Luke Bass

Equine Field Service, Associate Professor Clinical Sciences

Veterinary Teaching Hospital (VTH)

(970) 297-0315

About Luke

Dr. Luke Bass works on the Equine Field Service team and manages the equine podiatry educational and clinical program. He grew up in southwestern Louisiana, where he competed in team and calf roping as well as national 4-H competitions. He continued his love for horses by completing his bachelor’s degree at Louisiana State University, followed by his master’s degree and D.V.M. at Colorado State University.

After graduation, Dr. Bass worked at Pioneer Equine Hospital in Oakdale, California, for five years before returning to CSU in 2013. He has played a key role in growing the equine field service into a thriving general practice at CSU. The equine podiatry program he leads is the only four-year equine podiatry curriculum in the world for veterinary students.

Dr. Bass has been actively involved with the American Association of Equine Practitioners for the past 20 years, serving on the board of directors from 2019 to 2021 and as co-chair and chair of the Educational Programs Committee from 2022 to 2025. Outside of CSU, he enjoys spending time with his family – Lindsay, Colby, and Jaida – playing sports, relaxing at the beach, and skiing with his kids.

Education

Doctor of Veterinary Medicine, Colorado State University, 2007Master of Science, Equine Reproduction, Colorado State University, 2003Bachelor of Science, Louisiana State University, 2001

Certifications

Diplomate, American Board of Veterinary Practitioners (ABVP) , 2015
Equine Certificate of Medical Veterinary Acupuncture, 2018

Publications

Hess, A., Bracken, A., Nout-Lomas, Y., Rao, S., Gustafson, D., & Bass, L. (2025). Pharmacokinetics of a long-acting intramuscular dopamine agonist in healthy horses. Equine Veterinary Education. Article DOI: 10.1111/eve.70003 Linde, P., Kurihara, J., Chow, L., Williams, Z., Hendrickson, D., Bass, L., Dow, S., & Pezzanite, L. Identification of antibodies to chondrocyte and synviocyte antigens in equine osteoarthritis. Journal of Orthopaedic Research. Article DOI: https://doi.org/10.1002/jor.70085 Williams, Z., Chow, L., Impastato, R., Piquini, G., Sabino, I., Bass, L., Hendrickson, D., Zuscik, M., Dow, S., & Pezzanite, L. (2025). Multiomic analysis of equine aging-related osteoarthritis highlights gut microbiome and metabolome alterations. Submitted to Animals, Sept 2025. Bracken, A., Bass, L., Kiger, K., & Rao, S. ACTH suppression activity of a long-acting intramuscular dopamine agonist in horses with PPID. Study complete August 2024, Submitted July 2025. Awaiting primary author comments and will submit to AAEP in 2026.Damone, J., Bass, L., Gadomski, B., Rao, S., Frank, C., & Moorman, V. (2024). Biomechanical and histological variables differ by site but not by lameness in equine digital cushion samples from forelimbs. Journal of Equine Veterinary Science. Accepted August 2024. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jevs.2024.105178

Research Specialty

LamenessField surgeryPPID/Cushing's