See the Full Issue
October 2022
Notebook: October 2022
News briefs from across the industry and beyond. This month’s articles include:
- AKC Celebrates Its 200th Recognized Breed
- Husky Puppy Saved from Accidental Overdose by Hemoperfusione
- Study Finds New Links Between Dogs’ Sense of Smell and Vision
and more!
AKC Celebrates Its 200th Recognized Breed
The American Kennel Club (AKC), the world’s largest purebred dog registry, has announced that the Bracco Italiano has received full recognition and is the AKC’s 200th breed.
“We at the AKC are thrilled to welcome our 200th breed to the registry,” said Gina DiNardo, AKC Executive Secretary. “The Bracco Italiano is a strong, active, and sturdy breed of dog that would make a great companion for active families. The breed loves people and would be best suited for a family that can give it the love and attention it needs.”
One of two native gundogs from Italy, the Bracco Italiano’s history reaches back to the fourth or fifth century. A hunter, pointer, and retriever, the Bracco Italiano is powerful and needs daily exercise. These dogs thrive on human companionship and are loyal, affectionate, and playful. They are known to be sensitive and gentle-natured and become close friends with children.
AKC Recognition offers the breed the opportunity to compete at all levels of the 22,000 AKC sports and events held each year.
To become an AKC-recognized breed, there must be an active following and interest in the breed by owners in the US and an established breed club of responsible owners and breeders. There also must be a sufficient population of dogs in the United States geographically distributed throughout the country.
Cats Injured in Wildfires at Risk of Deadly Blood Clots
Cats who suffered burns and smoke inhalation in urban California wildfires are at risk of forming deadly blood clots, according to a new study from researchers at the University of California, Davis, Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital. The study, recently published in the journal Frontiers in Veterinary Science, follows up on a previous discovery that showed cats injured in urban wildfires had a high incidence of heart problems.
“Prior to these two papers, we didn’t realize that cats impacted by urban wildfires were prone to forming clots, which can lead to sudden death,” said lead coauthor Ronald Li, DVM, PhD, associate professor of small animal emergency and critical care at UC Davis. “This study will change the standard of care for rescued cats from these wildfires and hopefully save more lives.”
Veterinary student Valerie Fates cares for a cat hospitalized at the UC Davis Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital during the 2017 Tubbs Fire.
QUOTE OF THE MONTH
“Some people talk to animals. Not many listen though. That’s the problem.”
—A.A. Milne
Kansas State University Celebrates Graduates of the US-China Joint Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Program
Recent graduates of the US-China Joint Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Program. From left: Lei Wang, program manager for the U.S.-China Center for Animal Health; Ron Orchard; Weihan Wang; Sichao Mao; Catharine Found; Yilei Zheng, Lauren Fukushima; Xinyi Xu; Amber Irick; and Bonnie Rush, Hodes family dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine.
“The goal of the US-China Joint Doctor of Veterinary Medicine Program is to train the trainers of Chinese veterinary medicine,” said Jishu Shi, professor and director of the US-China Center for Animal Health in the College of Veterinary Medicine at Kansas State University.
For Kansas State University’s 2022 annual celebration of the program, graduates from the four other participating US colleges of veterinary medicine were invited to bring a friend. The pairs then shared their thoughts on the value of friendship during the challenges of completing a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree.
“When talking about the impact of classmates on me, I have always been amazed by how intelligent, mentally mature, and hard-working they are,” said Weihan Wang, who graduated with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine in May. “They have always been supporting me and helping me do my fourth-year class rotations. Helping and supporting each other makes our lives much easier.”
Wang’s classmate and fellow graduate Ron Orchard said, “K-State is a pretty amazing place that has opened up the world to me. . . . I hope this leads to further projects that Weihan and I can perform together in China, and I think this program provides us a blueprint on how we can accomplish that.”
Basepaws Launches New Genomic Screening Tools
Basepaws Inc., a Zoetis company and pioneer in pet care genetics, has launched a comprehensive portfolio of genetic and oral microbiome screening tools exclusively for veterinary professionals. Veterinary genetic and oral microbiome tests give veterinary teams actionable screening tools to help identify health risks sooner and provide better health outcomes for all cats and dogs.
