Winter/Spring 2011 Aesculapian magazine - University of Georgia ...

The Veterinary Corps is currently
composed of some several hundred
veterinarians, including a number of
men and women who graduated from
the University of Georgia College of
Veterinary Medicine. Here are a few of
their stories:
Dr. Tim Loonam (DVM ’00)
said the military helped him early on
by awarding scholarships for both his
undergraduate and veterinary school
years. Dr. Loonam, whose experience
as a member of the veterinary
corps began in Fort Jackson, S.C.,
emphasized the crucial public health
efforts for which the veterinary corps is
responsible: “Basically any food, water
or drink being consumed by anyone in
the military or their families on base
is from sources approved by the U.S.
Army Veterinary Corps,” he said. “The
veterinary corps has this mission for the
entire U.S. Department of Defense.”
The veterinary corps was also on the
forefront of efforts to monitor the
West Nile virus, said Dr. Loonam, who
recalled participating in the “… initial
testing and surveillance programs in
South Carolina….”
During the Iraq invasion, Dr.
Loonam was reassigned to lead a
veterinary squad of the 248th Medical
Detachment out of Ft. Bragg, N.C.
“The 248th is the only airborne
veterinary unit in the world, and
supports airborne, special operations
and other combat units around
the world,” he said. During his 13
months in Iraq, Dr. Loonam traveled
extensively throughout the country
working with military dog teams and
the food safety mission. The second
half of his tour provided unique, albeit
dangerous, experiences primarily in
Al Anbar Province, which he referred
to as “The Wild West.” While in
Dr. Katie Carr performs a dental prophylaxis on a military working dog at a veterinary facility
on Kadena Air Force Base in Okinawa, Japan. Photo courtesy of Dr. Katie Carr.
Al Anbar, Dr. Loonam helped with
the early stages of reestablishing
the University of Baghdad College
of Veterinary Medicine. He also
encountered Saddam Hussein’s lions
and vaccinated endangered Iraqi jungle
cats against rabies, which, he said,
was a significant problem among feral
animals in the region. Dr. Loonam
said he was glad the experience left
him unscathed, as he later learned the
jungle cats are extremely dangerous
and unpredictable.
Dr. Loonam also found himself
in an unusual role for a veterinarian:
“One of the most bizarre twists was
being assigned with the Alpha Surgical
Company, a U.S. Navy Field Hospital
at Al Asad Air Base during the battles
of Fallujah,” he said. “Because of
the shortages of medical staff with
that surgical company, I was assigned
as triage officer when the wounded
Marines and Iraqis arrived by
ambulance and helicopter.”
Dr. Loonam currently holds the
rank of lieutenant colonel, and is now
home working in his private practice in
South Carolina. He is hopeful his son,
Jack, will be attending UGA in the fall
of 2011.
Lt. Col. Robert Randall
Thompson (DVM ’86) launched his
career in the U.S. Army Veterinary
Corps in 1990 when he left a small
animal practice to volunteer to serve
in the corps during the Gulf War.
Recognized worldwide as an expert
in military working dog surgery,
Dr. Thompson’s career experiences
are a testament to the flexibility of
knowledge that is routinely required
of a military veterinarian. He
has: provided emergency care to
government-owned marine mammals;
been a rabies consultant for military
bases and military hospitals; cared for
livestock in underdeveloped nations;
Aesculapian • Winter/Spring 2011
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