Arf, doc! Dog to ‘cut’ ribbon at LSU vet school’s pet clinic

BATON ROUGE, La. (AP) — A dog will do the honors at the “ribbon cutting” for the Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine’s new pet clinic.

A toy will be attached to a ribbon held by VIPs at the Stephenson Pet Clinic on Monday afternoon, and a Belgian Malinois named Mac will pull it away from them, veterinary school spokeswoman Ginger Guttner said.

Gov. John Bel Edwards is expected to join LSU President William Tate and donor Emmet Stephenson at the event hosted by Dean Oliver Garden, a news release said.

Stephenson and his late wife, Toni Stephenson, were the biggest donors among 300 who gave $5 million to help pay for the 40,000-square-foot building, Guttner said.

“We anticipate we can move into the building in late June and start seeing patients in the building in July,” she wrote in an email.

The new building houses many of the school’s clinical services, including primary care, dermatology, integrative medicine, and ophthalmology.

It cost about $14 million, including $5 million from the state, and $4 million from the school, Guttner said.

The number of people, labs, and services has greatly increased since the Veterinary Medicine Building was completed in 1978, the news release said.

Mac is owned by Jeannie Hansbrough, an LSU Vet Med veterinary surgical technician.

The LSU School of Veterinary Medicine is among 33 U.S. veterinary schools and is the only one in Louisiana.