N.Y. Hospital Opens Pet Cancer InstituteOctober 30, 2015New York’s Animal Medical Center, billed as the world’s largest small animal practice, this month added another claim to fame: a top-of-the-line oncology center. The 2,470-square-foot Cancer Institute fills the remodeled uppermost floor of the eight-story hospital on East 62nd Street in Manhattan. The uniting of the hospital’s oncology services was made possible through a $5 million gift from Animal Medical Center trustee Elaine Langone and her husband, Kenneth. “The core mission of the institute is to provide the highest quality of life for animals with cancer as well as to maximize the amount of time owners can spend with their beloved pets,” Elaine Langone said. “Having lost quite a few dogs to cancer, Ken and I believed the new Cancer Institute … was an initiative worth supporting.” Four board-certified oncologists staff the institute along with 18 other hospital employees. One of the doctors, Rachel St-Vincent, DVM, MVSc, Dipl. ACVR, is the state’s only onsite, full-time radiation oncologist, a hospital spokeswoman said. Animal Medical Center, which opened in 1910, employs about 100 veterinarians and sees 44,000 patients a year. The nonprofit hospital has long participated in pet cancer research. Collaboration between Animal Medical Center, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center and drug …
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Penn Vet to Install Robotics-Controlled Equine Imaging SystemOctober 30, 2015The University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine (Penn Vet) will soon sport a robotics-controlled imaging system for use in the standing and moving horse. Penn Vet says it is the first veterinary hospital in the world to own the revolutionary technology, which was created by Four Dimensional Digital Imaging (4DDI) of New York City. The equipment will be installed in New Bolton Center’s high-speed treadmill building in December. The Equimagine imaging system consists of four robots that can perform multiple modalities: CT, fluoroscopy, tomosynthesis, digital radiography and a high-speed radiographic camera and will be able to operate at up to 16,000 frames per second. The system will be used in conjunction with a high-speed treadmill. Existing CT systems require the horse to be anesthetized, and are limited to the parts of the animal that fit into the cylindrical machines, Penn Vet noted. The Equimagine system’s robotics-driven design provides an unlimited range of motion and unencumbered access to the horse’s entire anatomy. The quality and resolution of the real-time images created with the system far exceeds …
There are Times When a Cat WANTS to go to the VetOctober 29, 2015Chances are you’ve seen more cats desperately wanting to leave your veterinary clinic rather than enter it. For the Mill Road Vet Clinic in Whangarei, Northland in New Zealand, it was quite the opposite. Earlier this month staff at the clinic found four kittens in a box that they believed were between three and four weeks old and abandoned by their mother, Independent reports. However, the staff was wrong. The veterinary clinic posted on Facebook, “This morning we noticed a tabby cat hanging around our front door, trying to sneak in every time a client arrived. When we realized it wasn’t going to go away, we picked her up [and] discovered she was a feeding Mum. Then the penny dropped! Sure enough, we introduced her to the ‘orphan’ kittens [and] there was a very happy reunion! Presumably she had been in the box too [and] escaped before we arrived for work. She’s probably been prowling around all night looking for her kidnapped kittens!” Currently, the mama …
Purdue Breaks Ground on Equine CenterOctober 29, 2015Purdue University broke ground in late October for its $8.8 million Centaur Equine Diagnostic and Surgical Center, located in Shelbyville, Ind., near Indiana Grand. The facility will serve as a satellite facility of the College of Veterinary Medicine, providing specialty medical and surgical services for horse owners and supporting equine research and education of future equine specialists. “This is an exciting day that marks a major milestone in our dream of creating a state-of-the-art equine referral hospital on location in the heart of Indiana’s horse racing industry, enabling our college to bring advanced medical and surgical services directly to the equine athletes and their owners,” said Willie Reed, dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine and professor of veterinary anatomic pathology. “This center will house the most technologically advanced medical equipment to diagnose and treat equine patients while also facilitating groundbreaking research and vital educational opportunities for students preparing for careers as equine specialists. “The location in proximity to Indiana’s two race tracks is especially significant …
Ear Cropping Ban Spreads to Western CanadaOctober 28, 2015Veterinary regulators in British Columbia, Canada, this week banned practitioners from performing cosmetic ear cropping on dogs, a controversial surgical procedure that has been outlawed in some countries. The policy change brings the province in line with Manitoba, New Brunswick, Newfoundland, Nova Scotia, Prince Edward Island and Saskatchewan. "Ear cropping is an unnecessary procedure unless carried out in cases of injury or for reasons of health concerns," said Larry Odegard, the CEO and registrar at the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia, which oversees the province's more than 1,600 practitioners. Canada's most populous province, Ontario, allows ear cropping, which traditionally has been performed on purebreds such as boxers, Dobermans and great Danes. The College of Veterinarians of Ontario has not banned the procedure despite the 4,400-member Ontario Veterinary Medical Association's position that cosmetic surgery is unnecessary and that breed associations should change their standards, OVMA spokeswoman Melissa Carlaw said. British Columbia veterinarians who defy the ear cropping ban will face disciplinary action on charges of unethical practice of veterinary medicine, the college reported. "The province's Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act authorizes the BC SPCA to investigate and recommend charges against any person, veterinarian or otherwise, believed to be carrying out such procedures," …
