Dr. Neil Dyer, NDSU Institutional Attending Veterinarian and Director of Animal Resources, was honored as the “2018 North Dakota Veterinarian of the Year” by the North Dakota Veterinary Medical Association (NDVMA) at the organization's Annual Meeting held in Fargo on August 2-4, 2018.

The award highlighted Dyer's 27 years of service to veterinary medicine in North Dakota, his advocacy for the advancement of the profession and his dedication to pre-veterinary and veterinary students. During the presentation, Dyer was lauded for acting consistently as “a mentor/advisor, voice of reason, and an advocate for many in the profession.”

The NDVMA Veterinarian of the Year Award was established in 1975 to recognize the time and efforts by its members that are above and beyond that of normal participation for the good of the Association and profession. The award recognizes members who have exerted outstanding leadership in building a stronger NDVMA and contributed significantly to veterinary medicine in North Dakota.

Jane Schuh, NDSU Vice President for Research and Creative Activity, commented, “Anyone who has worked with Dr. Dyer quickly sees his commitment to excellent animal care, sound science, and dedicated service. It is wonderful to see someone so deserving and so humble being recognized by his peers with this prestigious honor. It is even more wonderful to get to work with him every day. He is truly one of the best!”

Dyer received his undergraduate degree in 1977 from NDSU in Zoology and his Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from Iowa State University – College of Veterinary Medicine in 1991. He served as Director of the Veterinary Diagnostic Laboratory at NDSU for 20 years before being named NDSU Institutional Attending Veterinarian in 2018. He and his wife Lori have three children and four grandchildren.

Dyer has served on the NDVMA board of directors in nearly all leadership positions and currently serves on two scholarship committees. He has also served on the North Dakota Board of Animal Health and he is a current member of the North Dakota Veterinary Medical Association, the American College of Veterinary Pathologists and the American Veterinary Medical Association.

NDSU associate professor Lisa Christenson presented Dr. Dyer with the 2018 NDVMA Veterinarian of the Year Award