Newsletter of the Veterinary Science Foundation

of the University of Sydney

Issue 14 May 2006

ROUNDHOUSE IS PROUDLY SUPPORTED BY

One of Australia’s greatest jazz icons, James Morrison (above), will performwith the Australian Youth Orchestra, singer Emma Pask and, back bypopular demand, our 2005 musical director and renowned harpist, MarshallMcGuire, in the Veterinary Science Foundation’s third annual fundraisingconcert. James and Emma will join the ranks of animal-loving musicians andsingers who have helped the VSF raise funds for animal health and welfare.

Animalia 2006 will be performed on one night only – Friday 3 November inthe Conservatorium of Music, Sydney. Contact us on (02) 9351 8026 orvsf@vetsci.usyd.edu.au to receive an invitation or information about oursponsorship packages. For corporates, Animalia 2006 will be a fabulous wayto entertain clients in the lead up to the festive season!

2 VSF ROUNDHOUSE May 2006

Delivering good news at the start of a new year is always apleasure, so I am delighted to announce student surveyresults that place the Faculty among the best in theUniversity.

We have always been proud of the quality of ourundergraduate and postgraduate students, but we can nowquantify the equally high quality of their student experience.The Faculty has recently received the 2005 University surveystatistics that rank both undergraduate and postgraduatestudent experiences: the Student Coursework ExperienceQuestionnaire (SCEQ) and the Student Research ExperienceQuestionnaire (SREQ). We are pleased to report thefollowing results:

• 2005 SCEQ (undergraduate) gave the Faculty aboveaverage University scores for % agreement for GoodTeaching scale (second highest score of any Faculty), ClearGoals and Standards scale (second highest), Generic Skillsscale (second highest), Learning Community, and OverallSatisfaction (highest score of any Faculty). The % agreementfor Good Teaching, Clear Goals and Standards, GenericSkills and Overall Satisfaction has steadily increased from1999 to 2005.

• 2005 SREQ results for our postgraduate students wereoutstanding, and the Faculty ranked first across theUniversity in Generic Skills, Research Climate and Quality ofInfrastructure, and second in Overall Satisfaction. Thanks tothe hard work over the past three years of all staff involved inpostgraduate education, all categories assessed showeddramatic improvement since 2002 and put us in top positionin the College of Sciences and Technology.

• The SCEQ results for the Masters in Public Health(Veterinary Public Health Management postgraduate degree)were also excellent, with scores for Good Teaching,Appropriate Assessment, Generic Skills and LearningCommunity well above University average. The OverallSatisfaction was 96% with 100% satisfaction with the Facultystudent administration. These excellent results were thehighest of any Faculty across the University and aretestament to the dedication of our teaching andadministrative staff.

While we are endeavouring to graduate veterinarians with thebest possible attributes for a smooth transition to practice, orthe capabilities to move into research and other fields ofveterinary science, we also recognise the enormous roleplayed by our Partners in Veterinary Education - the PartnerPractitioners who take our students for their final yearrotations and electives.

Visiting these veterinarians is one of our priorities and, withFaculty staff involved in the program, I have recently had thepleasure of meeting practitioners from the Shoalhaven andCanberra. I was very impressed by all those I met, thefriendly clinical atmospheres and excellent facilities, and bythe generous support given to our student interns.

Another important part of the program is the opportunity toinvite practitioners to the Faculty for our annual Partners inVeterinary Education Conference. This year the conferencewill be held on Thursday 6 and Friday 7 July, and Provet haveagain generously agreed to be the major sponsor of the event.The 2006 presentations will showcase Faculty staff knowledgeand research, and we will also include interactive andbreakout sessions as in previous years to enable practitionersto provide input. I am confident it will be another verysuccessful meeting and we warmly invite all our PartnerPractitioners to attend.

contact usRoundhouse is produced by theVeterinary Science Foundation ofthe University of Sydney.For further information,contact Jennie Churchill,Director of the Foundation, on:Phone (02) 9351 8024Fax (02) 9351 8025email vsf@vetsci.usyd.edu.auwww.vetsci.usyd.edu.au/Foundation

Dr Jennie Churchill, Director,Veterinary Science Foundation.

2 Students rank Faculty as one of the best

3 World First Genome Research

Boosting Biosecurity

4 Pig Production in Vietnam

5 Australian cattle for China

6 Reproductive Technologies

Oncology Specialist

8 Professor Bob Ratcliffe

The Veterinary Science Foundationof the University of Sydney is thepromotional and fundraising arm ofthe Faculty of Veterinary Science.

All images by Kristen Clarke unless otherwise noted.

CONTENTSISSUE 14 MAY 2006

STUDENTS RANK FACULTY ASONE OF THE BEST

Dr Trish Holyoake is the Faculty’s Senior Lecturer in Intensive AnimalIndustries and its key pig specialist. Her expertise is currently assisting smallholder pig farmers in Vietnam to develop more sustainable farming andproduction methods. Agreeing to be featured on the front cover, Trish said,“The photo is pretty much a reflection of who I am - a bit daggy and messybut I do love pigs!” (See article on page 4).

Professor Leo Jeffcott, Dean, Faculty of Veterinary Science.

Following a successful 2004 fundraisingtrek to Nepal, the Veterinary ScienceFoundation again joined WorldExpeditions to offer a 2006 ‘odyssey’ toAntarctica. Fifteen veterinarians, friendsand donors of the Foundation set off inJanuary for Antarctica via Buenos Aires.

Departing from Ushuaia in Tierra delFuego, the group joined 35 othertravelers on the Russian ice-strengthened vessel, the Polar Pioneer.Aurora Expedition’s 12 day voyage tothe Antarctic Peninsular and Weddell

Sea was magnificent, providing aminimum two landings a day, withmaximum opportunities for closeencounters with wildlife, including hugepenguin colonies, seals, albatross andother seabirds.

The Veterinary Science Foundation isgrateful for the tremendous generosityof our group members and WorldExpeditions – the company facilitated asignificant donation for the Foundationfollowing the Antarctic Adventure.

J D STEWART ADDRESSAntarctic researcher and ecologist Dr Tracey Rogers

(left) will deliver the 2006 J D Stewart Address.

Dr Tracey Rogers, SeniorAdjunct Lecturer and Director ofthe Australian Marine MammalResearch Centre (AMMRC) atTaronga Zoo, will deliver the

Faculty’s 2006 J D StewartAddress on Thursday 6 July.

AMMRC is a joint initiative ofthe Zoological Parks Board ofNSW and the Faculty ofVeterinary Science, and Tracey,an ecologist with a PhD from theFaculty, supervises a number ofour PhD students working withseals and whales in Antarctica.

She recently won a 2005 YoungTall Poppy Award, created bythe Australian Institute ofPolitical Science to recogniseoutstanding young scientists.

Tracey will speak on theAntarctic, the health status ofits marine mammals, and howthey can be a barometer forclimate change.

