Two New Studies:

• Analgesic evaluation of tramadol in osteoarthritic geriatric cats. Alonso Guedes, of the University of California Davis, is seeking to evaluate whether tramadol can produce pain relief in cats in an effort to increase the available options for pain relief in cats with osteoarthritis.

• Evaluation of wool sucking behavior in Siamese and Birman cats. In this study, Nicholas Dodman of Tufts University hopes to identify a genetic link and explore environmental causes of wool sucking behavior.

Check the clinical trials page to see if any of the ongoing trials might make new or novel therapies available for your patients.

If you would like to add your clinical trial or research project, please complete this survey or contact mrishniw@vin.com.

Head 'Back to School' with Great CE Choices in September
The 22nd European College of Veterinary Internal Medicine - Companion Animals (ECVIM-CA) Annual Congress will be held in Maastricht, The Netherlands on September 6 - 8.

Check out the ECVIM-CA 2011 proceedings.

OR:

Hit the trail for the 18th International Veterinary Emergency and Critical Care Symposium (IVECCS '12) September 8-12, at the Grand Hyatt in San Antonio, Texas.

Check out the IVECCS 2011 proceedings in the VIN Library.

Learn Some New Personal Finance Strategies
Can you balance your checkbook? At the end of the month, can you remember what you spent all your money on? Do you have to hold multiple jobs to pay for your lifestyle?

Register for Introduction to Personal Finance-Basic Strategies for Spending and Budgeting and get an eye-opening look at what you spend vs. your income and learn some valuable tools to help you understand your personal financial situation and how to begin improving it.

This course is open to both VIN and VSPN members.

NOTE: No personal or business financial information will be asked for or collected by VIN/VSPN.

NEWS THAT'S FIT TO CLICK and discuss;
News reported for YOU...

• California spay-neuter license plate backers near goal
  Public | VIN | Discussion
• Can MDs and DVMs bridge the cultural divide?
  Public | VIN | Discussion
• Veterinarians brainstorm to change AVMA governance
  Public | VIN | Discussion
• Helping Pets Fund closes
  Public | VIN | Discussion
• FTC eyes distribution of pet medications
  Public | VIN | Discussion
• Dog breed genetic tests put to the test
  Public | VIN | Discussion

Evolving stories
* SPCA International’s spending under scrutiny

Be a VIN newshound:
VNS is here to give YOU a voice and report news that is important to YOU. Got an idea for a story? Have a story that needs covering? Post it on the boards or email News@vin.com.

The VIN News Service (without access to the community discussions) is available to the general public. Share news.vin.com with nonVINners.

Follow VNS on Twitter! Send a Twitter request to receive VNS Tweets.

New and Revised Articles to Share With
Your Clients!

• Alprazolam (revised)
• Go Play!

Texas Farm Radio

• Changes in Equine Parasite Control

ANIMALicious

• Zoobiquity: the Intersection of Human and Non-human Animal Medicine

Clinical, radiological and ultrasonographic features, treatment and outcome in 22 horses with caudal distal radial osteochondromata
Although a well recognised clinical entity, only small numbers of osteochondromata on the caudal distal radius have previously been published and its occurrence in young racing Thoroughbreds has not previously been reported. Identification and management of associated lesions in the deep digital flexor tendon have received scant attention in the literature.

A survey of the risk of zoonoses for veterinarians
The objectives of this study were to identify factors associated with zoonotic infections in veterinarians, the incidence of physician consultation and treatment and the incidence of diagnostic and treatment errors. Veterinarians in any area of practice were solicited to participate in an online survey through an invitation letter sent to the Oregon Veterinary Medical Association.

The opportunistic Sarcoptes scabiei: A new episode from giraffe in the drought-suffering Kenya
In this paper we report, for the first time to our knowledge, an outbreak of sarcoptic mange in giraffes in the wild.

Welfare group wants to sell prescription drugs without need for veterinarian/client/patient relationship
We secret-shopped this place. When asked if we needed to bring the pet in, our technicians were told over the phone that the weight of the pet was the only information needed.

Illegal job interview questions: should I point out they are illegal, or just answer them?
I'd have probably said, "Oh, that's a good question. You're trying to find out if I know what is and isn't legal for a potential employer to ask, in case I have managerial duties. I'm happy to tell you that I know it's not legal to ask that."

Tennis balls do abrade teeth in dogs
Many of these dogs will spin the tennis ball so it acts like a sanding disk. I've seen them wear down even metal crowns with tennis balls.

Foreign body that is not a cystic calculi was found in the bladder of a dog
Could this be a metal foreign body that migrated? I don't see how that is going to come out of her urethra without urethroscopy -- or at least fluoroscopic-guided retrieval.

How to Use VIN: Part 1
Wednesday, August 1, 9:30 p.m. EDT
(Thursday, August 2, 2:30 a.m. GMT/UTC)
Learn how to use VIN's Knowledgebase.
E-mail HowTo@VIN.com for more information about this free, three-session course.

