By Sarah Carey

Dr. Sarah Reuss and Dr. Jim Wellehan inspect the ear of a healthy horse. (Photo by Maria Farias)

A rare, potentially fatal species of parasite never before found in North America has been identified in a Florida horse.

University of Florida veterinarians identified the parasite, called Leishmania siamensis, in the summer of 2011. This particular species of parasite previously had been found only in Thailand and parts of Europe while other species of Leishmania have been found all over the world. No Leishmania infections of any species had been previously reported in a horse native to the United States.

The UF discovery raises awareness of how widespread the parasite is and suggests a need for watchfulness regarding potential transmission to humans, the researchers said.

“We now know the parasites that cause this disease also exist here in the U.S. and that we have some insect, presumably the sandfly, that is capable of transmitting the disease,” said Sarah Reuss, V.M.D., a clinical assistant professor of large animal medicine at the UF College of Veterinary Medicine, who along with UF colleagues and a private practice clinical pathologist described the findings in the September issue of Emerging Infectious Diseases, a journal of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. “Our findings raise several potential avenues of further investigation, including the prevalence of this disease in horses in the U.S., a better understanding of the sandfly life cycle and the potential of this leishmaniasis species to be transmitted from animals to humans.”

Leishmaniasis is a parasitic infection spread through the bites of infected sandflies. The disease shows up most commonly in two forms: cutaneous, which causes sores on the skin, is self-healing; and visceral, the most severe form, which affects the entire body and is almost always fatal if left untreated. After malaria, leishmaniasis is the leading parasitic cause of death in humans. The disease has been found in four continents and is considered to be endemic in 88 countries, including 16 developed nations, according to the World Health Organization. The WHO estimates the worldwide prevalence at 12 million cases, with about 350 million people at risk of infection and about 60,000 people dying from the disease each year. Leishmaniasis is rare in people in the U.S.

“It really hasn’t been a disease that has affected Americans, but there are really good data with climate change models that predict sandfly ranges will expand, making this disease much more of a threat because of global warming,” said co-author James Wellehan Jr., D.V.M., Ph.D., a veterinarian from the UF research team, who confirmed the presence of the disease in the Florida horse by analyzing the genes of the parasite.

The visceral form of leishmaniasis is endemic in foxhounds in the U.S, associated with a different species of Leishmania. But aside from some regional transmission in the Southwest, most of the cases of skin infection due to leishmaniasis in the U.S. are believed to have occurred in animals brought in from countries where the disease is common, or in people who had recently spent time in those countries.

“Thousands of people serving in the U.S. military have returned from Iraq and Afghanistan with cutaneous or visceral leishmaniasis,” said Christine Petersen, D.V.M., Ph.D., an associate professor of veterinary pathology at Iowa State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine and an expert on Leishmania transmission, immune responses and veterinary disease, who was not involved in the study. “In a few cases, these individuals have brought dogs back with them that also have leishmaniasis.”

The horse diagnosed at UF had no history of travel outside of the eastern U.S. The pregnant 10-year-old Morgan mare was treated as an outpatient at the University of Florida Large Animal Hospital for sores inside her left ear. A biopsy done in the field had suggested that the rare parasite was present when organisms that looked like the protozoa were seen within the inflammatory cells in that tissue. Further tissue samples and genetic analysis were used to identify the species of the disease-causing organism at UF.

Often, leishmaniasis of the skin will resolve without medical treatment. But the mare’s sores worsened over time — a development the veterinarians attributed to the pregnancy.

“Many of the horses in other countries that have been diagnosed with leishmaniasis were pregnant, so we think perhaps these horses have pregnancy-altered immune systems and are therefore more vulnerable to the disease,” Reuss said.

The drug used to treat horses with the disease in other parts of the world isn’t readily available in the U.S., and surgery wasn’t an option because the sores were inside the horse’s ear. After treatment with anti-fungal drugs, the sores eventually regressed. Horses housed at home with the affected horse did not show any signs of illness. Though the disease needs the sandfly as a carrier and does not pass directly among horses or between horses and humans, veterinary experts say the discovery of the new parasitic species in the U.S. is cause for increased vigilance.

“As a disease of animals capable of being transmitted to humans, leishmaniasis requires more attention to ensure we do not have vector-borne transmission within larger areas of the country,” Petersen said.

