Pictured above (left to right) are Carey McCully, Lisa Gallery and Dr. Emily Sharpe.

Helping Dogs See

Tuesday, May 22, 2018

Oklahoma State University’s Veterinary Medical Hospital provided free eye exams to service animals during the month of May as part of the American College of Veterinary Ophthalmologists’ 11th Annual ACVO/StokesRx National Service Animal Eye Exam event. OSU’s ophthalmology team donated their time and resources to provide free eye screenings to 29 service dogs working in Oklahoma.

Among those taking advantage of the free exams were members of Pete’s Pet Posse and Love on a Leash. Pete’s Pet Posse is a therapy pet program on both the Stillwater and Tulsa campuses. Love on a Leash is an outreach program of St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church in Stillwater.

Kathy Williams of Sand Springs, Okla., brought in Sunny, her 3-year-old golden retriever and a member of Pete’s Pet Posse on the OSU Tulsa campus.

“He’s only 3-years-old so we want to make sure he is in good health from nose to tail,” said Williams. “If there are any preventative measures that we need to do then we can start those early while he’s young.”

David Lewis of Stillwater made an appointment for his poodle Parker.

“Parker is a registered therapy dog. We work through Love on a Leash,” explained Lewis. “We visit nursing homes and schools. Kids in school like to read to him and he does a good job with that. Soon we’re going to go to the cancer treatment center here in Stillwater to see how that goes. I wanted to find out if he has any vision problems.”

Jessica Bradley of Tulsa, Okla., and Blue, her 7-year-old Australian shepherd, also visited the Hospital. As part of Pete’s Pet Posse, they walk around the OSU Tulsa campus helping students and staff de-stress.

“Blue is getting a little bit old so any preventative steps we can take to make sure he’s as healthy as possible, we’re happy to participate in,” said Bradley. “We’re thankful that OSU Vet Med is providing this service for us.”

OSU’s Veterinary Medical Hospital is staffed with two board certified veterinary ophthalmologists and a team of specially trained veterinary technicians.