Winn Feline Foundation
Vicki Thayer DVM, DABVP (Feline)
Executive Director
888-963-6946, extension 702
Media Info
Steve Dale, CABC
Media Contact and Winn Board Member
773-895-8696
Media Info
For Immediate Release
Wyckoff, NJ, November 5, 2014: Dr. Timothy Gruffydd-Jones, Professor Emeritus of Feline Medicine, Department of Clinical Veterinary Science is the recipient of the 2014 Winn /AVMF (American Veterinary Medical Foundation) Excellence in Feline Research Award. Winn President, Glenn Olah, DVM, PhD, DABVP (Feline), accepted the $2500 award on behalf of Dr. Gruffydd-Jones at the annual AVMA meeting in Chicago in July.
Dr. Gruffydd-Jones was selected from a number of distinguished nominees by the AVMA Council of Research. A member of a ground-breaking generation of feline health researchers, he graduated from the Royal Veterinary College of London in 1973 and has devoted most of his career at Bristol University to his abiding interest in feline medicine, particularly in the areas of infectious diseases, reproductive problems, and pediatrics.
His early work describing inherited diseases in cats inspired future work in the field of feline genetics by other award winning researchers, such as Dr. Leslie Lyons of the University of Missouri-Columbia. He obtained DNA samples on Burmese cats affected with hypokalemia with the foresight that genetic tools would allow genome-wide association studies in cats. This issue has been recently resolved for Burmese cats and genetic testing is now available.
After becoming a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Medicine in 1998, Dr. Gruffydd-Jones was appointed to a chair in Feline Medicine that same year. He was chair of the Feline Advisory Bureau, now I-Cat Care for many years. Presently, Dr. Gruffydd-Jones is deputy chairman of Cats Protection, the largest cat rescue charity in the United Kingdom. The newest project he is focused on currently is the Bristol Cat Study, a multi-year study recording the health, environment, and behavior of cats from the time they register with the study at 2 to 4 months of age until adulthood.
Dr. Gruffydd-Jones has authored or co-authored over 170 publications for peer-reviewed journals, including the Journal of Small Animal Practice, Veterinary Record, American Journal of Veterinary Research, Veterinary Immunology and Immunopathology, and the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine.
Winn Feline Foundation and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation are pleased to collaborate in this effort to focus attention on the importance of feline health studies and the committed researchers who conduct these live saving investigations into the prevention and care of feline disease for “Every Cat, Every Day”.
The Winn Feline Foundation is a non-profit organization established in 1968 that supports studies to improve cat health. Since 1968, the Winn Feline Foundation has funded over $4 million in health research for cats at more than 30 partner institutions world-wide. This funding is made possible through the support of dedicated donors and partners. Research supported by the Winn Feline Foundation helps veterinarians to improve treatment of common feline health problems and prevent many diseases. www.winnfelinefoundation.org