School Notes
Honors and Awards
Philip H. Kass, DVM, MPVM, MS, PhD, vice provost of Academic Affairs and a professor of analytic epidemiology, has been named an honorary diplomate of the American Veterinary Epidemiology Society for his “significant contributions to veterinary epidemiology, public health and One Health.”
Erin Kent, PhD, received the university’s Graduate Studies Outstanding Program Coordinator Award for 2022. Kent serves as the coordinator for the Integrative Pathobiology Graduate Group, as well as the coordinator for the Veterinary Scientist Training Program for DVM-PhD students. She completed her PhD in Cell and Developmental Biology at UC Davis, an experience which deeply informs her vocation.
Stanley Marks, BVSc, PhD, DACVIM (Small Animal Medicine and Oncology), DACVN, was honored with the 2022 American Veterinary Medical Association’s Career Achievement in Canine Research Award. Marks’ research has had a significant impact on understanding swallowing disorders and chronic enteropathies in dogs. Recognized as one of the world’s foremost authorities in canine gastroenterology, Marks has pioneered innovative therapeutics that have a significant impact on human and canine patients alike.
Nicole Mikoni, DVM, and Paula Rodriguez, DVM, residents with the UC Davis veterinary hospital’s Companion Exotic Animal Medicine and Surgery Service, were recently recognized as the inaugural recipients of the Outstanding American Journal of Veterinary Research Resident Manuscript Awards.
Aryana Razmara, a dual-degree student (DVM and PhD) with the Class of 2027, was one of five national recipients of a prestigious American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA)/American Veterinary Medical Foundation (AVMF) 2nd Opportunity Research Award. The AVMA/AVMF offers this annual award to veterinary students who are making contributions to the veterinary profession through research accomplishments. Razmara’s research focuses on comparative oncology and canine immunotherapy.
Crystal Rogers, PhD, was among 21 early career researchers on 10 multidisciplinary teams to receive a Scialog Award. The recognition provides a combined $1,180,000 in funding from the Research Corporation for Science Advancement, the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative, the Frederick Gardner Cottrell Foundation, and Walder Foundation in the second year of Scialog: Advancing BioImaging—an initiative that aims to accelerate the development of the next generation of imaging technologies. Rogers’ research is highlighted on page 10.
Stephen White, DVM, DACVD, received the American Veterinary Medical Association’s 2022 Clinical Research Award for his substantial contributions to clinical veterinary dermatology across multiple species, influencing the practice of veterinary dermatology in both small animal and large animal clinical practice. His research collaborations across the globe have also provided valuable clinical information for therapies now being used in human dermatology.
In Memoriam - Peter Schantz, VMD, PhD ’71
Propel your career!
A Master in Preventive Veterinary Medicine (MPVM) degree will give you a One Health understanding and can lead to American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine board eligibility. The program is open to veterinarians and other professionals in One Health. Financial aid and one-on-one advising available. For more information, visit mpvm.vetmed.ucdavis.edu.
Stay current on recent advancements in veterinary medicine, improve the quality of life for your patients, and fulfill CE requirements through Continuing Professional Education programs. Select events are also provided for the general public to learn more about animal welfare, disease prevention, and one health issues. Learn more at ce.vetmed.ucdavis.edu.
Jane Sykes, BVSc (Hons), PhD, MBA, DACVIM, professor at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, has edited and co-authored the Fifth Edition
of Greene’s Infectious Diseases of the Dog and Cat. Long considered to be “the bible” of dog and cat infectious diseases, previous editions are on bookshelves in specialty practices worldwide, and it is a resource for student and house officer training in nearly every veterinary school. Benjamin Hart, DVM, PhD, and Lynette Hart, PhD, have published The Perfect Puppy: Breed Selection and Care by Veterinary Science for Behavior and Neutering Age. It provides the most updated and expert knowledge on 80 of the most common dog breeds to guide the selection of a puppy or mature dog. It also offers the latest information on breed-specific behavior profiles and guidelines for spaying or neutering, health conditions, and life expectancy.
Capturing Our Best
After nearly 28 years of capturing some of the best moments at the veterinary school, photographer Don Preisler has retired. He worked as a staff photographer for several newspapers and wire services before visiting the school on an assignment for the New York Times. That assignment led to another and soon to a career appointment.
Preisler said the highlights of his job were always capturing the spontaneous emotions of students during commencement and white coat ceremonies. He also enjoyed joining the Veterinary Emergency Response Team in the field in the aftermath of California wildfires, and documenting procedures at the Sacramento Zoo with creatures like flamingos and aardvarks to snow leopards and tigers.
In the past year, he engaged in a project with the school’s Center for Companion Animal Health, capturing the adorable personalities of nearly 90 pets of faculty, staff and students. The artwork has been used throughout the hospital and for school communications.
You’ll still find him on campus on the sidelines of football games, with his wife, Professor Lisa Tell, and their Labrador, Cori—the Aggies’ new tee-retrieving dog.
Kicker Isaiah Gomez, with Cori, said he’s connected well with the dog, noting her similarity to a pair of twin black Labradors he had growing up.
Meet UC Davis’ New Kickoff Dog: Cori
A fan-favorite tradition is back for another season of Aggie football, with a new dog trotting onto the field to retrieve the kickoff tee. Cori, a 21⁄2-year-old Labrador retriever, made her first appearance in September in a win over the University of San Diego.
“It makes people smile and she loves it,” said owner Lisa Tell ’87, DVM ’91, a professor of medicine and epidemiology in the veterinary school.
Cori is taking over tee-retrieval duties from Pint, a Nova Scotia duck tolling retriever owned by veterinary medicine Professor Danika Bannasch, who retrieved 284 kickoff tees from 2012 until his retirement last year.
Tell brought Cori home over the summer to join her menagerie of three parrots, one cat, three other dogs and a desert tortoise—and got to work training her to run onto the field, and find and retrieve the black plastic tee.
Training a dog to retrieve a kickoff tee can be tough—games are noisy and the small tee can be hard to spot from a dog’s low vantage point. To help, Cori is trained to run in the direction Tell’s feet are pointing, and Tell can issue commands for Cori to expand her search in a specific direction if she has trouble finding the tee. Tell and Cori frequently attend the team’s morning practices, and have retrieved tees at some Davis High School football games this season.
A local television reporter who attended Cori’s first game said she “got the loudest cheers of the night” from the record crowd of 14,394 people, which included nearly 11,000 students.
Cori’s public-facing duties have already turned her into an unofficial mascot for both the team and the school—a connection that is a source of pride for both entities.
“We all believe dogs are such an important part of people’s lives,” said Amy Kapatkin, a professor of orthopedic surgery in the veterinary medicine school and the one who suggested Tell look into having her dog retrieve tees. “Pint and now Cori highlight how versatile dogs are, as well as how they can be trained to do many things and are wonderful companions. It is a special way that the vet school contributes to the school’s spirit.”
Tell has printed stickers and magnets featuring Cori—wearing a veterinary medicine bandanna—in photos taken by her husband, recently retired veterinary medicine photographer Don Preisler. She plans to hand them out at public events Cori attends—not only games, but also fan events and other occasions. Cori also has an Instagram page to connect with fans. Look for her @corirocketdog.