Idexx Software Discounts In The Works For AAHA MembersNovember 26, 2012 American Animal Hospital Association members will soon receive discounts on Idexx Laboratories Inc. practice management software, as the two entities today announced a preferred business provider partnership. Other benefits besides discounts on Idexx’s flagship Cornerstone Practice Management System and its Pet Health Network Pro client communication service have not been ironed out, AAHA spokeswoman Kate Spencer said. “The goal of this partnership is to create a client-centric approach to veterinary medicine,” Spencer said. “The two pieces will form the foundation for the first fully integrated client and practice management system.” The association chose Westbrook, Maine-based Idexx over other practice management software systems because both share a client-focused vision of veterinary medicine, Spencer said. “We believe that a client-centric approach provides profound opportunities for practice growth and pet health, which is why we are building this innovation into our software offerings,” said Jonathon Ayers, president and CEO of Idexx. “We are privileged to partner with AAHA and see partnerships like this as an important part of helping the profession grow.” The partners plan to create additional client-centric best practices, such as “forward-booking” appointments during checkouts and developing ways to better present diagnostic and other pet …
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Crates Are Great, Says APDTNovember 21, 2012 The Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) issued a position statement today that recommends crates for the training and transport of dogs. “We want to assure shelters, rescues, vets and dog owners that using crates is safe, humane and effective and in many cases can be what helps a dog stay in its home,” said Mychelle Blake, the group’s president and CEO. The statement, a spokeswoman said, was released in response to a People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals campaign. The Norfolk, Va.-based organization has long opposed dog crates and this month ramped up its fight upon the news of a Tulsa, Okla., father who was accused of putting his toddler daughter in a metal crate. APDT noted that crates should be used for positive training of dogs, not for punishment, and that dogs should be introduced to a crate gradually. “It is important to choose a crate of appropriate size and adjust confinement times as the dog matures in order to build long-term success,” the position statement noted. “Avoid crating a dog who is experiencing anxiety, whether that anxiety stems from the confinement itself, separation from a …
GI Issues Plague Pets During Thanksgiving HolidayNovember 21, 2012 Thanksgiving is a notorious holiday for gastrointestinal issues with pets, as owners often leave hazardous leftovers and decorations within reach of their cats and dogs. The top-10 holiday-related claims reported to pet insurance provider Veterinary Pet Insurance Inc. of Brea, Calif., were GI related, with gastritis, enteritis and colitis comprising the top three most-common issues. “People tend to leave turkey breasts and carcasses out way too long after the meal is over,” said Cori Gross, DVM, field veterinarian for VPI. “Owners should just set them on the counter in the kitchen. They should take them out to the garbage immediately. “When we’re all relaxed and sleepy in the living room, that’s when the pets get on the counter.” Owners should keep a close watch on cats during the holidays because they are prone to hiding ailments better than their canine counterparts, Dr. Gross added. The most expensive common holiday claim is surgical removal of an intestinal foreign body, which cost an average $2,328 per pet, while the least expensive, enteritis, costs $105, according to VPI …
Top 10 New Year’s Resolutions For The Veterinary CommunityNovember 21, 2012 Whenever the year’s about to end I always feel the urge to write lists. There’s something cathartic about it, don’t you think? This time, however, I felt compelled to pen a list of pet issues I’d like to see the veterinary community take on as 2013’s New Year’s resolutions. While this personal exercise in wishful thinking might not feel so cathartic once I start fielding readers’ commentary, I do believe my opinions are well considered, rankle you though they may. So here goes...in no particular order: #1. Seek or devise and adopt community-wide, low-income solutions. This means we need to get smarter about offering a minimum standard of care to every single animal in the community. It’s not good enough to give it away in your place of work on occasion (or even routinely). As veterinarians we have a duty to help our communities build better systems for managing pets of the indigent, disabled and destitute. Which also means we should… #2. Get out of the way of low-cost spay and neuter clinics. If they really are charging much …
House Bill Seeks To Ban Action Devices, Performance Packages Used In SoringNovember 21, 2012 A House bill receiving the support of the American Veterinary Medical Association and the American Association of Equine Practitioners could prohibit the use of action devices and performance packages on Tennessee Walking Horses. The AVMA and the AAEP today called upon members to contact their congressional representatives in support of the bill, HR 6388. If passed in its current form, the amended Horse Protection Act would: Make illegal the act of soring or directing another person to cause a horse to become sore. Require the U.S. Department of Agriculture, rather than the industry, to license, train and oversee inspectors. Prohibit the use of action devices such as boots, collars, chains and rollers on any limb of Tennessee Walking Horses, spotted saddle horses or racking horses at horse shows, exhibitions, sales and auctions. Ban weighted shoes, pads, wedges, hoof bands and other devices not used for protective or therapeutic purposes. Increase civil and criminal penalties for violations. Disqualify horses for periods based on the number of violations, and permanently disqualify horses from show rings after three violations. Action devices and performance packages are used to encourage horses …
