Evaluation of owner education as a component of obesity treatment programs for dogs

OBJECTIVE: To compare results of a conventional obesity treatment program with those of an obesity treatment program that included education of owners of obese dogs. DESIGN: Nonblinded prospective clinical trial. ANIMALS: 60 obese dogs with a body condition score (BCS) of 8/9 or 9/9. PROCEDURE: Dogs were randomly assigned to control or owner education (EDU) treatment groups. A 6-month weight loss period was followed by an 18-month weight maintenance period. Daily caloric intake to induce loss of 1% of body weight/wk was calculated for each dog after assessment of prior diet history. The daily caloric intake for weight maintenance was estimated to be 20% greater than that calculated for weight loss with adjustments of +/- 5% as required. Weight and BCS were recorded monthly for each dog. Owners of dogs in the EDU group were required to attend monthly classes that addressed nutrition-related topics during the 6-month weight loss period. RESULTS: Dogs in both treatment groups had significantly lower weight at the end of the weight loss period, compared with initial weight. Mean weight loss at 6 months was 14.7% in the control group and 15% in the EDU group; this difference was not significant. During the weight maintenance period, percentage weight loss was maintained in both treatment groups. Mean changes in BCS at 6 months (relative to time 0) were -1.5 in the control group and -1.7 in the EDU group. At 24 months, mean changes in BCS (relative to time 0) were -2.1 in the control group and -2.2 in the EDU group. No significant differences in BCS were identified between treatment groups at either 6 or 24 months. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Mean decrease in BCS of 2 and mean weight loss of 15% were achieved and maintained in all dogs. An obesity treatment program that included dietary changes and monthly weight checks during the weight loss and weight maintenance periods was sufficient to achieve these results.     

A comparison of the analgesic effects of butorphanol with those of meloxicam after elective ovariohysterectomy in dogs

This study was designed to compare the analgesic effects of butorphanol with those of meloxicam following ovariohysterectomy. Fifteen dogs were premedicated with 0.05 mg/kg body weight (BW) of acepromazine by intramuscular (IM) injection, plus 0.2 mg/kg BW of meloxicam by subcutaneous (SC) injection. Fifteen dogs were premedicated with 0.05 mg/kg BW of Acepromazine, IM, plus 0.2 mg/kg BW of butorphanol, IM. Anesthesia was induced with thiopental, and dogs were maintained on halothane. All pain measurements were performed by 1 experienced individual, blinded to treatment. Pain scores and visual analogue scales (VAS) were performed at 2, 3, 4, 6, 8, 12, and 24 hours postpremedication. An analgesiometer was used to determine the pressure required to produce an active avoidance response to pressure applied at the incision line. Pain scores, VAS, and analgesiometer scores were analyzed by using a generalized estimating equations method. A significance level of P < 0.05 was considered significant. Animals that received meloxicam demonstrated significantly lower pain scores and VAS than did animals that received butorphanol in the first 12 hours after surgery. Results of this study suggest that meloxicam will produce better postoperative analgesia than will butorphanol. Mucosal bleeding times were performed on cooperative animals in the study group (11 butorphanol, 13 meloxicam). Bleeding times were performed prior to premedication, 6 hours following premedication, and 24 hours after premedication. The 6- and 24-hour readings were compared with baseline bleeding times by using a paired t-test with a Bonferroni correction (a significance level of P < 0.025). Bleeding times did not change significantly over time.     

Incidence of adverse events in ferrets vaccinated with distemper or rabies vaccine: 143 cases (1995-2001)

OBJECTIVE: To determine the incidence of adverse events in ferrets vaccinated with a modified-live avian cell culture canine distemper virus vaccine licensed for use in ferrets, an inactivated rabies vaccine licensed for use in ferrets, or both. DESIGN: Retrospective study. ANIMALS: 143 ferrets. PROCEDURE: Medical records were reviewed to identify ferrets that had an adverse event after vaccination. RESULTS: Adverse events developed within 25 minutes after vaccination in 13 ferrets. One ferret developed an adverse event after receiving a distemper and a rabies vaccine simultaneously and developed a second adverse event the following year after receiving the rabies vaccine alone. Therefore, a total of 14 adverse events were identified. All adverse events were an anaphylactic reaction characterized by generalized hyperemia, hypersalivation, and vomiting. Ten of the 14 anaphylactic reactions occurred after ferrets received both vaccines, 3 occurred after ferrets received the distemper vaccine alone, and 1 occurred after a ferret received the rabies vaccine alone. Incidences of adverse events after administration of both vaccines, the distemper vaccine alone, and the rabies vaccine alone were 5.6, 5.9, and 5.6%, respectively. Ferrets that had an anaphylactic reaction were significantly older at the time of vaccination than were ferrets that did not. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: Results suggest that there may be a high incidence of anaphylactic reactions after vaccination of domestic ferrets. Ferrets should be observed for at least 25 minutes after vaccination, and veterinarians who vaccinate ferrets should be prepared to treat anaphylactic reactions.     

