Composition and fatty acid profile of milk from cows supplemented with pressed oilseed cake

This study compared the productive and nutritional parameters of milk from crossbred lactating cows managed on Panicum maximum Jacq. cv. Tanzania and with a diet supplemented with different pressed oilseed cakes. The supplements used were as follows: peanut cake, sunflower cake and palm kernel cake for replacement of soybean meal. Sixteen cows with an average weight of 544 ± 57 kg and producing 8 ± 1.4 L of milk per day were used in this study. The animals were randomly assigned to the treatments according to a Latin square design repeated over time, with four treatments, 16 animals and four experimental periods. Supplementation of the diet with peanut cake, sunflower cake and palm kernel cake compared with soybean meal in the diet of cows did not affect the average daily production or composition of the milk. The palm kernel cake promoted an increase in lauric fatty acids (C_12:0) and palmitoleic acids (C_16:1) (5.02 and 1.65%, respectively) compared with peanut cake and sunflower cake (4.13 and 4.01%, respectively). The levels of oleic fatty acids (C_18:1) were higher for the sunflower cake and palm kernel cake supplements (26.01 and 25.01%, respectively) compared with peanut cake (23.11%). The replacement of soybean meal with sunflower cake and palm kernel cake improved the nutritional quality of the milk, with lower concentrations of saturated fatty acids and higher concentrations of unsaturated fatty acids, without compromising the production or nutritional composition of the milk. © 2015 Japanese Society of Animal Science     

ASVCP guidelines: quality assurance for portable blood glucose meter (glucometer) use in veterinary medicine

Portable blood glucose meters (PBGM, glucometers) are a convenient, cost effective, and quick means to assess patient blood glucose concentration. The number of commercially available PBGM is constantly increasing, making it challenging to determine whether certain glucometers may have benefits over others for veterinary testing. The challenge in selection of an appropriate glucometer from a quality perspective is compounded by the variety of analytic methods used to quantify glucose concentrations and disparate statistical analysis in many published studies. These guidelines were developed as part of the ASVCP QALS committee response to establish recommendations to improve the quality of testing using point‐of‐care testing (POCT) handheld and benchtop devices in veterinary medicine. They are intended for clinical pathologists and laboratory professionals to provide them with background knowledge and specific recommendations for quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC), and to serve as a resource to assist the provision of advice to veterinarians and technicians to improve the quality of results obtained when using PBGM. These guidelines are not intended to be all‐inclusive; rather they provide a minimum standard for management of PBGM in the veterinary setting.     

Evaluation of transpulmonary ultrasound dilution cardiac output in piglets: accuracy,precision and trending ability with room temperature injectate

ObjectiveTranspulmonary ultrasound dilution (TPUD) is a minimally invasive technique to measure cardiac output (CO) using a 1 mL kg^–1 isotonic 37 °C saline injectate indicator. The objective was to evaluate the performance of TPUD using a room temperature saline injectate.Study designProspective experimental trial.AnimalsA total of seven anesthetized male Yorkshire piglets.MethodsPiglets aged 1 month and weighing 7.7–9.0 kg were anesthetized with detomidine–ketamine–hydromorphone–isoflurane and a pulmonary artery flow probe (PAFP) placed via a median sternotomy. The thoracic cavity remained open during measurement of CO by PAFP and TPUD. The TPUD indicators of 1 mL kg^–1 0.9% saline at 37 °C and 20 °C were compared during infusions of phenylephrine and dobutamine, blood withdrawal and replacement. Bias, limits of agreement (LoAs) and percentage error (PE) between each iteration of PAFP and TPUD were measured with Bland–Altman plots. Trending ability via concordance, angular bias and radial LoA were compared.ResultsBland–Altman plots showed negligible bias with varying LoAs. PEs of 22% and 38% were found for 37 °C and 20 °C saline injectates, respectively. In the four-quadrant plots, the concordance rate was 94% and 100% for measurements obtained with 37 °C and 20 °C saline injectates, respectively. Angular bias for both were < ±5 °, with radial LoA < ±7 °.ConclusionsTPUD was accurate when using 1 mL kg^–1 of isotonic saline at 37 °C in a range of CO within 0.2–0.8 L minute^–1, and it reliably tracked positive and negative changes in CO. Room temperature (20 °C) indicator was less accurate but equally able to track direction of changes in CO.Clinical relevanceThe use of room temperature injectates allows an easy, readily available clinical application of TPUD CO monitoring while preserving the trending ability of the monitor.     

Mental health in the veterinary profession: an individual or organisational focus?

The veterinary profession is experiencing a shortage of veterinarians, with attrition recognised as a substantial contributor. Research has also indicated increased levels of mental ill health and alarming suicide rates in practitioners. The primary aim of this study was to investigate the impact of eleven modifiable workplace factors on mental health outcomes, job appreciation and intention to leave the veterinary profession. The second aim was to ascertain whether workplace factors influence mental health outcomes after controlling for individual resilience. An online survey was completed by 73 practising Australian veterinarians. Unfavourable workplace factors correlated with adverse outcomes including depression, stress, reduced job appreciation and increased likelihood of leaving both the role and the profession. Workplace factors remained linked with the outcomes of job appreciation, depression and stress whilst controlling for practitioner resilience. Job appreciation was a significant predictor of intention to leave both the current role and the profession. Via multiple linear regression, two categories were identified as associated with improved psychological outcomes and job appreciation. These were workplace factors that represent breaks from workload and control or decision latitude in the workplace. Whilst resilience represents a key area for intervention, workplace factors potentially represent an easier-to-modify area for intervention.