Company Overview
It All Started with a "Light Lube"
It all started with Jake Slinger, who was a pharmacist and had his shop at the corner of College and Gordon Streets in Guelph, across from the Ontario Veterinary College. When Jake “retired” from his pharmacy in the mid seventies, he filled his days as the pharmacist at the OVC. Many of my vintage (OVC ’82) remember Jake with his mane of white hair, ever present smile, and boundless energy.
Jake had some special formulae and made them up for the staff and students to use. Among these was the ever ubiquitous “Light Lube”. When Jake retired again in the 80’s, he continued to make his mixtures under the name of John E. Slinger Ltd, and they were provided to the veterinary community through Langford Laboratories, a new animal health company that had recently been formed in Guelph.
Langford Laboratories was founded by two OVC professors, Dr. Charles (Chas) Povey and Dr. Mike Wilson. Chas was a student of Mike’s at the School of Veterinary Sciences at the University of Bristol, England. Chas was a virologist who did a lot of pioneering work with the feline respiratory viruses and canine parvovirus, and Mike was a well-respected professor, and swine disease and management specialist. Together they developed a line of vaccines and bacterins based on their unique knowledge of antigen sites and adjuvants. Other technologies were brought into Langford, and led to many world class vaccines being developed. Chas retired his first time from Langford in the early 90’s, and Langford is now part of Wyeth Animal Health.
But, along the way, Chas bought John E. Slinger from Jake, and he kept this as a new project. In 1991, part of John E. Slinger was separated as The Veterinary Pharmacy (newly named Chiron Compounding Inc.) and the pharmaceutical component was renamed Centaur Pharmaceuticals Inc. Other products for food animal and equine health were developed.
Now, fast forward a few years. CentaurVA Animal Health (CVA) was established in 1999 from the merger of Centaur Pharmaceuticals and Veterinary Alternatives Inc., founded by Dr. Robert Butler, a veterinarian practicing in Guelph, ON. The goal of CVA was to address the emerging interest of the veterinary profession and the pet owning public in expanding the options for health maintenance and treatments, based on natural products. Further, these products were to be understood and supported by clinical and scientific evaluation and described using methods and language that the veterinarian would have confidence in.
Now, CentaurVA is recognized as the company to go to when looking to round out a treatment plan with rational adjunct treatments, or when a nutraceutical or integrative treatment strategy is desired. It is the only company across Canada that focuses on this. Our representatives are RVT’s or science undergrads, and are quite able to communicate the product attributes, benefits, and expectations directly to the Veterinarians and their support staff. Technical and professional support for the products is provided by myself in conjunction with the research scientists and developers of our product line.
Here is where it comes full circle. Like Mike was to Chas, Chas was a professor of mine. I worked for Langford Labs before moving ahead on in the animal health industry and then into the human biotechnology development business. Chas asked if I’d like to return to the industry, and I came back as President in 2006. It was like coming home again.
Thanks for visiting our site, and wanting to learn more about our products. Call us any time!
Greg Hawkins, DVM
President
