Ruling Months Away in Texas Cat CaseMay 5, 2016Embattled veterinarian Kristen Lindsey, DVM, who admitted using a bow and arrow to kill a cat and then bragged about the act on social media, should learn this fall whether she will keep or lose her Texas license. A two-day hearing held in late April in Austin featured testimony on whether the cat was feral or actually a neighbor’s pet, how fast the animal died and why rural residents often kill undomesticated cats. Both sides are expected to submit and respond to written closing arguments by July 1. Two administrative law judges who presided over the hearing will issue a recommendation to the Texas Board of Veterinary Medical Examiners, which may approve a final decision Oct. 18. Dr. Lindsey could continue her fight by appealing to a state district court. Her attorney, Brian Bishop, criticized the board for pursuing the year-old case, which advanced to the hearing after a mediation attempt failed. “It should be very troubling to Texas taxpayers and to all regulated licensees that the [board] diverted so much in tax money and resources to the prosecution of a license revocation action based on ‘politically incorrect’ actions that had nothing to do with the practice of veterinary medicine,” …
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Two Suspects Arrested for Veterinarian's DeathMay 3, 2016A sad story out of Burlington, Colo.: A veterinarian was murdered by her stepson and his friend. According to the police, Cynthia Campbell Eason, DVM, was killed when her stepson and his friend entered her home, beat her to death, and then stole items from the residence. Eason was found dead on Friday afternoon. A tip led police to arrest Dylan Eason, 19, and Isaiah Churchwell, 24, according to Fox 31 Denver. The father of Dylan Eason, Jon Eason, has called for the death penalty for his son and friend. As he wrote on Facebook: "I am wondering as a parent, why I'm so insistent on my son and his friend receive the death penalty for killing my wife over simple greed. I have never felt hate before, but I'm so engulfed in hate, that I want my kid and his friend to pay with their lives. I'm ashamed of feeling this way, I know Cindy would not like my anger and madness that I'm living with." Neighbors and friends reported that they knew Dylan was violent and were "saying he was going to snap one day," …
Midmark Animal Health Announces 'Bring It!' PromotionMay 3, 2016Midmark Animal Health has announced the launch of its “Bring It!” promotion. Veterinarians and veterinary facilities can receive cash incentives and an onsite anesthesia-monitoring course for CE credit when they purchase select veterinary equipment through July 31, 2016. During this promotion, rebates and incentives are available with the purchase of the following products when purchased through an authorized Midmark Animal Health dealer: Matrx Anesthesia Machines (excluding VMR) Midmark UltraClave® Automatic Sterilizers Cardell Touch Vital Signs Monitor Masimo CO2 Module (Masimo Multigas also accepted) 255 Single LED Procedure Light 255 Dual LED Procedure Light Customers who purchase a qualifying Matrx Anesthesia machine with a Cardell Touch Monitor and Masimo CO2 Module can receive a free Anesthesia Monitoring 101 course valued at $1,150. The Anesthesia Monitoring 101 course provides veterinarians and credentialed technicians the training needed to operate and maintain monitoring and anesthesia equipment. Veterinarians and credentialed technicians who complete this session will earn four hours of CE credit. For more info, go to midmarkanimalhealth.com/BringIt
OVC Takes Part in Bone Cancer Clinical TrialMay 3, 2016The University of Guelph’s Ontario Veterinary College recently entered an 8-year-old Rottweiler named Cujo into a clinical trial headed by the U.S. National Cancer Institute’s Comparative Oncology Trials Consortium (NCI COTC). It’s the first such collaboration between the college and the NCI COTC. The study, funded by the Morris Animal Foundation, will include about 160 dogs from 21 veterinary teaching hospitals across North America. Researchers will evaluate the effectiveness of the therapeutic agent rapamycin for treating osteosarcoma in dogs by delaying or preventing metastases. The trial is expected to last about eight to 12 months. “This is exciting for us,” said Paul Woods, DVM, Dipl. ACVIM, a veterinary cancer specialist at OVC and co-director of U of G’s Institute for Comparative Cancer Investigation. “Our goal is to improve the dogs’ quality and quantity of life while living with cancer.” Dogs, especially large breeds, develop osteosarcoma 10 times as often as humans, according to the college. OVC’s Animal Cancer Center sees up to three new osteosarcoma cases each week, the college further noted. “We’re not sure why it’s so common in large dogs,” Dr. Woods said. Despite aggressive treatments …
Dog Regains Mobility Thanks to UC Davis NeurologistsMay 2, 2016Not too long ago, Leah, a 4-year-old female Border Collie, got loose from her owner and went missing for the night. When a local veterinary facility found her the next day, the staff immediately called her owner and informed her that Leah had been injured. She had a facial laceration that might have been from a deer kick. Otherwise, she appeared normal, and so her wound was repaired, and Leah was on her way home. Two days later, however, Leah became acutely non-ambulatory. She had minimal motor function in all four limbs, and was unable to sit up on her own. Leah was then hospitalized with a suspected case of tetanus. She was treated with an anti-toxin and other supportive care and monitored. Her severe tetraparesis did not improve for three weeks. Leah’s veterinarians no longer suspected tetanus and were much more concerned that she might have a spinal cord injury. That was when they referred her to the William R. Pritchard Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at the University of California, Davis. Once at UC Davis, specialists in the Neurology/Neurosurgery Service performed a …
