Virbac Unveils Canine Cephalexin TabletSeptember 5, 2012 Virbac Animal Health of Fort Worth, Texas, launched the first chewable cephalexin tablet designed exclusively for dogs, the company reported Tuesday. The FDA-approved drug, called Rilexine, is indicated for the treatment of secondary superficial bacterial pyoderma in dogs caused by susceptible strains of Staphylococcus pseudintermedius. Previously, veterinarians often relied on the generic human form of cephalexin to treat dogs, but Rilexine is the first drug of its kind approved by the U.S. Food and Drug administration for the veterinary market, Virbac reported. The new drug should overcome some of the drawbacks of prescribing human cephalexin off-label, including a bitter, metallic taste and strong odor, a lack of veterinary-specific guidelines and the inability to tailor doses, Virbac noted. Pyoderma is one of the most common diseases seen in dogs, and secondary superficial bacterial pyoderma is the most common form of pyoderma, according to Virbac. Rilexine is available in 150 mg, 300 mg and 600 mg scored doses. The drug should not be prescribed to dogs that have a known allergy to cephalexin or the B-lactam group of antibiotics. <HOME>
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Calf Milk Replacer Recalled On Salmonella ConcernSeptember 4, 2012 Quality Feed Inc. of Dousman, Wis., has recalled several lots of calf milk replacer because of possible salmonella contamination, the company reported today. A supplier alerted Quality Feeds last week that some bags of raw material used to produce the milk replacer may be contaminated with salmonella. The recalled lots include about 20,000 bags of product, but only about 700 bags could have been contaminated, and of those bags, about 100 are likely to still exist, according to a company spokesman. The recalled milk replacer was manufactured between Jan. 31 and March 31, 2012, under the brand names Quality Feed, Dairy Princess, Peachey’s and Yo-momma. The recalled bags have lot numbers ending in the digits 0131 through 0323. Animals with salmonella infections may be lethargic and have diarrhea or bloody diarrhea, fever and vomiting. Some animals show only decreased appetite, fever and abdominal pain. Infected but otherwise healthy animals can be carriers of salmonella and infect other animals or humans. Livestock producers who fed the recalled milk replacer to animals and have seen these symptoms should contact their veterinarian, Quality Feed reported. Salmonella also poses a …
Washington Reports First Equine WNV Case In 3 YearsAugust 29, 2012 A two-year-old gelding contracted West Nile virus in Washington, marking the first case confirmed in the state since 2009, the Washington State Department of Agriculture reported yesterday. The horse was pastured near Grandview, Wash., and had no history of travel out of the area. The horse was not vaccinated for West Nile virus and was euthanized after testing positive for the virus, as confirmed by the Washington Animal Disease Diagnostic Laboratory in Pullman. Washington led the nation with 72 cases of West Nile virus in 2009 but reported no cases in 2010 or 2011, the WSDA reported. Though weather conditions over the past year have led to an ideal environment for mosquito breeding in Washington, complacency may have been the biggest factor in this case, said Jason Kelly, a WSDA spokesman. “When you don’t have detection for a couple of years, it’s not at the top of everyone’s mind,” Kelly said. Most horses do not become ill as a result of contracting West Nile virus, but it is fatal in about one-third of those that show clinical signs. Symptoms can include loss of coordination, loss of appetite, confusion, fever, stiffness and muscle weakness, particularly in …
Summit In Japan Will Focus On Helping Animals Contaminated By RadiationAugust 28, 2012Summit in Japan Will Focus on Helping Animals Contaminated by RadiationSummit in Japan Will Focus on Helping Animals Contaminated by RadiationSummit in Japan Will Focus on Helping Animals Contaminated by RadiationThe International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) will hold a summit May 2-3 in Japan to develop response procedures and protocols to monitor, evacuate and treat animals contaminated by radiation.The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) will hold a summit May 2-3 in Japan to develop response procedures and protocols to monitor, evacuate and treat animals contaminated by radiation.newslinePosted: April 21, 2011, 3:30 p.m., EDT The International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW) will hold a summit May 2-3 in Japan to develop response procedures and protocols to monitor, evacuate and treat animals contaminated by radiation. Topics will include radiation exposure, animal physiology, animal behavior, animal rescue and evacuation techniques, animal decontamination, animal sheltering and husbandry, wildlife habitat and rehabilitation and human responder safety. The summit is in response to the earthquake and subsequent tsunami that hit Japan on March 11 and caused damage to the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant. After radiation was detected outside of the plant, the government of Japan declared a mandatory evacuation of residents within the …
Duty To Treat Animals Depends On State LawsAugust 27, 2012 How many times have you seen a patient with a serious but treatable condition that your client just refused to treat? Have you ever felt that the lack of treatment bordered on cruelty or abuse? The law may agree with you. Every state in the union has a statute that addresses animal cruelty. Obviously, state laws differ, but at least some of them require some level of veterinary care for animals. Others do not come out and explicitly require veterinary care, but those laws have later been interpreted to require such care by the courts. In general, there is no duty to help others under the common law. Certain relationships create a duty of care such as that between a parent and minor child. But without some sort of state “good Samaritan” statute, one is legally allowed to walk right by a stranger bleeding to death on the sidewalk. Similarly, one can, under the common law, ignore the distress of one’s own animal. Any legal duty to treat an animal thus arises from state law, specifically the state cruelty statute. For example, Minnesota law states that “No person shall overdrive, overload, torture, cruelly beat, neglect, …
