NexGard Success Triggers Factory ExpansionSeptember 23, 2014 Merial Ltd. broke ground Monday on the $25 million expansion of a manufacturing plant in Paulinia, Brazil, to support additional production of the new flea and tick medication NexGard. Launched early this year, NexGard (afoxolaner) Chewables rang up $40 million in U.S. sales in the second quarter. That figure represented 9 percent of Merial’s international companion animal business. Merial CEO Carsten Hellmann called the expansion of the Paulinia facility—one of 18 plants worldwide—“an important part of our global business and manufacturing strategy.” “With [NexGard] registrations filed globally, we are significantly expanding our current manufacturing capacity to prepare for demand and growth,” Hellmann said. NexGard is a vegetable-based, meatless chew approved for use in dogs at least 8 weeks old and weighing four pounds or more. The monthly prescription medication is indicated to kill fleas and a variety of ticks. The medication also is sold in Europe and Japan. The expansion is expected to ultimately supply more than 100 countries. The construction should be finished in early 2015, Merial reported. The work includes 21,000 square feet of additional production rooms and new equipment. The Paulinia plant should create 85 jobs, …
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Cornell Vet College Names New Assistant Dean for Marketing & CommunicationsSeptember 23, 2014 Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine has named G. Leonard Johnson as assistant dean for marketing and communications. Johnson, who will take on the role in October, will provide overall strategic leadership and direction for the brand and marketing initiatives of the college and its enterprise operations. He will manage marketing activities, including outreach, events and business market research initiatives; lead and oversee media relations, communications, publications, web development, social media and digital presence; and direct delivery of executive-level communications support for the dean. The new position, according to Cornell, was created in part to guide the marketing and business development of the college’s growing enterprises. These include clinical services provided in the Cornell University Hospital for Animals, the Cornell University Veterinary Specialists and Cornell Ruffian Equine Specialists, as well as the Animal Health Diagnostic Center, which earn more than $40 in annual revenue. Johnson previously served as executive director of marketing at the University of Chicago Booth School of Business. Prior to that, he served as vice president of corporate marketing for The McGraw-Hill Companies in New York. Before joining McGraw-Hill Companies, he served various marketing positions at Unilever, a consumer packaged goods corporation.
Legal Fight Escalates Between Purina, Blue BuffaloSeptember 22, 2014 Pet food giant Nestlé Purina filed additional legal claims last week against Blue Buffalo Co., accusing the competitor of overstating the quality of its LifeSource Bits, cat litter and Jolly Joints dog treats. Blue Buffalo called the allegations a “smear campaign” and challenged the qualifications of an independent scientific expert who examined other Blue Buffalo products. The legal brawl stems from a false-advertising lawsuit filed May 6 by Nestlé Purina Petcare Co., which asserted that a preliminary laboratory report had uncovered poultry byproduct meal and grain in some Blue Buffalo recipes. Blue Buffalo, which filed a countersuit May 14, declares in its advertising and legal responses that the company’s dog and cat foods are free of chicken and poultry byproduct meals, corn, wheat and soy. The Wilton, Conn., company defended its LifeSource Bits, cat litter and dog treats. “Nestlé Purina is attempting to muddy the waters … by adding a list of new unfounded allegations to continue its malicious attack,” said Blue Buffalo founder and chairman Bill Bishop. “With numerous quotes in its press release from its chief marketing officer, Nestlé Purina makes it clear that this entire lawsuit is simply a marketing campaign disguised …
Colorado State Vets Help Ailing Military DogSeptember 22, 2014 A 9-year-old mixed-breed dog that sniffed out bombs during military tours in Iraq and Afghanistan is recovering after heart surgery performed Sept. 16 at the Colorado State University Veterinary Teaching Hospital. Kay, a now-retired war dog, was discovered to have an inoperable heart tumor after he settled down with his U.S. Army handler, Brandon Donahue, in Brighton, Colo. “We could definitely tell he was lethargic and tired, and he wasn’t feeling right,” Donahue said. The former soldier and his wife, Brandi, stopped at Colorado State after sitting through other veterinary consultations that included suggestions of euthanasia. Brandon Donahue knew he had to do more for Kay, who was credited with saving countless American lives overseas. “He put his life in danger, sometimes more than I did,” he said of their military service. “It means the world that we were able to return the favor and help him out.” Publicity about Kay’s condition led to $9,825 in contributions for the dog’s surgery and recovery. Though his cancer is inoperable, a surgical team led by Catriona MacPhail, DVM, Ph.D., Dipl. ACVS, created a 1- by 1-inch hole in the bottom of the heart …
U.K. Vets Remove Cataracts in Asian BearSeptember 22, 2014 The veterinary charity Animal Health Trust successfully performed cataract surgery on a moon bear that was rescued from the wild in Vietnam’s Thanh Hoa province. The juvenile bear, named James, had learned to live and play in virtual darkness, according to Animals Asia, which hosted the surgery at its Vietnam Bear Rescue Centre. Animals Asia is a group dedicated to fighting the harvesting of bear bile, an ingredient used in traditional Chinese medicine, and to other animal welfare causes. Ophthalmologists from the U.K.-based Animal Health Trust found a cataract in James’ left eye and a hypermature cataract in the right eye, which the veterinarians feared was permanently useless because it showed little to no reaction to light. The recent surgery should completely restore vision in the left eye and partially in the right, the veterinarians said. “It is very difficult for us to estimate how much James can see with his right eye, because blind bears will use their keen sense of smell and hearing to move around,” said Animals Asia senior veterinarian Joost Philippa, DVM, Ph.D. “Even with cataracts in both eyes it was sometimes difficult to notice that James could …
