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| Symposium
Seminar Biographies |
| Dave Belt
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Following completion of a 22-year military career serving the U.S. and Canadian Forces, Dave Belt and family established Echo Mountain Alpacas in Colorado in 1996. Active in both the livestock and fibre arts aspects of the industry, the Belts were active members of the Alpaca Breeders of the Rockies and also established the Pagosa Fiber Festival, now in its ninth year. In early 1999, Dave became Executive Editor of Alpacas Magazine, a position he still holds. He was also one of the original team members of the AOBA Marketing Committee and was instrumental in creating the Farm & Ranch Guide, the "Meet the Alpaca" flyer, OneVoice, and a host of other AOBA publications and marketing materials. In 2003, Dave and family returned home to Canada, where they now operate the Nova Scotia Fibre Arts Training Centre and a gourmet food store, Sunrise Mercantile.
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| | Christine Camann, DVM
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Ruminant Health Services
Christine T. Camann, DVM is a 1980 graduate of Cornell University. She spent 17 years in mixed animal practice before starting her own practice devoted solely to ruminant species. She has been working with South American Camelids since 1992 and has completed numerous continuing education courses related to their care. She is a member of the American Association of Small Ruminant Practitioners and the American Association of Bovine Practitioners.
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| | LaRue Johnson, DVM, PhD
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Dr. Johnson has raised sheep, goats, llamas and alpacas for a total of 40 years. He is a member of the Alpaca Breeders of the Rockies and the Rocky Mountain Llama
Association and has presented over 300 professional or lay talks on subjects of his specialties, written 14 book chapters, 7 abstracts, 20 refereed publications and provided over 100 different lay or professional proceedings. He has been an invited speaker at virtually all the major North American veterinary conferences and many state meetings. His presentation of a neonatal clinic for camelid owners and veterinarians has been offered more than 116 times, mostly in the USA, but also Canada, Australia, England and South America.
Education: BSc, DVM, 1960, Univ. of Minnesota; PhD, 1966, University of Minnesota
Professional Experience:
Research Fellow, 1960-61
Clinical Instructor 1961-1966
Assistant Professor, 1966-1970, head of Large Animal Ambulatory Section
FAO of the United Nations consultant as director of Large Animal Clinic at
UNAM in Mexico City
Associate Professor, 1970
1971-Contracted to CSU/USAID as Senior Lecturer at University of Nairobi
1974-Appointed Chief of Party of CSU/USAID team
-Appointed Head of Department of Clinical Studies at University of Nairobi
1976-Associate Professor at Colorado State University Department of Clinical Sciences in Food Animal Medicine Section
1980- became a tenured Faculty member
1984-Specialized in swine, small ruminants and camelids as an ambulatory
clinician
1992-Appointed Food Animal Section Chief
1995-promoted to Full Professor
1997-began transitional retirement (retired 2002)
Professional Honors:
Board of Directors of American Association of Swine Practitioners (1982-88)
Guest editor, Veterinary Clinics of North America (March 1989& July 1994)
Board of Directors of the International Llama Registry (1987-1991)
Board of Directors of American Association of Small Ruminant Practitioners
(1990-93); President elect (1993-1995); President (1995-1997); Delegate to
AVMA (1997-present)
Recipient of the CSU Norden Distinguished Teaching Award (2001)
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| | Chris Cebra, VMD, MA, MS DACVIM, Professor, Oregon State University
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Dr. Chris Cebra has been working with camelids for seventeen 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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| | Wini Labrecque, Fiber professional & textile artist
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Star Weaver Farm
starweaverfarm.com
724-272-4285
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 apprentice fleece judge, and currently completing certification as a camelid fiber grader/sorter.
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| | Andy Merriwether, PhD, Associate Professor, Binghamton University
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Nyala Farm Alpacas
607-785-8226
Currently an associate professor of anthropology and biology at Binghamton University (since 2002, Dr. Merriwether has a BA in Medical Anthropology, a BS in Biology, an MS in Genetics all from Penn State and, a Ph.D. in Human Genetics from the University of Pittsburgh, and three years postdoctoral training at the Keck Center for Advanced Training in Computational Biology. He was an assistant professor in two departments and two centers at the University of Michigan from 1996-2002 (Anthropolgy, Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, the Center for Statistical Genetics, and the Center for Molecular and Clinical Epidemiology of Infectious Diseases).
With his wife, Ann Merriwether, he has owned Nyala Farm Alpacas for five years; they currently have 42 alpacas (40 Huacayas and a two demonstration model Suris). They also breed Wensleydale Sheep (long wooled Suri-style sheep), Jacob's Sheep (spotted crimpy huacaya-style sheep), French Angora Rabbits, and Clydesdale/Drum/Irish Cobb Horses.
Dr. Merriwether has served on the Alpaca Research Foundation Board of Directors, the ARI genetics committee under Shauna Brummet, and the Breed Standards Committee for the Empire Alpaca Association. Ann and Andy have written numerous articles on alpaca genetics for various alpaca and camelid trade journals. Andy has published over 40 scientific articles and book chapters on human and animal genetic variation and evolution since 1988.
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| | Diana Timmerman, AOBA and International Certified Judge
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Aussie Acres Alpacas
Diana is certified with AOBA and internationally to judge both Halter and Fleece shows for Huacayas and Suris. She has over 14 years experience breeding and showing alpacas and their fleece, along with over 26 years experience raising other breeds of livestock. Her love for alpacas and her commitment to fleece education was the inspiration that led to the purchase of The Alpaca Breeders Fiber School, LLC . She also acts as a Consultant for the new to the Alpaca Industry.
Diana was born in Germany and moved to Colorado, with her parents, when she was eight years of age and has remained in Colorado. After training and working as a Paralegal in both Corporate and Criminal law Diana and her husband, Tim, started Aussie Acres Alpacas in 1994. Alpacas became Diana's full-time business and she has never looked back at the corporate world.
At the present time Diana and her husband Tim, maintain a small herd of Huacaya alpacas, specializing in exceptional genetics. It is not uncommon to see her volunteering as a color checker, ring steward, fleece clerk, etc. Diana does find time to spend with her family which also includes, her twenty-seven year old son Jeff and his finance Jenessa, three Australian Shepherds, five goats and ten farm cats. Diana currently serves on the Advisory Board for the Mid-America Alpaca Foundation. Diana served on The Board of Directors of The Alpaca Breeders of the Rockies, is a faculty member and owner of the Alpaca Breeders Fiber School, LLC and past leader of the Leading Llamas and Alpacas 4-H Club.
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| | Richard Dickinson, CPA
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Richard Dickinson is a Certified Public Accountant licensed in the states of New York, Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine with over 35 years of experience in taxation and farm taxation. Mr. Dickinson has been a member of the Cornell Cooperative Extension and has participated in their Farm Tax Schools for over 20 years. Mr. Dickinson holds a B.S Degree in Nuclear Physics from the University of Wisconsin, a B.A Degree in Accounting from Siena College and a M.B.A from the Tuck School of Management at Dartmouth College.
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| Symposium |
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