VSF INANTARCTICA

ANIMALIA 2006

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3VSF ROUNDHOUSE May 2006

In early 2006, the genetic code of marsupials was documented forthe first time. The chosen genome was that of the SouthAmerican marsupial Monodelphis domestica, the grey short tailedopossum, and sequencing was undertaken at the Broad Institutein the US. This world first research could ultimately revealunparalleled insights into mammalian evolution.

Leading an international research team in the analysis of themarsupial immunome (that is, immune genes within thegenome), is Faculty of Veterinary Science Postdoctoral Fellow DrKathy Belov. In January 2006 Kathy’s team published the firstpaper, in the highly regarded journal PLoS Biology, describingthe analysis of a portion of this genome and an important clusterof immune genes known as the MHC.

The opossum research involved international collaborationbetween the Faculty of Veterinary Science, the AustralianNational University, The Walter and Eliza Hall Institute ofMedical Research, the University of New Mexico, Texas A&M,the University of Pittsburg, and the Southwest Foundation forBiomedical Research.

These newly discovered gene sequences point towards theexistence of an ancestral "immune supercomplex" which containsvarious immune genes in a single region of the genome. As DrBelov says, “Mapping the opossum MHC allowed us to deducewhat the MHC of ancestral mammals looked like. We think itcontained several different types of immune genes in a singlecomplex. These genes are no longer found in a single complex inany living animal but are scattered over various chromosomes”.

Dr Belov and her laboratory, the Australasian Wildlife GenomicsGroup, are using genetic data from marsupials and monotremesto understand how our own intricate immune system evolved

from the relatively simple one of lower vertebrates such as birdsand fish. In collaboration with renowned scientist Dr StephanBeck of the Sanger Centre in the UK, and Dr Mark Eldridgefrom Macquarie University, Dr Belov recently won a prestigiousARC Discovery grant to fully characterise the MHC of theTammar wallaby. Kathy’s PhD students, Hannah Siddle andClaire Sanderson, are an integral part of this cutting edge team.

The Tammar wallaby project is Australia’s first large-scalegenome project and sequencing is being carried out at theAustralian Genome Research Facility in Australia and the BaylorCentre in the US. The group is also working closely with DrsJanine Deakin and Jenny Graves of the ANU-based ARC Centrefor Kangaroo Genomics, analysing the Tammar wallaby genomesequence as it becomes available.

Now, Kathy and her collaborators are cracking the genetic codeof the platypus. The platypus genome is being sequenced atWashington University in the US and the Australasian WildlifeGenomics Group is focusing on understanding both the immuneand venom genes of these enigmatic creatures.

In May 2006, Kathy departs on a TJ Robinson travellingfellowship to meet with researchers at Washington Universityworking on the platypus genome, and the Broad Instituteinvolved with the opossum genome. Following her breakthroughresearch, Kathy is in demand as a speaker and will present newdata in Cold Spring Harbour at the Biology of Genomes meeting,and in Cambridge University in the UK. As she says, "This is anincredibly exciting time for me and the Faculty to be involvedwith genomics, and it’s particularly special to be able to useAustralia’s unique fauna to unearth clues about the evolution ofour own immune systems".

Leading scientists in the fields of animal and plant biosecurity have joined forces toboost protection measures through a new alliance between the NSW Government’sElizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute (EMAI), and the University of Sydney’sFaculty of Veterinary Science Camden campus and Plant Breeding Institute atCobbitty.

The NSW Centre for Animal and Plant Biosecurity, announced on 24 March by theMinister for Primary Industries Ian Macdonald, will lead to 400 veterinary andagriculture researchers developing and applying new technologies for diagnosis,surveillance, prevention and control of serious pests and diseases that could threatenAustralia’s agricultural industries.

The new Centre will work across the three facilities in Camden and Cobbitty linkedby high-speed broadband to the Greater Sydney IT network, ensuring speedy accessto the specialised supercomputing, genomics and proteomics services critical toadvanced biotechnology.

Key research areas for the Centre include research and rapid diagnosis technologiesfor diseases such as Avian Influenza, West Nile Virus, and Newcastle Disease;projects on food-borne pathogens such as E. coli and Salmonella; the development ofnew vaccines and diagnostic tests to help control viral diseases in pigs and otherlivestock; further research into QX disease in Sydney rock oysters and Nodavirus inAustralian Bass and Barramundi; and research to help minimise incursions of exoticpests and diseases in horticulture and cereal crops, such as fire blight in apples andpears, the papaya fruit fly, citrus canker, black sigatoka in bananas and wheat rust.

Former Dean of the Faculty of Veterinary Science Emeritus ProfessorMarshall Edwards AO has been recognised as the discoverer ofmaternal hyperthermia as a human teratogen with a special tributeand review in the Birth Defects Research (Part A), Volume 73, Issue11 (November 2005).

During a research career spanning 40 years, Professor Edwardsinvestigated the hypothesis that maternal hyperthermia duringgestation can be teratogenic to the developing foetus. He is one of fewinvestigators to have discovered a known human teratogen primarilythrough animal studies.

Graduating from the University of Sydney in 1949, Marsh spent timein private practice at Lismore, and Bunbury in Western Australia. Hecompleted a Masters at the University of Liverpool in England beforereturning to the Faculty as a lecturer.

In 1970 Marsh gained his PhD on hyperthermia as a cause ofcongenital malformation, and in 1979 was awarded the highestveterinary honour, a Doctor of Veterinary Science, on the basis ofPublished Work on Hyperthermia as a cause of Disorders of Pregnancyand Prenatal Development in Animals.

His interest in this field of research began when he observed theoccurrence of a number of abortions in a guinea pig colony during aheat wave. The mothers that had not aborted later gave birth tooffspring with arthrogryposis, talipes, microphthalmia, and otherdefects.

Following his initial doctoral studies, Marsh went on to prove thesignificant range of hyperthermia-induced malformations that canoccur in animals, particularly in the central nervous system but also inother parts of the body, including craniofacial anomalies, heartdefects, cataracts and renal anomalies. Through a series of carefullyplanned and executed experiments, he was able to demonstrate therelationship of the defect to the timing of the hyperthermic insult, andto analyse the underlying pathogenic mechanisms such as cell death,membrane disruption, vascular disruption, and placental infarction.He found that higher temperatures and/or longer durations causeabortions, whereas lower elevations of temperature cause embryonicdeath and resorption, or abnormalities of foetal development.

Marsh published extensively during his career, and increasingly thesepapers were in medical journals as veterinary journals were lessinterested in causes for birth defects. It was a 1972 response letter tothe British medical journal Lancet that first attracted internationalattention. In the letter, he suggested that the published associationbetween central nervous system malformations and outbreaks of Asianinfluenza might be due to hyperthermia rather than to the virus itself.His hypothesis was dismissed as unlikely but, by the mid-1970s, Marshbegan to receive letters from clinicians and research workers aroundthe world. He became involved with relevant medical research groups,and researchers began to look for similar teratogenic effects inhumans.

