Online Advice Gets Shaky WelcomeDecember 14, 2010 Senior News Editor A new fee-based online veterinary advice service for pet owners has met with some contention in the veterinary community. Jed Schaible, VMD, and Laci Schaible, DVM, of Bethlehem, Pa., launched VetLive.com to give pet owners round-the-clock access to veterinarians. The husband and wife team said the website, which debuted in October, gives pet owners the opportunity to ask questions, get a second opinion or chat live from “the comfort of their own home at an affordable price.” Prices range from $12.95 to $34.95 and can be paid through Google Checkout or PayPal. The Schaibles said having an online service where only accredited veterinarians answer pet owners’ questions was important. Other Q&A services may use “pet health experts” but the person answering the question may not be a veterinarian, they said. They contend that a lot of wrong answers and misinformation are being provided. “Not only did we see an opportunity to increase the standard of care on online advice, we almost felt obligated to,” Jed said. The service hasn’t been greeted uniformly with open arms, as evidenced on VeterinaryPractice News.com and other websites. But some vets do support …
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VPI: Jellyfish One Of ‘Most Unusual Ingested Objects’ By PetsDecember 14, 2010 Some dogs and cats eat way more than just pet food, according to Veterinary Pet Insurance’s “60 Most Unusual Ingested Objects” for 2010. The list, which included oddities such as jellyfish, jumper cables and a rosary crucifix, was derived from the company’s nearly 2,000 foreign body ingestion claims for the year. Some pets ate multiple unusual items, such as the one that ingested an estrogen patch and a make-up brush. Socks, hand towels, sticks and rocks were among the more common foreign objects found in dogs and cats during the year, according to the Brea, Calif.-based company. Collectively, VPI policyholders spent almost $3 million treating pets that ingested such foreign objects. VPI’s 60 most unusual ingested objects, in random order, are: jellyfish glue estrogen patch / make-up brush tube of denture adhesive dead poisoned vole bikini ink pen plastic nose from teddy bear magnetic purse clasps baseball glass Christmas ornament hearing aid bed sheet box of pencils popsicle stick avocado pit dental floss coffee filter / coffee grounds fishhook pain relief tablet / B.B. pellet / highlighter tent door toy squeaker watch 16 steel wool pads pseudoephedrine / sponge / snail poison / tampon 20 …
Virbac Launches ‘Beware Of Dog Breath’ ProgramDecember 13, 2010 Virbac Animal Health of Fort Worth, Texas, reported today that it has developed a program called Beware of Dog Breath. The program, which will continue through 2011, is designed to assist veterinarians with educating their clients about periodontal disease, said Denise Piekarski, senior marketing manager of the company. It also aims to increase awareness about the disease among pet owners. “The ‘85 percent of dogs and cats have periodontal disease’ statistic has been thrown around for a number of years, and our question here at Virbac is, what can be done to bring this number down?” Piekarski said. The Beware of Dog Breath program includes: • Pet owner education tools for veterinarians to use in clinic • Take-home education tools for veterinarians to provide to their clients • National consumer public relations efforts • Advertising in national pet enthusiast publications To request the education tools, veterinarians can contact their Virbac Animal Health sales representative. They can also call 800-338-3659 and ask for ‘inside sales.’ In addition, Virbac offers nine C.E.T. University continuing education courses online that focus on pet dental health. The courses are designed for veterinarians and technicians. Market …
Vets Invited To Webinar On ‘Roadmap’ Education ReportDecember 10, 2010 The North American Veterinary Medical Education Consortium is inviting veterinarians to participate in a webinar about its draft report with recommendations, “Roadmap for Veterinary Medical Education in the 21st Century: Responsive, Collaborative, Flexible.” The webinar will discuss how and why the consortium was developed, who was involved, drivers of change for academic veterinary medicine, goals of the NAVMEC and recommendations that will lead to implementation plans. The webinar will be offered at six different times, each 23 minutes in length with a question and answer portion following for an additional 10 to 15 minutes. The dates: Tuesday, Dec. 14, 2010 at 10 a.m. EST Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2010 at 3 p.m. EST Thursday, Jan. 20, 2011 at 5 p.m. EST Friday, Jan. 21, 2011 at 11 a.m. EST Wednesday, Feb. 9, 2011 at 1 p.m. EST Monday, Feb. 14, 2011 at 4 p.m. EST For details, click here. The NAVMEC began soliciting comments on the report, available at the group's website, in mid November. The comment period is expected to close at the end of February. “The roadmap is designed to look to the future and …
Obama Signs Into Law Ban On Animal Crush VideosDecember 10, 2010 President Barack Obama signed into law yesterday a measure criminalizing the creation and sale of so-called “crush videos”—videos that depict a sexual fetish involving the torture or crushing to death of small animals. The Animal Crush Video Prohibition Act of 2010 prohibits the creation of crush videos for distribution and the sale, marketing, exchange, or distribution of such videos in interstate or foreign commerce. The act defines an animal crush video as any photograph, motion-picture film, video or digital recording, or electronic image that (1) depicts actual conduct in which one or more living non-human mammal, bird, reptile or amphibian is intentionally crushed, burned, drowned, suffocated, impaled or otherwise subjected to serious bodily injury and (2) is obscene. Exemptions are provided for visual depictions of customary and normal veterinary or agricultural husbandry practices; the slaughter of animals for food; and hunting, trapping, or fishing. Violators could face up to seven years in jail. The measure and several similar bills were introduced earlier this year after the Supreme Court struck down a federal ban on videos showing graphic violence against animals. The court deemed the ban too broad. The American Society for the Prevention …
