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.

The CSU Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratories is accredited by the American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians.

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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Rocky Mountain PBS: Disease die-offs continue to ravage bighorn sheep

“The animals are really good at hiding what’s going on so that they don’t show signs of weakness to predators,” said Karen Fox, ​​a veterinary pathologist and research scientist at Colorado State University.

The Spokesman-Review: Company offers hunters another testing option for chronic wasting disease

Each fall, the state looks to see if there is an accredited lab that produces faster turnaround times. Idaho sends its samples to a lab at Colorado State University. The agency submits about 5,000 per year and Dauwalter said there are only a few labs with the capacity to handle that sort of volume.

Dr. Kristy Pabilonia named the 2024 recipient of the AAVLD E.P. Pope Award

Kristy Pabilonia, executive director of Clinical Diagnostics for CSU’s Veterinary Health System (VHS), was named the 2024 recipient of the prestigious American Association of Veterinary Laboratory Diagnosticians’ E.P. Pope Award. 

Science: Livestock virus hits Europe with a vengeance

The source of the responsible viral variant is unknown, but it seems clear that climate change has enabled it to overwinter more easily and spread quickly. “It’s not going to go away,” says Christie Mayo, a veterinary virologist at Colorado State University.

Summit Daily: Scientists found ‘staggering disease’ in a Colorado mountain lion. A mysterious affliction is also making Florida panthers limp.

The Colorado mountain lion euthanized last year is the only case of staggering disease that has been identified in North America to date. But Colorado State University and Colorado Parks and Wildlife veterinarians say they are looking carefully for new cases.

Denver Post: Colorado mountain lion confirmed as first North American case of fatal staggering disease

A sick mountain lion euthanized by Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials in Douglas County last year was the first confirmed case of staggering disease in North America. Colorado scientists don’t yet know how widespread the virus is in domestic cats or wildlife, said Colorado State University research scientist Karen Fox, the study’s lead author and former CPW wildlife pathologist.