Boehringer Ingelheim gives support shots for World Rabies Day 2018September 13, 2018Merial, part of Boehringer Ingelheim (BI), announced it will donate 75,000 doses of rabies vaccine to the Global Alliance for Rabies Control (GARC) in recognition of World Rabies Day on Sept. 28. The donation is a result of the Shots for Good initiative, in which BI pledged to donate doses of rabies vaccine for every dose of Purevax, Recombitek, and Imrab vaccine purchased by participating veterinary practices from July 2 to Aug. 10, 2018. The donated vaccines will support a mass dog vaccination campaign in Madagascar to control the disease and limit the potential for reintroduction of rabies from neighboring countries. "The support of our participating veterinary practices made this donation possible," said Zach Mills, DVM, executive director of BI's U.S. Pet Veterinary Professional Services. "BI understands the importance of vaccination to the overall health of pets worldwide. With more than a decade of experience advocating for rabies prevention, the Global Alliance for Rabies Control has the infrastructure to put this donation to good use." GARC will manage the campaign in Madagascar with government veterinary services and international and local nongovernmental organizations. Established protocols will be used to plot and …
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WSAVA provides continuing education in Latin AmericaSeptember 11, 2018The World Small Animal Veterinary Association Vaccination Guidelines Group (VGG) held a series of meetings and continuing education sessions in Mexico as part of a first step in WSAVA's three-year project aimed at enhancing levels of understanding of infectious diseases among veterinarians across Latin America. WSAVA committee members, including Michael Day, VGG chairman, emeritus professor, met with veterinary association leaders, academics, first-opinion practitioners, and government regulators in Mexico City, Guadalajara, and Monterrey. They delivered three evening CE sessions and live-streamed the Mexico City session to share with registrants for 30 days after the presentation. Prior to the visit, the VGG conducted an online questionnaire to collect data on veterinary demographics, infectious disease occurrence, and vaccination protocols, and presented the results during the CE events. "Mexican veterinarians are accustomed to the principle of annual revaccination of dogs and cats with multicomponent products, but those we spoke to were excited by the new concepts of less frequent and individualized vaccination, incorporated into a preventive healthcare package for pets," said Day. "Vaccine-preventable infectious diseases such as canine distemper and parvovirus infections, remain highly prevalent in Mexico. Increasing herd immunity by improving vaccination coverage is clearly an important goal for …
Alzheimer's drug used in cognitive dysfunction syndrome clinical trialSeptember 5, 2018Ropesalazine, a drug candidate for Alzheimer's disease (AD), has shown efficacy in a pilot clinical trial conducted for dogs with cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CDS), according to the drug's manufacturer, South Korea-based GNT Pharma. There currently is no cure for CDS, a progressive neurodegenerative disorder of senior dogs characterized by altered interaction with family, disorientation, sleep/wake cycle changes, increased house soiling, and activity change. It is accompanied by nerve cell death, amyloid plaques, and neurofibrillary tangles similar to AD, leading GNT Pharma scientists to design the pilot study to investigate whether Ropesalazine would alleviate signs of CDS, as well. "The companion dogs failed to recognize their owners before the treatment," said Jae Bong Moon, DVM, head of Irion Animal Hospital in Seoul, who led the study. "It was so amazing to see the dogs that wagged their tails for their owners and cuddled up to them within eight weeks of Ropesalazine treatment. [It] appeared to cure CDS." The study was conducted on six companion dogs age 10 or older who revealed severe cognitive dysfunction according to canine cognitive dysfunction and canine dementia rating scales. Within eight weeks following daily oral administration of Ropesalazine, all six dogs returned …
One Health Research Foundation announces inaugural board of directorsAugust 31, 2018The One Health Research Foundation (OHRF), a 501(c)(3) nonprofit public charity, has named its inaugural board of trustees along with its mission to "improve human, animal, and environmental health in the Caribbean and other tropical areas of the world through support of integrative, multidisciplinary research and innovation." Established in 2017, the One Health Research Foundation is based in Miramar, Fla., with an office at the Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine (RUSVM) in St. Kitts. RUSVM contributes to the foundation and provides research space in its new research and pathology building and office space on campus. The foundation was organized for charitable research and training purposes, and its charitable activities will be both in the U.S. and abroad, with a special focus on the Caribbean. "The One Health Research Foundation aims to be recognized as a premier charitable organization that promotes and advances a One Health, transdisciplinary approach to address societal needs," said Robert Bergquist, MD, PhD, OHRF board president. "OHRF provides support to qualified scientists and students, partners, and programs through grants for research, innovation, and training, primarily aimed at security in relation to zoonotic, vector-borne, and other infectious/parasitic diseases, food and feed safety, ecosystem health, and health …
IVAPM kicks off Animal Pain Awareness Month campaignAugust 31, 2018The International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management (IVAPM) is sponsoring a campaign for September's Animal Pain Awareness Month that works to call greater attention to acute and chronic pain in companion animals. Animal Pain Awareness Month is a time when clinics, veterinarians, technicians, veterinary industry publications, and veterinary educators work to raise public awareness about veterinary patient pain and pain management. This year's theme, Pets Feel Pain Too, was chosen to illustrate that humans and animals alike process and feel pain similarly—if something is thought to cause pain in humans, it also may produce pain in our animal counterparts. "Pets deserve a good quality of life and the aim is to provide that to animals suffering from chronic and acute pain when and where possible. Combining traditional and medicinal modalities of pain management with complementary treatments such as acupuncture, rehabilitation and physical therapy, can have a substantial impact on improving an animal's quality of life," Tasha McNerney, BS, CVT, CVPP, VTS (anesthesia). September is Animal Pain Awareness Month and human medicine's Pain Awareness Month. To help spread the word about Animal Pain Awareness Month, visit the organization's Facebook page, where posters for clinics …
Morris Animal Foundation receives $2.3M legacy giftAugust 30, 2018Morris Animal Foundation (MAF) has received a $2.3 million legacy gift from the estate of Karl D. Smith, a Denver businessman. Smith, who passed away in 2009 at the age of 83, first learned about MAF through a past employee and was supportive of its mission to advance the health of animals. "We are deeply appreciative to Mr. Smith for his visionary generosity almost 10 years ago in making a planned gift to benefit animals everywhere, and we are grateful to his estate trustee and estate attorney who have stewarded Mr. Smith's legacy so carefully," said Tiffany Grunert, acting CEO and president of MAF. MAF is a nonprofit, global organization focused on improving the health of animals, including dogs, cats, horses, and wildlife. Founded by a veterinarian in 1948, its mission is to bridge science and resources to advance the health of animals. "The significance of this gift to Morris Animal Foundation cannot be overstated," said Grunert. "Legacy giving is vitally important to our mission as we work to increase the number of studies we fund to address critical animal health problems around the world."
