University of Surrey to Build a Model of the Horse’s HindgutNovember 19, 2014Researchers at the University of Surrey’s School of Veterinary Medicine, in collaboration with colleagues from Reading and Liverpool universities, have been awarded about $157,000 in funding to create a laboratory model of the horse’s hindgut. The funding was presented by Petplan Charitable Trust, one of United Kingdom’s largest animal welfare charities. In spite of their huge importance to health and performance, very little is known about the horse’s gut bacteria and how this vital microbial community varies in health and disease, according to the university. Disturbances in gut bacterial populations are known to affect not just digestion but immunity, risk of cancer, bodyweight and even behavior, the university further noted. The model sets out to discover new ways of preventing disease and maintaining health through dietary intervention. The research team will employ nuclear magnetic resonance technology at the University of Reading to evaluate changes in the bacterial metabolites, and next-generation gene sequencing at the University of Liverpool to characterize bacterial populations. The project is expected to take two years “Bringing the horse’s gut into the laboratory will allow us to characterize gut bacterial populations and to measure how these change in response to changes in diet and to medication such …
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N.J. Hospital Provides Free Care to Military K9sNovember 18, 2014Four-legged military veterans are eligible for free specialty veterinary care under a partnership established between a New Jersey hospital chain, the American Humane Association and the United States War Dogs Association. The arrangement, announced Nov. 11 in honor of Veterans Day, recognizes the dogs’ months or years of service overseas on behalf of the U.S. military. Red Bank Veterinary Hospital, which has five New Jersey locations, will provide free specialty care to retired military working dogs and contract working dogs. The latter group is made up of canines supplied to the military by contractors. “For more than 25 years, Red Bank Veterinary Hospital has been a leader in providing veterinary care to the animals of New Jersey, but we now want to be known as the leader in veterinary care for our veteran dogs,” said hospital co-founder Anthony DeCarlo, VMD. The sponsors estimated that each dog saved the lives of up to 200 soldiers by uncovering bombs and weapons caches while working in war zones such as Iraq and Afghanistan. “Dogs are as essential to the military as humans, but unlike humans, these dogs are not guaranteed medical care following their retirement,” said Ron Aiello, president of the War …
Abbott, Merck, Purina Team Up on Diabetes CampaignNovember 18, 2014Cats and dogs diagnosed with diabetes during a visit to a participating veterinary clinic in March 2015 will receive a gift bag designed to help their owners manage the disease. The giveaway is part of the new Diabetes Pet Care Alliance, a campaign created by Abbott Animal Health, Merck Animal Health and Nestlé Purina PetCare to raise awareness about diabetes in pets and encourage more screenings. The sponsors say the incidence of diabetes—1 in 250 cats and 1 in 500 dogs—is rising and that pets are underdiagnosed. Veterinary hospitals that enroll in the program at www.usa.petdiabetesmonth.com will receive materials designed to educate clients and local pet owners about the clinical signs of diabetes. The hospitals—up to 1,000 can participate—are encouraged to dedicate time to diabetes screenings in March. Pets newly diagnosed with the disease will go home with a free diabetes management kit containing: An AlphaTrak blood glucose monitoring system from Abbott Animal Health. A 10 mL vial of Vetsulin (porcine insulin zinc suspension) from Merck Animal Health. A bag of Purina Veterinary Diets food—either DM Dietetic Management Feline Formula or DCO Dual Fiber Control Canine Formula. November is National Diabetes Month.
