He received his veterinary degree from the Ludwig-Maximilians Univ. in Munich, Germany in 1992. He completed an internship in small animal medicine and surgery at the Univ. of Pennsylvania in 1993 and a residency in small animal internal medicine at Purdue Univ. in 1996. He received his Dr.med.vet. degree from the Ludwig-Maximilians Univ. in Munich, Germany in 1995 in recognition of research on feline trypsin and feline trypsin-like immunoreactivity. In 1996 he achieved board certification with both the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) and the European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. In 2000 received a PhD from Texas A&M University for his work on canine digestive lipases and their use for the diagnosis of gastrointestinal disorders in the dog. In 2012 he was recognized as a Fellow by the American Gastroenterology Association. He currently serves as Professor with the Depart. of Small Animal Medicine and Surgery and the Depart. of Veterinary Pathobiology at Texas A&M Univ. In 2016 He was named the Dr. Mark Morris Chair in Small Animal Gastroenterology and Nutrition. He also serves as the Director of the Gastrointestinal Laboratory at Texas A&M Univ. and is involved in a wide variety of research in small animal and comparative gastroenterology. He has authored or co-authored more than 370 peer-reviewed articles, 100 book chapters, and 470 research abstracts. He has been invited to present his work at many national and international conferences and provides continuing education lectures for veterinarians across the globe. He has also served several professional organizations in various roles and currently serves as the Vice President of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine. In 2018 He received the AVMA Career Achievement Award in Canine Research. He was selected as a Univ. Distinguished Professor at Texas A&M Univ. in 2019 and as a Regents Professor of the Texas A&M Univ. System in 2021.