KC Animal Health Symposium Slated For MondayAugust 23, 2012 Guy Palmer, DVM, Ph.D., Dr.Med.Vet., of Washington State University, and James L. Cook, DVM, Ph.D., Dipl. ACV, Dipl. ACVSMR, of the University of Missouri, Columbia, will deliver the keynote speeches at the 2012 Animal Health Research Symposium on Monday, Aug. 27, 2012, in conjunction with the CVC Kansas City convention in Kansas City, Mo. Dr. Palmer, a regents professor of pathology and infectious diseases and director of the Paul G. Allen School for Global Animal Health at Washington State, will discuss global innovations in animal health. Dr. Cook, a distinguished professor and director of the Comparative Orthopaedic (sic) Lab at Missouri, will talk about building bridges between laboratory medicine and orthopedics. Other scheduled speakers include Philip Bergman, DVM, MS, Ph.D., of the Katonah Bedford Veterinary Center in Bedford Hills, N.Y.; Wayne Carter, DVM, Ph.D., Dipl. ACVIM, of the Kansas City Area Life Sciences Institute; Paul Dale, M.D., Fellow ACS, of the University of Missouri; Marvin Grubman, Ph.D., of the Plum Island Animal Disease Center in New York; T.G. Nagaraja, M.V.Sc., Ph.D., of Kansas State University and Linda Rhodes, VMD, Ph.D., of Artana Therapeutics in Kansas City, Kan. …
Scottish Vet School Offers Online Degree In Conservation MedicineAugust 22, 2012The University of Edinburgh Royal School of Veterinary Studies in Scotland will enroll the first students in an online conservation medicine program this fall, the university reported. The program is targeted at international veterinarians and intends to provide them with the skills required to be effective practitioners of conservation medicine and enable them to develop solutions to ecological health issues. Starting in September, veterinarians will study part time for one to three years to earn a certificate, diploma or master’s degree. The first class includes veterinarians from Cyprus, France, India, North America, Rwanda, Turkey and the United Kingdom, the university reported this week. “Conservation medicine needs biologists, ecologists, public health specialists and vets to work together, but while a lot of vets are keen to become involved, there is limited training in this area,” said Anna Meredith, Vet.M.B., Ph.D., Cert.L.A.S., D.Zoo.Med., a professor of zoological and conservation medicine at the school. “This is why we wanted to run such a course that could be accessed by vets from all over the world.” The school appointed Dr. Meredith to head the program. She also is involved in research related to …
Florida Looking For Next Veterinary DeanAugust 17, 2012 The University of Florida’s search for a new veterinary college dean will take another step forward Sept. 14, 2012, when a committee meets to review initial applications for the job. Top administrators from the university’s Academic Health Center and the Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences formed a search committee to recruit a replacement for Glen Hoffsis, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVIM. He is scheduled to retire July 1, 2013. The committee met July 23, 2012, to outline criteria for selecting the next dean. The members were asked to find a candidate who has a strong vision for the college during tough economic times, can strike a balance among all missions of the college, and can interact with the many constituencies associated with the college and the university. “Dean Hoffsis has done an excellent job serving the college and the university during his six years at UF,” said Teresa A. Dolan, DDS, dean of the College of Dentistry and committee co-chairwoman. “When he retires, he will leave the college in a position of strength and poised for growth, making the deanship an attractive opportunity for a strong academic leader in veterinary medicine.” Helping lead the search …
Progress In Treating FIP ReportedAugust 15, 2012 Feline infectious peritonitis, or FIP, has long been a diagnosis without hope. But a new medication shows promise, and a cutting-edge genetic breakthrough might be within reach. Niels Pedersen, DVM, PhD, and Al Legendre, DVM, PhD, spoke of hope to a crowd of nearly 200 veterinarians, cat breeders and cat lovers at the recent 33rd annual Winn Foundation Symposium in Reston, Va. Dr. Pedersen is director of the Center for Companion Animal Health and the Veterinary Genetics Laboratory at the University of California, Davis. Dr. Legendre, Dipl. ACVIM, is a professor of internal medicine and oncology at the University of Tennessee College of Veterinary Medicine, Knoxville. Once clinical signs occur, FIP has been considered fatal. Most instances of FIP occur in kittens, and it happens a lot, or at least more than previously suspected. According to Pedersen, one in 100 to one in 300 of all cats under ages 3-5 succumbs to FIP. The incidence can be five to 10 times greater among young cats coming from catteries and shelters. A Difficult Disease Since 1963 when FIP was discovered, there had been little real progress affecting the lifespan of those who are diagnosed. …
Pets Best Debuts Feline Illness Insurance PlanAugust 15, 2012 Pets Best Insurance launched a low-premium, illness-only feline insurance plan targeted at budget-conscious cat owners, the Boise, Idaho, company reported today. The plan does not cover accidents but does provide coverage of up to $4,000 annually and $10,000 over a cat’s lifetime. An entry-level plan starts at under $4 a month, the company reported. A quote from the company’s website for a $1,000 deductible, 70 percent reimbursement, illness-only policy for a 1-year-old, mixed-breed cat in California ran $2.11 a month. According to the Pets Best website, the new plan includes coverage for: • Cancer • Hyperthyroidism • Diabetes • Chronic renal failure • Acute renal failure • Hepatic lipidosis • Cholecystitis • Feline asthma • Pancreatitis • Pneumonia • Heart disease • Intestinal foreign body • Hypothyroidism • Pyothorax • Chylothorax • Arthritis • cquired cataracts • Feline infectious peritonitis (only if vaccinated) • Feline leukemia virus (only if vaccinated) • Anemia and clotting disorders • Mast cell tumors As of Aug. 7, …