St. George’s Expands 3-Year Degree OptionNovember 17, 2014One Caribbean veterinary school is helping students earn their DVM a year early, while a second is investing $9.5 million in the construction of a research building. St. George’s University School of Veterinary Medicine, on the island of Grenada, has added Regis College of Weston, Mass., to a handful of partner institutions that allow students to transfer to St. George’s for their final undergraduate year. After completing their bachelor’s curriculum at St. George’s, the students begin three years of veterinary studies, rather than four years, en route to a combined BS/DVM degree. Students who enroll in St. George’s school of human medicine may earn their M.D. the same way. “This agreement creates a direct acceptance into St. George’s and gives our undergraduates a tremendous opportunity to continue his or her educational path into medical or veterinary school while having a global experience,” said David Gilmore, associate dean of undergraduate academic affairs at Regis. Undergraduate students must maintain a competitive grade-point average, score well on the Graduate Record Examination (GRE) and meet other qualifications to enroll in the veterinary school, St. George’s reported. On the island of St. Kitts, the Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine broke ground Nov. …
Researchers Hope to Lick Canine Gum DiseaseNovember 17, 2014The American Kennel Club’s Canine Health Foundation has awarded more than $25,000 for studies of two potential solutions to periodontal disease in dogs. Paola Massari, Ph.D., of Boston Medical Center will investigate a vaccine that would use a dog’s immune system to fight the bacteria responsible for gum disorders leading to tooth loss and pain. Django Martel, DVM, of the Animal Medical Center in New York will work with colleagues to determine whether antibiotic gel therapy can reduce periodontal disease, the Raleigh, N.C.-based foundation reported. Periodontal disease is a common condition in adult dogs. Most canines show evidence of periodontal disease and associated discomfort by age 3, the foundation noted. “Just like … in humans, periodontal disease in dogs is a painful condition that profoundly affects quality of life and can lead to a multitude of health problems,” said the foundation’s chief scientific officer, Shila Nordone, MS, Ph.D. “We have strategically funded research that will have immediate impact by supporting the evidence-based use of antibiotic gels to treat progressive disease, while also funding research that will provide a long-term solution by developing an effective vaccine to prevent the disease from occurring in the first place,” she said. Each …
Zoetis Buying Abbott Animal HealthNovember 17, 2014Veterinary pharmaceutical giant Zoetis Inc. has agreed to purchase Abbott Animal Health for $255 million, giving Zoetis such products as the AlphaTrak blood glucose monitoring system, the anesthesia drug PropoFlo and the feline pain reliever Simbadol. The transaction, announced today, is expected to close in the first quarter of 2015. Zoetis is the world’s largest animal health company, with 2013 revenue of $4.6 billion. Abbott Animal Health is minuscule by comparison, with annual revenue of about $80 million, a spokesman said. “The addition of Abbott Animal Health assets is an excellent complement to the Zoetis companion animal business and addresses the challenges our customers face today in effectively raising and caring for animals that are living longer and receiving more intensive medical and surgical treatment,” said Zoetis CEO Juan Ramón Alaix. Abbott’s strength is in the veterinary surgical suite, while Zoetis has focused on vaccines and medications for pets and livestock. “This acquisition strengthens our pain portfolio and our diagnostics business so we can deliver more customized solutions to veterinarians,” Alaix said. Abbott Animal Health, a division of the global health care company Abbott Laboratories of Abbott Park, Ill., does business in the United States, Canada, Australia, Japan, …
Midwestern, Lincoln Granted Provisional AccreditationNovember 14, 2014The Midwestern and Lincoln Memorial veterinary colleges, which opened this past August, have cleared a major accreditation hurdle by earning provisional status from the American Veterinary Medical Association’s Council on Education. Full accreditation could come when the inaugural classes graduate in 2018. The two colleges started their accreditation journeys when the Council on Education issued letters of reasonable assurance before the first students arrived. Comprehensive site visits next fall will help determine whether they are meeting a host of standards necessary for full accreditation. Kathleen H. Goeppinger, Ph.D., Midwestern University’s president and CEO, credited the Glendale, Ariz., college’s entire team for the provisional accreditation. “[They have] done an excellent job developing the programs and curriculum for our veterinary students,” Goeppinger said. “The AVMA has extremely high standards as an accrediting group, and we are pleased that we have met them consistently throughout the entire process.” Midwestern has gone on a $180 million spending spree to accommodate its 102 first-year veterinary students and subsequent classes. A 78,000-square-foot academic building and large and small animal hospitals are either open or under construction. Lincoln Memorial University started with 95 veterinary students on its Harrogate, Tenn., campus.
