Penn Vet Working Dog Center founder and Executive Director Cynthia Otto was named the recipient of the 2025 American Veterinary Medical Association Career Achievement in Canine Research Award.
The award recognizes Otto’s contributions to the field of canine research, specifically her studies on the health, genetic, and behavioral aspects of performance in detection dogs. During her time at the University, Otto conducted extensive research in her field and published over 150 academic papers.
“Throughout my veterinary career, it has been a true privilege to advance canine knowledge and care — especially the extraordinary working dogs — to support their human partners, and to educate and inspire those whose lives are touched by these remarkable dogs,” Otto said in the AVMA press release.
Otto established the Penn Vet Working Dog Center as “a national model for interdisciplinary canine research, training, and education” just over a decade after the Sept. 11, 2001 terrorist attacks. At Ground Zero, Otto received national attention when she deployed with the Federal Emergency Management Agency’s Pennsylvania Task Force 1 to care for search-and-rescue dogs.
Now, the Center has grown to become a “world-renowned hub of canine science,” with many dogs being trained to save lives. Nearly 200 dogs have graduated from the Center, and 93% maintain working careers in detection and service.
Associate Director of the Penn Vet Working Dog Center Vicki Berkowitz emphasized her support for Otto’s work in a statement to The Daily Pennsylvanian.
“Dr. Otto’s vision for the Penn Vet Working Dog Center was driven by her innate curiosity, love of science, and passion for working dogs who give 100% in their careers in public health and safety,” Berkowitz wrote. “The Penn Vet Working Dog Center (PVWDC) team is incredibly proud of Dr. Otto’s 2025 AVMA Career Achievement Award in Canine Research.”
AVMA President Sandra Faeh also noted Otto’s “extraordinary dedication” to the health, performance, and welfare of detection dogs in the press release and emphasized the profound impact of her research.
Otto has received many other veterinary awards over the course of her career, including the AVMA Bustad Companion Animal Veterinarian of the Year Award in 2018, the Asa Mays Excellence in Canine Health Research Award from the American Kennel Club Canine Health Foundation in 2021, and the Kennel Club Charitable Trust’s International Canine Health Special Award in 2024.
Berkowitz highlighted Otto’s legacy at the Center, adding that it took “grit, the ability to build teams that complement each other, and to never stop asking the question, ‘What would it take to make this happen?’” to build the Center.
“Dr. Otto is a veterinarian, a scientist, a researcher, an educator and a visionary who has changed the landscape of Working Dog science, research and clinical support,” Berkowitz said.
After over three decades at the School of Veterinary Medicine, Otto will retire in July 2026.
