Pet Food Recall Information!
- The Recall has expanded AGAIN
- Sunshine Mills recalls dog biscuits - thus far their website is overloaded so specific details have been unavailable.
- Menu Foods expands list - The VIN Community Update - Updated and Revised 4/5/2007 (we will continue to update as more information is available)
- including very preliminary information from the VIN Community Survey - FDA reports they believe they have located all of the places the affected wheat gluten was distributed to.
- UC Davis is offering specific testing for melamine in foods (tissue testing maybe added in the future)
One issue to consider is what is our responsibility as veterinarians. How do you document that your patients' signs were a result of the affected pet foods? It is possible that documenting melamine in urine, kidney tissues, and foods will be key. Save and preserve what you can. Share your ideas on this with your colleagues. Another important clue is the presence of crystals in urine and renal histopathology samples. For now the best advice is to save samples, foods, and, as always, keep complete records.
You can help answer this question by responding to this survey whether you HAVE or HAVE NOT seen one or more cases of renal failure associated with consumption of the implicated pet foods. Many VINners have posted suspected cases, but we need more information from ALL VINners to get a feel for the true scope of the problem. Results from both the message boards data collation and survey responses will be merged and analyzed. The results will be shared with the profession. Keep Current on the Recall
The number of companies recalling foods expanded last weekend. Links to list of recalled foods are kept up-to-date in the VIN COMMUNITY SUMMARY. We will continue to compile what we know up to the moment. Also available is a VIN summary about monitoring renal function in exposed pets. There are also several ongoing message boards discussions for VIN Members: Recent Recalls:
Veterinary Clinical Pathology - Online - Full Text!
Thanks to the American Society for Veterinary Clinical Pathology (ASVCP) and the VIN Foundation, VINners have free access to full text journal articles from 30 years of Veterinary Clinical Pathology. Journal articles are available via either Search or Library (Journals). You can even get quality PDF versions that look just like the Journal. Enjoy!
Broaden Your Horizons!
Pre-register for ABVP 2007!
Find out more about the 2007 annual conference of the American Board of Veterinary Practitioners, April 27-29 in Long Beach, CA. Pre-registration closes April 13th. For an idea of what it's all about, be sure to check out the proceedings from the ABVP 2006 Conference. Great CE in North America
The ACVIM Forum 2007 will take place June 6-9 in Seattle, WA.
Explore the 2006 Forum Proceedings. Access to the 2007 Forum Proceedings will be available to registrants prior to the Forum.
New in VeterinaryPartner:
Texas Farm Radio:
Holiday waistline. Time to consensus: the effect of the stomach on consensus decision-making at large conferences
There was an association between the time to consensus (TTC) and the time to eating, especially lunch. There was a trend to faster TTC the better the researchers rated the food. The speed of decision-making was also increased when the self-reported level of frustration score was high, especially late in the day.
Coil occlusion of residual shunts after surgical closure of patent ductus arteriosus
Transcatheter coil embolization appears to be a safe and minimally invasive procedure for complete occlusion of residual patent ductus arteriosus (PDA) flow after incomplete surgical ligation. Transcatheter coil embolization should be considered for correction of hemodynamically significant residual shunts in dogs that have incomplete PDA occlusion after open surgical ligation.
High-Dose-Rate Brachytherapy for Intranasal Tumours in Dogs: Results of a Pilot Study
Eight of fifteen dogs showed clinical complete remission, and five of fifteen dogs had partial remission, with a resolution of tumour-related symptoms. Magnetic resonance imaging showed a reduced tumour mass in 12/15 cases. Median survival time was 17 months (range 4-48 months), with four dogs (three without disease) still alive. Median time to recurrence of these dogs was 14 months. In nine dogs, progression or recurrence of the tumour was the cause of death. This study suggests that HDR brachytherapy is feasible and well tolerated.
Clinical, histopathological and immunophenotypical findings in five horses with cutaneous malignant lymphoma
In conclusion, the results of this study suggest that cutaneous non-epitheliotropic malignant lymphomas in the horse are of T-cell origin and that, after improvement of its accuracy, flow cytometric analysis of FNAs might become a useful aid to rapid tumour identification.
I Need Proof Of The Benefits Of Analgesia For My Boss ('Animals Don't Feel Pain Like We Do'; 'Being In Pain Can Be A Good Thing')
The difficulty, of course, lies in the evaluation of pain. Trying to "prove" animals feel pain beyond the initial stimulus is complicated by the fact that we rely principally on assessment of behavioral responses to gauge whether suffering exists, and this is subject to both the skill and biases of the observer.
Cat With Large Ventral Cervical Mass: Photographs Of Surgical Excision Of Thyroid Cyst
Cat presented with fluctuant mass on the right side of the ventral neck that was deviating the trachea. Mass was surgically excised. Histopathology indicated thyroid follicular cyst.
