OSU’s veterinary teaching hospital saves the life of a Theta Pond resident.
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SICK duCK: PHOTO PROVIdEd
Rudy receives a life-saving blood transfusion thanks to one of his fellow residents at Theta Pond. acorn and began a 10-day, anti-fungal treatment.” Thanks to some tender, loving care and antibiotics, two weeks later Rudy was returned to his home at Theta Pond. Rudy is among the many animals treated at OSU’s veterinary center, one of 28 veterinary colleges in the United States. The center’s Boren Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital is open to the public and provides routine and specialized care for small and large animals. It also offers 24-hour emergency care and is certified by the American Animal Hospital Association. For more information, visit www.cvhs.okstate. edu or call 405-744-7000. PHOTO / PHIL SHOCKLEY
Mention Theta Pond to an OSU alumnus and all kinds of memories come to mind. For a veterinarian and technician at OSU’s Center for Veterinary Health Sciences, memories of Rudy will come to mind. An OSU grounds keeper noticed one of the ducks at Theta Pond was looking ill. It wasn’t standing or eating, so he caught the duck and brought it to the zoo, exotic and wildlife veterinary medicine department at OSU’s Boren Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. The hospital is in the Center for Veterinary Health Sciences complex on the west end of campus, where Dr. Cornelia Ketz-Riley and her team began treating Rudy the duck. “Rudy was lethargic. His beak was pale, and he couldn’t stand on his own,” says Ketz-Riley. “We drew a blood sample and discovered that Rudy was anemic. So the first thing we needed to do was give him a blood transfusion.” Since there is no blood bank for ducks, they turned to a Theta Pond mate as a source for Rudy’s transfusion. “We brought one of the other ducks over and drew some blood,” says Ketz-Riley. “Then we transfused it to Rudy. “Once he was feeling better from the increase in red blood cells, we examined him further and found some acorns lodged in his crop, the sac in the esophagus where ducks store food. We then scoped Rudy and diagnosed a severe yeast infection in his crop and esophagus. We removed another