Jim will be joining us with the core aim of acting as an advocate for the welfare, behavioral, and health aspects of livestock through the data ecosystem that AgriGates is building for farmers and ranchers. For the internal team, he is to challenge, mediate, mentor, and teach members of the AgriGates team on all matters related to the dairy industry and animal welfare, while acting as a sounding board for ideas and a thought leader to the team.

AgriGates would like to warmly welcome Dr. Jim Reynolds to the team.

Jim’s history in dairy goes all the way back to being raised on his family’s dairy in San Diego, CA. It was feeding calves, mixing feed, and washing parlors as a kid that spurred on a lifelong career in caring for livestock animals.

Jim graduated as a veterinarian from UC Davis in 1982 and went into private dairy and beef practice in California for 14 years, with one year in mixed practice. He then went on to complete a residency program in public health with the California Department of Health Services.

This led him back into academia, where he was the Chief of Clinical Services for Production Medicine at UC Davis for 12 years. He was also the Vice President of Consulting for Praedium, a company that provided animal welfare programs, management, and training for dairies and other farms.

Today, Jim is a Professor of Large Animal Medicine/Welfare at Western University, College of Veterinary Medicine in Pomona, CA. He continues to work extensively in on-farm, clinical bovine practice in California, other states, and several countries.

Jim has had a number of accolades in his time, including:

• He has served as chair of both the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Bovine Practitioners Animal Welfare Committees.
• He is currently a member of the California Veterinary Medical Association Animal Welfare Committee. He was a founding board member of the Professional Animal Auditor Certification Organization (PAACO).
• He is a member of the scientific committees for Validus, the American Humane Society and conducts welfare assessments and audits for Validus, LLC.
• Has been course leader for the American Association of Bovine Practitioner’s pre-convention seminar on Cattle Welfare. He is the Chair of the Consumer Affairs Committee for the Dairy Cattle Welfare Council.
• Jim also received the AVMA Animal Welfare Award for 2007 and the American Association of Bovine Veterinarians Award of Excellence for 2010. He is a Diplomate of the American College of Animal Welfare (ACAW).

We are delighted to have Jim join us at AgriGates and bring his experience, knowledge, and passion to the AgriGates team.