Risco, a board-certified theriogenologist whose primary interest is dairy medicine, succeeds Dr. David Freeman in the position. A professor of large animal surgery who has served as interim department chair since 2009, Freeman has returned to his position on the college faculty.

As chair, Risco will be responsible for faculty recruitment, mentoring and promotion, as well as budget management and instructional activities. He also will provide leadership in the areas of research, veterinary and graduate student education, clinical resident and intern training, and outreach. Risco will work closely with the chief of staff of the UF Veterinary Hospitals to ensure high-quality clinical service, and will liaise with the scientific communities of both the UF Academic Health Center and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences.

A member of the veterinary college’s first graduating class of 1980, Risco performed an internship at Chino Valley Veterinary Associates, a large dairy practice in Ontario, Calif., immediately following his graduation. He became a partner in that practice after completing his internship in 1981. Risco joined the UF veterinary faculty in 1990 as an assistant professor and was promoted to full professor in 2002.

During his tenure at UF, Risco has received many awards and honors for his teaching and research. In addition to several awards given by UF veterinary students, Risco also received the UF Blue Key Distinguished Faculty Award for teaching research and the Carl Norden-Pfizer Distinguished Teaching Award from the college. He was a Fulbright Visiting Scholar in Argentina in 2004 and was honored by the college’s Alumni Council with its annual Alumni Achievement Award in 2005.

He is an internationally recognized lecturer on dairy cattle production medicine.

“Dr. Risco brings a wealth of experience in large animal and a new vision to the leadership of the department,” said the college’s dean, Glen Hoffsis.

The UF veterinary college is seeking a new dean after Dean Glen Hoffsis’ announcement that he plans to retire on July 1, 2013.

Top administrators from the University of Florida’s Academic Health Center and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences have formed a search committee to recruit the next dean of the UF College of Veterinary Medicine.

David S. Guzick, M.D., Ph.D., UF’s senior vice president for health affairs and president of the UF&Shands Health System, and Jack Payne, Ph.D., senior vice president for agriculture and natural resources at IFAS, met with the committee July 23 to outline their criteria for the next veterinary college dean, who will replace Glen Hoffsis, D.V.M., following his retirement on July 1, 2013.

Committee members were charged with finding a candidate who has a strong vision for the college during these challenging economic times; who can find a balance among all missions of the college; and who is capable of interacting effectively with the many constituencies associated with the college and with UF as a whole.

“Dean Hoffsis has done an excellent job serving the college and the university during his six years at UF,” said Teresa A. Dolan, D.D.S., dean of UF’s College of Dentistry and committee co-chair. “When he retires, he will leave the college in a position of strength and poised for growth, making the deanship an attractive opportunity for a strong academic leader in veterinary medicine.”

Guzick and Payne both requested the committee submit a final unranked list of two to four candidates. The committee will meet next on Sept. 14 and will review initial applications at that time.

Also serving as committee co-chair is John P. Hayes, Ph.D., a professor and dean of research at IFAS. Hayes said the committee would recruit and review a diverse pool of qualified applicants and that he looked forward to the process of selecting the next veterinary college dean.

“This is an outstanding opportunity for a strong leader to build on the tremendous foundation in the college. The college has a strong faculty, great facilities and strong linkages with the academic community within the university, and the professional community and stakeholders across the state,” Hayes said.

Other committee members include John R. Bass, D.V.M., president of the Florida Veterinary Medical Association; Jason Blackburn, Ph.D., an assistant professor in UF’s department of geography, College of Liberal Arts and Sciences; Benjamin Carter, a senior UF veterinary student; Julia Conway, D.V.M., a clinical assistant professor of anatomical pathology in the veterinary college’s department of infectious diseases and pathology and alumni council chair; Paul Cooke, Ph.D., a professor and chair of the veterinary college’s department of physiological sciences; Amara Estrada, D.V.M., an associate professor of cardiology in the veterinary college’s department of small animal clinical sciences; Tom Frazer, Ph.D., interim director of the School of Natural Resources and Environment; Carlos Risco, D.V.M., a professor of food animal reproduction and medicine in the veterinary college’s department of large animal clinical sciences; Cindy Sanders, Alachua County Extension director and livestock agent; Tara Sabo-Attwood, Ph.D., an associate professor in the department of environmental global health at the College of Public Health and Health Professions; and Dana Zimmel, D.V.M., a clinical associate professor and chief of staff of the UF Veterinary Hospitals.