AVMA Poster Celebrates National Pet Week with 'A Life of Love' PosterMay 2, 2016To celebrate the special bond between people and their pets and mark the 35th anniversary of National Pet Week (NPW), the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA), with support from Purina Pro Plan Veterinary Diets, are offering veterinary clinics complimentary copies of the Lifetime of Love poster during National Pet Week. This special event is held May 1 through 7. "This poster is a beautiful reminder of the bond we share with our pets throughout our lives," said Dr. Joe Kinnarney, president of the AVMA. "At Purina we believe pets and people are better together, so we're excited to team up with the AVMA to celebrate National Pet Week and the joy pets bring to our lives," said Purina veterinarian Dr. Kurt Venator, DVM, PhD. "It's important for pet owners to remember that veterinarians play a vital role in enriching the bond between pets and people, and this celebration is a great reminder." "Everyone loves their pets. But not everyone is aware of what their pet needs from them," Kinnarney said. "That is why each day of National Pet Week® focuses on an essential action vital to achieving a Lifetime of Love." Veterinary experts joined …
Registration Open for Henry Schein Animal Health’s 2016 Veterinary Technology SummitMay 2, 2016Henry Schein, Inc. announced today that it has opened registration for Henry Schein Animal Health’s 2016 Veterinary Technology Summit. This event that will help veterinary practices increase their practice management software usage and improve practice efficiency and profitability. The summit will take place October 19 to 21 at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville, Tenn. Attending veterinarians and their staff will receive hands-on software training classes for the company’s AVImark, ImproMed Infinity, and ImproMedTriple Crown software programs, as well as informative sessions on practice management tips and insights. Sessions will focus on strategies for going paperless, implementing wellness plans, managing inventory, using electronic medical records and many other topics relevant for veterinarians, practice managers and staff members. “We see that a majority of veterinary practices in the U.S. own practice management software, yet most typically use only 20 percent of its capabilities,” said Chris Dollar, president of Henry Schein Global Animal Health Practice Solutions. “Greater software usage provides a variety of benefits for veterinary practices, such as capturing and billing charges that otherwise may be missed, improving the quality of patient care, and even having more time during the …
NC University Researchers Design Hardware, Software that can Train DogsMay 2, 2016North Carolina State University researchers have developed and used a customized suite of technologies that allows a computer to train a dog autonomously, with the computer effectively responding to the dog based on the dog’s body language. “Our approach can be used to train dogs efficiently and effectively,&rdquo犀利士 ; said David Roberts, an assistant professor of computer science at NC State and co-author of a paper on the work. “We use sensors in custom dog harnesses to monitor a dog’s posture, and the computer reinforces the correct behavior quickly and with near-perfect consistency.” “Because the technology integrates fundamental principles of animal learning into a computational system, we are confident it can be applied to a wide range of canine behaviors,” said Alper Bozkurt, an assistant professor of electrical and computer engineering and co-author of the paper. “For example, it could be used to more quickly train service dogs. Ultimately, we think the technology will be used in conjunction with human-directed training.” The dog harness fits comfortably onto the dog and is equipped with a variety of technologies that can monitor the dog’s posture …
April 2016 Issue: Letters to the EditorApril 29, 2016Hybrids, Mixed Breeds, Blends and Purebreds When I read that “hybrid is defined as the progeny of two purebred dogs” [“When breeds cross, hybrid dogs appear,” January 2016], I had to check the cover of your publication to make sure that I was reading a professional publication called Veterinary Practice News and not some lay press pet magazine of puppy photos and feel-good dog stories. Our clients already are confused enough about the definition of purebred, crossbred, mixed breed and mutt without muddying the waters further by making up new definitions to words that already have long-standing scientific meanings. A hybrid is the progeny of two different species. Dog breeds are artificial constructs from selective breeding directed by humans. As a veterinarian, I have my personal reservations about the wisdom of selective breeding and its impact on the overall health of purebred animals, but I do know that breeders work to select across many generations to produce the breed traits desired, a process that is regulated by breed associations and peer reviewed through judging and showing. Some breed associations have been on the forefront of developing tests to reveal genetic disorders in …
Letters to the Editor: May 2016 IssueApril 29, 2016Confronting a Complex Issue I am compelled to write in response to your article “Confronting Suicide” [March 2016] by Dr. Lou Anne Wolfe. First, I would like to say that I do not know any of the deceased referenced in the article, and I write only of my personal experiences as a veterinarian. The article not only misrepresented veterinary professionals but also discredited the profession by stating that veterinarians “are not used to failing” as one explanation for suicide. I would venture to guess that most veterinarians would agree that that statement is a gross misrepresentation of the problems we face and in no way begins to explain why someone would take his or her life. It’s not about failing; it’s about real problems inherent in veterinary medicine. For example, there is a complete lack of a support system among veterinary professionals, particularly if one is a solo practitioner, like me. For those of us involved with rescues and shelters, there’s the endless stream of neglected and homeless animals, what sometimes seems like a hopeless animal overpopulation problem, compassion fatigue, long hours and intense physical demands, juggling client money …
