About Us

The Colorado State University Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories plays a major role in a statewide, national, and global animal and zoonotic disease surveillance system that seeks to protect the health of livestock, companion animals, and the general public.

As part of state and federal surveillance programs, the laboratory is a member of the Laboratory Response Network Partners in Preparedness, and works in partnership with the Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment and the Centers for Disease Control.

The laboratory assists the U.S. Department of Agriculture, the Colorado Division of Wildlife, and the Colorado Department of Agriculture with surveillance for a number of high-profile agents, including coronavirus, avian influenza virus, chronic wasting disease, and mad cow disease.

women processing samples under fume hood

Facilities

The Colorado State University Diagnostic Medicine Center is home to the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories, with 90,000 square feet of space dedicated to diagnostic services, clinical pathology, and disease surveillance. The facility includes sealed Biosafety Level 3 laboratories approved by the U.S. Department of Agriculture and Centers for Disease Control and Prevention for handling highly infectious select agents.

News

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CBS News Colorado: Law enforcement community in Jefferson County mourns death of K-9 officer

Graffit’s body was taken in a procession from the scene of his death to Fort Collins late Monday morning. A necropsy will be performed on the animal’s body at the Colorado State University’s veterinary center.

9News: Inside a CSU testing lab for avian influenza

VIDEO: “It’s concerning because not all avian influenza viruses cause this level of mortality in birds. There are a lot of avian influenza viruses that birds can live with, and they’re not getting sick and dying. So this is just a particularly pathogenic virus in wild and domestic birds and that is very concerning, and the ability of the virus to transmit directly from birds to mammals is [also] concerning.” -Dr. Kristy Pabilonia

9News: Bird flu found in Colorado bear, mountain lion

“We’ve been testing for [avian influenza] about a year now. And the volume goes up and down. Sometimes we can see up to 100-200 samples in a day. Sometimes even more than that, and sometimes we see just a handful of samples in a day.” -Dr. Kristy Pabilonia

Denver7: Colorado falconer warns other bird owners after beloved falcon dies of avian flu

Records from Vesta’s necropsy with Colorado State University’s Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories showed the bird tested positive for the avian influenza H5 subtype, which has been found in birds all across the country.

Farm Progress/Western Farmer-Stockman: Mountain states gird against avian flu

Nearly 6.4 million birds in Colorado and 2.2 million in Utah have died since April 2022 in an outbreak that Colorado State University’s Dr. Kristy Pabilonia called the worst she’s seen in the U.S. in her two-decade career monitoring avian diseases.

Q&A: How does the avian flu spread and what’s next for the current outbreak?

A poultry disease expert discusses the avian flu virus, egg prices and how wild birds are driving the U.S. outbreak.