Antech Offers Image-Sharing DiagnosticsNovember 14, 2014Veterinarians submitting biopsy samples to Antech Diagnostics are now able to examine what the pathologist sees and even show the images to the pet owner. The new digital service, called MAGNIFYdp, also allows an Antech anatomic pathologist to quickly ask a colleague at another laboratory to assist with a diagnosis. Mary Kurian, Antech Diagnostics’ vice president of North American operations, called the technology “a revolutionary change in the practice of veterinary pathology.” “We provide our clients with the means to review what our pathologists see when achieving a diagnosis,” Kurian said. “Further, we allow them the unique advantage of communicating visually with pet owners about their pet’s diagnosis.” MAGNIFYdp produces digitized whole slide images that a pathologist can view on a high-resolution monitor instead of looking at tissue through a traditional binocular microscope, the company announced this week. The technology includes a “Snippet” function that allows veterinarians to view and navigate diagnostic portions of the digitized scanned tissue using their Antech Online account. “There is a direct link from the online pathology report to the Snippets,” said Philippe Labelle, DVM, Dipl. ACVP, an Antech Diagnostics anatomic pathologist. “There is no need for special equipment or software. The link …
Tufts Moves to VMCAS for Student ApplicationsNovember 13, 2014And then there were two. The Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine has joined the Veterinary Medical College Application Service (VMCAS), which allows prospective DVM students to apply to multiple schools at once. The decision, announced today by the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges, which administers VMCAS, leaves Texas A&M and Tuskegee universities as the lone holdouts among U.S. schools. Texas A&M uses the Texas Medical and Dental Schools Application Service, while Tuskegee processes applications in-house. Tuskegee is moving closer to using VMCAS, said the school’s interim dean, Ruby Perry, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVR. An AAVMC representative is scheduled to visit Tuskegee in December “so that we will be a part of the VMCAS application process that will benefit our potential students,” Dr. Perry said. Texas A&M has no plans to abandon the statewide application service, said Kenita S. Rogers, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM, the associate dean for professional programs. The College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences would use VMCAS, she said, “except for some unique circumstances,” including a limit of 10 out-of-state students in each 132-student class. “This is a much lower number, both relative and absolute, than other veterinary colleges,” Dr. Rogers said. “As such, receiving several hundred additional …
Penn Vet Working Dog Center Celebrates Graduate ‘Firsts’November 13, 2014Penn Vet Working Dog Center recently celebrated the graduation of its first diabetes alert dog, narcotics detection dog and urban search and rescue dog. The center, part of the University of Pennsylvania School of Veterinary Medicine, opened on Sept. 11, 2012 as a research and educational facility dedicated to help train scent-detection dogs for public safety and health. Dogs in the program are named in honor of individuals who lost their lives on 9/11 and canine heroes who served following the attacks. The graduates—Bretagne, a two-year-old Golden Retriever; Morgan, a two-year-old yellow Labrador Retriever, and Thunder, a two-year-old chocolate Labrador Retriever—were all members of the center’s inaugural class of puppies in September 2012. “Throughout their training, Bretagne, Morgan and Thunder consistently surpassed our highest expectations,” said Cindy Otto, DVM, Ph.D., Dipl. ACVECC, Dipl. ACVSMR, executive director of the Penn Vet Working Dog Center. “We are incredibly proud of these dogs and wish them well in their new partnerships. It will be extremely rewarding to see them thrive in their careers as they put their scent-detection skills to work in order to save lives.” As a diabetes alert dog, Bretagne will alert her owner, Wayne Mowry of Bloomingdale, N.J., when …
