Veterinary school treats 100,000th patient

The School of Veterinary Medicine had a special reason to celebrate National Pet Week last week — it admitted its 100,000th patient on May 4.

The school’s oncology service examined a lump in the ear of Speed Bump, a bulldog owned by Dave and Jane Schara of Prairie du Sac. Their local veterinarian doesn’t have the equipment to diagnose the lump, which turned out to be benign, although Speed Bump will still need surgery.

Since the School of Veterinary Medicine opened in 1983, its caseload has increased significantly. It took 12 years to serve the first 50,000 patients, and nine more years to treat the second 50,000.

Services have expanded, too. Today, the school features specialists in 16 fields, plus state-of-the-art equipment such as MRI, CT scans, scintigraphy and ultrasound to diagnose and treat the most difficult animal health problems. From cancer to broken bones to eye problems, and everything in between, the veterinary school has long been a destination for animal owners who want a complicated case diagnosed.

“It’s the place to go if there’s anything serious,” says Jane Schara, who had another bulldog at the hospital about 10 years ago.