The comprehensive review in the November 2005 Birth DefectsResearch journal recognises, and celebrates, the culmination of anextraordinary body of work.

The Waratah National Cat Alliance first came to the attentionof the VSF when its volunteer team staged an unforgettable catshow as part of our October 2005 Cats on Campus event. Theorganisation is now helping to raise funds to support felineresearch within the Faculty, specifically the work of SeniorLecturer in Veterinary Microbiology Dr Jacqueline Norris onfeline coronaviruses in Australian catteries, including the fatalimmune mediated Feline Infectious Peritonitis (FIP). Visit theWaratah website to read about Jacqui’s research:www.wnca.com.au/

Bayer Australia Animal Health is generously continuing tosponsor Roundhouse.

Mr Colin Dunlop of Advanced Anaesthesia Supplies has againassisted the Faculty by partially donating pulsoximeters for theUniversity Veterinary Centre at Sydney (UVCS).

Individual donors are some of our most generous supporters andthe UVCS has become the recipient of funding that will supportimportant research into canine brachycephalic airway disease(long soft palate and laryngeal disease). The funding was providedby the owners of Cavalier King Charles Spaniels, the second mostcommon breed suffering from these potentially fatal problems.

Please contact the Veterinary Science Foundation if you areinterested in supporting the work of the Foundation and Faculty:vsf@vetsci.usyd.edu.au or (02) 9351 8026.

WORLD FIRSTGENOME RESEARCH

Postdoctoral Fellow Dr Kathy Belov is leading aninternational team of researchers unearthing, for thevery first time, the genetic sequence of marsupialsand monotremes.

Emeritus Professor Marsh Edwards, pictured with hiswife Mrs Marcia Edwards, is recognised as one of few

investigators to have discovered a known humanteratogen primarily through animal studies.

SPECIAL TRIBUTEEmeritus Professor

Marshall Edwards

(L-R) Dr Paul Arthur (Director Elizabeth Macarthur Agricultural Institute),Professor Les Copeland (Dean Faculty of Agriculture, Food and NaturalResources), Mr Geoff Corrigan (Member for Camden), Professor BerylHesketh (Pro-Vice-Chancellor), The Hon Ian MacDonald MLC (Minister forNatural Resources, Primary Industries and Mineral Resources), ProfessorLeo Jeffcott (Dean Faculty of Veterinary Science), and Mr Barry Buffier(Director General Department of Primary Industries).

Brian and Bambi Edwards of the Waratah National Cat Alliance, pictured here with one of theirfelines Georgia, and Dr Jacqui Norris.

BOOSTINGBIOSECURITY

OUR SPONSORS AND SUPPORTERS

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4 VSF ROUNDHOUSE November 2005

Dr Trish Holyoake is the Faculty’s Senior Lecturer in Intensive Animal Industries and itskey pig specialist. Trish’s expertise is currently assisting small holder pig farmers in Vietnamto develop more sustainable farming and production methods.

Trish is undertaking the project in collaboration with Drs Darren Trott and Ian Wilkie fromthe University of Queensland, Dr Colin Cargill from the University of Adelaide, Dr TonyFahy from the Victorian Department of Primary Industries and the following Vietnameseorganisations: National Institutions of Animal Husbandry and Veterinary Research atHanoi, Faculty of Animal Sciences at Hue University of Agriculture and Forestry,Department of Agricultural and Rural Development of Quang Tri Province and the HueVietnamese Farmer Association Thua Thien.

More than 80% of Vietnamese obtain their livelihood from the land. Pig meat, bothnutritionally and culturally, is the most important protein source in the Vietnamese diet,accounting for about 70% of total meat consumed. Not surprisingly, Vietnam is currentlythe 8th largest producer of pigs in the world.

In Central Vietnam, small holder farmers predominantly raise pig breeds such as MongCai, Mini pig, and SocHighland. These breeds are well adapted to local conditions, buthave limited performance and economic efficiency.

This project aims to improve the genetics of local breeds by introducing high performanceMong Cai lines for pure breeding and through exotic breeding programs. By aligning thesebreeding programs with an integrated farrow-to-finish management plan (focusing onhealth, husbandry, housing and nutrition) that will improve production parameters andlimit health problems, the project will provide significant benefits for small holder farmers.

Through a “train the trainers approach”, this holistic, continuous improvement plan willultimately reach veterinary extension workers, commercial piggery managers and selectedsmall scale pig farmers to ensure a successful uptake of knowledge and skills.

Quantitative trait loci (QTL) studies aimed at improving the genetic makeup of breedinganimals are being conducted in most livestock industries, and the commercial crocodilebusiness is no different to traditional farming industries.

PhD student Lee Miles, with supervisors Professor Chris Moran and ex-Faculty postgraduateand now industry collaborator, Dr Sally Isberg of Crocodile Farms of the Northern Territoryin Darwin, is undertaking linkage mapping and QT analysis in saltwater crocodiles(Crocodylus porosus). His research objectives are to identify quantitative trait loci for traitsof economic importance in the saltwater crocodile and incorporate these into the alreadyestablished crocodile genetic improvement program (CrocPLAN, funded by the RuralIndustries Research and Development Corporation).

Faculty of Veterinary Science staff have longcontributed significantly to research in humanhealth. Professor David Fraser, Professor ofAnimal Science and Fellow of the NutritionSociety of Australia, has a special interest inthe relationship between human disease andnutrition. His research has included studies ofosteoporosis, rickets in Mongolia andBangladesh, and a 1998 to 2001 researchproject aimed at improving the health ofChinese children.

This project’s objective was to demonstrateimproved bone health of Chinese school-agechildren through implementation of a two-yearcalcium and vitamin D trial, based on milk,with prepubertal school girls.

Chief Investigator of the project, scientist andpublic health specialist Honorary AssociateProfessor Heather Greenfield, has particularresearch experience in the effect of dairyproducts in human nutrition, and bone growthand development. Other members of the teamwere Postdoctoral Fellow Dr Xueqin Du,Research Officer Dr Kathy Zhu, Senior

Scientific Officer Angelika Trube and PhDstudents Foo Leng Huat and Zhang Qian.Collaborating institutions included theUniversity of New South Wales and theInstitute of Nutrition and Food Safety(Chinese Centre for Disease Control andPrevention, Beijing).

The project involved comparisons of bothsupplemented and unsupplemented subjects,with specific objectives including achievingnormal vitamin D plasma levels insupplemented subjects after 6 to 9 months,achieving significantly higher bone mineralcontent and/or significantly greater bone widthin these groups, investigating the effect ofvitamin D fortified milk on bone metabolism,and investigating bone metabolism of milksupplemented and unsupplemented subjects bymeans of bone biomarkers.

The project team also introduced Australianfood products and technology to theparticipants and established links betweenAustralian companies and related Chineseauthorities and industries.

The project, which was funded by MurrayGoulburn Cooperative Ltd and the DairyR & D Corporation, demonstrated thatsupplemented girls grew 0.8cm taller andaccrued over 30g additional bone mineralcompared to unsupplemented girls. VitaminD insufficiency was completely abolished inthe subjects that received the vitamin Dfortified milk.

