Jess Sedivy Gunderson

Jess is a cytologist at a rural hospital in northern Minnesota where she lives with her husband and their two dogs, Raven and Cedar. She holds bachelor’s degrees in Biology (Honors) and Environmental Studies from Concordia College in Moorhead, Minnesota, and is board-certified by the American Society for Clinical Pathology in Cytology and Molecular Biology. Jess has bred and owned Flat-Coated Retrievers for thirty years, previously competing in conformation, obedience, rally, and field events. She is a three-time recipient of the AKC Junior Handler Scholarship.

Jess is a co-founder of the Flatcoat Conservation Project, an outcross initiative focused on increasing genetic diversity in Flat-Coated Retrievers to reduce the incidence of hematopoietic cancers. She is deeply committed to ethical breeding and to the responsible use of outcrossing to improve health outcomes while preserving breed type and function.