What Would Happen If You Died Tomorrow?April 17, 2009 Robert Parker, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, died April 7. He never made it to the clinic. He died en route, in a car accident. He may be known mostly in the surgery community and by the many students, interns and residents he mentored. But let's just stay that Rob was one of the good guys. I am trying to make sense out of the senseless. I will let others try to figure out the meaning of this tragedy in their own way and their own words. To me, to his co-workers, to his colleagues, it is utterly irrational. For the record, this column in no way implies that Dr. Parker's financial and legal house was not in order. This is definitely not the point, and certainly none of my business. Could this tragedy be a wake-up call? What if it happened to me? What if it happened to you? Most of us don’t like to think about our own death and plan for it. Turns out, we are mere mortals. So without a deadline, we tend to procrastinate, after vaguely committing ourselves to dealing with it “later.” These suggestions apply to everybody, including the …
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Morris Animal Foundation Trustee DiesApril 17, 2009 Mark Morris Jr., DVM, Ph.D., a trustee and vice-president of scientific activities for Morris Animal Foundation, died Jan. 14 at his home in Topeka, Kan. He was 72. Dr. Morris Jr. gave much guidance to Morris Animal Foundation, which was founded by his parents, Mark and Louise Morris, in 1948. “Dr. Morris was committed to ensuring that his father’s vision of a foundation to improve the health and well-being of animals would carry on into perpetuity,” said Patricia Olson, DVM, Ph.D., Morris Animal Foundation president and chief executive officer. Morris Jr. dedicated his life’s work to improving the lives of animals through nutrition. He continued the work of his father, Mark Morris Sr., DVM, who was considered the founder of veterinary clinical nutrition and creator of Prescription Diet pet foods. Morris Jr. went on to expand this line of diets and developed the Science Diet line of products. Morris Jr., who was the founding member and on the board of regents of the American College of Veterinary Nutrition, also pioneered the ZuPreem line of diets for exotic pets and zoo animals. “My grandfather was a visionary in clinical nutrition, but it was my father, …
FDA Says It Halted Melamine-Tainted Pet TreatsApril 17, 2009 Bird and small animal treats produced in China which tested positive for melamine were accidentally sent into the U.S. market for sale but were stopped before reaching consumers, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) says. Sampling by the FDA’s Los Angeles District showed that pet treats imported from China, including treat seed sticks for cockatiels and honey cakes for hamsters tested positive for melamine, according to a government report. Those treats, about 54,000 units, “were placed on hold for redelivery and was erroneously shipped into commerce,” according to a Dec. 26, 2007, FDA enforcement report. A company-initiated recall, however, stopped the products from going beyond their distributors, a spokesperson for the FDA’s Center for Veterinary Medicine says. “The import alert on melamine in pet products from China worked as it alerted the LOS-DO [Los Angeles District] to check,” said Laura Bradbard, acting director of veterinary center’s Communications Dept. “The company informed their nine distributors of the recall and the product returned for destruction. The system worked and the product did not get to pets.” When melamine became the no. 1 suspect in the cause of a wave of sicknesses and deaths among dogs and cats …
Public Meeting On Veterinary Biological Products ScheduledApril 17, 2009 The USDA-APHIS Center for Veterinary Biologics is holding its 14th public meeting April 7-9 to discuss regulatory and policy issues related to the manufacture, distribution and use of veterinary biological products. The meeting will take place in the Scheman Building at the Iowa State Center, Iowa State University. Based on suggestions the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service received when it first announced the meeting in December, the agenda topics will include influenza (avian, canine, equine and swine); control of E. coli 0157:H7 contamination in beef cattle; agroterrorism; and Veterinary Services and Center for Veterinary Biologics updates. There will also be updates concerning compliance activities, adjuvant approval, the center’s quality management system, the center’s export services and expediting the processing of submissions to the center, among others. Registration deadline is March 26. Click here for details. <HOME>
