A silver lining for Penn Veterinarians

Two weeks after being euthanized, Barbaro is still leaving hoofprints on the New Bolton Center.

Though things have begun to quiet down, gifts and donations continue to flood the Center, where Barbaro received intense medical attention for eight months.

Bouquets of red roses in honor of the Kentucky Derby winner are pouring in, said Corinne Sweeney, hospital director at the New Bolton Center.

And these gifts, which in the past ranged from Christmas trees to pizza parties for Barbaro's doctors, are occurring alongside a heightened interest in Veterinary studies.

Some vet officials are crediting Barbaro with inspiring an influx of applications to the University's School of Veterinary Medicine.

"The applicant pool is up 14 percent from last year," said Matt Keiter, associate dean for admissions at Penn Vet.

"No veterinary institution has received this much attention," Veterinary Medicine Dean Joan Hendricks noted. "To have it all be positive - I just can't believe it."

As of the Oct. 2nd deadline, 1477 applications had been received. And through reading applications, Keiter said he was also able to forecast a general increase in interest in large animals, like horses, among the applicants.

Some of Penn Vet's increase in popularity is certainly related to Barbaro's publicity, Keiter said.

Beyond applying to vet school, other demonstrations of support include setting up funds in Barbaro's memory.

A particularly generous one has been spearheaded by Barbaro's owners, who have donated an undisclosed amount of money to create the Fund to Fight Laminitis, which will focus specifically on laminitis research, Sweeney added.

Laminitis, the hoof disease that eventually led to Barbaro being euthanized two weeks ago, is one of two diseases that kills horses most often. The New Bolton Center is hoping to use money from the new Fund to Fight Laminitis to research for a cure over the next decade, Hendricks said.

"It's a frustrating disease because it only affects their feet," Hendricks said. "You've got 99.99 percent of an animal that's completely fine, and these stupid toenails are going to kill him."

In general, because of the specificity of this problem to horses, there has been little financial support from animal research organizations to help find a cure.

"Taxpayer dollars don't go to solving horse problems," Hendricks said. "It's no longer in the public interest as it was in the nineteenth century to save a horse."

Now, Penn Vet's latest applicants will be granted the opportunity to participate in laminitis research if the proposed programs get off the ground.

Hendricks expects that, overtime, the New Bolton Center will have enough to begin some serious research, bringing in new scientists to focus exclusively on the issue.

"You don't make progress by hoping - you have to actually do something," Hendricks said.

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