Latest News

UC Davis Holds Top Spot in US News Veterinary School Rankings

The University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine is ranked number one in the United States in the 2020 U.S. News & World Report veterinary specialty ranking—holding onto the top spot. With this ranking, released March 12, UC Davis has been affirmed as the best in the United States by all three organizations that rank schools of veterinary medicine. 

UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine Dean Appointed President of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges

Michael Lairmore, D.V.M., dean of the University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine, has been appointed president of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC). Lairmore, a veterinarian and scientist who is a member of the prestigious National Academy of Medicine, will serve a one-year term through March, 2020.

The Virus Detectives: How Dangerous Is a Hidden Infection in Red Pandas?

When researchers announced the identification of a novel virus in captive red pandas in the journal Veterinary Pathology last year, the discovery raised more questions than it answered. Does this virus pose a health risk to affected pandas? Is it widespread among captive populations? Where did the virus originate and how might it impact the breeding management of this endangered species?

3D Printing Becoming a Surgical Game Changer

Initiatives in 3D printing are currently being utilized at the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, where the work is complemented by the university’s Department of Biomedical Engineering expertise. The unique combination of disciplines provides opportunities to advance health that few other universities in the world are able to pursue.

Cow’s Near Fatal Ingestion Prompts Surgery

Tag 1839, a 2-year-old Jersey dairy cow, was brought to the UC Davis veterinary hospital for suspected pneumonia. She had been treated appropriately by her primary veterinarian, but without significant improvement, so she was referred to the Livestock Medicine and Surgery Service for further diagnostics and treatment. A blood test showed evidence of severe chronic inflammation, and an ultrasound showed that she had fluid, inflammation, and an abscess in her chest cavity. Radiographs of her chest showed that she had a foreign body—a piece of wire—extending from the first compartment of her stomach toward her heart.

UC Davis Ranks First in the Nation in Veterinary Science 

The University of California, Davis, School of Veterinary Medicine is ranked number one in the United States for the fifth year in a row in the annual 2019 QS World University subject rankings. The rankings, released Feb. 26, placed the school second globally in Veterinary Science. “The continued recognition of UC Davis as a world leader in veterinary sciences is a tribute to our outstanding people and programs that advance the health of animals, people, and our planet,” said the school’s dean, Michael D. Lairmore. 

One Health for One Earth

In an increasingly crowded world where people and animals come into ever-closer contact, the lines that separate us – physical, biological, ecological, behavioral – are essentially gone. So, the future of conservation will be initiatives that address the entire ecosystem – a ‘One Health’ approach.

Why We Think Cats Are Psychopaths

There’s always an implicit comparison when we talk about cats as aloof little jerks, says Mikel Maria Delgado, a postdoctoral researcher on cat behavior at the University of California at Davis. And that comparison is with dogs, which humans have spent thousands more years domesticating and molding in our image. Cats, she pointed out, simply don’t have the facial muscles to make the variety of expressions a dog (or human) can. So when we look at a cat staring at us impassively, it looks like a psychopath who cannot feel or show emotion. But that’s just its face.

Sea Stars Imperiled by Wasting Disease Along West Coast

The combination of ocean warming and an infectious wasting disease has devastated populations of large sunflower sea stars once abundant along the West Coast of North America in just a few years, according to a study co-led by the University of California, Davis, and Cornell University published Jan. 30 in the journal Science Advances.

Don’t Kiss Your Pet Hedgehogs, C.D.C. Warns

Hedgehog owners should refrain from kissing their small, spiky friends, health officials warn. Since October, 11 people across eight states have been infected with a particular strain of salmonella, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported, and all but one of those infected said they had contact with a hedgehog.

2018 Elected AAAS Fellows Include Veterinary Faculty

Two UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine faculty members—Dr. Philip Kass and Dr. Isaac Pessah—are newly chosen fellows of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, which is the world's largest scientific society.