Critically, a follow-up study undertaken 2002 to2005, funded by the Nestlé Foundation andwith the collaboration of Associate ProfessorChris Cowell of Westmead Children’s Hospital,found that virtually all these benefits were lostafter the cessation of milk supplementation.

The results are being studied by the authoritiesresponsible for the emerging Chinese SchoolMilk Program, and will also inform policy-makers in China about children’s needs forcalcium and vitamin D during growth. It ishoped to follow up the subjects again whenthey reach 18 years of age and have completedtheir growth.

Members of the Vietnamese piggery project, left to right: Senior Lecturer Dr Trish Holyoake, Dr Nguyen Que Coi (National Institution of AnimalHusbandry, Hanoi), Dr Cu Huu Phu (National Institute of Veterinary Research, Hanoi), Nobel Toribio (University piggery), and Mr Nguyen Van Hieu(Department of Agricultural and Rural Development, Quang Tri province).

SUSTAINING PIG PRODUCTIONIN VIETNAM

The Vietnamese Central Coast has been devastated in the past by war, drought, deforestation,inappropriate farming methodologies and flooding. Environmental management techniques willbe an important aspect of training programs, delivering positive environmental impacts due toimproved management practices - particularly in relation to indiscriminate antibiotic use andeffluent created per kilogram of pork produced.

The three-year project, a joint initiative of the Australian and Vietnamese Governments, isfunded through the federal AusAid Collaboration for Agriculture and Rural Development(CARD) scheme with support from the Australian Agency for International Development.

(Left to right) Professor David Fraser, Ms Angelika Trube, Honorary Associate ProfessorHeather Greenfield, and PhD student Foo Leng Huat.

BONE HEALTH OF CHILDREN

IN CHINA

CROCODILEGENETICS

PhD student Lee Miles with a youngAmerican alligator during his study tripto the Savannah River EcologyLaboratory at South Carolina in the USA.

Left: American alligator(Alligator mississipiensis)

Because genotyping an animal – in this casecrocodiles - can be achieved almost from the day ofhatching, the selection of animals based on genotype(as opposed to phenotype, or observed physicalcharacteristics) has several advantages. Favourablealleles for economically important traits can beintroduced into a commercial population from exoticstock using marker-assisted introgression or repeatedbackcrossing; selection accuracy can be improved byidentifying markers linked to QTL and incorporatingthis information into the estimation of breedingvalues; and selection intensity may be increased.

More specifically the project aims to deliver the firsthigh resolution genetic marker map for the saltwatercrocodile. It will also produce chromosome and maplocations for QTL of economic importance, providethe ability to more accurately estimate crocodilebreeding values and critically, to decrease thegeneration interval, currently estimated to be 13years.

Lee is collaborating with Dr Travis Glenn of theSavannah River Ecology Laboratory at the Universityof Georgia, South Carolina, USA, an expert in theapplication of molecular genetics in reptiles. In late2005, he worked for several months in Dr Glenn’slaboratory developing a large number of DNAfingerprint genetic markers necessary for making thegenetic maps. In conjunction with Dr Glenn, Lee hasalso developed resources for anchoring the linkagemaps onto specific chromosomes using fluorescent insitu hybridisation.

During his visit, Lee participated in Dr Glenn’s workon the American Alligator (Alligator mississipiensis),part of an ongoing genetic population study aimed at

solving problems contributing to the decline andextinction of small native animal populations.

By increasing the accuracy of estimating breedingvalues for the selection of breeding animals, Lee’sresearch in Australia will enable producers to selectfuture breeding crocodiles based on the animal’sgenotype (in addition to phenotypic observationsmade on the individual and its relatives) and, bydecreasing the generation interval, enable fastergenetic improvement across the industry.

Lee’s research will also provide an important store ofknowledge and resources for future conservationwork on C. porosus and other species of crocodile.

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A Faculty team led by Associate ProfessorPeter Wynn has won a major tender from theCommonwealth Department of Agriculture,Fisheries and Forestry to help the Chinesedairy industry improve productivity ofAustralian Holstein-Friesian dairy cowsimported into China. Other team members arethe Faculty’s Director of Bovine ClinicalPractice Associate Professor John House andAssociate Lecturer in Animal Nutrition DrRussell Bush, Dr Kun Zhu, Research Officer inthe Department of Endocrinology andDiabetes at Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital,Western Australia, and leading Dairy NutritionConsultant Dr Bruce Hamilton.

The project aims to improve the animalwelfare and husbandry capacities of Chinesedairy livestock managers with a particularfocus on nutrition and feeding regimes.Funded through the International AgriculturalCooperation Live Animal Trade, it includesassessment of dairy farms in three or four keydairying regions in China, the development of

educational material, and delivery of trainingworkshops.

Over the past 3 years China has emerged asthe largest market for Australian live dairycattle - since 2003, China has received about125,000 cattle valued at A$222 million or 73%of total dairy cattle exports, figures in line withthe increased demand for fresh dairy productsin the Chinese community. Following concernsof the Chinese Ministry of Agricultureregarding the quality and post-arrivalperformance of dairy cattle imported forbreeding purposes, the two countries agreedon a strategy whereby Australian heifers wouldbe subjected to tougher protocols before beingaccepted and, at the same time, Australiawould provide a program of technicalassistance to improve animal welfare outcomesfor the exported heifers.

Key issues to be investigated in China includecow nutrition, both pasture-based andconcentrates, and cow health. Diseases common

to dairy cows worldwide also occur in Chineseherds, and susceptibility to these can beexacerbated by major changes in nutritionalstatus and climatic conditions – for example,subjecting Australian heifers to the unfamiliarharsh winter conditions of Northern China.Housing of the exported heifers on farm willbe investigated to ensure it maximises cowcomfort by decreasing exposure to climaticextremes and minimises the exposure ofanimals to potential pathogens.

Associate Professor Wynn has had significantexperience working in China and other parts ofAsia, and he believes this mission will be mostimportant in consolidating Australia’sburgeoning live dairy cattle export industry toChina. As he says, "The Faculty of VeterinaryScience is well placed to assist with this processthrough our major contribution to the geneticselection programs being developed by the Co-operative Research Centre for InnovativeDairy Products".

Feline medicine specialist and Senior Lecturer in SmallAnimal Medicine Dr Vanessa Barrs, together withProfessor Michael Lappin of Colorado State Universityin the USA, is leading an Australian research projectdesigned to investigate the prevalence ofhaemoparasites in Australian cats and their fleas.Professor Lappin is one of the world’s foremost felineinfectious disease experts.

The common cat flea, Ctenocephalides felis, doesn’t justcause allergic skin problems. It is known to harbor asurprising number of blood-borne infectious agents,some of which it transfers between cats, and some ofwhich – for example, Bartonella species - may transferbetween cats and people. In one of the very few studiescompleted in the United States, DNA of thehaemoplasmas or Bartonella species were amplifiedfrom 60.9% and 65.2% of cats and their fleas,respectively, demonstrating that both feline and humanpathogens are common in fleas and cats.

