A public memorial service celebrating the life of Peter Kennedy, professor emeritus of veterinary medicine, will be held at 4 p.m. Sept. 22 at the Buehler Alumni and Visitors Center.

Kennedy, a renowned veterinary pathologist, died Aug. 2 of cancer at the age of 83.

A member of the UC Davis faculty since 1953, Kennedy co-founded the veterinary school's pathology department and "literally wrote the book" on veterinary pathology, said Dennis Wilson, current chair of the school's pathology, microbiology and immunology department.

In 1963, Kennedy co-authored the 1,000-page textbook Pathology of Domestic Animals, now in its fifth revision. The book continues to be standard reading in pathology labs around the world.

A California native, Kennedy began his university studies at UC Berkeley, then transferred to UC Davis. After the war, he completed his education at Kansas State University in 1949. He earned a doctorate in pathology at Cornell University in 1953.

Known as an astute diagnostician, Kennedy's professional accomplishments benefited California's livestock industry. In 1960, he became the first researcher to identify the characteristics of foothill abortion, a disease that causes pregnant cows to abort their calves.