From growing up a 3-block walk to the San Francisco Zoo and going on “stroller safaris” with her family, to becoming a Board-Certified Specialist in Zoological Medicine™, Dr. Daniela Yuschenkoff’s career has recently come full circle. It was a proud moment for Dr. Yuschenkoff finding out she had passed the rigorous, 2-day exam. After over 3 years of preparation and 6 weeks of serious studying, she claimed that those two days were the “smartest I’ll ever be!”
Brodie, an approximately 10-year-old female kangaroo from the Sacramento Zoo, was brought to the UC Davis veterinary hospital this week for further evaluation of a suspected mass near her heart.
UC Davis alumnus Dr. Don Janssen (DVM ‘78) was recently awarded the Dr. Murray Fowler Lifetime Achievement Award from the American College of Zoological Medicine (ACZM).
As one of only 215 board-certified zoological veterinarians in the world, Dr. Jenessa Gjeltema is rarer than some of the endangered animals she treats at the Sacramento Zoo.
Coconut, the snow leopard cub born at the Sacramento Zoo earlier this year, underwent a rare eyelid surgery on Wednesday, October 24. UC Davis veterinary specialists and the Sacramento Zoo veterinary team collaborated to correct a congenital eyelid defect known as colombas. This ocular deformity is sometimes documented in snow leopards under human care.
UC Davis veterinary specialists are helping a baby snow leopard, born in May at the Sacramento Zoo, with a condition known as “swimmer’s syndrome,” a developmental deformity that forces animals to paddle their legs like turtles when they try to walk.
The zoo’s snow leopard cub is one lucky cat. Despite being born with several birth defects affecting his eyes and abnormal development of his rear legs and chest, the cub is receiving the very best care and world-class veterinary treatment to help him overcome these challenges.
