Pfizer Solicits Applications For $660,000 In Vet School ScholarshipsOctober 1, 2012Pfizer to Award at Least $660,000 to Vet Studentsvet students, scholarship, vet school scholarship, PfizerPfizer Animal Health and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation are accepting applications from second- and third-year veterinary students interested in receiving $2,000 scholarships, New York-based Pfizer reported today.Pfizer Animal Health and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation are accepting applications from second- and third-year veterinary students interested in receiving $2,000 scholarships.newslinePfizer Solicits Applications for $660,000 in Vet School ScholarshipsPosted: Oct. 1, 2012, 4:15 p.m. EDT Pfizer Animal Health and the American Veterinary Medical Foundation are accepting applications from second- and third-year veterinary students interested in receiving $2,000 scholarships, New York-based Pfizer reported today. Now in its fourth year, the Pfizer Animal Health Scholarship Program will select at least 330 students from the United States and the Caribbean. Recipients will be chosen based on their academic record and financial need, Pfizer noted. A selection committee also will consider the profession's ongoing needs, including ethnic, gender and socioeconomic diversity, and take into account students' professional aspirations. "This scholarship is one way that Pfizer looks to help address the challenges within the veterinary profession to ensure that it has a thriving future," …
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AVMA, WSPA Promote Rabies Awareness On World Rabies DaySeptember 28, 2012 The World Society for the Protection of Animals and the American Veterinary Medical Association are among the organizations making special efforts to mark World Rabies Day today. One year after launching its Collars Not Cruelty campaign, the WSPA is expanding its efforts to Senegal, the Philippines and Indonesia. The campaign involves vaccinating stray dogs and affixing them with a red collar to alert locals that the dogs are not rabies carriers. Stray dogs account for 90 percent of human exposures to rabies and more than 99 percent of human deaths worldwide, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Nearly 20 million dogs are killed every year in an attempt to stop rabies, the WSPA reported. Meanwhile, the AVMA partnered with the Global Alliance for Rabies Control to produce a multilingual video titled “Rabies: Simple Steps Save Lives.” The 10-minute video, available in English and with French, Spanish, Mandarin Chinese and English subtitles, will be used globally to educate people about what rabies is and how exposure can be prevented. It is available online here. “We’re hoping that through this public education …
Animal Health Supplements Continue To Gain TractionSeptember 27, 2012Dietary supplements, both the nutritional and issue-targeted varieties, continue to gain interest among dog and cat owners—and veterinarians who recommend and sell them through their clinics have an opportunity to not only offer them as part of an overall health and wellness plan, but also to provide the best-quality products to their clients. According to the Nutrition Business Journal, the animal supplement market represents more than $1.6 billion in sales, with a predicted 7.4 percent compounded annual growth rate increase from 2010 to 2015. Packaged Facts notes that 21 percent of dogs and 15 percent of cats are given a supplement of some kind, with 8 percent and 7 percent respectively being purchased from a veterinarian. The supplements segment is strong, and more veterinarians are recognizing their value, says Bill Bookout, chair of the National Animal Supplement Council’s board of directors. “There aren’t any magic bullets out there, but I think supplements are becoming more and more recognized and substantiated as a valuable component of a comprehensive care program where we either try to maintain general health and wellness, or manage health as a result of the aging process or some health challenge,” he says. Though supplement makers have developed …
AVMA Supports Vet School Grads As Job Opportunities, Earnings WaneSeptember 27, 2012 A newly formed committee of the American Veterinary Medical Association has been tasked with helping veterinary medicine graduates as they enter a job market where earnings and employment offers are on the decline. The Early Career Development Committee, announced Tuesday, consists of five recent graduates, two “emerging leaders” who graduated five to 15 years ago, a faulty adviser and a representative of the American Society of Veterinary Medical Association Executives. The committee “will engage young veterinarians in open discussions about the challenges they face and will use that input to help develop new AVMA programs that serve their unique needs,” said Doug Aspros, DVM, president of the AVMA. Networking opportunities and an online community are part of the find-finding effort, the association reported. The committee is being established at a time when veterinary students face a turbulent job market. The percentage of fourth-year veterinary students graduating with the offer of a job or an advanced educational opportunity declined to 61.5 percent in 2012 from 78.9 percent in 2010, the AVMA reported Wednesday. Panel Members The Early Career Development Committee consists of: …
Morris Animal Foundation's Golden Retriever Study Opens For EnrollmentSeptember 26, 2012 Enrollment has begun for the expansive Golden Retriever Lifetime Study, according to Morris Animal Foundation, which is hosting the research. The Denver-based foundation aims to enroll 3,000 golden retrievers over the next two years. To qualify, dogs must be in good health and under 2 years old. The study will track its subjects over their entire lives while their owners and veterinarians document health, nutritional and environmental information. Researchers will use the data to identify ways to better prevent cancer and other diseases in golden retrievers. Information gathered from the study could benefit all dog breeds, the foundation reported Tuesday. “This study requires a long-term commitment from dog owners and their veterinarians,” study director Michael Guy, DVM, MS, Ph.D., said. “We have the potential to learn valuable information that will not only improve canine health but will also significantly advance the entire field of veterinary medicine.” The foundation enrolled 50 dogs this spring as part of a soft launch and now is opening the study for full enrollment. The study is part of the foundation’s overarching Canine Lifetime Health Project, which aims to …