CARES Hosts Signing Ceremony Of PennsylvaniaApril 17, 2009 Pennsylvania Governor Edward Rendell held a public signing ceremony on House Bill 2525, now Act 119 of 2008, on Monday at the Center for Animal Referral and Emergency Services (CARES) in Langhorne, Penn. The Governor signed the bill into law on Oct. 9 aimed to improve the treatment of dogs in commercial kennels. For example, the new law requires veterinary examinations for each dog twice per year. Jon Rappaport, DVM, director of CARES, said that the center sees a lot of puppies from such kennels in poor condition. “We see animals that have severe pneumonia, parvo virus and other infectious diseases,” Dr. Rappaport said. “All too often people set out to get a healthy puppy and instead wind up with a very ill animal. This is both an expensive financial and emotional proposition they are not prepared for. This act will provide for healthier puppies getting to their owner and for better conditions for the animal being bred.” Among other protections for dogs, the law doubles the minimum floor space, bans wire flooring, eliminates cage stacking and requires regular exercise. <HOME>
Kitten Tested Positive For Rabies In PennsylvaniaApril 17, 2009 The Pennsylvania Department of Health said Tuesday that a kitten dropped off in June at a farm in York County tested positive for rabies. Anyone who may have come into contact with the feline should call the local state health center. The kitten, a black short-haired female about 8- to 10-weeks old, was abandoned on or around June 16 at the Fisher farm on Valley Road in Etters and tested positive for rabies on June 27. Another kitten, a black and gray tiger female, was also dropped off at the same time and was examined for rabies. The necropsy showed that the second kitten did not have rabies, said Stacy Kriedeman of the health department. She said no one knows where the cats came from or where the mother is. “Rabies is very serious,” she said. “Any sort of exposure requires quick treatment and medical care if scratched or bitten.” Veterinarians should remind pet owners of the importance of keeping up with vaccinations, she said, and she warned people to be careful when dealing with strays. Signs that an animal might be infected include unusual behavior, such as a cat who is walking in circles, …
Company Says It’s Ready To Clone CatsApril 17, 2009 Genetic Savings & Clone, a pet gene banking and cloning company, reports that it is ready to begin cloning cats for customers following the June birth of two reportedly healthy kittens that were cloned by chromatin transfer. The company, founded in 2000, reports it has banked the DNA of hundreds of animals and plans to clone nine cats in 2004-three belonging to staff and six for clients. The company says it will deliver the clones to clients by the end of the year and plans to start a commercial dog cloning business in 2005. According to an Associated Press report, clients are paying $50,000 for each clone. Clients wanting to preserve their animal’s DNA reportedly pay an initial $900 fee and $150 annually. <HOME>
Socks Most Common GI Foreign Body, VPI SaysApril 17, 2009 Socks top the list of the most common surgically removed item from pets’ gastrointestinal tracts, according to Veterinary Pet Insurance, of Brea, Calif. Underwear and panty hose followed. Most Common Surgically Removed Items: Socks . Underwear . Panty Hose . Rocks . Balls . Chew Toys . Corn Cobs . Bones . Hair Ties / Ribbons . Sticks Other frequently ingested objects include nails, sewing needles and nipples from baby bottles. Pagers, hearing aids, drywall, snail bait, batteries, rubber bands and toy cars have also been reported. <HOME>
NASC Launches Quality Seal ProgramApril 17, 2009 In an effort to help consumers identify reputable animal supplement companies, the National Animal Supplement Council is now allowing select companies to display a NASC Quality Seal on their products. Permission to use of the logo is contingent on companies’ undergoing and meeting the requirements of independent facility audits, which are on-site inspections that the NASC recently began conducting. NASC member companies wishing to use the NASC seal must demonstrate during the audits that they comply with council requirements, which include: using acceptable statements on labels, Web sites and marketing materials; having an adverse-event reporting system in place; following quality-control procedures in their production processes; and adhering to any additional recommendations made by the NASC’s scientific advisory committee or the Food and Drug Administration’s Center for Veterinary Medicine. <HOME>
Bayer Names New VP Of Marketing For Companion Animal ProductsApril 17, 2009 Bayer Animal Health of Shawnee, Kan., recently named Peter Ryan as vice president of marketing for companion animal products. Ryan, who is also a member of the company’s Management Committee, will be responsible for the development and implementation of operational and strategic initiatives for all U.S. companion animal brands, including Advantage Multi, K9 Advantix, Drontal and Baytril. Most recently, Ryan served as a consultant, providing strategy and management support to start-up and established companies and brands. He has also served as vice president and general manager of Colgate-Palmolive’s U.S. Home Care business and spent 15 years in senior marketing positions at Unilever HPC. In related news, Bayer Animal Health has ramped up its swine team. Andy Holtcamp, DVM, is a new member of the Veterinary Technical Services group and Jim Lovin and Mark Hux has joined the company as Technical Sales Specialists. Dr. Holtcamp has almost 20 years of swine industry experience, including owning and managing a farrow to finish unit and serving as the staff veterinarian and supervisor of a research farm for Iowa Select Farms Inc. Lovin has more than 25 …
