Meagan Walker, OVC’2018 DVM student has been awarded first place prize from the Morris Animal Foundation for her contributions to Small Companion Animal Health Research.
Meagan was selected as one of only five student
veterinarians from across North America and the UK to present at the Foundation’s
Annual Symposium, which took place last week in Denver, Colorado.
Walker presented on research completed under the supervision of Drs. Ameet Singh and Scott Weese at the Ontario
Veterinary College, University of Guelph. A research project that was funded
by both The Morris Animal Foundation’s Veterinary Student Scholars Program and OVC Pet Trust.
“The focus of our research was on the effects of biofilm formation by
Staphylococcus pseudintermedius (S. pseud) on antimicrobial susceptibility.”
Walker says, “S. pseud has rapidly emerged as a primary cause of skin and
surgical site infections in dogs.”
The opportunity to conduct and present research findings offers students, like Walker, the ability to be inspired by
helping to create new knowledge and share new information with the world of
veterinary medicine on a global scale.
“My experience as a student researcher has been absolutely fantastic and has motivated me to pursue a career in veterinary research”, says Meagan.
“It means so much that my research can be used to answer
questions, inspire future research, and help animals.”
During
her short career as a student veterinary researcher Walker has also won awards
from the Alltech
Young Scientist Competition, is the first recipient of the Stone
Scholarship for Veterinary Student Exploration, Vice President of the OVC Surgery
Club and an avid veterinary volunteer with the Grey
Bruce Aboriginal and Qimmiq Team, who provide humane canine population
control and community education in remote and semi-remote First Nations
communities in Northern Ontario.