Dr. Cody Dressler goes the extra mile to care for animals and lead students in the K-State shelter medicine program
As a veterinarian, one could say that Dr. Cody Dressler leads a sheltered life – or rather a shelter medicine lifestyle. Her daily responsibilities consist of service and commitment to the health of stray animals and surrendered pets — and just as importantly — shelter medicine provides support to people who may not have easy access to proper animal care for their pets.
“When I was young, my mother and I volunteered at a local animal shelter,” said Dr. Dressler, who grew up in Leavenworth, Kansas. “We were the first people who had ever tried to volunteer at that shelter. They didn’t have a volunteer program, and their adoption program was new. Seeing that need and the whole subset of the population not receiving the kind of attention they needed really made me want to pursue my degree in veterinary medicine.”
Dr. Dressler explains the mission of the Shelter Medicine program to visiting VIPs, Marshall Stewart, K-State's executive vice president for external engagement and chief of staff (left) and Maj. Gen. Monté L. Rone, commander of the First Infantry Division at Fort Riley.
The road less traveled
Kansas State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine has traditionally had a broad training program involving a variety of animal species and medical specialties.
“When I was a veterinary student at K-State, I had some instructors and classmates who didn’t really understand why I wanted to go into shelter medicine,” Dr. Dressler said. “It was a relatively new program. In 2015, we were gifted our first trailer [the K-State Mobile Surgery Unit} which was predominantly designed for spay/neuter procedures. The program has grown a lot since then.”
Dr. Cody Dressler shares some memories during the 10th anniversary celebration of K-State's Shelter Medicine program.
Dr. Dressler explained the program has grown and now offers seven elective courses (preclinical and clinical), a veterinary certificate program and an internship. There is also a new trailer and a community outreach vehicle, called Wellness on Wheels, or WOW.
“After graduating with my Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree in 2016, I did an internship in South Carolina at the Charleston Animal Society,” Dr. Dressler said. “That introduced me to a lot of new facets of shelter medicine. People started studying for board certification with shelter medicine as a specialty, and you would see programs that were more interested in intake diversion strategy, and we started seeing extension out into the local communities.”
In her time working in South Carolina, Dr. Dressler said she was able to practice population medicine, incident response, forensic investigations and resource-limited wellness. She stayed as a staff veterinarian for four years, performing community outreach and taking the mobile unit to the rural parts of South Carolina.
“That was the first time I really started engaging with community members who didn’t have services in their areas,” Dr. Dressler said. “It’s really interesting getting to talk to some of the people and learning where they are in their life at that point. Doing that through the shared experience of helping their pet out is really fun.”
Fulfilling dreams
An opening at K-State gave Dr. Dressler a chance to return to K-State as a clinical assistant professor in the shelter medicine program. When fourth-year students are on the shelter medicine clinical rotation, she trains students in high-quality/high-volume spay-neuter surgery procedures at Kansas animal shelters within a two-hour radius of Manhattan. This distance allows students to go out, perform surgeries and return to Manhattan in the same day while gaining an appreciation for the large scope of shelter models in the region.
“Being in this role, has shifted my mindset,” Dr. Dressler said. “Just yesterday, we went to the animal shelter in Topeka where two of my former students are now staff veterinarians. It made me realize that I did that. And they are good at what they do. That’s really fun to see.”
Dr. Dressler regularly supervises fourth-year veterinary students on the Shelter Medicine clinical rotation. These students are performing spay-neuter procedures on shelter pets in the K-State Mobile Surgery Unit.
This past summer, the College of Veterinary Medicine announced that Dr. Dressler was selected as the Chapman-Mellenthin Professor of Shelter Medicine.
“I am proud of the size, scale and reach of the Shelter Medicine program as represented by Dr. Dressler’s contributions,” said Dr. Bonnie Rush, former Hodes Family Dean in the College of Veterinary Medicine. “Her commitment to the profession, combined with exemplary teaching, mentorship and clinical expertise, made her an ideal candidate for this endowed professorship. Shelter Medicine is the highest rated rotation among senior veterinary students for many consecutive years. Dr. Dressler has played a major role in the success of this program.”
The endowment includes an annual stipend of $5,000 for enhancing the shelter medicine program. The professorship, Mobile Surgery Unit and Wellness on Wheels vehicles have been provided by philanthropic gifts from Cheryl Mellenthin, a retired neonatal intensive care unit nurse from Cat Spring, Texas. Her late husband, Mark Chapman, earned a bachelor's degree from K-State in 1965.
“I feel responsible for being in a leadership role and making sure that this program continues to excel,” Dr. Dressler said. “We thank Cheryl for her generous support in making all of this possible over the last 10 years. I haven’t yet figured out how I will use the annual stipend that comes with this professorship, but I know several of the ideas will be focused on ways to enhance student learning.”
Dr. Dressler (far right) presents Mellenthin-Chapman Scholarship Award in 2024 to Drs. Yuri Lee, Grace Wilson and Gabrielle Lammons.
There's no place like home
Looking back over her career, Dr. Dressler said she appreciates the mentors she worked for in South Carolina.
“I attribute a lot of my education to my mentors when I had my internship,” Dr. Dressler said. “Dr. Lucy Fuller was our senior veterinarian at the Charleston Animal Society. She was super patient and answered all my questions. Dr. Angele Bice was another one of my mentors there. She was always there for me to call and she’s a very good surgeon.”
At K-State, Dr. Brad Crauer, longtime clinical associate professor and shelter medicine director, has been both a teacher and a colleague for Dr. Dressler.
“Dr. Crauer called me out of the blue in late 2019 to let me there was an opening and wanted me to submit an application,” Dr. Dressler said. “He started the conversation by asking if I had any interest in coming back home. My husband and I had spent enough time in Charleston, and figured out coastal life is not my thing. So that’s what this really is. I’m back home and I have no intention of leaving.”
Dr. Dressler, right, helps a fourth-year student with a procedure. Photo above and banner image at top of page by Elizabeth Scarbrough, class of 2026.
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