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.

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.

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.

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.”

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).

A familiar name in the veterinary drug world could fall by the wayside, if a planned buyout goes forward. Pharmaceutical group Boehringer Ingelheim (BI) and its U.S. animal health division, Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica, Inc., announced Sept. 22 that it has entered into an agreement with Pfizer, Inc., to acquire “certain assets” of Wyeth Pharmaceutical’s Fort Dodge Animal Health. The deal will take place after the closing of Pfizer’s merger with Wyeth, which is expected in the fourth quarter of this year. Financial terms of the BI-Fort Dodge deal were not disclosed. Under the proposed agreement, BI will take ownership of a “significant portion of the Fort Dodge product portfolio,” including part of its pet vaccine product line in the U.S. and Canada. The company was not specific about which products they would be acquiring. “If approved, Boehringer Ingelheim will acquire several, but not all, of the pet vaccines currently manufactured and sold by Fort Dodge Animal Health in the U.S., Canada, and Australia,” said BI spokeswoman Amy Kunkel. “In addition, we will acquire a portfolio of pet pharmaceutical products current sold by Fort Dodge Animal Health in the U.S.”

China has completed a draft of its first-ever “Animal Protection Law,” and has begun to seek public input. The proposed law was drafted by a team of more than 20 people from China and other countries. If passed, those found guilty of animal cruelty would be fined up to 6,000 yuan ($877) and two weeks in prison. The law would also require microchips in pets, and prohibit owners from breeding their pets. One section of the proposed law deals with witnesses to animal cruelty. In an article in the Yangtze Daily, the author of the “General Provisions” section, Wuhan University Professor Cai Shouqiu talked about some of the law’s provisions. Cai said that under the law, those who witness animal abuse would have the right to represent the animal in court.

The legislative session is over, but a special committee has been formed in Iowa to discuss the fate of commercial breeders in that state. No action was taken on House File 486, Iowa’s version of the “puppy mill bill,” during the regular session. But a committee was formed and will meet near the end of September to study the matter further, according to state Rep. Jim Lykam, who supported the bill. The act would have given inspectors from the Iowa Department of Agriculture the right to inspect federally licensed breeding facilities where animals are suspected of being abused. Under the current law, only federal U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) inspectors can enter such facilities.

In the past few weeks, legal activity in California has potentially affected the lives of many companion animals. Mandatory spay-neuter bill fails Senate Bill 250 was defeated by the State Assembly by a vote of 28-42. The bill would have required the mandatory spaying and neutering of cats and dogs kept as pets in California, with some exceptions. Commercial breeder regulation moves ahead Assembly Bill 241, the Responsible Breeder Act, deals with the commercial breeding of dogs and cats. According to the bill, no person or business entity in California can have more than a combined total of 50 adult unsterilized dogs and cats for breeding or raising them for sale as pets. Budget cuts reduce shelter grace period With a budget deficit in the billions of dollars, California has had to try and find ways to cut costs. According to the San Francisco Chronicle, a compromise between Gov. Schwarzenegger and the state Legislature to reduce the deficit will shorten the holding period at animal shelters.

With the economy still sluggish, one way to attract new clients and increase revenue is to integrate a groomer into your practice. In addition to the income from grooming itself, it may prompt impromptu wellness visits for patients. But it can also create some challenges. We asked Wendy Thompson, practice manager of The Parkway Veterinary Hospital in Lake Oswego, Ore., to talk about her experience with hiring and keeping a groomer in the practice.