UF honors dairy cow reproduction researcher

Klibs Galvao, D.V.M., Ph.D., an assistant professor of large animal clinical sciences at the University of Florida College of Veterinary Medicine, has been honored by UF for his research in the area of dairy cow reproduction.

Galvao is one of 10 UF faculty members to receive a 2013 Excellence Award for Assistant Professors. The awards are given by the Office of the Provost to recognize junior faculty members for excellence in research.

“The committee focused on the quality and innovativeness of the research,” said Joseph Glover, Ph.D., UF’s provost and senior vice president for academic affairs. “In the course of the committee’s deliberations, Galvao emerged as being uniquely worthy of this award.”

Each award consists of a one-time allocation of $5,000 in support of the recipient’s research.

Galvao works in the food animal reproduction and medicine service and is the college’s dairy extension veterinarian. His research, teaching and extension focus is dairy cow reproduction.

Galvao’s research involves both basic and applied methods to better understand the reproductive physiology and immunology of dairy cows, said Glen Hoffsis, D.V.M., dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine. Galvao also works on the development of computer models to estimate the profitability of dairy farms.

“His novel approach to research and discovery in these areas will result in the improvement of reproductive performance of lactating dairy cows, which will have maximal economic impact to the dairy cattle industry worldwide,” Hoffsis said.

In 2013, Galvao and several of his colleagues from UF and other institutions received a $2.9 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture dedicated to extension and education about fertility in dairy cattle. Galvao’s role will be to develop material about the genetic selection and reproduction for undergraduates, veterinary students, veterinarians and the public.

“All of the information generated in those projects will eventually be transferred to dairy producers and the general audience in the state of Florida, the U.S. and abroad,” Galvao said.Besides this larger grant, Galvao and his collaborators have secured 11 other smaller grants that will expand knowledge of diagnosis, treatment and prevention of uterine disease, the effects of cyclicity on fertility of dairy cows and dairy cow economics, he said.

“This work provides an opportunity for hands-on training of senior veterinary students rotating through the food animal reproduction and medicine service,” Galvao said.