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Why staff retention deserves your attention in the New Year

AAHA surveyed nearly 15,000 veterinary professionals and learned that 30% plan to leave their current job within the coming year. What might make them want to stay? It starts with the right goals.

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New insights from an AAHA survey into why people in vet med leave, and what could make them want to stay.

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Recent articles

  • December 22, 2009

    N.Y. dog tests positive for H1N1

    A dog in New York has become the first documented case of an H1N1 virus-infected dog in the United States. The test was performed by Idexx Laboratories, and results were confirmed by Iowa State Laboratories, according to an American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) news release. The 13-year-old neutered male mixed breed dog was tested for the virus after his owner took him to an emergency clinic in Bedford Hills, N.Y. The dog had a dry cough and a fever, and the owner reported that the dog was lethargic and not eating. The owner had also tested positive for H1N1 earlier in the week, according to the Idexx case report.
  • December 8, 2009

    China reports two dogs with H1N1

    The Chinese government reported last week that two dogs had tested positive for the H1N1 virus. The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) said in a news alert that it had learned of the findings, and was investigating the validity of the reports. “We have not been able to confirm the findings of H1N1 in dogs in China,” AVMA spokesman Michael San Filippo said. “We’ve reached out to the College of Veterinary Medicine at the China Agricultural University in Beijing, which reported that two dogs had tested positive, but have not heard anything back from them.” The AVMA says the reports are no cause for panic, but veterinarians and pet owners should remain vigilant to flu-like symptoms in pets. The AVMA has an H1N1 resource and information page on its website, that will be updated as information becomes available. The following are excerpts from an interview with a Ministry of Agriculture official regarding the dogs’ cases, translated from the official website of the Chinese government by NEWStat reporter Ben Williams.
  • December 8, 2009

    Intervet urges veterinarians to transition patients off Vetsulin

    The makers of the veterinary insulin product Vetsulin are stressing the need to transition diabetic animals off of the drug “as soon as possible.” The U.S. Food and Drug Administration recently issued a product alert on Vetsulin when amounts of crystalline insulin in the formulation were found to be out of specification in some batches of the product. Vetsulin manufacturer Intervet/Schering Plough Animal Health sent a letter to veterinarians in November urging them to begin transitioning diabetic patients off Vetsulin due to predicted shortages in product availability. Last week, Intervet issued a follow-up letter to veterinarians, which had a more urgent tone than the first communication from the company. In the letter, Intervet Director of Technical Services Christopher Pappas Jr., DVM, emphasized that veterinarians should transition dogs and cats from Vetsulin to other products as soon as possible, and to start new patients on other drugs.
  • November 24, 2009

    Houston vaccination ordinance highlights sticky issue

    The city of Houston is attempting to enforce a decades-old law regarding a veterinarian’s role in pet licensing, but the law is meeting with opposition from many of the city’s veterinarians. The ordinance, passed in 1985, states that veterinarians who vaccinate dogs and cats against rabies must either provide owners’ information to the city’s Bureau of Animal regulation and Care (BARC), or issue the licenses themselves. Houston veterinarians received a letter from the city’s Administration and Regulatory Affairs Department in late September. The letter reminded veterinarians that according to the city ordinance (Chapter 6 of the City of Houston Code of Ordinances), all dogs and cats must be licensed in Houston. The letter explains that according to the ordinance, veterinarians who vaccinate any dog or cat within Houston city limits must either: License the animal while acting as a deputy licensing authority at the time of the administration of the vaccine; orProvide a copy of the fully executed vaccination certificate to the Houston Bureau of Animal Regulation and Care with the following information: Description of the dog or catIf the animal has been spayed/neuteredNumber on the rabies vaccination tag issuedName and address of the ownerNumber of the Houston registration tag, if any The letter threatens steep penalties for veterinarians who do not comply with the ordinance.
  • November 10, 2009

    AVMA on H1N1 cat: Don’t Panic

    In light of the discovery of the H1N1 influenza virus in an Iowa cat last week and three more Oregon ferrets this week, veterinarians and technicians should familiarize themselves with some key facts regarding this disease in pets. So far, H1N1 has been detected in humans, ferrets, pigs, birds and a cat. There is no evidence that the virus has spread to other animals, but is theoretically possible for that to happen, said AVMA spokeswoman Kimberly May, DVM, MS, DACVS. However, May pointed out that people are still more likely to be infected by other people than by animals.
  • November 10, 2009