Kansas State University experts confront African swine fever in AsiaAugust 28, 2018Jürgen Richt, DVM, PhD, Regents Distinguished Professor, KBA Eminent Scholar, and director of Kansas State University's Center of Excellence for Emerging and Zoonotic Animal Diseases (CEEZAD), is providing guidance to officials in East Asia on the emerging problem of African swine fever. African swine fever is a highly contagious disease of domestic pigs and wild boar that causes high fever, respiratory problems, weakness, and stillbirths. Mortality rates among affected animals approach 100 percent. Dr. Richt was in Asia delivering a series of presentations when an outbreak of African swine fever was reported in China on Aug. 1, with a second outbreak reported on Aug. 16, and a third on Aug. 19. "Efforts to handle a potential outbreak have not succeeded, so we have to be concerned about the disease spreading across national boundaries," Richt said. "The first outbreak occurred only a little more than 120 miles north of North Korea." The disease presents trade problems for China and other Asian countries, Richt said. China produces nearly half the world's pork. Following his conversations with veterinary medicine faculty and students at Konkuk University in Seoul, South Korea, and with members of South Korean media …
Australian vet awarded 2018 WSAVA, Hill's Next Generation honorAugust 15, 2018Dr. Guyan Weerasinghe, an Australian veterinarian working in small animal practice and as a state government veterinary officer, has been honored by the World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) and Hill's Pet Nutrition as the winner of the 2018 Next Generation Veterinary Award. The award acknowledges the work of a veterinarian who graduated within the past 10 years and who has contributed significantly to the betterment of companion animals, the veterinary profession, and society at large. He graduated from the University of Queensland in 2011, gaining experience in dairy practice in New Zealand and in shelter medicine in Sydney, Australia. In 2017, he achieved a master's in veterinary public health and became a diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Preventive Medicine. In his current role at Greencross Caloundra, a companion animal practice on Queensland's Sunshine Coast, he maintains a small animal caseload and works alongside local animal rescue groups. Through his work for the Queensland Government's Department of Agriculture and Fisheries, he is involved with animal disease surveillance and response and increasing the awareness of public health risks in veterinary practice, including small animal clinics. He also collaborates on a number of …
WSAVA awards Sri Lankan vet with first animal welfare honorAugust 9, 2018The World Small Animal Veterinary Association has named Nalinika Obeyesekere, Bsc, BVSc, MSc, a veterinarian from Sri Lanka, as the first recipient of a new award for companion animal welfare. The award, developed by WSAVA's Animal Wellness and Welfare Committee (AWWC), recognizes individual veterinarians who have made a significant contribution to animal welfare and inspired others to play their part in advancing welfare globally. Dr. Obeyesekere graduated with a BSc in wildlife biology and management from the University of California Davis, and returned to Sri Lanka to work in the environmental sector. She also holds a BVSc at the University of Peradeniya in Sri Lanka and an MVSc from Murdoch University in Australia. She is now the owner-director of Pet Vet Clinic in Sri Lanka. According to WSAVA, her passion for animal welfare is a consistent theme throughout her work: A founding member and director of education of the Society of Companion Animal Practitioners of Sri Lanka. She has been instrumental in developing continuing education in Sri Lanka, championing higher standards of veterinary practice and adopting a one health approach. She has pioneered behavioral therapy with veterinary teams and owners, and is active on a range of …
WSAVA-endorsed paper encourages healthier breedingAugust 6, 2018The World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) has announced its support of a position paper launched in June 2018 by the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe (FVE) and the Federation of European Companion Animal Veterinary Associations (FECAVA). The paper, a response to the explosion in popularity of breeds with exaggerated traits, genetic disorders, and those with extreme brachycephalic conformation, such as French and English bulldogs and pugs, calls for health and welfare to be given priority over looks and offers detailed recommendations to address increased demand for and supply of these dogs. Measures to reduce demand, supply Address demand for brachycephalic and other affected breeds through educating owners about the health issues they face Work with influencers to encourage owners to choose a healthy, high-welfare dog suitable for their lifestyle Introduce the mandatory registration of breeders, prebreeding screening programs, and the sharing of data on conformation-altering surgeries and caesarean sections Educate stakeholders and revising breeding standards and practices to put the health and welfare of dogs first In addition, FVE and FECAVA have produced an infographic that explains the causes and consequences of extreme breeding and lists a number of …
