Faculty member receives UF Research Foundation Professorship
Dr. Julie Levy
Dr. Julie Levy, a professor of shelter medicine at the UF College of Veterinary Medicine, has received a UF Research Foundation professorship.
Sponsored by the university’s Office of Research, the professorships are awarded to tenured faculty members campuswide for distinguished research. The honor includes a $5,000 salary increase for three years, and a one-time $3,000 award for research support.
Double-board-certified in small animal internal medicine and shelter medicine practice, Levy co-founded Maddie’s Shelter Medicine Program at the College of Veterinary Medicine and the Million Cat Challenge, which are educational and discovery initiatives with a global impact on the care of homeless animals.
Her research and clinical interests center on the health and welfare of animals in shelters, feline infectious diseases, and humane alternatives for cat population control. She has performed long-term studies of contraceptive vaccines for cats, with a recent focus on GnRH as the contraceptive target.
Levy also is the founder of Operation Catnip, a nonprofit university-based community cat spay/neuter program that has sterilized more than 50,000 cats in the Gainesville, Florida, area since 1998. This program forms the basis for research on free-roaming community cat issues, including infectious diseases, caregiver characteristics, population dynamics, and anesthesia protocols.
