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Larry lapping it upby Lynda Flower. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .A tired, hungry andhomeless dog hasbeen given a newlease on life by aUQ Gatton animalphysiotherapystudent.Every dog has his day and for 10-month old Border Collie Larryit was the day he was adopted by UQMaster of Animal Studies(Physiotherapy) student LesleyHarrison.But three months earlier, as anRSPCA cruelty case, it seemed as ifLarry’s days were numbered.Larry had been almost starved todeath and when rescued by theUQ NEWS, february 2004RSPCA weighed just over three kilos.He was nursed back to health byFairfield Refuge veterinary staff DrAnne Chester and Dr Anne Covilleuntil his condition stabilised and hisweight reached 12 kilos.Then it was discovered that Larryhad hip displasia, a hereditarydisease in dogs, and needed anoperation.Lecturer in Surgery at UQ’sSchool of Veterinary Science SueSommerlad performed the femoralhead osteotomy operation and Larrywent into Ms Harrison’s care forpostoperative physiotherapy.Ms Harrison is undertakingpostgraduate studies in animalphysiotherapy at UQ Gatton, one ofonly two Masters programs in thisfield in the world.The program provides qualifiedhuman physiotherapists withtraining to transfer their skills toanimals, particularly performanceand companion animals such as dogsand horses, to meet a growinginternational demand.Ms Harrison is studying therehabilitation of dogs after femoralhead excision surgery, and is seeingclinical cases at UQ’s VeterinaryTeaching Hospital.“The project is studying whetherpostoperative physiotherapytechniques, which have provedsuccessful for humans, are useful foranimals as an adjunct to veterinarymedicine,” Ms Harrison said.“It’s early days yet, but the signsare very encouraging. After eightweeks there have been significantchanges to Larry’s gait and anincrease in his muscle bulk,evidence that an established exerciseregime is beneficial.”Larry’s muscle-building regimeinvolves an on-leash, one-kilometrewalk each day and selected off-theleashactivities. He also walks up anddown hills, slopes and stairs andwalks regularly on sand. Futuretherapy will include swimming.Ms Harrison said Larry’srehabilitation would take another sixmonths before his muscles werestrong enough to withstand a secondoperation on his other hip.From left: Ms Sommerlad,Dr Chester and MsHarrison with LarryAll-togetherfor a differentDiversity WeekUQ will be celebrating differenceduring this year’s Diversity Week.Under the theme of “All-Together-Different”, Diversity Weekwill run from May 10-14.Diversity Week began last year topromote the diversity of the UQcommunity and to encourage furtherimprovements to the work and studyenvironment.A highlight for 2004 will be theinaugural presentation of the Vice-Chancellor’s Equity and DiversityAwards, which will be ongoing, andthe Diversity Action Project Awards.The Vice Chancellor’s Equity andDiversity Awards will recognisecontributions that improve equity anddiversity, or raise awareness of equityand diversity within UQ. There willbe one $5,000 award for an individualand $10,000 for an organisationalunit. These Awards were launchedduring last year’s Diversity Week.Four Diversity Action Projectawards, valued at $2,500 each, will beprovided to an individual or group for aproject that will advance or supportdiversity at UQ, particularly inenhancing cross-cultural understandingand anti-racism policies.These Awards will be funded frommoney remaining from the Vice-Chancellor’s Committee AgainstRacism, whose role has now beentaken up by a subcommittee of the newSenate Standing Committee for Equity,Diversity and the Status of Women.All awards will be presented byUQ Vice-Chancellor Professor JohnHay AC, at a lunch to be held on May14 at Brisbane Customs House.Deputy Vice-Chancellor (Academic)Professor Margaret Gardnersaid Diversity Week was an opportunityto celebrate the diversity of theUQ community.“The student and staff populationsof UQ are becoming increasinglydiverse. Different cultures, worldviews and points of view contributeto the richness of work and life at UQ,and benefit us all,” she said.“Diversity Week means we canshowcase and celebrate diversity and,through the awards, acknowledge thegreat work already going on and providesome well-deserved support for theindividuals and organisational units thatcontribute to diversity at UQ.”Information: www.uq.edu.au/about/diversityweek21