The Australian project involves the collection andstorage of fleas taken from cats by veterinarians inMelbourne, Sydney, and Brisbane, and the collection of asmall amount of blood from the host pets. DNA will beamplified from the blood and serum of the cats, and theirfleas, to identify specific infectious agents includingBartonella, Ehrlichia, Anaplasma, Neorickettsia,Mycoplasma and Rickettsia.

Based on the US study results, it is expected thatapproximately 60% of the Australian cats and their fleastested will be positive for DNA of one or more of therelevant infectious agents.

Flea infestation is common in the cats of Australia butpublic awareness of the diseases fleas can carry is low.Establishing the prevalence rates of these potentialpathogens is an important step in educating pet owners,including understanding about the need for flea control.

A collaboration between The Hong Kong JockeyClub and the Universities of Sydney and Queenslandis seeking to gain a greater understanding of thenature, incidence and significance of back disordersin horses. These problems are considered relativelycommon in performance horses, yet are only partially

Senior Lecturer in Anatomy Dr Glenn Shea is one ofAustralia’s most renowned herpetologists and the world’sforemost expert on bluetongue lizards. In addition to his busyteaching and research supervisory roles, Glenn is an HonoraryResearch Associate of the Australian Museum with extensivebiological fieldwork experience surveying and collecting reptilesand amphibians throughout Australia, and in New Guinea, Fijiand New Caledonia.

In collaboration with Dr Allen Greer of the AustralianMuseum, Glenn has been researching the systematics of a largegenus of skinks, Sphenomorphus, from New Guinea and theSolomon Islands since 1997. Although there are already over 40named species from the region, many are unnamed and thenamed species often poorly defined.

Due to the perceived complexity of the taxonomy problemsinvolved, there has been no revision of the genus since 1915.This hasn’t prevented the accumulation in museum collectionsworld-wide, over the past half-century, of over 10,000 specimensof this genus and, in the past decade, additional collections inremote and poorly-studied areas of New Guinea by researchteams from the South Australian Museum and the BishopMuseum in Honolulu. These collections have facilitated studiesof patterns of geographic variation of these skinks throughoutNew Guinea.

Associate Professor Peter Wynn and Dr Russell Bush are working withthe Chinese dairying industry to improve productivity of Australian dairycows after importation into China.

ADAPTING AUSTRALIAN CATTLE FOR CHINA

CAT FLEASMORE THAN MERE IRRITATIONThe entire small animal medicine team at the University Veterinary Centre Sydney iscontributing to this project. Left to right: postgraduate Veterinary Interns Drs Tina Knight,Lucy Downs and Amy Khoo, Senior Lecturer Dr Julia Beatty, Small Animal Resident Dr LanTran, Senior Registrar Dr Aitor Arteaga, Senior Lecturer and project leader Dr Vanessa Barrs,and Feline Medicine Resident Dr Amy Lingard. Inset: Feline infectious disease expertProfessor Michael Lappin from Colorado State University in the USA is collaborating with theFaculty team on the cat flea project.

Left: A new species of skink from the genusSphenomorphus, discovered on Sudest Islandin the Louisiade Archipelago.

SKINK BIODIVERSITYGlenn’s research has taken himto New Guinea skink collectionsacross the USA and Europe. Heworked with the BishopMuseum team in the Milne BayProvince in New Guinea,collecting more skink samplesfrom the Louisiade Archipelago,a remote chain of islands lastvisited by herpetologists in the1950s. A 2004 expedition toSudest and Rossel islands, at theeastern end of the chain,discovered an estimated 30-plusnew species of lizards, snakesand frogs.

In addition to defining the diversity of species inSphenomorphus, which promises to be the most biodiverselizard genus in New Guinea, Glenn's work is contributing to astudy by Bishop Museum researchers on vertebrate biodiversity"hotspots" and the distribution of collecting effort in NewGuinea. This will be a first step in developing a strategic planfor future biological research work and conservationmanagement for the island.

Dr Glenn Shea, Senior Lecturerand herpetologist, is undertaking

research on skinks from the genusSphenomorphus in New Guineaand other islands in the Pacific.

The team researching back disorders in horses, left to right:physiotherapist and PhD student Narelle Stubbs, Dr Chris Riggs, Head ofVeterinary Clinical Services at the Hong Kong Jockey Club, Dr CathyMcGowan, Senior Lecturer at the University of Queensland, and FacultyDean Professor Leo Jeffcott. Absent: Professor David Hodgson.

HORSES GET BAD BACKS TOOunderstood and, as bad backs arecommonly seen in race horses in HongKong, the city has become the locationfor this particular research project.

Project staff from this Faculty – DeanProfessor Leo Jeffcott, a leading expertin equine health and OfficialVeterinarian to the Beijing OlympicGames (his seventh Games in this role)and equine specialist Professor DavidHodgson – are collaborating with HongKong Jockey Club veterinarians Dr ChrisRiggs and Dr Brian Stewart, andQueensland University’s Dr CathyMcGowan and PhD student and Masterof Animal Physiotherapy Narelle Stubbs.Senior staff from the University ofLiverpool will also assist in analysis ofdata derived from the studies.

The research will first assess – in horsesknown to suffer from back pain - thecorrelation between the clinical signs ofback pain, diagnosis through highlyspecific lameness examinations and

manual assessment techniques, diagnosisthrough ultrasonography examination,and the presence of pathology in thethoracic and lumbosacral regions of thespine and pelvis. This includesspondylosis, ankylosis, evidence ofdegenerative joint or intervertebral discchanges, and other vertebralabnormalities.

These results will be compared withpathology of the same regions of thespine and pelvis of similar-aged horsesassessed to be free from back pain.

The study, funded by RIRDC (RuralIndustries Research and DevelopmentCorporation), aims to determine theprevalence of back disorders inracehorses. Armed with thisinformation, veterinarians and equinephysiotherapists will be better equippedto diagnose and manage thesepotentially debilitating and at timescareer-ending musculoskeletal disordersof race horses worldwide.

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What are your qualifications?

In the last year of high school I decided that Iwanted to be a vet. Unfortunately, I just missedout on getting into the course. I studiedbiochemistry instead, and enjoyed that so muchthat I decided not to transfer into vet science andended up specialising in computationalchemistry and bioinformatics.

Tell us about your pathway toVeterinary Science.

When I finished my Honours degree I beganwork with a small bioinformatics company,eventually starting my own contract businessservicing small biotechnology companies.

Work in the commercial world was great, and Ilearnt (amongst many other things) that the day-to-day work of running a business can be veryrewarding. Right from the start though, I alwaysthought I'd like to run a horse genetics company.I figured this would be a great way of combiningwork with animals, laboratory science, and theskills I'd acquired in bioinformatics. And going tothe races could be called work!