These veterinary genetic tests screen for 64 feline health markers and over 210 canine health markers associated with known genetic diseases. The veterinary oral microbiome tests analyze more than 600 relevant oral microbes to assess risk for the most common feline dental disease. The information can guide veterinarians and pet owners in selecting annual wellness programs, routine diagnostic tests, and lifestyle changes based on an individual pet’s genetics.
“Pet genetics is ushering in an era of truly personalized and proactive medicine,” said Ernie Ward, DVM, Basepaws Veterinary Medical Lead. “Knowing a pet’s genetic risk factors and oral microbiome can help eliminate many clinical blind spots and allow veterinarians to recommend targeted diagnostic monitoring and lifestyle interventions based on scientific evidence instead of generic, species-, or breed-specific advice.”
Study Finds New Links Between Dogs’ Sense of Smell and Vision
Cornell researchers have documented the integration of dogs’ sense of smell with their vision, a step forward in understanding how dogs learn about and adapt to their surroundings.
“We’ve never seen this connection between the nose and the occipital lobe, functionally the visual cortex in dogs, in any species,” said Pip Johnson, BVSc, CertVDI, DECVDI, MSc, MRCVS, assistant professor in the Department of Clinical Sciences in the College of Veterinary Medicine and senior author of “Extensive Connections of the Canine Olfactory Pathway Revealed by Tractography and Dissection,” published July 11 in the Journal of Neuroscience.
“It makes a ton of sense in dogs,” she said. “When we walk into a room, we primarily use our vision to work out where the door is, who’s in the room, where the table is. Whereas in dogs, this study shows that olfaction is really integrated with vision in terms of how they learn about their environment and orient themselves in it.”
Reporting on this discovery in the Cornell Chronicle, Caitlyn Hayes described the technology behind it. “Johnson and her team performed MRI scans on 23 healthy dogs and used diffusion tensor imaging, an advanced neuroimaging technique, to locate the dog brain’s white matter pathways, the information highways of the brain.”
They found some connections similar to those in humans as well as “never-documented” connections between the olfactory bulb and the spinal cord and the occipital lobe.
Johnson said the research corroborates her clinical experiences with blind dogs. “They can still play fetch and navigate their surroundings much better than humans with the same condition,” Johnson said. “Knowing there’s that information freeway going between those two areas [in their brains] could be hugely comforting to owners of dogs with incurable eye diseases.”
AAVMC on the US Veterinary Workforce: “Significant Shortages of Veterinarians”
In July 2022 the American Association of Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) released its “Statement on U.S. Veterinary Workforce,” a call to action to address “significant shortages of veterinarians . . . across all sectors of professional activity and at all levels of specialization.” The reason for the shortages is described as “a result of systemic, long-term trends in pet ownership and demand for veterinary services, along with limited capacity for training veterinary professionals, and are expected to continue unless the veterinary medical profession takes action.”
The AAVMC Statement assesses the implications of the shortage: “Because of the current veterinary workforce shortage, veterinary healthcare teams are feeling overworked and overwhelmed—burnout is high. But there are also broader societal impacts.”
These include:
- Jeopardizing animal welfare for millions of pets and other animals.
- Restricting access to veterinary care for underserved pet owners.
- Putting our food systems and food security at risk because “veterinarians are our first line of defense for biosecurity, emergency preparedness, and response.”
The Veterinary Virtual Care Association Releases Model Telemedicine Regulations
The Veterinary Virtual Care Association (VVCA), a global nonprofit association dedicated to developing best practices for delivering virtual care for animals, released the industry’s first Model Telemedicine Regulations during the 2022 American Veterinary Medicine Association’s annual conference in Philadelphia.
The model regulations address the growing demand for guidance surrounding the veterinary-client-patient relationship when providing telemedicine services. They provide support and direction for practitioners, associations, legislatures, and state boards of veterinary medicine, all of which play a role in safeguarding real-world standards of practice.
