Dr Stephen Birchard attended veterinary school at the University of Missouri College of Veterinary Medicine (Class of 1976). He then was an associate veterinarian in a small animal practice in New Jersey for two years. Birchard completed a small animal surgical residency program and Masters Degree at Purdue University School of Veterinary Medicine in 1981 and became a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Surgeons in 1984. After two years as an Associate Staff Surgeon at the Animal Medical Center in New York City, he joined The Ohio State College of Veterinary Medicine faculty in 1983. Birchard was Head of Small Animal Surgery at Ohio State from 1988 to 1994. While at Ohio State, he received the Norden Distinguished Teacher Award (1985), the Omega Tau Sigma Fraternity National Gamma Award for distinguished service to the veterinary profession (1994), the John Lyman Jr. Award for Clinical Teaching Excellence (2006), and the Excellence in Teaching Award (2008). Birchard retired from The Ohio State University in 2010 and is now a consultant, author, and speaker at continuing education conferences.

Birchard’s clinical specialty is small animal soft tissue surgery. He has written numerous articles for refereed journals and book chapters. He is the chief editor of the Saunders Manual of Small Animal Practice, co-edited by Dr Robert Sherding, and writes an educational blog for veterinarians, “Veterinary Key Points,” at drstephenbirchard.blogspot.com. He recently published a book: “Their Tails Kept Wagging: Pets Show Us How Hope, Forgiveness, and Love Prevail,” a collection of inspiring stories about dogs and cats who survived critical illness.