The past two years have been difficult for Ravella, an 11-year-old Dutch Warmblood mare and dressage athlete. She battled multiple lameness-causing injuries that nearly permanently sidelined her, but because of a diligent rider/handler, a caring owner, and a dedicated veterinary team, she is on the road to recovery with a bright athletic future. And more athletes like Ravella can look forward to similar results with coming advancements to UC Davis’ treatment facilities for equine athletes.
Sick cats at UC Davis now have a more dedicated space to recover. The Small Animal Clinic at the school’s veterinary hospital has opened a feline treatment and housing suite to better care for sick and injured cats. The new facility combines a hospitalization ward with examination and treatment space. Veterinarians and technicians laud the suite as the most efficient use of space and time in order to care for multiple hospitalized cats.
The School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of California, Davis is taking one of the lead roles in the university’s new $2 billion fundraising campaign, “Expect Greater: From UC Davis, For the World.” This marks the largest philanthropic endeavor in the university’s history, and the school’s 25% portion of the goal is also its largest fundraising challenge.
As many local clinics are unable to provide their usual levels of care due to the COVID-19 pandemic—on top of a significant caseload growth over the past decade—the UC Davis Emergency Room is seeing more patients than ever.
The Schuler Ranch in Yuba City is a small beef cattle operation with about 25 head of shorthorns. The 2020 calving season started out as normal as any calving season of the past, with four healthy calves being born, including a set of twins. When the next group of cows calved, five of their newborns became ill at the same time. It was clear that something devastating could be going through their small herd and could wipe it out quickly. After onsite veterinary services could not save one of the sick calves, they rushed the four others to the Large Animal Clinic (LAC) at the UC Davis veterinary hospital.
Dog owner Rob Beasom and his wife were out of town when they received a frantic call from their dog sitter. Barley, their 3-year-old male French bulldog, severely hurt himself while jumping off the couch, rendering him paralyzed in his back legs. Beasom immediately made plans to return home and called Barley’s primary veterinarian. After Beasom described the situation, the veterinarian told him to take Barley to the UC Davis veterinary hospital.
Harold “Hal” Parker was a proud member of the Class of 1952—the school’s inaugural graduating class of 42 students, nearly all World War II veterans. He was pivotal in building the foundation for excellence in veterinary medicine at UC Davis, starting with the groundbreaking ceremony for Haring Hall in 1948.
Dr. John Zimmerman, DVM ’62 can’t thank the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine enough for giving him the training to pursue a fulfilling career. After graduation, he worked in dairy production and equine medicine for two years in Los Angeles before establishing the Sonoma Marin Veterinary Service in Petaluma, California, where he has been practicing for 57 years.
“Veterinary medicine has been a great fit for me,” he said. “I like cattle and ended up coming back to my home town. It’s given me a wonderful life.”
Grateful clients, Bob and Colleen Haas appreciate the decades of exceptional care their veterinarian and friend, the late Dr. Paul Miller ’71 provided for their horses. To honor him, the Haases contributed a gift to name the Paul Miller Rounds Room in the Equine Performance Center (EPC), envisioned as part of the master plan for the new UC Davis Veterinary Medical Center.
The Veterinary Medical Center campaign is the largest fundraising effort ever by a veterinary school. And as it progresses, the school is celebrating the clients, patients and care teams who are the reason behind the center, and provide new tools where hospital personnel can find the latest construction information.