    Intervet urges transition from Vetsulin

    Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health (ISP) is urging veterinarians to transition their diabetic patients off of its veterinary insulin product, Vetsulin. The company is advising veterinarians to be cautious in the transition to other insulin products in order to avoid complications. And company representatives also said that practices can obtain refunds on unopened vials of the product. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA), along with ISP, issued a product alert on Vetsulin, after batches of the product were found to be out of specification. Vetsulin, a porcine insulin zinc suspension used to treat diabetes in dogs and cats, contains crystalline insulin and amorphous insulin. The concentration of the crystalline component was higher than what is outlined in the specifications of the product, the company said, which “could potentially result in your patients experiencing a delay in the onset of action, a delay in peak activity, and an overall extension of the duration of activity.” However, the company also noted that no occurrences of this have been documented.
  • October 27, 2009

    Cure for feline asthma could be on the horizon

    Cats suffering from asthma may be able to breathe easier soon, as a research team nears completion of a study to find a cure for the disease. It has been estimated that feline asthma affects 1-5 percent of all cats, meaning that up to 4.1 million cats may suffer from asthma. Current treatments reduce clinical signs and inflammation, but do not provide a cure. “We are working hard to develop a cure for asthma in cats,” said principal investigator, Carol Reinero, DVM, DACVIM, PhD.  “And since ‘allergy shots’ are the only available treatment with the potential to cure allergy in any species, we have developed and are testing protocols for allergic asthma in cats.”  The three-year study is being funded by the Morris Animal Foundation. So far the team has published two manuscripts and is working on the third and last part of the study right now. Reinero said the entire study would be complete in about six months.
  • October 27, 2009

    Major pharmaceutical deals finalized in October

    The completion of two major deals involving pharmaceutical companies was announced this month. The deals shuffle around several vaccine and companion animal pharmaceutical lines, but the companies say veterinarians won’t see any changes right away. New Pfizer Animal Health Pfizer Inc. will add more than two dozen new companion animal pharmaceutical products to its inventory, as part of its approximately $68 billion acquisition of Wyeth and its subsidiary Fort Dodge Animal Health. Pfizer now has the Lyme disease vaccine Lymevax, topical flea and tick control product Promeris, and anesthetic Ketaset. Pfizer will retain a total of 28 Fort Dodge over-the-counter and prescription companion animal products (See the full list below). Pfizer will also retain several of Fort Dodge’s devices: The balance of Fort Dodge’s companion animal products went to pharmaceutical company Boehringer Ingelheim under that company’s agreement with Pfizer, according to Pfizer Associate Marketing Manager Deirdre O’Brien.
  • October 13, 2009

    Supreme Court weighs animal cruelty law

    The United States Supreme Court is considering overturning a decade-old law banning depictions of animal cruelty. And according to one Supreme Court justice, that could pave the way for a “human sacrifice channel” or an “ethnic cleansing channel” on cable TV. The court heard the case of United States v. Robert Stevens last week, in which U.S. Deputy Solicitor General Neal Katyal argued that Stevens should be convicted under Title 18, Section 48 of the U.S. Code. The law states: “Whoever knowingly creates, sells, or possesses a depiction of animal cruelty with the intention of placing that depiction in interstate or foreign commerce for commercial gain, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.”
  • October 13, 2009

    Florida senator proposes ban on reptiles

    A proposed law in Florida would ban at least six reptile species from the state. Democratic state Sen. Eleanor Sobel is proposing an amendment to Florida’s law on venomous reptiles and other “reptiles of concern.” The amended bill lays out six specific reptiles that would be illegal to keep, possess, import, sell, barter, trade or breed, unless the owner secures a permit before July 1, 2010 – the same day the law would go into effect if passed. Owners of anacondas (except green anacondas) would have until Oct. 1, 2010 to obtain a permit. The species in question are: Burmese or Indian python (Python molurus)Reticulated python (Python reticulatus)African rock python (Python sebae)Amethystine or scrub python (Morelia amethystinus)Anaconda (Eunectes)Nile monitor (Varanus niloticus) The bill also includes a wide-open seventh category of prohibited reptile: “any other reptile designated as a reptile of concern” by the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission (FWC).