Speaker Spotlight – Mike Ziccardi

Dr. Ziccardi is currently the Executive Director of the One Health Institute, Director of the Oiled Wildlife Care Network, Director of the California Veterinary Emergency Team (CVET), Co-Director of the Veterinary Access to Care Program, and Health Science Clinical Professor for the School of Veterinary Medicine, UC Davis.

He received his DVM, MPVM, and PhD in epidemiology from UC Davis, emphasizing free-ranging wildlife health and the effects of petroleum exposure in wildlife. He has been an oil spill response veterinarian and coordinator since 1996, responding to more than 70 spills in the US and abroad.

He has also worked as a contract veterinarian for California Department of Fish and Game, a wildlife epidemiologist at Lincoln Park Zoo in Chicago, Chair of the Global Oiled Wildlife Response System project, Chair of NOAA’s Working Group on Marine Mammal Unusual Mortality Events, and Treasurer for the Wildlife Disease Association.

Mike will be delivering a joint session with Dr Ashley Patterson “Developing Veterinary Professionals for Disaster Response”.

This will explore California’s veterinary response training and what led to a state mandated and funded initiative.

During a sequence of several major fires in California, thousands of animals were impacted. Many were evacuated from their homes to emergency shelters with their owners, while others were rescued from burn areas. Animals both large and small were sheltered for months on end, and veterinary care including wellness, herd health, injuries, and burn treatments were needed.

Although local practitioners and organizations provided assistance, California ultimately requested out of state assistance from Texas and Oregon. The need for continuity of veterinary care in California during disaster response operations lead to the state funding and development of the California Veterinary Emergency Team (CVET).