Vet Techs Say Sedation Is UnderutilizedOctober 27, 2015Being bitten, scratched or kicked by a patient is an accepted part of life at a veterinary hospital. But members of the National Association of Veterinary Technicians in America (NAVTA) believe the risk of injury would be reduced if more animals were sedated. A survey published in the October/November issue of The NAVTA Journal found that a veterinary technician is called upon to physically restrain a patient an average of 11 times a week and that sedation was used in less than half of the cases where it would have been appropriate. The American Animal Hospital Association’s “Anesthesia Guidelines for Dogs and Cats” states that sedation may be suitable during short, minimally invasive procedures such as diagnostics, joint injections, suture removal and wound management. More complex cases and treatments lasting more than 30 minutes may require anesthesia. The 1,262 NAVTA members who responded to the survey reported that sedation was used most often during exploration or repair of wounds or cuts, during euthanasia and when an animal had a troublesome temperament. Other top cases that called for sedation were during radiology procedures, fracture stabilization and the removal of foreign objects. “Interestingly, you reported that procedure type has more influence on …
Nationwide Launches All-Inclusive Pet Insurance PlanOctober 27, 2015Nationwide pet insurance today rolled out what it called the most comprehensive plan in the United States, covering medical and emergency care and wellness visits. What’s Covered Whole Pet with Wellness, from Nationwide, reimburses for: Veterinary exams, including wellness, specialty and emergency visits. Vaccinations, teeth cleaning, parasite control and sterilization. Hospitalization and surgeries. Injuries and illnesses, including cancer and hereditary or congenital conditions. Diagnostic testing, including X-rays, MRIs, CT scans and ultrasounds. Prescribed nutritional supplements, therapeutic diets and medications. Prescribed holistic, alternative and preventive care. Source: Nationwide The policy comes with a 90 percent reimbursement rate on veterinary expenses, a change from the Brea, Calif., company’s traditional use of a benefit schedule, which pays a set amount for common expenses. Nationwide’s other plans—one that provides limited coverage of accidents, illnesses and hereditary conditions and one that pays for wellness procedures—remain in place. Companies such as Trupanion and ASPCA also pay 90 percent of expenses, while some return 65 or 70 percent, depending on the level of coverage selected. Nationwide’s new plan, called Whole Pet with Wellness, features an annual deductible, which the company’s chief pet insurance officer, Scott Liles, described as a “key differentiator.” “Many pet health insurance companies offer per-incident …
Ross University Selects Interim Dean of Vet SchoolOctober 27, 2015Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine (RUSVM) has named Guy St. Jean, DVM, Dipl. ACVS, as interim dean. He succeeds Elaine Watson, Ph.D., who has left the school to pursue other professional opportunities, according to the university. Dr. St. Jean, a member of the RUSVM faculty since 1998, has served the school in various teaching and leadership capacities, including his most recent role of associate dean for student and alumni affairs and professor of surgery. Previously, he was associate dean of academic affairs and head of the admissions committee. St. Jean will lead RUSVM until a permanent dean is selected through an international search.
Veterinary World Comes to Consensus on EpilepsyOctober 26, 2015A team of veterinarians and neurology experts has agreed on a common definition of epilepsy in an effort to ensure the condition is correctly diagnosed in dogs and cats and that researchers are consistent in their thinking. The latest consensus statement is one of seven produced by the International Veterinary Epilepsy Task Force. The 26-member group was formed in 2014 and includes four U.S. veterinarians, among them Ned Patterson, DVM, Ph.D., an epilepsy researcher at the University of Minnesota College of Veterinary Medicine. “The group’s findings will create a common language among practitioners and provide best practices for veterinarians treating dogs and cats with epilepsy,” Dr. Patterson said. An estimated 780,000 dogs are diagnosed with epilepsy each year in the United States, but whether individual patients actually have the disease or suffer from another neurological condition is an open question. “Lack of consistency among epilepsy researchers concerning classifications, definitions and therapeutic outcome measures makes it difficult to draw comparisons and significantly limits the scientific impact of the studies,” said another task force member, Karen Munana, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM. Dr. Munana, a professor of neurology and neurosurgery at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, focuses on canine …
Report Predicts Continued Growth in Pet Drug SalesOctober 26, 2015U.S. sales of pet medications are forecast to reach $7.02 billion this year, a 6.9 percent jump from 2014, according to the market research firm Packaged Facts. The newly released report “Pet Medications in the U.S., 4th Edition” calculated that sales of prescription and over-the-counter drugs by veterinary hospitals and Internet and brick-and-mortar retailers should rise to nearly $9 billion by 2019. Excluded are sales of nutritional supplements as well as drugs for horses and food animals. The report’s author, George Puro, predicted that veterinarians will end this year with a 59 percent share of the pet medications market, up 1 percentage point from 2014. The third edition of the report, released in early 2014, projected $8 billion in sales this year, but the total was slashed because of what Puro termed a “somewhat more conservative sizing of the market.” “As we’ve done with our ‘Pet Market Outlook’ and several other Packaged Facts products in the last couple of years, we’ve revised our methodology based on additional information and resources we have about the market,” Puro explained. The new report projects that the $8 billion mark won’t be surpassed until 2018. Sales in 2019 should hit $8.87 billion. Puro linked …