“These model regulations . . . will spark conversations across the profession, which are needed,” said Mark Cushing, founding member of the VVCA and CEO of Animal Policy Group. “The VVCA will conduct reviews to update model regulations based upon field experiences and comments from individual practitioners, as well as others in the profession.”
Read the Model Telemedicine Regulations at vvca.org/wp-content/uploads/2022/07/VVCA-Model-Policy-Handout-2022-Final.pdf.
For more information on the VVCA, visit www.vvca.org.
Vetoquinol Offers On-Site Training Program in Rehabilitation Service
Vetoquinol USA has announced the launch of a new program to help veterinary clinics jump-start rehabilitation services. The VeRBS (Vetoquinol Rehabilitation Business Solution) program offers a two-day, on-site course with lectures, hands-on labs, and business planning services for up to 10 clinic staff members. Upon completion, the clinic will be prepared to launch rehabilitation services for dogs and cats immediately, including basic equipment.
“Just like people, dogs can benefit from programs that help improve fitness and overall mobility,” said Heidi Rooney, MBA, Business Solutions Development Manager, Vetoquinol USA. “With the VeRBS program, clinics can make staff training and equipment selection nearly turnkey. After a two-day training session, clinics will have the fundamentals to help patients regain strength, mobility, and comfort to become active family members again.”
The VeRBS program offers:
- On-site, personalized courses led by qualified instructors
- Hands-on labs
- Measurement methodologies
- Therapeutic techniques
- Business planning guides and treatment evaluation templates
- Marketing materials
- Instruction for using a variety of rehabilitation equipment
The courses are led by Beth Frank, DVM, MS. Frank is a Certified Canine Rehabilitation Therapist and is also certified in veterinary medical acupuncture. During the in-person course, participants will receive training in rehabilitation of the forelimb, hindlimb, geriatric patient, neurologic patient, and feline patient. The program provides 14 hours of continuing education credits per participant with a maximum of 10 staff members.
Husky Puppy Saved from Accidental Overdose by Hemoperfusion
A 10-month-old husky, Pumba (pictured above), is alive today thanks to the lifesaving hemoperfusion treatment he received at Tufts’ Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine’s Foster Hospital for Small Animals. Troy Watkins of the Cummings School News Center reported this story.
When Pumba accidentally ate a bottle of 200-mg Ibuprofen pills (possibly 200 of them), his owner, Ryan Steeves-Kilgallon, immediately rushed him to Tufts VETS (Veterinary Emergency and Treatment Services). He then brought Pumba to Foster Hospital for a special type of dialysis treatment.
Tufts VETS alerted Foster Hospital about Pumba, so staff there had time to prepare. “The minute he arrived, we put a catheter in and started treatment,” said Emmanuelle Butty, DVM, DACVIM (SAIM), Clinical Fellow in Nephrology/Urology and a veterinary internist at Foster Hospital.
“Pumba had consumed a fatal dosage of pills. He was stuporous and starting to lose his gag reflex,” said Lauren Carvalho, DVM, a senior resident in Internal Medicine who was primarily involved with Pumba’s treatment.
Veterinary Technician Carolyn Tai oversees Cummings School’s dialysis center and started Pumba on a hemoperfusion treatment.
“Hemoperfusion is a new dialysis modality we offer, which uses carbon filters or a synthetic resin that quickly allows the processing of blood through these filters to remove toxins,” explained Mary Labato, DVM, DACVIM, a veterinary internist at Foster Hospital. “Ibuprofen toxicity is one of our most frequent treatments. Dogs think they are M&Ms and they will eat entire bottles of them.”
Once the hemoperfusion treatment began, Pumba steadily recovered. Labato described the timeline. “Twenty minutes into the session, his gag reflex returned, and he was lifting his head. At 40 minutes, he was sitting up and eating treats. After the 80-minute session Pumba was taken off the machine and he walked out to say hi to his owner. We saved his life with this treatment.”
Photo credits: Photo © Valerie Kessler, Photo courtesy of Rob Warren/UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine, Photo courtesy of KSU, cnythzl/DigitalVision Vectors via Getty Images, Photo courtesy of the Extracorporeal Unit at Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine