Merck Plans Takeover of HarrisvaccinesNovember 13, 2015Veterinary drug maker Merck Animal Health has agreed to acquire Harrisvaccines, an Ames, Iowa, company that has led the fight against porcine epidemic diarrhea virus and avian influenza. The terms of the transaction, which was announced Thursday and is expected to close by year’s end, were not disclosed. Harrisvaccines Vice President Joel Harris said he and his father, company founder and CEO Hank Harris, DVM, Ph.D., aren’t going away anytime soon. “I’m staying on in my capacity and Hank is staying on in some capacity,” Joel Harris said. “That’s as much as I want to say.” Harrisvaccines will become a subsidiary of Merck, he said. “I think the plan is business as usual as we go through the integration process,” Harris said. Privately-held Harrisvaccines focuses on food animal vaccines. The company made headlines in 2013 upon winning government approval of a vaccine against porcine epidemic diarrhea virus (PEDv) and this past fall for the conditional license of a vaccine targeting highly pathogenic avian influenza. PEDv has killed millions of U.S. piglets since 2013, and avian flu has led to the death or destruction of an estimated 50 million American chickens and turkeys over the past year. On the …
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UC Davis Hits All-Time High for Sponsored Research FundingNovember 12, 2015The University of California, Davis School of Veterinary Medicine received $114 million in external research funding for fiscal year 2014-15. One such grant included $100 million from the U.S. Agency for International Development for the PREDICT program at the One Health Institute in the School of Veterinary Medicine. The focus of the grant is to identify and control emerging diseases among people, wildlife and livestock worldwide. Overall, the university reported an all-time record of $786 million, an 11.5 percent increase from the year-ago period. The overall figure also represents a 13.4 percent year-over-year increase from the federal government. “This great achievement is a testament to our researchers who have expertise in a broad range of disciplines, enabling them to tackle the major challenges of our time,” said Chancellor Linda P.B. Katehi. “With this support, I know they will continue to make new discoveries and find solutions to some of the world’s most pressing problems.” The funding brings the university closer to the chancellor’s goal to increase annual research awards to $1 billion by 2020. The 2020 Initiative includes focused support for continued growth through resources that enhance research, despite stagnant federal research …
Heska Looks Overseas With Purchase of CuattroNovember 11, 2015Heska Corp., a maker of blood analyzers and other veterinary diagnostic products, plans to enter the international market through the takeover of digital radiography manufacturer Cuattro Veterinary LLC. Loveland, Colo.-based Heska intends to acquire Cuattro Veterinary for $6 million in stock and the assumption of $2.1 million in debt. Heska already owns 55 percent of Heska Imaging USA—formerly known as Cuattro Veterinary USA—which sells imaging equipment across the United States. “This international expansion provides Heska with a strong and established platform for launching Heska’s blood diagnostics platforms and programs to international markets,” said President and CEO Kevin Wilson. A shareholder vote is planned for late December, and the purchase is expected to close by Jan. 1. The transaction comes amid leadership change at Heska. Company founder and executive chairman Robert Grieve stepped down Oct. 1. Grieve, now a Heska consultant, received more than $900,000 in contracted payments and vested stock upon his departure, Heska stated today in its quarterly financial report. Third-quarter revenue rose by 29 percent, to $28 million, from the same period in 2014. Some of the gain was tied to a distribution agreement signed in October 2014 with Henry Schein Animal Health, but CFO Jason …
What Are You Thankful For?November 10, 2015As we move into the holidays and prepare to welcome a new year, it’s a good time to reflect on the things we’re thankful for. Yes, that’s what Thanksgiving is about, but we at Veterinary Practice News want to stretch those good vibrations into a New Year’s feature. Tell us what you are thankful for, personally and/or professionally, as 2016 nears. Contact us or email me at miturri@i5publishing.com and put “Thankful” in the subject line. Be sure to include your name, your role in the clinic and your city of residence or employment. Don’t censor yourselves. (Well, if you’re going to be profane, please DO censor yourself.) But don’t talk yourself out of sending your thoughts for fear that they aren’t good enough. Your gratitude might just prompt other people to realize they have more to be thankful for than they had realized. Please email us your thankfulness comments by December 1. And have a happy Thanksgiving!