It took a few years, but I finally realised that therewas nothing stopping me from running a horsegenetics company. First, I would need to make alot of contacts in the horse industry, and I'd alsoneed to really understand the process ofdeveloping a genetic test. There's nothing to beatfirst-hand experience, so I decided to do a PhDproject where I would attempt to develop agenetic test for an inherited problem inThoroughbred racehorses - I’m now in theFaculty working on equine osteochondrosis.

Why study at The University of Sydney?

Back when I worked in bioinformatics, I was luckyenough to meet some of the staff here in theFaculty of Veterinary Science. Having goodsupervisors is a vital part of doing a good PhD,and I jumped at the opportunity to work withthese delightful people who produce so muchworld-class research.

Where to after graduation?

With luck, I'll move on to commercialising anypositive results from my research, and searchingfor other tests that I can license from researchersand Universities around the world. It will be aslow process, but I hope to build a pathologybusiness that provides testing services for manydifferent animal species. I'll focus on horses first,because providing tests for a small number ofhigh-value individuals is a very different businessproposition to the bulk requirements of testing forsheep, cattle or pigs.

What do you do in your spare time?

At the moment (Easter) I'd say I spend my sparetime eating and drinking too much! Really, Ispread my spare time between many differentinterests - I love my motorcycles, my boxer dog,gardening, cooking, and going to classic carraces with my boyfriend.

Who inspires you and why?

I have a lot of friends who have achieved hugethings in their various fields. Catching up withthese people reminds me that with hard work Ican probably do just about anything

STUDENT PROFILEKAO CASTLE

undergraduate activitiesYear 5 veterinary student Astrid Loch-Wilkinson made history as the pilot of Australia’sfirst women’s bobsleigh team to qualify for a Winter Olympic Games. Astrid and teammate Kylie Reed finished 14 out of 15 of the world’s top bobsleigh teams at theFebruary 2006 Winter Olympic Games in Torino, Italy. They largely financed their ownGames bid and competed against northern hemisphere teams with million-dollar budgets.

MEAT JUDGING STUDENTS COMPETE IN US

Fiona Sparke, Year 4 Bachelor of Animal and Veterinary Bioscience (since graduated),was one of six Australian students to qualify for the 16th Annual Intercollegiate MeatJudging scholarship tour of the US in January 2006. Sponsored by Meat and LivestockAustralia, the initial 70 competing students assessed beef, lamb and pork carcassesaccording to cut and quality. The scholarship tour provides an understanding of theUSDA grading system and processing regimes with further competition held against USstudents at the National Western Stock Show in Denver.

CORNELL LEADERSHIP PROGRAM

Three final year students will attend the prestigious Cornell Leadership Program forVeterinary Students in 2006: Bronwyn Clayton, Louise Fitzgerald and Lynda Shaw. Thismakes a total of 49 Sydney students who have won places in the program since the firstgroup was accepted in 1992 – one of the highest acceptance rates of any veterinaryschool world wide.

An increasing demand by artificial breedingcompanies for veterinary graduates withspecialist knowledge has led to an elective Year5 unit of study created to train students forwork in artificial breeding industries and/ormixed practice with a significant amount ofbreeding work. It also aims to foster an interestin research.

Advanced Reproductive Technologies (ART)integrates the disciplines of quantitative andmolecular genetics, animal health, nutrition, andreproduction, including advanced reproductivetechnologies as applied to managed breedingand assisted reproduction programs.Participating students gain practical skills inartificial insemination, embryo transfer, gametepreservation and banking, pregnancy diagnosis,molecular genetics (proof of parentage, markerassisted selection), selection of breeding stock,and management of breeding programs.Proficiency is developed in legal, ethical and

animal welfare aspects of artificial breedingprogram management.

While the major species of practical focus aresheep and cattle, students complete the coursewith knowledge of species such as pigs,companion animals, and wildlife.

Head of the Unit of Study and Associate Deanfor Research Professor Gareth Evans says, “Theelective is proving to be a great success, with 12to 15 students each year benefiting from smallgroup teaching, the combination of practicalexperience and theory, and the greater depth ofspecialist knowledge the unit delivers”.

Two companies play an important and generousrole in facilitating ART: Bioniche (Australasia)Pty Ltd supplies hormones and other materialsfor the course, and Dr Shane Ashworth of TotalLivestock Genetics volunteers his tuitionservices each year and accommodates studentsin extramural rotations.

Dr Aitor Arteaga (right) hasjoined the University VeterinaryCentre Sydney (UVCS) asSenior Registrar in SmallAnimal Medicine. His specialfield of research interest ishyperadrenocorticism and theacute phase response ofinflammation in dogs.

A 1997 veterinary graduate fromZaragoza University in Spain,Aitor gained a Certificate inSmall Animal Medicine fromthe Royal College of VeterinarySurgeons (RCVS), London, in2004. Following graduation, hespent time in private practice inSpain and the United Kingdom,including a specialist referralpractice where he completed aninternship under the supervisionof RCVS and European-recognised veterinary specialists.

Between 2002 and 2006, Aitorundertook the role of Hill’sSenior Clinical Training Scholar(Resident) in Small AnimalMedicine at the University ofGlasgow Veterinary School inScotland. He brings to theFaculty experience with thesupervision and clinicalinstruction of undergraduatestudents at the referral Hospital

Acknowledging the critical importanceand growing need for the treatment ofanimals suffering from cancer, theFaculty has appointed internationally-renowned veterinary oncologist Dr TonyMoore an Adjunct Professor.

Tony is an alumnus of the SydneyFaculty of Veterinary Science, receivinghis veterinary degree in 1981 and amaster’s degree in feline hematology in1986. Five years in veterinary practicein Sydney led to an increasing interest incancer therapy, and Dr Moore says hefound immense satisfaction in helping to improve the life of pets with terminaldiseases. He moved to the USA, andafter completing a residency in veterinary oncology at the University ofCalifornia, Davis, in 1988 he joined the faculty at Tufts University. Duringhis 15 years at Tufts, he established and directed the Harrington OncologyProgram, achieved the rank of full professor, and trained seven residents tocareers in veterinary oncology many of whom now direct oncology programsat veterinary schools across the USA.

After leaving Tufts in 2003 to return to Australia, he partnered with DrAngela Frimberger (also an adjunct lecturer at the University of Sydney) toestablish Veterinary Oncology Consultants(http://www.vetoncologyconsults.com), a web-based consulting company thatsupports the highest possible quality of life for pets with cancer throughproviding advice and educational materials for veterinarians and pet owners.

Tony is a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary InternalMedicine (Oncology). He is the author of more than 75 articles in theveterinary literature and has coauthored three books on veterinary oncologywith Dr Gregory Ogilvie. Dr Moore has received awards for creativity inteaching and clinical research and is particularly interested in theepidemiology of cancer in companion animals.

Astrid Loch-Wilkinson and bobsleigh team mate Kylie Reed (rear)in the lead up to the 2006 Winter Olympic Games.