FDA Says New Antimicrobial Report Will Help Evaluate Resistance TrendsDecember 9, 2010 The U.S. Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine today published its first report summarizing sales and distribution data of antimicrobial drugs approved for food-producing animals. The report, to be published annually, provides concrete data important for supporting efforts to track antimicrobial use trends and how such trends relate to antimicrobial resistance, according to the FDA. “Because more use of antimicrobials is, in general, associated with greater levels of resistance, these data will supplement the FDA’s ongoing activities in antimicrobial resistance prevention,” the FDA reported. “It also reinforces a recent agency draft guidance on the judicious use of certain antimicrobials in food-producing animals.” This first report covers 2009 figures. In the domestic category, nine antimicrobial classes with corresponding annual totals (kilogram of active ingredient) are listed: aminoglycosides at 339,678 kg; cephalosporins at 41,328 kg; ionophores at about 3.7 million kg; lincosamides at 115,837 kg; macrolides at 861,985 kg; penicillins at 610,514 kg; sulfas at 517,873 kg; and tetracyclines at about 4.6 million kg. The ninth antimicrobial class, dubbed “not independently reported” (NIR), included antimicrobial classes for which there were less than three distinct sponsors actively marketing products domestically. NIR had an annual total …
Texas Capital Considers Ban On Pet Sales In Pet StoresDecember 9, 2010 The city council in Austin, Texas, is scheduled to hear on Thursday, Dec. 16, 2010, an ordinance that seeks to ban the sale of dogs and cats at pet stores. As drafted, the proposed ordinance would prohibit the sale of dogs or cats at a location other than where the animals were bred. This would effectively ban sales of dogs and cats at pet stores. An exemption is provided for the city’s animal shelter and non-profit animal welfare organizations. The ordinance would also change the definition of a “pet trader.” Under current law, a pet trader is defined as someone who “exchanges for consideration” more than 15 dogs and/or cats in a year. The proposal would eliminate the 15 animal threshold to include all dogs and cats regardless of age. In addition, the proposed ordinance would mandate that pet traders provide microchipping and sterilization information, if applicable, to the buyer. Pet traders do not have to pay an animal processing fee if they sell or otherwise exchange a spayed or neutered cat or dog. Violators would be subject to a $200 fine per animal. The Pet Industry Joint Advisory Council (PIJAC) has issued an …
Veterinarians Slated To Be Exempt From Red Flags RuleDecember 9, 2010 Veterinarians practices and other health care practices are on the brink of being exempt from the Federal Trade Commission’s Red Flags Rule now that both the House and Senate have passed the Red Flag Program Clarification Act. It currently awaits the President’s signature before becoming law.Veterinary practices and other health care practices are on the brink of being exempt from the Federal Trade Commission’s Red Flags Rule now that both the House and Senate have passed the Red Flag Program Clarification Act. It currently awaits the President’s signature before becoming law newsline Veterinary practices and other health care practices are on the brink of being exempt from the Federal Trade Commission’s Red Flags Rule now that both the House and Senate have passed the Red Flag Program Clarification Act. It currently awaits the President’s signature before becoming law. The Red Flag Program Clarification Act, as described by the American Veterinary Medical Association, defines the term “creditor” more narrowly than the FTC had, with the intent of exempting small businesses and other service providers who do not receive payment in full from their clients at the time they provide their services. The AVMA was part of a …
Hold Off Or Write Off?December 8, 2010A new laboratory suite can take the bite out of 2010 taxes. It’s that time of year when veterinarians decide to make an in-house laboratory purchase or find they need to hold off. Fortunately, there are purchase options for 2010 tax deductions that allow for a write-off whether or not the practice has made a profit. The Small Business Jobs and Credit Act of 2010, signed into law by President Obama on Sept. 27, made veterinarians’ capital improvement plan options a lot better. If a veterinarian has a profitable year in 2010, they could write off on their tax return as much as $500,000 on equipment purchases. The law expands section 179, doubling the write-off amount from $250,000 to half a million dollars. This allowance could boost any practice’s bottom line, experts say. But, if this sounds too good to be true, it might be. Accountants should be able to properly advise a veterinary client based on the practice’s financial situation and state guidelines. “The $500,000 is a federal limit, not a state limit,” says Gary I. Glassman, CPA, of Burzenski & Company, P.C., a Connecticut-based accounting firm. “Each state has its own income …
Voting Deadline Looms In Heska’s ‘Inspiration’ ContestDecember 8, 2010 Heska Corp., a provider of veterinary diagnostic and specialty products, has narrowed the competition of its 2010 Heska Corporation Inspiration In Action Contest down to four finalists: the Panama Amphibian Rescue and Conservation (PARC) Project, Pets Forever, the Prevent Unwanted Pets (PUP) Project and World Vets. Heska asked veterinary professionals across the industry how they would use $25,000 to support and inspire their profession. The second place winner will receive $5,000. The Loveland, Colo.-based company received more than 100 submissions. Heska is now asking the public to vote for one of the top four ideas at their website. Individuals may vote only once. Deadline is Dec. 15. “The Inspiration In Action Contest is the latest of our ‘Smarter, Together’ projects and demonstrates our belief that great ideas come to life when we work in partnership with our customers and colleagues—individuals who are very gifted and dedicated professionals,” said Robert Grieve, Heska’s chairman and CEO. Finalists’ Inspirations at a glance: • PARC Project – Averting the threat of extinction for amphibian species. • Pets Forever – Helping low-income, ill or elderly individuals care for their pets. • PUP Project – Implementing an …