Virginia Tech’s Veterinary Memorial Fund Celebrates 30 YearsNovember 10, 2015The Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine at Virginia Tech’s Veterinary Memorial Fund recently celebrated its 30th year of providing competitive grants to faculty members working on clinical research projects. The fund was established in 1985 to enable pet owners and families to leave a legacy of support for scientific investigations which improve the quality of health care for future generations. The fund accepts contributions, both small and large, from veterinarians and owners in memory of a pet, as well as from family and friends in memory of a person who loved animals. After Michele Sizer of Woodbridge, Va., lost her dog, Baby, this past June, the veterinarians and staff at Mapleshade Animal Hospital donated to the memorial fund in Baby’s honor. “It means the world to me to share Baby’s memories and know that through his loss other animals can have a better quality of life,” Sizer said. “I sincerely thank Mapleshade Animal Hospital for their kind donation to the memorial fund, and I thank the researchers for the work that they do in honor of our animal companions.” The college initially established the fund in partnership …
Ohio State Lures Administrator From KSUNovember 9, 2015An Ohio State University alumnus has returned to Columbus as executive director and chief medical officer of the Veterinary Medical System. The appointment of Roger B. Fingland, DVM, MS, MBA, Dipl. ACVS, to the newly created position puts him in charge of veterinary hospitals in Columbus, Dublin and Marysville, Ohio. He also will oversee clinical laboratories, Finley Farm in Madison County, and veterinary work done on Ohio’s prison farms, the university announced today. Dr. Fingland had been executive associate dean at the Kansas State University College of Veterinary Medicine and director of KSU’s Veterinary Health Center. “Dr. Fingland is considered by his peers as one of the most innovative, forward-thinking, accomplished and highly respected leaders in academic veterinary medicine,” said Rustin Moore, DVM, Ph.D., Dipl. ACVS, dean of Ohio State’s College of Veterinary Medicine. Fingland also will serve as executive associate dean and as a tenured professor in the department of veterinary clinical sciences. He earned his bachelor’s and veterinary degrees from the University of Missouri and his master’s degree from Ohio State in 1985. Fingland’s clinical interests are in small animal cardiovascular and respiratory surgery, according to his Kansas State biography. He developed a surgical technique …
Veterinarian Removes Rooster Foot from Python's BellyNovember 6, 2015A wild python in Australia decided to eat a rooster, but it seems the rooster would have got the best of the python had it not been for Nikki Tapp, B.V.Sc, at the Marlin Coast Veterinary Hospital in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Marlin Coast Veterinary Hospital/Facebook Dr. Nikki Tapp working on removing a rooster's foot from a wild python's belly. The wild reptile was brought into the hospital October 26 with a puncture wound and a huge belly. The rooster’s spur had pierced the skin of the python, from inside the snake’s belly. Tapp had to open the snake up. She had to use a pair of surgical scissors to cut the entire foot off the rooster, leaving the rest of the rooster in the belly of the python. Tapp said on Facebook that the snake is doing well and will be released once it finishes digesting the huge bird. Story originally posted on ReptilesMagazine.com.
'Dr. Dee: Alaska Vet' Premieres November 7November 5, 2015 There’s a new veterinarian in the television world — Dr. Dee: Alaska Vet. Taking place in the “last frontier,” the show follows Dr. Dee Thornell, owner of Animal House Veterinary Hospital in Fairbanks, Alaska. According to her bio, Thornell went to Michigan State University, and came to Alaska in 1982. As Discovery writes in a press release: “A quirky former Midwesterner, Dr. Dee left the lower 48 more than 25 years ago and never looked back. After starting her veterinary business out of a pick-up truck, she now owns and operates Animal House, the most sophisticated veterinary hospital in Fairbanks, Alaska. Animal House isn’t your typical animal hospital. On any given day, you’ll find Dr. Dee and her staff treating a variety of animals that rarely appear on most vets’ patient list — bald eagles, owls, chinchillas, beavers, iguanas, ox, moose and bears — that often requires her to leave the high-tech luxuries of her Fairbanks’ clinic and rely on the bare necessities in these remote villages.” …
Tuskegee Vet School Welcomes New Faculty MembersNovember 5, 2015The Tuskegee University School of Veterinary Medicine recently welcomed two new faculty members: Lorraine Linn, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, and Athema Etzioni, DVM, Dipl. ACVP. The school made the announcement in late October. “We are excited to have both Dr. Linn and Dr. Etzioni join the veterinary family,” said Ruby Perry, DVM, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine, Nursing and Allied Health. “Both have impressive backgrounds and will bring a wealth of knowledge to help TUSVM prepare the brightest minds for the veterinary medical profession.” Linn has joined the Department of Clinical Sciences as an associate professor of small animal medicine. Her specialty areas of interests are soft tissue, neurosurgery and orthopedics. Linn is a retired lieutenant colonel with the United States Army Veterinary Corps where she served for 25 years, according to the university. Her tours of duty included serving as a commander and surgeon at the Military Working Dog Referral Hospital in Germany; branch chief and regional consultant for the National Capital District Veterinary Command at Ft. Belvoir in Virginia; chief of surgery and dentistry for the …
Elanco Introduces New Variety of InterceptorNovember 3, 2015Elanco Animal Health has released a chicken-flavored canine heartworm drug, Interceptor Plus, that fights tapeworms in addition to hookworms, roundworms and whipworms. The monthly oral medication has a different formulation than Interceptor Flavor Tabs, which the Greenfield, Ind., drug maker launched in early 2015 for both dogs and cats. Both products contain the active ingredient milbemycin oxime, but Interceptor Plus adds praziquantel, a tapeworm treatment. The chicken flavor of Interceptor Plus is a bonus for dogs suffering from beef allergies, Elanco stated. Interceptor Flavor Tabs are beef flavored. Marketed for sale through veterinarians, Interceptor Plus is indicated to prevent heartworm disease caused by Dirofilaria immitis. The drug protects against adult hookworms (Ancylostoma caninum), adult roundworms (Toxocara canis, Toxascaris leonina), adult whipworms (Trichuris vulpis) and adult tapeworms (Taenia pisiformis, Echinococcus multilocularis and Echinococcus granulosus). The medication comes in six-count boxes in four weight categories: 2 to 8 pounds, 8.1 to 25 pounds, 25.1 to 50 pounds and 50.1 to 100 pounds. Dogs should be tested for heartworm disease before Interceptor Plus is prescribed, Elanco noted. Users must be at least 6 weeks old and 2 pounds.
