Large Animal Candidate Boot Camp

COURSE LEADER
Hal Schott, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (LAIM)
Professor, Michigan State University

Dr. Schott received his DVM degree in 1984 from The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine.  He started his career with three years in private equine practice in Southern California. Dr. Schott subsequently pursued advanced training by completing a residency in equine internal medicine, acquiring ACVIM Diplomate certification in 1992, and a PhD in equine exercise physiology at Washington State University.  Since 1995, Dr. Schott has been an equine medicine clinician at Michigan State University (MSU) with a strong clinical interest in urinary tract disorders and endocrinological disorders. Dr. Schott has written numerous publications and book chapters and has been an invited speaker at scientific and continuing education meetings across the globe. From 2017 through 2020 Dr. Schott also served as Specialty President of Large Animal Internal Medicine within ACVIM. Over the past few years Dr. Schott has also developed a strong interest in providing care to working equids in Mexico. In 2017 he developed a 2-week clinical experience taking eight MSU students annually to work with Mexican veterinarians and veterinary students to provide veterinary care to burros, mules, and horses in rural Mexican communities.

Michelle Barton, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (LAIM)
Assistant Dean of Clinical Academic Affairs
Callaway Endowed Chair
Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor, University of Georgia

Michelle Henry Barton is a 1985 graduate from the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Illinois.  Dr. Barton completed a one-year Large Animal Medicine and Surgery Internship at North Carolina State University and then completed a four year combined Large Animal Internal Medicine Residency and PhD in Physiology at the College of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Georgia in 1990.  Dr. Barton has remained at the University of Georgia and is the Fuller E. Callaway Endowed Chair, Professor of Large Animal Internal Medicine, and a Josiah Meigs Distinguished Teaching Professor. She is currently the Assistant Dean of Clinical Academic Affairs at the College of Veterinary Medicine at UGA.  Dr. Barton has served the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine as the Specialty President for Large Animal Internal Medicine and as their first Ombudsman. Clinical, teaching, and research interests include endotoxic and septic shock, neonatal medicine, coagulopathy, cardiology, colic and liver disease, and critical illness related endocrinopathy.  

Lauren Bookbinder, DVM, DACVIM (LAIM)
Clinical Assistant Professor, Michigan State University

Dr. Bookbinder earned her veterinary degree from Cornell University and continued her specialty training through an equine internship at B.W. Furlong and Associates, and a Large Animal Internal Medicine Residency at Michigan State University. Following, Dr. Bookbinder was a faculty member at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University and cared for patients both in the field and at the university referral hospital. Dr. Bookbinder has an enthusiasm for teaching and preparing students to be confident veterinarians. She is also passionate about large animal neurology, neonatology, antimicrobial stewardship, and preventative health.

Carrie Finno, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (LAIM)
Associate Professor, University of California-Davis

Dr. Carrie Finno is a board-certified equine internist with a PhD in comparative pathology and post-doctorate training in comparative genomics. She has a strong commitment to biomedical research in the field of translational inherited neuromuscular disorders. At this stage of her career, Dr. Finno has published over 95 papers, including publications in Nature Communications and PLoS Genetics. Through support from her NIH-funded K01 grant and several university- and foundation-funded grants, Dr. Finno discovered parallel gene dysregulation pathways involving nuclear receptors in neural tissue from both vitamin E deficient horses and an experimental mouse model of vitamin E deficiency^-. She is currently a co-investigator on an R01 award aimed at definitively answering one of the fundamental questions regarding vitamin E biology – are the neurologic consequences with vitamin E deficiency independent of the vitamin’s antioxidant effects? Dr. Finno was recently awarded the 2022 Chancellor’s Fellowship at UC Davis for her research efforts. 

Richard Hepburn, BVSc, MS (Hons), CertEM (IntMed), DACVIM (LAIM), FRCVS
RCVS Specialist in Equine Medicine, B&W Equine Hospital

After graduating from Liverpool Vet School in 1997 Dicky worked in equine hospitals in the UK and New Zealand for 4 years doing a combination of sport horse and racehorse work. He then completed a 3 year combined internal medicine residency and Masters program at The Marion DuPont Equine Medical Center in Virginia, USA. Since 2004 he has worked at the B&W Equine Hospital, a 40+ vet equine practice in southwest England, where he is part of their referral medicine service. Dicky is a member of the ECEIM EGUS consensus committee, has been chair of the ACIVM LAIM specialty exam committee, advanced continuing education committee and a member of the Board of Regents. He is a contributing author to the textbook of Equine Neurology and the textbook of Equine Back and Neck Pathology. Dicky is an FEI vet at Badminton 5* Horse Trials, the London International Horse Show and Royal Windsor Horse Show. He is recognized by the RCVS as a specialist in equine internal medicine and in 2018 he was awarded Fellowship of the RCVS for meritorious contribution to clinical practice.

Ana Moreira, DVM, DACVIM (LAIM), DACVECC-LA
Assistant Professor, Michigan State University

Dr. Ana Moreira earned her degree in veterinary medicine from the Abel Salazar Institute of Biomedical Sciences of the University of Porto, Portugal. She then completed an equine rotating internship at the Equine Clinic De Morette, Asse, Belgium. Ana Moreira completed a residency program in Large Animal Internal Medicine at the University of Wisconsin - Madison, School of Veterinary Medicine, followed by a fellowship in Large Animal Emergency and Critical Care. After completing her fellowship at UW-Madison, Ana Moreira joined the team at Anglesey Lodge Equine Hospital in Ireland for two years, and was a visiting assistant professor at Purdue University the following year. In 2022, she started her current position as an assistant professor of large animal internal medicine at Michigan State University. Dr. Ana Moreira is a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine and the American College of Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care, and has a particular interest in equine neonatology.

Stephanie Valberg, DVM, PhD, DACVIM (LAIM)
Mary Anne McPhail Dressage Chair in Equine Sports Medicine
Professor and Director of the Neuromuscular Diagnostic Laboratory, Michigan State University

Dr. Valberg is an international leader in equine neuromuscular disorders having served as a Professor and endowed chair at the University of Minnesota and Michigan State University, respectively.  She currently directs the muscle biopsy service ValbergNMDL.com. She received her Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the University of Guelph Ontario Veterinary College and her PhD in equine exercise physiology from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences. She is board certified in large animal internal medicine and veterinary sports medicine and rehabilitation. The overarching goal of Valberg’s research and clinical work has been to define the basis for neuromuscular disorders in horses, develop accurate, minimally invasive diagnostic tests, and produce optimal methods for preventing or managing performance limiting diseases. Her research has led to the discovery of numerous muscle disorders. Dr Valberg is the recipient of several honors including delivery of the Milne Lecture at the American Association of Equine Practitioners in 2012 and she was the first woman to be inducted into the Equine Research Hall of Fame. She has twice received the Pfizer Research Excellence Award. She has over 200 peer reviewed publications.