VET STUDENT’S HISTORIC WINTER OLYMPICS

Final year students undertaking the ART elective, left to right: AlanMarcus, Katherine Wykes and, from Cornell University in the US,Gillian Ferguson.

ADVANCINGREPRODUCTIVE TECHNOLOGIES

of Glasgow Veterinary School,including final year veterinarystudents on rotation throughthe Peoples Dispensary for SickAnimals (PDSA) charity clinicin central Glasgow.

Aitor says he made the moveto Sydney as he wants to bepart of what he sees as theUVCS developing into animportant point of referencefor Australian andinternational small animalteaching hospitals.

NEW UVCSSTAFF

Dr Aitor Arteaga has joined the Faculty asSenior Registrar in Small Animal InternalMedicine.

Veterinary oncologist Dr Tony Moore, picturedhere with his Jack Russell terrier Harvey, hasjoined the Faculty as an Adjunct Professor.

ONCOLOGY SPECIALISTJOINS FACULTY

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FACULTY STAFF NEWS

Dr Jacqui Norris and AssociateProfessor Jennie Hodgson are the firstrecipients of a new student-nominatedOutstanding Teaching Award. Overwhelmingsupport saw almost ninety students writeendorsements of the team’s teachingstyle. Jennie and Jacqui, who teachmicrobiology and animal disease,received a standing ovation at the annualprize-giving ceremony.

Professor David Fraser was elected aFellow of the Nutrition Society of Australiaat its Annual Scientific Meeting – theSociety's highest award. Professor Fraserspecialises in Animal Science,undertaking research in the Dairy andPoultry Research Foundations. His areasof research have included rickets inMongolia and Bangladesh, evolutionarybiology and intestinal absorption.

Feline specialist Dr Richard Malik andveterinary oncologist Dr Tony Moore havebeen appointed Adjunct Professors,marking an important contribution toteaching and learning and research withinthe Faculty.

Dr Paul McGreevy, Senior Lecturer inAnimal Behaviour and Welfare Science,has been awarded the Australian Collegeof Educators Quality Teaching Award. Theaward recognises accomplished teachingpractice through a rigorous processincluding referees reports, professionallearning portfolios, workplace visits andan assessment of the candidate’sprofessional knowledge, understanding,skills and values.

Parasitologist Associate Professor NickSangster has been promoted toProfessor; Dr Peter Thomson (veterinarybiometry and statistical genetics) hasbeen appointed an Associate Professor;and the following staff are promoted toSenior Lecturer: Dr Sue Hemsley(veterinary anatomy and pathology), DrMark Krockenberger (veterinarypathology), Dr Jacqui Norris (veterinarymicrobiology and animal disease), DrPaul Sheehy (cell biology) and Dr ImkeTammen (animal biotechnology).

Initiated in 1989 as part of a bequest, theGrace Mary Mitchell Awards arepresented each year to staff nominated byother Faculty members for theiroutstanding contribution over the year.2005 recipients are: Ms Lisa Ashley, MrFederico Costa, Ms Tess La-Lande, MsSally Pope, Professor Herman Raadsmaand Dr Paul Sheehy.

What are your qualifications and currentposition in the Faculty?

I have an Associate Diploma in Biology from theUniversity of Central Queensland. I am a seniortechnical officer based at Camden in the J L Shutebuilding and have now been with the Faculty fortwenty-six years.

What does your role encompass?

I offer technical support for a number of veterinarypractical classes and also field and laboratorysupport for a variety of research projects. In 2003, Iwas invited to assist in the coordination of a $1million-plus renovation to the Shute Building. Thisinvolved the relocation of all operations (teachingand research) from the building for the duration ofthe works, and made a challenging but satisfyingproject that I undertook in addition to my usual role.

How did your career begin?

I started as a field/laboratory assistant on anindustry-funded research project examining theefficacy of a number of prototype vaccines. Thisinvolved wide ranging field trials throughout NSWand Victoria as well as qualitative laboratory analysisof field isolates and assessment of vaccineresponses.

Tell us about changes during your timeat the University?

Apart from the advances in techniques andanalytical equipment and the infrastructureupgrades, the most marked change has been thegovernment’s continual reduction in funding foreducation. I was lucky enough to graduate fromCentral Queensland University in the 1970s whentertiary education was fully funded. Since startingwith this university I have seen the introduction ofHECS as well as research and education fundingbeing dramatically reduced. I fear that knowledgeand the rate of scientific advances will pay the price.

What are your career highlights?

Easily the most rewarding experience in my time withthe university was being part of the team led byProfessor John Egerton, which was responsible forthe control of footrot in Nepal. For many years thevirulent form of this disease ran essentiallyunchecked by conventional control methods in thatcountry. John Egerton, a former Dean of the Facultyof Veterinary Science, pioneered a nationwidevaccination program that utilised a vaccine that weproduced using only the specific serotypes isolatedfrom extensive field sampling from local Nepaleseflocks. As a result of this work, footrot in Nepal todayis limited to only benign strains in very few areas.

What do you look forward to in thefuture?

The Camden campus is currently enjoying anupgrade in facilities. Later this year a new wildlifeteaching facility and further teaching spaces will becompleted. Immediately after this a new, largerlecture theatre will be built, which all together willoffer greater flexibility and the opportunity to improvethe way we operate.

Who or what inspires you and why?

I count myself lucky to be able to work with manytalented researchers, academics, students andsupport staff whose primary goal is to improveanimal welfare in an increasingly profit-driven world.

STAFF PROFILE CRAIG KRISTOThe ability to handle a wide range of animalspecies with confidence and safety is a keyattribute of all veterinary graduates. It’s also atough call for students who haven’t had theopportunity to become familiar with farmanimals or horses.

The Faculty’s sheep and horse units, located onthe Camden campus, are an integral part ofpractical teaching classes within the veterinaryscience and animal and veterinary biosciencedegrees, and for agricultural studentsundertaking the animal husbandry stream. Theunits are part of a property running from theNepean River to Cobbitty that was purchasedby the University in the early 1980s.

The sheep unit, which now also includesalpacas, has several hundred sheep of diversebreeds including British, Merino and Dorper.The property is destocked and restockedaccording to need. Year 1 students undertakebasic handling procedures (both with individualanimals and on a flock basis) such asdrenching, lamb marking, shearing, throwing afleece, and other basic animal husbandry. The

sheep flock is also important in the teaching ofthe Year 5 elective rotation, AdvancedReproductive Technologies (see page 6).

The horse unit boasts 45 horses. Individualanimals are usually donated by people withinthe equine industry, but regardless of thesource, the paramount requirement is goodtemperament. Horses spend their first yearliving on the property, the second they run upwith the herd on teaching days, and it is only inthe third year – when they have provenexcellent dispositions – that horses areincluded in practical classes. Four to five foalsare born each year, enabling students to seethe reproductive process in action. Studentsalso learn a wide range of horse handling skills,from simply approaching a horse correctlythrough to dentistry.

