Comparative Orthopaedics Support

Building upon recent gifts from the IAMS Company, Pfizer Animal Health, the Gordon Family, and Bob and Judi Reeves, the college is committed to providing additional support for research into the orthopedic problems of animals and people.

The research is being led by Dr. James "Jimi" Cook, a young researcher who has gained recognition in both the human and veterinary orthopedic worlds. He is tapped, among all of the excellent surgeons in the US, to help animals with some of the most challenging joint and bone problems. He was the lead surgeon when the Kansas City Zoo's rare snow leopard, Pasha, needed hip replacement. This would allow the animal to lead a pain free life, but more importantly, help him to repopulate the species that has dwindled to a mere few thousand.

Dr. Cook and his team most recently announced that they have initial scientific evidence of a way to predict the onset of osteoarthritis,a painful degenerative joint problem that afflicts millions of people. Knowing that a person will soon develop this problem will allow doctors to prescribe pharmaceuticals to slow the degenerate process.

Additional funding will allow the next generation of this, and other, research programs to proceed.