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Preface and Acknowledgments to the Second Edition

As I near completion of a task that I promised myself I would never repeat, I have to say that the singular aspect of this project that stands out to me is the incredible work of the contributors. Although a handful of chapters remained virtually unchanged, most received serious updates. Pregnancy wastage rightfully includes neonatal and calf at side loss, but a new section specifically focusing on the neonate was added. The importance of lameness and its impact on fertility necessitated its inclusion. Chapters that represent recent technological advances have been added as well. Due to the broad acceptance of the first edition, an intentional effort was made to recruit more authors from outside North America and I believe this provides a more international perspective for the manner in which we all approach reproductive management of the bovine. Much like the first edition, I again utilized a broad array of both veterinary specialists and animal scientists. I also believe this book benefits from the contributions of practicing veterinarians, a group often underrepresented in veterinary texts.

Thus, I must begin my thanks by acknowledging the tremendous contributions of the chapter authors and acknowledge the guilt I feel when someone refers to this as “my book.” I also owe a profound debt of gratitude to the incredible staff at Wiley. Their competence and publishing standards are the reasons that we have such a good reference text. Specifically, Erica Judisch who first displayed the faith in me to shepherd this task and then again thought we should update it. Susan Engelken, though not as directly involved as with the first edition, was again a helpful asset on “the other end” of several e‐mails. A special thanks to Merryl Le Roux, who came on midway through to serve as project editor and to see this to completion; and to both Julie Musk and Sandeep Kumar. Julie was the copyeditor who found the many errors that I had missed and also did an incredible job with the numerous suggestions that have made the text so much more readable; and Sandeep handled the final content refinement. I also appreciate my colleagues at both Mississippi State and Auburn for their support.

On a personal note, Joshua Lewis, Elizabeth Marian, and Lucas Michael have joined granddaughter Abigail Betty since the first edition came out and to quote my friend John Myers, “my children are only above average, but my grandchildren are exceptional.” I also need to thank my wife Donna for her now 38 years of patience and support, but will refer you to the dedication for that.

A significant portion of my career (15 years) in practice was followed by 26 years at Mississippi State and finally the opportunity to return to Auburn, my alma mater. I feel that I have indeed led a charmed life and being afforded the opportunity to contribute to the profession and specifically the area of bovine theriogenology through this text has been a great blessing.

Auburn, Alabama

Richard M. Hopper