Boots & Barkley Bully Sticks Recalled Due To SalmonellaSeptember 24, 2012 Kasel Associated Industries recalled all lots of its Boots & Barkley 6-count, 5-inch American Beef Bully Sticks after several lots tested positive for salmonella, the Denver-based company reported today. The product was distributed through Target stores in the United States from April through September 2012. The sticks come in a clear plastic bag marked with bar code number 647263899189. Kasel opted to recall the products after routine sampling by the Colorado Department of Agriculture revealed that four lots were contaminated with salmonella. Kasel ceased production and distribution of the product while the U.S. Food and Drug Administration and the company investigate the source of the contamination. Pets suffering from a salmonella infection may become lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Some pets may have only a decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected by otherwise healthy pets can be carriers and may infect other animals or people. Owners of pets that ate the recalled products and are displaying symptoms of salmonella poisoning should contact their veterinarian, the company said. People infected with salmonella may experience nausea, vomiting, diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, abdominal cramping and fever. Salmonella also can cause more …
New TV Show ‘Animal Practice’ Aims To Keep It Real—With LaughsSeptember 24, 2012 The producers of NBC’s new fall comedy series “Animal Practice” hope real-life veterinarians will watch the show. First and foremost, what they want veterinarians to know is that they use “artistic license, because it is a half-hour comedy and we do have fun with it,” said executive producer Alessandro Tanaka. He was one of three producers who spoke with Veterinary Practice News about the show, which premieres at 8 p.m. EDT, Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2012. That artistic license is probably best exhibited in the character of Dr. Rizzo, a Capuchin monkey (played by Crystal, attired in a white doctor coat) who has the run of the veterinary office and often hangs out with the clinic’s head veterinarian, Dr. George Coleman, played by Justin Kirk. “Crystal is an extension of George Coleman in that he prefers animals to people. She’s a bit of Coleman’s alter ego in a sense—and his best friend, sort of his wing man and little sidekick,” executive producer Brian Gatewood said. The idea for the show came from a visit Gatewood made to his veterinarian’s office. “I was visiting the vet with my two cats and you sit in a waiting …
Can Dogs Suffer From Post Traumatic Stress Disorder?September 24, 2012 Post traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD, is not a fully recognized veterinary behavioral phenomenon but some believe it exists and is probably more common than we think. I have taught veterinary students about PTSD for many years, my initiation into this ongoing phobia being a particular case I saw many years ago. The dog in question was shot by a Boston police officer who thought the dog was going to attack him while he was pursuing a suspect. In fact, the dog was only charging along behind him, energized by the excitement and commotion. The .38-caliber bullet entered through the dog’s head, just missing vital structures and traveled along the dog’s neck, finally coming to rest in the chest wall. The dog sank to the ground in a pool of blood and his distraught owner was quickly on the scene trying to revive him. As it turns out, the dog was not dead but close to it and heading down a path of no return, but his owner quickly scooped him up and brought him to nearby Angell Memorial Animal Hospital where the ICU staff worked wonders, plugged the leak (so to speak) and brought …
Easy Ways To Improve Histopath Results, Part 3September 24, 2012 Following our recent installments in the June and September issues, we continue our conversation with pathologist Ken Mero, B.S., M.S., DVM, Ph.D., of VetPath Services in Stone Ridge, N.Y., to learn how to choose a histopathology lab and a pathologist. Why does a different pathologist read my biopsy each time? This is a feature of the large conglomerate laboratories with a very large professional staff. Cases may be distributed randomly to different pathologists who may be on duty on any particular day. This can be avoided by using a smaller, generally independent laboratory with a smaller number of pathologists. Whether using a large or small laboratory, cases are usually distributed to a pathologist of choice if requested on the lab’s test request form. However, it is more likely that your pathologist of choice will be available on a daily basis at a smaller lab. In that situation, you may become more familiar and comfortable with each one of the pathologists, so that if your favorite one is unavailable on a given day you will already be acquainted with the others. How does one choose a lab? There are many factors to consider, some logistical, financial, …
Quality Control Counts With In-clinic Veterinary Labs, Heska And Abaxis SaySeptember 24, 2012 All blood analysis equipment has a propensity for certain errors. It’s just that reference laboratories are usually better at catching them, said Leslie Sharkey, DVM, Ph.D., diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Pathology and president of the American Society of Veterinary Clinical Pathologists. “Quality assurance programs in reference labs usually include running high, low and normal control materials purchased from the manufacturer of the analyzer or another commercial source at regular intervals, often about once a day,” she said. “We graph the data over time to make sure that we are getting the expected results and to look for trends that might indicate the analyzer is developing a problem. “In addition, many reference labs participate in external quality assurance programs in which labs are sent ‘unknowns,’ which we test and then return the results to the program,” Sharkey continued. “The program lets us know how our results compare with other participating laboratories so we can gauge our performance.” Kendal Harr, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVP, owner of a private pathology consulting firm, said quality control programs for in-clinic blood analysis equipment would frequently be considered substandard to measures taken by reference labs. A recent survey she …