VIN Journal Club

Thursday, August 2, 1 p.m. EDT
(Thursday, August 2, 5 p.m. GMT/UTC)
Join Kathy James, DVM, PhD, DACVIM, to discuss a urology paper.
A protocol for managing urethral obstruction in male cats without urethral catheterization.
Cooper ES, Owens TJ, et al.
J Am Vet Med Assoc. December 2010;237(11):1261-6.
All VIN members are welcome to attend this monthly series.
Find out how to access the full text article.
* This session is all text, no audio.

Sunday Rounds
Sunday, August 5, 10 p.m. EDT
(Monday, August 6, 2 a.m. GMT/UTC)
Test your knowledge for fame and prizes in the Veterinary Quiz Challenge.

Full Rounds Schedule and Countdown Clock
Use the Rounds link to join these discussions

Want to See What You've Been Missing?

• Perioperative Opioids In Cats - INTERIM
• Stayin' Alive: RECOVER What's New In CPR VIN/VECCS
• Human Medication Toxicities: Part 2 @
• Blood Glucose Curves: The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly @
• ACVIM Updates in Feline Medicine @
• Flamingos: Management & Medicine @
• Human Med Toxicities 1 @ VIN/VSPN

Download VINCasts
Too busy to read past Rounds sessions? Download VINCasts to your MP3 player and listen on the go. Rounds available as VINCasts are marked with an @.

If you've reserved time for some quiet reading, click the Rounds button on the VIN Main Navigation bar and read the transcripts of the last few Rounds. You can also browse the complete list of the last 300 Rounds transcripts or you can click on Rounds and Discussions in the VIN Library.

Rounds are also searchable via the search button. Just remember to choose Rounds (under the Clinical Resources tab) as the "Source" in your search parameters.

The VIN WOW Factor!
In addition to the Website of the Week you'll find a plethora of links to VINners' favorite resources outside of VIN.

Browse the category list on the left side of the page to find helpful information on everything from Alternative/Holistic Medicine to Computers to Toxicology.

There's even a category just for fun stuff for those days when you could use a laugh after one of those appointments that make you want to cry.

Share your favorite website with your fellow VINners! Please be sure to include the complete site address (URL) and tell us why you like the site.

Need Help?
If you ever feel lost trying to find your way around on VIN or overwhelmed by all there is to see and do, help is a click, email or phone call away!

Click Help on the VIN Main Navigation bar on almost every page to begin exploring the new and improved VIN Help Center.

Meet the membership services team, find links to How-to videos, learn about Top Issues and Solutions, see What’s New on VIN, and much more.

Book Review of the Week
Large Animal Clinical Procedures for Veterinary Technicians, 2nd Edition
Buy it in the Bookstore.
Catch up on previous Book Reviews!

Website of the Week
Heat Stress Maps

eVetSites Tip of the Week
Editing your eVetsite's Google map listing with Google Places

What's your Diagnosis?
Archives of the Challenging and Fun Cases
Ophthalmology Case 148 - Opened 7/5
Pathology Case 99 - Opened 7/9
Zoonosis Case 122 - Opened 7/16

Post Multiple Images in a single message board discussion.

Associate - Updated and New
Rhinitis (feline)
Explore the rest of Associate!

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 websites! Links to information about upcoming conferences include: AAV, ECVIM, IVECCS and SWVS.

That's why we have birthday cake
My son just attended a birthday party where he was introduced to Pixie Stix for the first time. My wife and I explained to him that it wasn't the healthiest snack since it's basically sugar (with artificial flavor and coloring added). My 8-year-old son Andrew replied seriously and matter of factly, "It's okay, Dad, that's why we have a pancreas."

NOW OPEN FOR ENROLLMENT!
Click on the links below to see the details, register, and find more upcoming CE.

Advanced Hematology
August 16 - October 14, 2012

Increase familiarity with blood cells and apply this knowledge to specific conditions in hematology including unusual hereditary conditions, toxicities, changes associated with chemotherapy and immune-mediated hemolytic anemia. A review of pathophysiology is included to enable correlation between function and disease.

Systems D: Organ System Pathophysiology and ABVP Core Examination Review
August 23 - October 28, 2012

This course is the sixth of six modules of the Organ System Pathophysiology and ABVP Core Examination review course. The organ system-based modules build on the foundations of pathophysiology and medicine in modules 1 and 2, using concepts and disease examples specific to the various body systems.

LIKE VIN CE on Facebook!

For more information on CE opportunities for veterinary technicians, receptionists, or practice managers, visit the VSPN Course Catalog. VSPN offers courses tailored to veterinary support personnel, and certain VIN courses also are open to VSPN members.

Follow VIN CE and VSPN on Twitter! Click the "Send request" button to prompt the (VIN / VSPN) crews to accept you as a follower.

Visit the CE Main Page and check out the Course Catalog to see what's on the schedule.