Merck Awards $5,000 Student ScholarshipsSeptember 18, 2014 Fifteen veterinary students with a strong interest in dairy or beef medicine each received a $5,000 scholarship from Merck Animal Health. The annual Bovine Veterinary Student Recognition Awards were announced today on the first day of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners conference in Albuquerque, N.M. “The contributions that large animal veterinarians make to our world are immeasurable,” said Norman Stewart, DVM, livestock technical services manager with Summit, N.J.-based Merck, a manufacturer of veterinary pharmaceuticals, vaccines and other products. “They help keep our animals healthy and our food safe and affordable.” The scholarships and a free trip to the conference went to: Chelsea Allan (Ontario Veterinary College) Benjamin Baird (Washington State University) Lindsey Borst (University of Minnesota) Julie Conner (University of California, Davis) J.D. Folsom (Oklahoma State University) Jacob Hagenmaier (Kansas State University) Jennifer R. Holle (University of Wisconsin) Daniel J. Lopez (Cornell University) Lee Michels (University of Minnesota) Halley Oliveira (Cornell University) Emily K. Severt (Ohio State University) McKenzie Steger (Iowa State University) Peter A. Strassburg (University of Wisconsin) Holt Tripp (Oklahoma State University) Ashley Zondlak (Michigan State University) The scholarship recipients must be in their third or fourth year of …
Jaguar Animal Health Has Taste for New DrugsSeptember 18, 2014 A treatment for obesity-related metabolic dysfunction in dogs is the latest proposed product from a fledgling San Francisco drug developer. Jaguar Animal Health Inc., which focuses on gastrointestinal concerns in pets and production animals, reported Wednesday that the company has submitted its eighth Investigational New Animal Drug (INAD) application with the U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine. The newest candidate would address obesity-related metabolic dysfunction, which in dogs can mean altered lipid profiles, insulin resistance and mild hypertension. “Insulin resistance and metabolic syndrome occurs not just in humans, but also in dogs,” said Serge Martinod, DVM, Ph.D., the company’s chief veterinary officer. “However, while physicians worldwide have a vast array of drugs that have been approved to treat this condition in humans, veterinarians have no approved products available to treat these issues in dogs.” Jaguar stated that the active ingredient in the metabolic drug “is isolated and purified from a plant indigenous to the southwestern United States.” “In traditional medicine, the plant was brewed as a tea and used for the treatment of diabetes and other various illnesses,” the company added. Three other candidates in the Jaguar pipeline …
OSU Vet College Raises Funds for Cancer ResearchSeptember 18, 2014 The Ohio State University College of Veterinary Medicine is raising thousands of dollars for cancer research as part of Pelotonia 2014. The annual fundraiser for cancer research was founded in 2008 and is described as a three-day experience that includes a weekend of cycling, entertainment and volunteerism. The college group, led by Michelle Harcha, DVM, has raised $12,565 so far through cycling a total of 375 miles between five riders and volunteering. The college’s student group, led by Katie Huter, rode a total of 2,505 miles between 26 riders and has raised $32,230 so far. Fundraising continues until October. Many veterinarians on the college’s campus are striving to understand how cancer works by conducting research and clinical trials, the university noted. The college is partnered with the Wexner Medical Center, and a number of the college’s professionals hold joint appointments in the Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Solove Research Institute and Nationwide Children’s Hospital. More than 7,270 people participated in Pelotonia this year. For details, visit the Pelotonia website.
Proposed Microchip Would Track Lost PetsSeptember 18, 2014 Lost pets and drained batteries will be a thing of the past if Escape Alert gets its way. Coming as soon as 2015, if the Los Angeles company raises enough money and perfects the technology, is a veterinarian-implanted microchip with GPS capability. Pet owners could set virtual boundaries, receive a text message or email if the cat or dog strays across the line, and follow and recover the animal. Unlike today’s competition—battery-powered GPS collars that owners must remember to recharge—Escape Alert intends to use piezoelectrical nanogenerator technology. That means the microchip would be recharged through the pet’s body movement alone. Compared with the common rice grain-sized implanted microchip, which reveals owner information only when scanned, the first-of-its-kind Escape Alert chip would be much larger—at least initially. “There is a lot of technology which needs to fit in that tiny space, including, but not limited to, the GPS, battery and antenna,” spokeswoman Karen Zaxton said. “We know we can make it as small as a postage stamp and are now working to make that even smaller.” Escape Alert reported that patent applications have been filed, and in the meantime the company is looking …
Space Available in Golden Retriever StudySeptember 17, 2014 Two years down, 10 to go. Morris Animal Foundation’s Golden Retriever Lifetime Study this month entered the third year of a project designed to document the long-term health of one of the United States’ most popular dog breeds. More than 1,900 golden retrievers are enrolled in the study, which uses owner questionnaires, veterinary exams, blood tests and genetic sequencing to provide researchers with an in-depth look at the breed and help them better understand cancer and other canine diseases. Morris Animal Foundation, a nonprofit organization headquartered in Denver, hopes to ultimately enroll 3,000 dogs. Owners of golden retrievers younger than 2 years old and living in the contiguous United States may apply at caninelifetimehealth.org. David Haworth, DVM, Ph.D., the foundation’s president and CEO, volunteered his golden retriever, Bridger. The 1,900 families who enrolled their dogs “hate disease in their beloved companions so much that they are willing to participate fully in this study,” Dr. Haworth said. “It is not easy, but it is so important,” he said. Information gleaned from the study will grow over the years as the dogs age, become sick and die. “When …
