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| Symposium
Seminar Biographies |
| Dr. Christopher Cebra
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Dr. Chris Cebra has been working with camelids for almost twenty years, starting as an intern on the East Coast and working his way steadily westward. In the process, he spent 4 years at Colorado State University working with such camelid experts as LaRue Johnson and Frank Garry, getting involved with the major camelid conferences of the day, and launching clinical research projects, chiefly concerning digestive disorders. After completing his training as a veterinary internist, he joined the faculty at Oregon State University, which at the time included Brad Smith, Karen Timm, Bob van Saun, Susan Tornquist and others with strong camelid interests. He has continued his work on digestive disorders, involved currently with projects on coronavirus and Eimeria macusaniensis, and been involved with major initiatives to study energy metabolism and Mycoplasma Haemolama (Eperythrozoonosis) in camelids. He has written or co-authored over 40 scientific articles concerning camelids, 32 of which are listed on PubMed, and been involved with over 25 camelid research projects funded by such agencies as the Morris Animal Foundation, Alpaca Research Foundation, and Willamette Valley Llama Foundation. He attends and presents at conferences worldwide, 7 countries on 3 continents at last count, as well as hosting the International Camelid Health Conference at Oregon State in odd-numbered years. He is currently the Interim Head of the Department of Clinical sciences. He also teaches in the veterinary curriculum and works in the Large Animal Hospital, seeing internal medicine cases of all large animal species.
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| | Ruth Elvestad, AOBA Certified Judge and Alpaca Owner
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Ruth has over 30 years' experience in a broad Canadian base of agriculture, business, government and academic sectors. She has extensive teaching, curriculum and program development expertise, and has been involved in international trade, import/export of livestock, and international fiber research. Ruth manages the Natural Fiber Centre and Testing Laboratory at Olds College in Canada; is a qualified fiber testing technician; a Certified Camelid Fibre Classer; a Certified AOBA Judge; a volunteer with the Canadian Camelid Fiber Co-op; a founding member of the Canadian AgriFibre Network; a Wool Judge, and teaches fiber workshops extensively throughout North America and overseas. Ruth and her husband, Rod, own R&R Alpacas in Olds, Alberta.
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| | Dr. Steve Hull
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Dr. Steve Hull is an early-retired medical school professor, biomedical engineer, academic researcher and alpaca farmer. He is the manager and co-partner of TimberLake Farms, Inc., and serves on committees for the Alpaca Owner Breeders Association (AOBA). He is a well-known alpaca speaker and alpaca farm/forage/pasture consultant.
Steve grew up in New England on a small farm raising all kinds of animals and livestock. An early goal was to be a veterinarian and he graduated with honors from the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (Veterinary and Animal Sciences). However, his interests had switched to academic research and he started on the medical school professor/research pathway.
A degree in Bio-Medical Engineering (Worcester Polytechnic Institute) was next on the list with an emphasis on academic research surgery and neuroendocrine physiology. He received a National Institutes of Health (NIH) doctoral fellowship and was accepted to study Physiology and Biophysics at Michigan State University. There, he studied neural control of the cardiovascular system (PhD). He then got additional postdoctoral fellowships (American Heart Assoc and NIH) and joined the medical school faculty at the University of Oklahoma. He received many grants, published extensively on neurocardiology and taught cardiac surgery to medical students, cardiology residents and veterinary students. He is one of the very few PhDs to be elected to the International Academy of Surgical Research and was an invited speaker at many universities.
One interesting connection from his research days is a current pharmacology link with alpacas. In the 1970's, Steve worked in the laboratory when the link between luteolysis and prostaglandin F2á was discovered and first published. Steve's very first publication was on prostaglandins from that laboratory. Today, many of us use “Estrumate” (cloprostenol) which is the commercial product that resulted from that work.
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| | Wini Labrecque, AOBA Certified Judge and Alpaca Owner
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Wini Labrecque has made fiber her profession, studying, training and evaluating its properties from both a scientific and hands on approach. As a textile artist, she has developed a solid background and interest in a wide variety of techniques for utilization of fiber from raw state to finished product. Since the late 1980's, utilizing natural fibers, Wini has been spinning, weaving, knitting and felting. Her handspun skeins and woven/knit goods are sold at area art festivals and in area specialty shops. Once exposed to alpacas and their wonderful fiber, she has been utilizing and promoting the fiber to everyone who will listen.
Current projects include research and development of a Pennsylvania Preferred product from PAOBA member fiber and research and development of a washable/dryable alpaca blend yarn/fabric. She is a strong supporter of the AFCNA and the coop model.
Wini lectures on all aspects of fiber as well as gives classes in beginning spinning, felting, and/or weaving to individuals or small groups. She is a Fiber Arts judge as well as a judge for hand spun and mill spun skein competitions, an AOBA certified fleece judge, and currently completing certification as a camelid fiber grader/sorter.
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| | Tim Lavan, AOBA Certified Judge and Alpaca Owner
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Tim along with his wife, Cindy and their two boys have been breeding and raising alpacas at Chase Tavern Farm in mid-coast Maine since 1993. He is an AOBA certified halter, fleece and performance judge trainer and has judged and evaluated thousands of alpacas in and outside the USA. Tim has judged more than 50 alpaca shows. He has written articles for Alpacas Magazine and has given lectures for numerous camelid organizations. Chase Tavern Farm is home to more than 60 alpacas, both suri and huacaya. Tim is a full time alpaca farmer and is active in most of the daily activities on the farm.
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| | Dr. Andy Merriwether
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Andy Merriwether received his B.A. in Medical Anthropology and B.S. in Biology from Pennsylvania State University in 1988, his M.S. in Genetics from Pennsylvania State University in 1989, and his Ph.D. in Human Genetics from the University of Pittsburgh in 1993. Dr. Merriwether was a fellow at the Keck Center for Advanced Training in Computational Biology in Pittsburgh from 1993-1996. From 1996-2003 Dr. Merriwether was an assistant professor of anthropology and of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Michigan, and from 1999-2003 was a faculty member in the Center for Statistical Genetics and the Center for Molecular and Clinical Epidemiology of Infectious Disease at the University of Michigan as well. From 2003 to the present, Dr. Merriwether has been an associate professor of Anthropology and of Biology at Binghamton University (State University of New York). Dr. Merriwether has authored and co-authored over 50 scientific papers, articles and book chapters. Dr. Merriwether has long studied genetic evidence for human and animal variation, evolution and migration around the world, including the domestication of camelids, camelid evolution, and the genetics of pigmentation and of health and disease in camelids. Dr. Merriwether established the Camelid DNA Bank at Binghamton University in 2002-2003, which will pass 3000 samples by the end of 2009. Andy and Ann Merriwether co-own Nyala Farm Alpacas where they have over 55 alpacas, all huacayas except for two demonstration model suris. Nyala Farm also raises Wensleydale sheep, Jacobs sheep, Angora rabbits, and Clydesdale horses and is located in Vestal, New York.
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