Spontaneous tumors of small mammals.

The most common tumor of guinea pigs is bronchogenic papillary adenoma; of hedgehogs is mammary gland adenocarcinoma; of hamsters is adrenal cortical adenoma; of gerbils is ovarian granulosa cell and theca cell tumors; of mice is pulmonary carcinoma; and of rats is mammary fibroadenoma. A relatively low incidence of tumors is described for chinchillas and hamsters, whereas the incidence of tumors is high for gerbils, hedgehogs, mice, and rats. Limited literature regarding neoplasia exists for prairie dogs, sugar gliders, and chinchillas.     

Viral diseases of companion birds.

Many viruses definitively cause disease in our companion birds, whereas other viruses have been implicated or associated with typical clinical signs. Some families of viruses that have been discovered in mammals have not been associated with disease in birds. It is imperative to perform a necropsy on any birds that die--whether a pet, aviary, or display bird, and despite the fact that other diseases may be present--because viruses can occur concurrently, especially when immunosuppression is present. Also, it is imperative to use available vaccines to decrease and control the incidence of these diseases, as has occurred in the canine and feline pet populations.     

Prevalence and importance of internal tandem duplications in exons 11 and 12 of c-kit in mast cell tumors of dogs

OBJECTIVE: To determine the prevalence of activating internal tandem duplications (ITDs) in exons 11 and 12 of c-kit in mast cell tumors (MCTs) of dogs and to correlate these mutations with prognosis. SAMPLE POPULATION: 157 formalin-fixed, paraffin-embedded MCTs from dogs in the pathology database of the Veterinary Medical Teaching Hospital at the University of California, Davis. PROCEDURE: Genomic DNA was isolated from tumor specimens and a polymerase chain reaction procedure was performed to determine whether there were ITDs in exons 11 and 12. RESULTS: We identified ITDs in 1 of 12 (8%) grade-I, 42 of 119 (35%) grade-lI, and 9 of 26 (35%) grade-ll tumors (overall prevalence, 52 of 157 [33%]). Logistic regression analysis revealed that the odds of grade-II and -III tumors possessing an ITD were approximately 5 times greater than that for grade-I tumors, although these odds did not differ significantly. Although MCTs possessing an ITD were twice as likely to recur after excision and twice as likely to result in metastasis as those without an ITD, these values also did not differ significantly. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL RELEVANCE: These results provide evidence that ITDs in c-kit occur frequently in MCTs of dogs. The high prevalence of c-kit activating mutations in MCTs of dogs combined with the relative abundance of mast cell disease in dogs provide an ideal naturally developing tumor in which to test the safety and efficacy of novel small-molecule kinase inhibitors such as imatinib mesylate.     

Antimicrobial use through feed, water, and injection in 20 swine farms in Alberta and Saskatchewan

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is an emerging animal welfare and public health issue linked to antimicrobial use (AMU) in livestock. This study was conducted in 2004 on 20 swine farms in Alberta and Saskatchewan. On-farm records and questionnaires were used to retrospectively describe the antimicrobial exposures of pigs through feed, water, and injection. Antimicrobial use in all production categories was described over 12 months. On-farm records and questionnaires provided sufficient data to describe antimicrobial exposure rates through feed and water. In contrast, on-farm records did not supply sufficient data to describe parenteral antimicrobial exposure rates. Records lacked data on the number of exposures per treatment, therefore parenteral AMU was described as an exposure incidence. Parenteral exposure records were often unavailable for pigs less than 22 kg, in which case questionnaires were used. The incidence of parenteral AMU was significantly higher in herds reporting exposure by questionnaire compared with existing records, suggesting that on-farm records did not reliably describe parenteral AMU. However, because antimicrobial exposures in feed and water were markedly more common than through injection, it was concluded that existing on-farm data would be a valuable resource for investigating AMU and AMR in pigs.     

Prevalence of antimicrobial resistance in fecal generic Escherichia coil isolated in western Canadian beef herds. Part II--cows and cow-calf pairs.

The objective of this study was to describe antimicrobial resistance in fecal generic Escherichia coli isolated from cows and cow-calf pairs from western Canadian beef herds. Susceptibility testing was completed on 1555 E. coli isolates (n = 533 cows from 69 herds) harvested from fresh fecal samples in the spring of 2002, and 630 isolates (n = 105 cow-calf pairs from 10 herds) collected in the spring of 2003. Only 1 cow isolate was resistant to an antimicrobial classified by Health Canada as being of very high importance to human medicine. Resistance to at least 2 antimicrobials was detected in 7.1% of the 2002 cow isolates, in 3.4% of the 2003 cow isolates, and 23.2% of the 2003 calf isolates. In the cows, resistance to at least 1 antimicrobial was not associated with cow breed (P = 0.16), cow age (P = 0.14), or previous cow treatment (P = 0.56). In the calves, resistance to at least 1 antimicrobial was not predicted by whether or not its dam was resistant to at least 1 antimicrobial (P = 0.36).