Compounded drugs—A literature updateJanuary 2, 2019In exciting times of new approved drug formulations for animal species, veterinarians face a myriad of challenges when balancing optimal treatment protocols and overall cost burden. Compounded drugs may offer an enticing alternative to an approved animal drug in terms of palatability and cost to the owner; however, the legal status of compounded drugs is often difficult to evaluate.
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The race to develop immunotherapies for canine lymphoma and osteosarcomaJanuary 2, 2019There are many reasons why development of immunotherapies in dogs has been slow. Although cancer, and in particular lymphoma and osteosarcoma, is frequent in dogs, just one percent of owners have pet insurance; those who don’t are willing to spend only a limited amount of money to treat their dog, especially when initial treatment results are not as dramatic as in humans.
Debating raw dietsJanuary 2, 2019In spite of resistance from most veterinarians and from public health authorities, the popularity of raw meat-based diets for dogs and cats continues to grow.
Vets Plus acquires Merrick's Animal HealthDecember 28, 2018A Wisconsin-based manufacturer of veterinary nutrition products has acquired Merrick’s Animal Health. Vets Plus will wholly-own the subsidiary, which makes boluses, tablets, powders, and electrolytes for the production animal industry.
Study shows increase of Lyme disease in dogsDecember 28, 2018Lyme disease in dogs has become increasingly common in the Northeast and has moved into U.S. regions not historically considered endemic.
AVMA and industry groups work to fight suicide among veterinariansDecember 27, 2018Animal health organizations are partnering to combat suicide among veterinarians in the U.S. According to a study by the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) and the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), female veterinarians were 3.5 times as likely to die from suicide as the general population from 1979 through 2015. For male veterinarians, that number was 2.1 times. "Too many of our colleagues have either contemplated, attempted, or died by suicide," said AVMA president John de Jong, DVM. "Working with our colleagues throughout the veterinary community will help us find solutions more quickly. This issue is affecting not only our profession, but society as a whole, in numbers greater than ever before." AVMA is working with a number of groups to help address the issue, including: Allied veterinary medical associations Independent veterinary communities Representatives of private and corporate practices Suicidology experts North American Veterinary Technicians Association (NAVTA) Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) Veterinary Information Network (VIN) American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP) The association and partners are creating resources to facilitate outreach, such as question, persuade, refer (QPR) training, a free online program put in place to help veterinarians identify …
Owning a practice? You?December 27, 2018Some would argue practice ownership is only for the most ambitious—for those who love business. Like that classmate who always reads the Wall Street Journal or the one who knows she wants to be a specialist… of some sort… and all that entails. I mean, you know nothing about business. And the stress isn't worth it. The burden of your student loan probably makes practice ownership impossible, anyway. The excuses are endless. But so too are the reasons to own, even more so in this environment of corporate competition, continued consolidation, and rapid change. After all, where there is change—even chaos—there's also opportunity. What's more, practice ownership promises all the things you've always wanted from your profession. It buys you stability and flexibility, the two things that can make having a family more doable. It also means more money. And, paradoxically, those who have the least of it are those who stand to gain the most from practice ownership. I'm not saying it's easy. To be sure, it involves risk. But it's those who never contemplated ownership, those most beset and bedeviled by family-related inflexibility and financial burdens, who also have the most to gain and the least to lose. …
Acute neurologic injuries in the horseDecember 27, 2018Acute, traumatic injury to the horse’s central nervous system is an occasional, and often devastating situation facing equine veterinarians, most often caused by a collision or fall. Injuries to the spinal cord and/or brain may result in a variety of different clinical presentations, however, the damage incurred by the tissues and cells of the nervous system are similar.
Leveling the playing field with cooperatives, GPOsDecember 27, 2018It is during the maturation phase of businesses that group purchasing organizations (GPOs) and cooperatives show up, offering small fish the buying power of a big fish—in this case, the consolidated corporate veterinary practices and pet supply retailers.
Benefits of in-house labsDecember 27, 2018In the last two decades, the veterinary profession has seen rapid and unprecedented growth, yielding greater access to reliable diagnostic capabilities and effective therapeutic options.