For more information about the committee, visit http://deansearch.vetmed.ufl.edu. Candidates for the position may send resumes/curriculum vitae via email to deansearch@vetmed.ufl.edu.

Laura Moon and her American Drum stallion, Boon, outside UF's Large Animal Hospital on Jan. 9, 2012.

By Sarah Carey

An American Drum Horse stallion named Mariah’s Boon was a model patient at the University of Florida’s Large Animal Hospital between 2008 and 2009, when he received two surgeries and numerous checkups for an abdominal abscess caused by a small wire that had penetrated his stomach.

Now, quite literally, and at only 6 years of age, he’s in the process of becoming a true model horse.

Mariah’s Boon — known affectionately to his owner, Laura Moon, as Boon — has been chosen as the 2012 Celebration Breyer Horse. The Breyer Animal Creations Company, a subsidiary of Reeves International, manufactures plastic, porcelain and resin model horses. As many children who love horses know, these models are carried in toy stores and tack shops and begin as artist’s sculptures. Each year, the company holds BreyerFest, the largest model horse show in the country.

The event draws model horse collectors and enthusiasts to Lexington, Ky. In July 2012, BreyerFest will showcase British breeds, including Dales Ponies, Hackneys, Cleveland Bays, Shires, Gypsy Vanners and the Drum Horse, which is a heavy riding horse that includes Clydesdale, Gypsy Horse and Shire bloodlines.

Moon learned last summer that Breyer was looking for a Drum Horse with show experience and its own Drum outfit. Boon met the criteria: After his health problems resolved, he’s been busy in the show ring, winning such accolades as Grand Champion Stallion at the Florida State Fair for two years in a row and just receiving Grand Champion Drum, Grand Champion Performance Drum and Grand Champion High Point Drum from the Feathered Horse Classic in Georgia.

“I am so proud of him and so pleased with everyone at UF,” Moon said.

Although many a horse owner might covet being selected as the Celebration Breyer Horse, for Moon — although she says she is honored by the designation — the real prize is Boon’s life, which she credits UF’s large animal veterinarians and other staff for saving.

After learning about the American Drum breed, Moon brought Boon home from the farm where he was bred when he was just a year old and began showing him at halter and in showmanship classes at her local equestrian center. After one show, Moon noticed Boon had a fever. Despite a course of antibiotics, the horse’s fever persisted, and her veterinarian recommended a trip to the UF Large Animal Hospital.

UF veterinarians Chris Sanchez and Laura Javsicas found a basketball-sized abscess in Boon’s abdomen. He also had pericarditis, an infection of the sac surrounding his heart. Because of the location of the abscess and involvement of the heart, veterinarians suspected that Boon ate something that penetrated the wall of his stomach and into his chest — they just couldn’t find the culprit.

Boon improved initially, but the abscess returned after antibiotics were discontinued. Boon received a second surgery at UF, during which Dr. Ali Morton created a portal from the abscess to Boon’s skin, a technique called marsupialization. This allowed improved drainage of the abscess after surgery. Even after Boon went home from the hospital, Moon had to clean and flush the abscess twice a day, using a plastic catheter.

Eventually, the hole shrank to the size of a straw. Then one day during a cleaning, Moon saw something dark in the catheter. She pulled out a piece of metal.

“I thought it must have come from the ground, but it didn’t,” she said. “It was in the tube itself.”

A few days later, more metal came out. The culprits were found and the abscess continued to shrink in size. Within five months, the basketball-sized abscess was the size of a golf ball; after a year, it was the size of a grape and Boon looked like he had never been sick.

The syndrome, called “hardware disease,” is common in cattle but quite rare in horses.

The size of Boon’s abscess was monitored with repeated ultrasound exams at the UF Large Animal Hospital.

“I still carry those pieces of metal around in my truck,” she said. “It was a miracle. I am so thankful the UF veterinarians never gave up. They came across an obstacle, put their heads together and came up with a new plan. There was nothing in the books they could follow for what Boon had.”

By Sarah Carey

Baby Girl gets a walk during post-operative rehabilitation at Kesmarc Farm.

