The University of California- Davis

The largest of the nation's 27 veterinary institutions, the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine is California's only veterinary school. The School is also the primary health resource for California's animals: companion animals, livestock and wildlife. Unique partnerships with California's agriculture, health, and environmental agencies maximize the state and university activities and personnel who protect our animal resources and encourage the development of new knowledge. Some programs are publicly funded; others are completely supported by private gifts.

Goal of the Wildlife Health Center's Graduate Program

To prepare students for leadership roles in wildlife health and conservation by providing them with the skills and the ecological perspectives needed to effectively address the multi-faceted issues affecting the health and sustainability of wildlife populations and the environment. 

The Wildlife Health Center is a multidisciplinary program within the School of Veterinary Medicine at UC Davis that focuses on the health of free-ranging and captive terrestrial and aquatic wild animals. It is the umbrella organization under which faculty, staff, students, and other partners come together to address the complex issues surrounding conservation in a changing world. The Center draws upon faculty expertise spanning a wide range of wildlife species and scientific disciplines and attracts students from around the world to participate in its research and educational programs.

The Wildlife Health Center does not rehabilitate injured wildlife.

History of the Center 

http://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/whc/

The Center was conceived in 1992 to build upon and foster the continued development of wildlife health activities within the SVM. A variety of wildlife-related activities and programs preceded or coincided with the development of the WHC, including the Veterinary Medicine Teaching Hospital (VMTH) Zoological Medicine program, Raptor Center, Marine Mammal Immunology Program, Oiled Wildlife Care Network, and Wildlife Health Program. The wildlife health educational program within the School of Veterinary Medicine was initiated with funding from the Pew Charitable Trust in 1990 and focuses on veterinary medical training in wildlife health.   

The Oiled Wildlife Care Network, a collaborative program between the California Department of Fish and Game, Office of Spill Prevention and Response and the School of Veterinary Medicine, came to the WHC in 1994. Most of the daily administrative activities for the Network were coordinated by the WHC until July 1998, when the SVM received a direct appropriation from the governor's budget to administer the program.

The WHC was more formally structured in July 1998. Dr. Walter M. Boyce and Dr. Jonna A.K. Mazet were appointed as co-directors to refine and develop the programs of the WHC and serve as advocates for the Center and its faculty.

Programs

Marine Ecosystem Health Program
Marine Ecosystem Health Annual Competitive Grants Program
Southern California Ecosystem Health Program
Oiled Wildlife Care Network
Envirovet Summer Institute
Wildlife Health Externship
Wildlife Health Annual Competitive Grants Program
Wildlife Veterinary Services

Future plans

Future plans for the Center call for construction of an expanded complex that will facilitate collaboration among its participants and continue to allow the Center to enhance the conservation and health of animals in the environment. All of the Center's activities, including construction of new facilities, are jointly supported by private and public funds.

[For information on the Oiled Wildlife Care Network see: Website Ref - W573 - Oiled Wildlife Care Network]