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College of Veterinary Medicine Advance Newsletter

Eight Lives for Thomas the Wonder Cat

Thomas the cat sitting on a scale
As we walk into the WSU Veterinary Teaching Hospital, I can hear my cat’s meows getting louder and a lot longer. The last one seemed to have lasted 20 seconds. I start to wonder how any cat can possibly meow that long without taking a breath. “It’s okay, we’re going inside now,” I say in a futile effort to calm Thomas, our domestic short hair gray tabby. He has been meowing almost nonstop ever since we left the house. » More ...

A painted horse helps students learn anatomy

Veterinary student examining a live horse with painted horse in the background.
A life-sized painted fiberglass horse will now help WSU undergraduate and veterinary students learn anatomy thanks to a generous donor. “Understanding where organs are located relative to each other can be challenging for learners to grasp,” says Cynthia Faux, clinical assistant professor in the WSU Department of Integrated Physiology and Neuroscience. “Having a life-sized model to compare to a live horse can help them develop this necessary clinical skill and put organ relationships in perspective.” » More ...

Teaching science students visual literacy life skills

Erika Offerdahl and Jessie Arneson
Students who study molecular biosciences can’t actually see what they are learning. “We can never see with our eyes the things we study,” says Erika Offerdahl, a biochemist and associate professor in the WSU School of Molecular Biosciences. “It is hard to directly see beyond the sub-cellular level, so as students we learn through representation.” » More ...

Working together so Kenyans can help Kenyans

Bryan Slinker in Marsabit Kenya with camels
When Paul Allen visited East Africa, he saw how people’s daily lives could be improved and the desire for local institutions to better serve people in need. His experience motivated his generosity, and today the reach of his namesake Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health and its service to people has expanded even more than its founders could have imagined. » More ...

Superbugs

While death by “superbugs” is still fairly rare, the World Health Organization warns that, if bacteria keep evolving drug resistance at the rate they have been, such bugs will globally cause 10 million deaths per year by 2050. Not all resistant bugs are “super,” as microbes vary in their acquisition of the genetic tools needed to resist the effects of drugs. » More ...