Seattle clinic treats people and pets together

Every evening, some of the estimated 1,500 young adults who are homeless in Seattle drop by a center downtown where they can score a hot meal and companionship, shoot a game of pool, take a shower, do laundry, and even spend the night. Those with pets visit on select evenings for another, more improbable reason: to attend a clinic where they can receive veterinary care for their companion animal and healthcare for themselves. . . . more

Pennsylvania man indicted for scheme to sell fraudulent canine cancer–curing drugs to pet owners

Jonathan Nyce, 70, of Collegeville, Pennsylvania, was charged with wire fraud and the interstate shipment of misbranded animal drugs. The charges stem from a years-long scheme to defraud pet owners of money by claiming to sell canine cancer–curing drugs. Nyce marketed these supposed cancer-curing medications to desperate pet owners under the names Tumexal and Naturasone. Nyce made numerous claims regarding the safety and efficacy of these supposed drugs, such as: “Tumexal is effective against a wide variety of cancers,” and, “Tumexal will almost always restore a cancer-stricken dog’s appetite, spirit, and energy!” . . . more

Frostbitten cat gets new lease on life thanks to titanium paws

A female cat in Russia who lost all four of her paws to frostbite can walk, run, and even climb stairs again, thanks to the veterinarians who replaced her missing limbs with 3D-printed prosthetics made from titanium. The hardy gray feline, named Dymka (“mist” in Russian), is about four years old. A passing driver found her in December 2018 in the snow in Novokuznetsk, Siberia, and brought her to a hospital in Novosibirsk, according to Russian news site Komsomolskaya Pravda. Dymka was suffering from frostbite of her paws, ears, and tail—frostbite so severe that her veterinarian had to amputate those damaged extremities. . . . more

Arkansas State mulls opening veterinary school with for-profit education company

Arkansas State University (ASU) is looking into a partnership with Adtalem Global Education to open a veterinary school. The company currently operates AAHA-accredited Ross University School of Veterinary Medicine on the Caribbean island of St. Kitts. ASU and Adtalem are planning a 180-day exploration period for the proposed program, which would enroll about 120 students annually. The university would seek accreditation for the school and program graduates would have an ASU credential. The university said the partnership could result in the state’s first veterinary medical school and would address a shortage of veterinarians in Arkansas and nationwide. . . . more

Dog sleuths sniff out crop disease hitting citrus trees

Dog detectives might be able to help save ailing citrus groves, new research suggests. Scientists trained dogs to sniff out a crop disease called citrus greening that has hit orange, lemon, and grapefruit orchards in Florida, California, and Texas. The dogs can detect it weeks to years before it shows up on tree leaves and roots, the researchers report. “This technology is thousands of years old—the dog’s nose,” said Timothy Gottwald, PhD, a researcher with the US Department of Agriculture and a coauthor of the study. “We’ve just trained dogs to hunt new prey: the bacteria that causes a very damaging crop disease.” Dog sleuths are also faster, cheaper, and more accurate than people collecting hundreds of leaves for lab analysis. . . . more

Veterinary school admits rejected applicants if they pay five times the fee

A Canadian veterinary college is offering rejected applicants the chance to gain admission if they agree to pay vastly higher tuition fees. The University of Saskatchewan’s Western College of Veterinary Medicine will offer as many as 25 failed applicants the opportunity to enroll this autumn if they pay about C$60,000 (around $45,000 US) a great deal more than the usual C$12,000 (around $9,000 US) their classmates will be charged. The college regards the idea as a compromise forced on it by limits on public funding and the recognition that the students it turns away would likely pay as much or more to attend veterinary school overseas. . . . more