Although the journey has been long and painful for a rescued 2-year-old quarter horse named “Baby Girl,” the gentle buckskin filly is now on the road to recovery thanks to successful surgery Oct. 11 at UF’s Large Animal Hospital, a committed owner, and an ongoing regimen of advanced medical therapy.

“She is very  bright and remains upbeat and strong,” said Theresa Batchelor, president of Beauty’s Haven Farm and Equine Rescue, Inc., a non-profit organization located in Morriston, Fla. “She looks good, still loves to eat, and cleans up everything when she gets her meals.”

At the time of her rescue in mid-August, Baby Girl suffered from numerous signs of neglect and injury, including trauma to the right side of her face. She weighed only 295 pounds and could barely eat.

“Baby Girl endured a lot of pain and discomfort for two months before finding her way to us,” Batchelor said. “When she arrived, she was starving to death, while fighting chronic infection. She likely wouldn’t have lasted another week.”

Beauty’s Haven immediately started Baby Girl on a special diet, and within just five weeks, she had gained more than 100 pounds. But the problems with her facial trauma and draining wound continued.

An initial surgery performed at another facility in September to remove bone fragments from the right side of the horse’s jaw resulted in improved range of motion and allowed her to start chewing comfortably, eat more and gain additional weight. However, the wound on Baby Girl’s face was not healing, so Batchelor sought another opinion. Dr. Michael Porter, who owns an advanced mobile diagnostic practice and frequently examines horses at Beauty’s Haven, subsequently referred Baby Girl to UF for a CT scan and surgery.

The scan revealed that a large bone fragment was still present between her jawbone and her skull at the level of her temporomandibular joint. The fragment was dead and a large portion of the bone of both her jaw and skull was severely infected.

Dr. Ali Morton, an associate professor of large animal surgery, told Batchelor that the only viable approach to tackle the animal’s problems would be to surgically remove the problematic bone fragment. However, she knew the procedure would be very risky due to the proximity of the skull bone.

“Dr. Morton wouldn’t even give us 50/50 odds that she would come through the surgery,” Batchelor said. “It was pretty grim. I felt like someone had kicked me in the gut. Yet at the same time, I felt relieved to know what was really going on.”

Dr. Ali Morton, left, with Baby Girl in October at UF's Large Animal Hospital.

Morton said the horse’s fracture was unusual and in a very difficult location both to access surgically and to see on a standard radiograph.

“The CT scan was critical to identification of the problem and for surgical planning,” Morton said. “We are very fortunate to have this type of advanced-imaging capability.”

Morton said that in addition to Baby Girl’s fracture, the CT also revealed that she had severe infection of the bone of her jaw and of the thin bone of the base of her skull.

“The fragment was located just millimeters from this bone and the bone was so severely affected that it was questionable if it was even completely intact in the area covering her brain just next to the fragment that had to be removed,” Morton said.

Among the many hurdles Baby Girl had to overcome were recovery from two anesthesia procedures associated with her CT scan and surgery, recuperation from her severe infection and the healing of her wound.

“With the help of Kesmarc Farm, we added hyperbaric oxygen therapy to her antibiotic therapy, and Baby Girl has responded to every step amazingly,” Morton said. “She is still not completely out of the woods, but she is healing beautifully so far.  She is a special little horse, tough as nails, and loved by many.”

While cautioning that the horse is be prone in the future to developing arthritis in her jaw, UF veterinarians hope Baby Girl will regain more normal chewing function of her right jaw, and so far this improves daily.

Batchelor said the horse’s weight is now up to 450 pounds. She has responded well to the therapy at Kesmarc and is expected to return home to the farm in November.

“Between UF and Kesmarc, they saved this little girl,” Batchelor said. “I just can’t say enough good things.”

She added that many UF veterinary students volunteer at Beauty’s Haven and that a new group recently started working at the facility.

“God just brings people into your life when you need them most,” Batchelor said. “With Baby Girl coming home soon and these students here to help, everything is falling into place.”

She said time will tell what Baby Girl’s future holds.

“We just need to bring back her quality of life and let her figure out what she wants to do,” Batchelor said.

“I don’t see any limitations, but for us to keep her here indefinitely would not be fair to her. In my opinion every horse deserves its own human family.”

Anyone wishing to track Baby Girl’s progress may do so by visiting the Beauty’s Haven website at http://www.beautysequinerescue.org/daily_blog.htm