Feather in Her Cap Association announces 2021 winner

The fourth annual Feather in Her Cap Award was presented late last month to Angela Baysinger, DVM, MS, animal welfare lead at Merck Animal Health, during a virtual ceremony.

Established in 2017, this award honors “women who have made outstanding contributions in animal health through scientific, industrial or commercial excellence and by demonstrating a commitment to mentoring women,” according to an association release.

“Angela Baysinger emulates the attributes that a recipient of the Feather in Her Cap award should have — a genuine, unconditional commitment to the animals she serves, true dedication and excitement for her work to advance animal welfare and well-being, and an unwavering dedication to the betterment of the animal health industry,” says Scott Bormann, senior vice president of Merck Animal Health’s North America commercial operations, in the release.

Baysinger is an advocate for the welfare and health of animals while enhancing safety in food supply and public health. During her 30-year career, she has worked in private practice, and extension services and industry roles. She has held positions at companies such as Alpharma, Farmland Foods/Smithfield, and Boehringer Ingelheim, to name a few. She has also authored numerous publications about the health and well-being of swine and cattle.

Additionally, Baysinger is dedicated to mentoring future industry members through internships, “providing exposure to animal agriculture in poultry, swine, and cattle production systems, and continuing their animal welfare studies at multiple universities.”

For the first time this year, The Feather In Her Cap Association donated $5,000 to Baysinger’s pet charity organization Pups4Patriots, a program that rescues qualified shelter dogs and trains them to provide the best possible assistance to veterans suffering from traumatic brain injuries or post-traumatic stress. Baysinger was also given a gold feather brooch and feathered hat as a part of her reward.

Other award nominees included 6 women from diverse areas of the profession:

• Rika Jolie, DVM, MSc, PhD, MBA, head of Global Swine Global Marketing, Merck Animal Health
• Heidi Chen, executive vice president and general counsel and corporate secretary at Zoetis, Inc
• Tyre Grant, PhD, executive director of global food animal product development at Elanco Animal Health
• Marsha Heinke, DVM, EA, CPA, CVPM, founder of Marsha L Heinke, CPA, Inc.
• Indu Mani, DVM, ScD, chief veterinary officer of Brief Media and fellow at the Harvard Medical School Center for Bioethics
• Janet Patterson-Kane, BVSc, PhD, Diplomate ACVP, FRCVS, chief scientific officer at the Morris Animal Foundation