Both sheep and horse unit animals play a rolein research. The alpacas are currently involvedin research focused on semen collection andhandling, and the horses in a variety of non-invasive clinical research, such as triallinganthelmintics.

The already solid reputation of the Faculty’s Veterinary PublicHealth Management postgraduate degree (VPHMgt) receivedanother major boost with the publication of the 2005 StudentResearch Experience Questionnaire (SREQ), Universitysurvey statistics that rank the postgraduate student experience.

The results gave VPHMgt the highest scores, on all but onescale, in any Faculty across the University. Scores for GoodTeaching, Appropriate Assessment, Generic Skills andLearning Community well above University average, withOverall Satisfaction rated at 96% and a score of 100% forsatisfaction with Faculty student administration.

The success of VPHMgt has led to the development of newlinked postgraduate coursework programs. One of these, dueto commence in 2007, is Veterinary Public Health (VPH), afully online course co-taught with the School of Public Health.In addition, a new online program combining animal geneticsand breeding with leadership and management is beingmodeled on VPHMgt and will share some units of study. Aflexible program in Veterinary Studies will also enable studentsto select the units that will best suit their career goals.

More than sixty students are now enrolled in the VPHMgtcourse, which started in 2003 with eighteen, and fifteen havealready graduated. Applications are now being accepted forthe July 2006 intake.

Camden campus technical officer EileenRisby is fast becoming a celebrity on theobedience dog circuit with her devoted three-legged (tripod) red kelpie “Showoffpod”. Theteam not only won a gold medal for NoviceDog at the 2005 NSW State Obedience trials,Pod won a second gold for achieving thehighest scores over two days.

Eileen, who works with senior veterinarystudents as part of her role, has been trainingdogs since the 1960s and was head trainer fornine years at the Wollondilly All BreedsKennel Club. She says Pod has been her mostsuccessful dog to date, despite having his legamputated at only two days of age after hismother’s licking created serious ulceration.

Eileen and Pod’s efforts were rewarded inanother sphere when Eileen received the2006 Australia Day Wollondilly SeniorSportsperson of the Year award.

Eileen Risby, Faculty technical officer, in action with herprize-winning three-legged kelpie Pod.

EILEEN AND PODA DEVOTED TEAM

VPHMgt students Dr Marianne Ash, Director ofbiosecurity and emergency programs, IndianaState Board of Animal Health in the UnitedStates, and Dr Jim Kerr, veterinarian with theHunter Valley Rural Lands Protection Board.Dr Kerr won the 2005 award for OutstandingAcademic Performance.

PUBLIC HEALTHA GROWING PRIORITY

The VPHMgt team can becontacted onvphmgt@vetsci.usyd.edu.auor call + 61 2 9036 6364. Website:www.vetsci.usyd.edu.au/publichealth_management

LEARNING TO HANDLE LARGE ANIMALS

Erina Young (left) and KristenSutton with one of theFaculty’s herd of horsesused for practical handlingexperience.

Year 5 students KristenSutton and Erin Younghandle a sheep at theFaculty’s sheep unit.

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Dr Robert (Bob) Taylor1917 – 2006

Described as a “giant of the profession”, Dr Bob Taylordied at age 88 on 6 March 2006. His dedication toveterinary science was formally recognised in 1969 withthe NSW Australian Veterinary Association (AVA) SeddonMemorial Prize for meritorious clinical contribution toveterinary science and in 1994, with Life Fellowship ofthe AVA.

A New Zealander, Dr Taylor was accepted into the Facultyof Veterinary Science when his family moved to Sydney in 1935.

Ignoring pleas by his father and Professor Gunn (you’ll fail and “go broke”) Bobfollowed his dream and in 1940 established clinical practice in the then, largecountry town of Wollongong, becoming the only private practitioner outside themetropolitan area between Sydney, Melbourne and west to Perth.

Dr Taylor provided clinical services throughout the South Coast, Southern Highlandsand Camden, including servicing dairies, working horses at 32 collieries, andbrucellosis and tuberculosis eradication. In 1950, he built Australia’s first purpose-built veterinary hospital at Keira Street, Wollongong, providing modern facilities forhospitalised animals. When he “retired” to Harden in 1968, the Illawarra VeterinaryHospital employed seven veterinarians.

The Taylor family purchased ‘Weirview’, a property at Harden on the NSW SouthwestSlopes. Many requests for veterinary expertise led, in 1969, to establishing theHarden Veterinary Hospital. He remained actively involved until his late 80s and histwo sons Grahame and John continue to run the practice.

Throughout sixty-seven years of AVA membership, Bob was devoted to theveterinary family. A major achievement was the 1974 establishment of the AVABenevolent Fund to support members of the profession and their families indifficult circumstances. He was foundation President of the Australian VeterinaryHistory Society.

Dr Taylor was external examiner in Veterinary Medicine at Sydney and QueenslandUniversities, and examiner for the registration of foreign veterinary graduates. He wasa foundation Fellow and Councillor of the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists.

Bob and his late wife Leila raised three sons, Robert, Grahame and John. The lattertwo, and a grandson Bill, are all practising veterinarians along with Bill’s wife Alison– a remarkable legacy alongside his distinguished service to the profession.

In MemoriamA long and productive relationshipbetween the Faculty of VeterinaryScience and Associate Professor BobRatcliffe (left) is concluding. Bob hastried to retire before, but in such highregard is he held across the Faculty,he has continued to undertakesignificant roles that demand sensitiveand experienced guidance.

Bob graduated from the University ofSydney in 1962, spending the nexttwenty years in small animal/equinepractice at Gladesville. He returned tothe Faculty in 1983 as a Resident inthe Department of Veterinary ClinicalStudies. He became Registrar in 1984,

gained membership of the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists (ACVS) in1985, and became Superintendent of the University Veterinary Centre Sydney in1986. From 1989 to 2000, Bob was Director of Laboratory Animal Services atthe University.

During his career Bob held teaching positions, was an examiner for the ACVSand contributed to numerous University and professional Committees, includingas Deputy Chair of the Animal Care and Ethics Committee and the Post GraduateFoundation in Veterinary Science. He held roles in the NSW Board of VeterinarySurgeons and the Australian Veterinary Association.

Bob was invited back to the Faculty in 2001 after his first “retirement” tobecome Business Development Advisor and more recently he has been anintegral contributor to the Partner Practice program.

This latter role has seen Bob as one of the critical interfaces between theFaculty, students, and the profession, in particular with practitioners hostingfinal year rotations. Bob initiated and organised the now-annual PartnerPractitioner Conference, and most recently he has undertaken an in-depthanalysis of Faculty staffing.

Bob’s attention to detail, clinical acumen, work ethic and sage advice has beenhighly valued and we hope he will reflect with pride on his many achievementsas he and Lorraine (finally) spend more leisure time at their Kiama beach retreat.

On behalf of the Faculty Bob, we’ll miss you.

Professor David Hodgson, Drs John Baguley and Jennie Churchill

Associate ProfessorBOB RATCLIFFE

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