VTMED 6602

Laboratory Animal Medicine

Course Description

Course information provided by the 2025-2026 Catalog.

Laboratory animal medicine is a diverse field in which veterinarians directly impact the well-being of animals used in research, teaching and testing. Laboratory animal veterinarians assist researchers in achieving their goals, while encouraging replacement, reduction, and refinement of animal use. Treatment of animals and preparation of preventive medicine programs requires the laboratory animal veterinarian to have knowledge of the biology and comparative medicine of a wide variety of species. It is also essential for laboratory animal veterinarians to have knowledge of research methodologies, and animal models of disease as well as a good understanding of state and federal regulations, and guidelines governing the use of animals. In addition, occupational health and safety, and animal facility design are important parts of an institutional animal care program, to which laboratory animal veterinarians have input. The diversity of species, and the novel circumstances that arise regularly in this field make laboratory animal medicine an exciting and unique discipline of veterinary medicine. This rotation is an introduction to the specialty of laboratory animal medicine. Students are exposed to all aspects of a laboratory animal veterinarian's role. Activities include but are not limited to: accompanying laboratory animal veterinarians on clinical rounds of Cornell University's research animal facilities; participating in diagnostic and preventive medicine plans; attending review sessions on the biology, medicine, pathology, husbandry of traditional and non-traditional lab animal species; incorporating information on current legislation regulating the care and use of research animals; and exposure to various research activities on the Cornell University Campus.

Prerequisites REF-FA25/Corequisites REF-FA25 VTMED 5520. Corequisites: None.

Enrollment Priority REF-FA25 Enrollment limited to: fourth-year veterinary students.

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