Have You Just Built A New Hospital? What Are You Happy With, And What Do You Wish You Had Done Differently
We're considering doing a survey and maybe even collecting data on designs, architests, mistakes, flooring, cages, etc. To see if there is interest and to help build the survey, we're starting this thread.
Be Proactive When Dealing With Clients Who Hate To Wait -- Explaining Delays Can Defuse Frustration
Being behind on appointments is often unavoidable. Right above the walk-on scale in our waiting room, we have a professionally made sign that tells our clients, "Sometimes we get behind on our schedule and your wait may be longer than anticipated. This occurs when a medical emergency comes in. We, and the family of the emergency patient, greatly appreciate your patience. We assure you that in the unfortunate event of an emergency, your pet will receive the same immediate care and attention. We thank you for your patience and understanding, and assure you that we are dedicated to providing your pet the very best care and we all consider every patient to be family."
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 Sunday Rounds
Sunday, April 8 - No Rounds
Spend some time with your offline family.
Weekday Rounds
Monday, April 9, 9 pm ET
Join Lester Mandelker, DVM, DABVP, for Medicine From The Inside Out: General Disease/Aging And Novel Therapies. This is part 4 of a 4 part series on oxidative stress, mitochondrial dysfunction, and novel therapies.
This Week's Rounds Schedule -- use the Rounds link to join the discussion.
Virtual Coffeehouse
Tuesday, April 10, 9:30 pm ET
Have you finished your USA tax return? Stop by and tell us!
This Week's Rounds Schedule -- use the Coffeehouse link to join the discussion.
How to Use VIN: Part 2
Wednesday, April 11, 9:30 pm ET
Learn how to use VIN. Email Nate@VIN.com for more information about this three-session course. Recent Rounds
 Abstract Of The Week:
Functional Outcome Following Hemilaminectomy without Methylprednisolone Sodium Succinate for Acute Thoracolumbar Disk Disease in 51 Non-ambulatory Dogs
What's Your Diagnosis?
* Ophthalmology Case: 14
* Case Archives
Associate - Updated and New:
* Dancing Doberman disease is probably a peripheral neuropathy! Explore the rest of the Associate!
Website Of The Week:
The Compendium of Veterinary Vaccines for Transboundary Diseases, and more ...
Book Review of the Week:
Biology, Medicine, and Surgery of Elephants
You may purchase this book in the VIN store. Get More From VIN!
* How Do I...Email Another VINner?
* Read The "How to Use VIN" Tutorial
* How Can I ... Learn Associate?
* How Can I ... Become a Super-Duper VIN User?
* How Can I ... Post an Image on the Message Boards?
eVetsites Tip of the Week:
Add a Pet Food Recall Linked Page
Upcoming Conferences
Looking to attend -- or contribute a paper to -- a veterinary conference? Check out the On The Road With VIN folder, or the Press Releases folder, to see what conferences are coming up and to visit their web sites! Links to information about upcoming conferences include: BSAVA, NAVDF, ABVP, VOOJAARSDAGEN and CVC East.
From the Boards:
* Approach To Pruritus Cases
* Dipping Pig Syndrome
* What's On Your Crash Cart?
* Coping With Ringworm In A Shelter
Advanced Front Desk Supervisor
The front desk/receptionist supervisor is the person with the greatest customer contact. We'll review customer service and why it's vital to the success of every practice. The goal is for customers to think of the practice every time they consider care for their pets. During the course we'll study personalities; how to recognize four styles and their communication preferences. By understanding personalities, front office staff can adapt communication style to connect with customers and improve relationships. We'll also study ways to communicate with customers to be sure we're meeting their needs and communicating value so they'll continue to use the practice and recommend it to friends. Upon completion of this course, the participant should be able to: - Recognize personality styles of the participant, coworkers, and clients.
- Adapt personality styles for more effective customer relationships.
- Determine what customers value most and adapt your practice accordingly.
Instructor:
Maryellen Ferring, BS, MS, CHA, CE Dates:
May 1 - May 31, 2007 Real-time sessions: Monday evenings May 7 and 14 and Tuesday evening May 22; 9:00pm-10:30pm pm ET CE Hours: 4.5 Tuition:
$83 ($75.00 early bird special if registered by April 17, 2007). Required Texts:
Purchase texts at any bookstore. - Delivering Knock Your Socks Off Service 3rd Ed. Performance Research Associates, Inc.
Anderson, K., & Zemke, R. (2003)
- The BUZZ: 50 little things that make a big difference to world-class customer service
Freemantle, D. (2004)
To find out more about this course:
Visit the Advanced Front Desk Supervisor page. To register, scroll to the bottom of the course information page and choose the Enroll Now link.
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