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Earlier this year, Animal Medical and Surgical Center of Scottsdale, Ariz., was named third place finalist in AAHA’s inaugural Accredited Practice of the Year competition. What’s the reason for their success? Owner Charles Pullen, DVM, MS, talks candidly about his triumphs – as well as his mistakes – during his 40-year career in veterinary medicine.

The American Animal Hospital Association (AAHA) has released its new Nutritional Assessment Guidelines for Dogs and Cats. AAHA found through its compliance study that only 7 percent of pets that could benefit from a therapeutic food were actually on such a regimen. The compliance discrepancy along with the many factors considered in assessing the nutritional needs of healthy dogs or cats, as well as pets with one or more medical conditions, led to the development the AAHA Nutritional Assessment Guidelines. “Incorporating nutritional assessment into the routine examination protocol for every patient is important for maintaining optimal health, as well as their response to disease and injury,” said Michael Cavanaugh, DVM, DABVP, AAHA executive director. “The goal of the new guidelines is to provide a framework for the veterinary practice team to help make nutritional assessments and recommendations for their patients.”

A newly formed database of dog DNA is expected to help in legal battles against organized dog fighting. The database, known as Canine CODIS (Combined DNA Index System), was established by the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (ASPCA), the Humane Society of Missouri and the Louisiana SPCA, and will be maintained at the University of California-Davis School of Veterinary Medicine’s Veterinary Genetics Laboratory (VGL). The database contains DNA profiles from dogs that were seized during dog fighting investigations as well as profiles from samples collected at suspected dog fighting venues. Most of the DNA in the Canine CODIS was collected during raids on dog fighting operations last year, which netted about 400 samples. The way the system works is that when a dog is seized from a dog fighting raid, cheek swabs are collected and submitted to the laboratory for DNA testing. Investigating agencies may also submit DNA from unknown sources such as blood drops. The DNA profile is then searched against the Canine CODIS database. If there is a match, or “hit,” the agency submitting the new sample and the agency that submitted the original CODIS sample are given each other’s contact information, said ASPCA Forensic Veterinarian Melinda Merck, DVM.

Unfortunately, most businesses are at least somewhat susceptible to thievery and embezzlement. But how prevalent is embezzling in the veterinary world? Recently, AAHA NEWStat and Trends magazine surveyed a sampling of AAHA members to see how bad this problem is, what kinds of issues people are having, and what measures they have taken to respond to this threat. About 86 percent of respondents said their practice had been a victim of embezzlement, however, less than 30 percent said they had won a criminal or civil case against the thief. Most respondents (83 percent) reported that money was the thing that was stolen. Drugs and supplies each accounted for about 32 percent of stolen goods; services, 13 percent. Of those who responded, roughly one-third reported that the approximate dollar amount of the theft or embezzlement was less than $1,000. A quarter lost between $1,000 and $5,000, and only about 6 percent said they were embezzled out of more than $100,000. Close to 90 percent of practices who responded were general practices, and a majority (28 percent) reported annual revenues of more than $2 million. About 42 percent had between 10 and 20 staff members working at the practice. More than half (55 percent) said the front office staff was responsible for the theft, followed by veterinary assistants (35 percent); and practice managers/hospital administrators at 14 percent.

Nice dogs finish last. That statement does not refer to racing (or dating), however, but rather to the recent finding that agreeable, trainable dogs live longer than other, more aggressive dogs. A study from researchers at Quebec’s Sherbrooke University suggests that “artificial selection on dogs (through domestication) generated variations in personality traits that are correlated with life histories and metabolism.” The scientists found that dogs that are more obedient on average live longer than disobedient or bold dogs, and more aggressive breeds have higher energy needs than nonaggressive breeds. Lead researcher Vincent Careau, a PhD student at Sherbrooke University, said there was a link between personality and longevity, but it was not what most people think.

Federal inspectors responsible for enforcing the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) failed to penalize or fine some commercial breeders that kept dogs in horrendous conditions, according to a recent report from the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Office of the Inspector General (OIG). Even after discovering dogs that were tick-infested, or kept in cages surrounded by noxious pools of feces, or even dogs that were so starved they were eating other dogs that had starved to death before them, many inspectors with the Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service’s (APHIS) Animal Care unit took little or no action, the report says. USDA investigators found numerous problems with APHIS Animal Care’s enforcement activities over a three year period of Fiscal Years 2006-2008. The findings included the following: Animal Care’s enforcement process was ineffective against problematic dealersAnimal Care inspectors did not cite or document violations properly to support enforcement actionsAPHIS’ new penalty worksheet calculated minimal penaltiesAPHIS misused guidelines to lower penalties for AWA violatorsSome large breeders circumvented AWA by selling animals over the Internet

After a friend has a stressful event in their lives, it is human nature to want to console that person. Maybe give them a hug, or just spend some time with them to ease their distress. A new study suggests that ravens have a similar emotional depth. In the study, after a conflict between two birds, (defined as chase-flight, hitting or forced retreat), the researchers would observe the ravens for 10 minutes. They found that the victim would often be approached in a friendly way by another raven, or sometimes the victim would seek out another raven. These interactions were terms bystander affiliation and solicited bystander affiliation. Bystander affiliation was recorded when another raven (that was not involved in the conflict) approached the victim and “affiliated” with it (defined as contact sitting, preening or beak-to-beak or beak-to-body touching). A solicited bystander affiliation was recorded when the victim sought out a bystander for affiliation.

A Georgia veterinarian is donating boxes of pet hair to help clean up the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico. Mark Helvie, DVM, owns the AAHA-accredited Dahlonega Veterinary Hospital in Dahlonega, Ga., with his wife, Kim. Helvie said he got the idea to donate the hair from a classmate who posted a link on the social networking site Facebook. After checking out the site, MatterOfTrust.org, Helvie decided the operation looked legitimate so he signed up. Matter of Trust is a nonprofit that says its mission is to “link ideas, spark activities and materialize sustainable systems.” As part of its Natural Surplus program, the organization is collecting donated human and animal hair. One it is collected, the hair is stuffed into nylon stockings and formed into booms. The booms are tied together and soak up oil.

A popular product used to treat diabetes in dogs and cats will be made available to critical patients, despite ongoing concerns about the drug’s stability. The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said May 5 that Intervet/Schering Plough Animal Health’s Vetsulin (porcine insulin zinc suspension) will be offered to certain dogs and cats in limited supply through the company’s new Vetsulin Critical-Need Program. “The supply is only to be used for a critical-need dog or cat that, in the medical judgment of the pet’s veterinarian, cannot be effectively managed on another insulin product,” the FDA said.   Intervet has been working with the FDA since last fall to address concerns with Vetsulin’s stability. In November, the FDA 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. Intervet sent a letter to veterinarians shortly after that urging them to begin transitioning diabetic patients off Vetsulin due to predicted shortages in product availability.

A 10-year-old, 28-pound tabby cat is the first cat to undergo specialized radiation and chemotherapy limb-sparing treatment for bone cancer at Colorado State University’s Animal Cancer Center. The cat, Cyrano, was admitted to the center in March after being diagnosed with osteosarcoma. Often this cancer is treated with amputation followed by chemotherapy, but Cyrano’s owner, Sandy Lerner, said she thought that his quality of life would be low if a limb were amputated, due to his significant heft. Surgical limb-sparing treatment for bone cancer in dogs is available using cadaver bones, but there is currently no such option for cats. Lerner called around the country trying to find alternatives to amputation until she found CSU’s Animal Cancer Center, which agreed to treat Cyrano with radiation and chemotherapy.