Priorty Dog Treats Recalled On Suspicion Of Salmonella ContaminationNovember 21, 2012 Dog treat manufacturer Carolina Prime Pet Inc. voluntarily recalled two lots of Priority Total Pet Care All Natural Bullstrips in five-count packages because of possible salmonella contamination. A test performed by the Colorado Department of Agriculture detected salmonella in one lot, the Lenoir, N.C., manufacturer reported Tuesday. The recalled products were distributed beginning about Sept. 1. The packages bear UPC 0-21130-42080-3 and lot codes 20082712 S 3195 and 20090312 S3195. No animal illnesses linked to the bullstrips were reported, the company added. Symptoms of salmonella poisoning in pets include lethargy, diarrhea, fever and vomiting. People who handle contaminated pet products may exhibit similar symptoms. Priority Total Pet Care All Natural Bullstrips are sold in: Safeway stores in Arizona, California, Colorado, Delaware, Hawaii, Maryland, Nebraska, Nevada, New Mexico, South Dakota, Virginia, Washington, D.C., and Wyoming. Vons, Pavilions and Pak ‘N Save stores in California. Randalls and Tom Thumb stores in Texas. Genuardi’s stores in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Dominick’s stores in Illinois. Carolina Prime Pet urged customers to …
Memorize 7 Principles To Be Smooth OperatorNovember 21, 2012 Of all the great American human surgeons, William Halsted was particularly influential because of the surgical principles that bear his name. Though they are more than a century old, the principles are just as relevant today in human, small animal, large animal and exotic animal surgery. In his time, Halsted was called “the father of safe surgery.” Let’s review Halsted’s seven principles of surgical bliss. They will help you, like the singer Sade, become a “smooth operator.” 1. Handle tissues gently Let’s face it: Surgery is invasive by definition. Yet we should strive to minimize iatrogenic trauma to tissues. Thumb or tissue forceps should be used to grab tissues delicately, as opposed to crushing them. Whether we use sharp or blunt dissection, it should be as accurately anatomical as possible. Ironically, gentle tissue handling also means using a scalpel blade correctly. Once the beginning and end of the incision are identified, a scalpel should be used to make a single incision in a single pass to the appropriate depth. Being wishy-washy or using a scalpel like a paint brush is much more traumatizing to the skin because the incision will have jagged edges. In …
Hurricane Sandy Leaves Its Mark On The Region's Veterinary CommunityNovember 20, 2012AVMA, Foundation Continue Post-Sandy Work Posted: Nov. 9, 2012 The American Veterinary Medical Association and its foundation are working to distribute donated supplies to veterinary clinics impacted by Hurricane Sandy and assisting veterinarians who are providing emergency care to animals in the region, the organizations reported...Read More Vets Cope with Animals, Infrastructure in Storm's Wake Posted: Nov. 6, 2012 The 1948 film noir “The Naked City,” set in Manhattan, concludes with: “There are 8 million stories in the naked city.” These are the stories of the lingering effects of Hurricane Sandy on some of New York City’s dogs, cats and veterinarians...Read More Vet Clinics in the Northeast Struggle with Loss of Power, Flooding Posted: Oct. 31, 2012 Like many businesses in storm-ravaged parts of New York City and New Jersey, veterinary clinics and hospitals continue to feel the lingering effects of Superstorm Sandy...Read More Vet Rescue Groups Brace for Hurricane Sandy Posted: Oct. 29, 2012 Emergency veterinary clinics and disaster response teams were preparing for Hurricane Sandy today as the storm headed toward the Northeastern United States...Read More <HOME>
Oregon Veterinarians Sound Off On Human Med Pharmacists Dispensing To PetsNovember 16, 2012 More than one-third of Oregon veterinarians surveyed reported cases in which retail or online pharmacists changed the prescribed dose of a medication for an animal patient or substituted a different product without the doctor’s authorization, according to the Oregon Veterinary Medical Association. While the altered medications tended not to harm a patient, some veterinarians described cases in which an animal died or was euthanized. About 115 Oregon veterinarians responded to the online survey, which the OVMA ordered in reaction to the now-stalled national Fairness to Pet Owners Act, which would require veterinarians to issue prescriptions to clients. “It really goes back to February, when one of our members contacted our office because she had concerns about the House resolution,” Glenn Kolb, executive director of the OVMA, said today. “We started hearing some stories [about prescription errors].” The good news, Kolb said, is that more than half of the survey respondents had been contacted by a pharmacist to answer questions about an order. “Together they work hand in hand to meet the needs of the client and the best interests of the patient,” the survey noted. The bad news, Kolb added, is that “When …
Veterinary Ophthalmologist Found Dead Near TucsonNovember 16, 2012 Prominent California Veterinarian Dies in Car Firetony basher, anthony basher, ophthalmology, veterinary, tusconAnthony “Tony” Basher, a British-born board-certified veterinarian specializing in ophthalmology, was found dead in a burning car Nov. 9 near Tucson, Ariz., the Pima County Sheriff’s Department reported. He was 54.A prominent veterinary ophthalmologist died in a car firenewslineVeterinary Ophthalmologist Found Dead Near Tucson Anthony “Tony” Basher, a British-born board-certified veterinarian specializing in ophthalmology, was found dead in a burning car Nov. 9 near Tucson, Ariz., the Pima County Sheriff’s Department reported. He was 54. Basher, MRCVS, Dipl. ACVS, Dipl. ACVO, had been working part time in Tucson and at Eye Care for Animals clinics in Temecula and Santa Monica, Calif., after he was fired from Veterinary Specialty Hospital in San Diego, his ex-wife, Kim, told the San Diego Union-Tribune. She didn't disclose the reason for his firing. The cause of Dr. Basher's death is under investigation, the Sheriff’s Department stated, but Kim Basher, also a veterinarian, told the newspaper that his death was an accident, possibly caused when brush and grass caught fire under the car. The car belonged to the owner of the house …
