Dr. Gardner grew up in southern New Jersey, and worked on his uncle’s dairy farm.  He attended the College of Agriculture at Cornell from 1967 –1969, then transferred to Veterinary College, and graduated from Veterinary School in 1973.  He then joined the Ackermanville Veterinary Hospital, doing mainly dairy cattle practice.  He stayed there until 1989, when he started Dairy Management Consultants, a practice specializing in dairy herd management. 

Dr. Gardner received an MBA from Moravian College in May of 1999.  He joined Agway in 1999, and was director of the Agway TSPF Heifer Program.  In March of 2004 he joined Cargill Animal Nutrition, and worked with producers to improve animal and financial performance.  He retired from Cargill in December of 2014, and now works part time with the Pennsylvania Center for Dairy Excellence, assisting dairy farms with asset transition, conflict resolution, and overall management.  He has recently received a degree in clinical counseling.  He is married with four children and five grandchildren.