Veterinary Medicine Update

• Dog exposes veterinary staff to poison gas
  A dog in Colorado vomited a toxic chemical, releasing a gas that sent four people who were with the animal to the hospital. The dog died despite the best efforts of the veterinary staff at the Vail Valley Animal Hospital. It's likely the dog ingested zinc phosphate, which creates a toxic gas when combined with water. The substance is used as a pesticide targeting rodents. Vail Daily (Colo.) (12/8)     

• Biologist captures rare clouded leopard on film
  While vacationing in Borneo, biologist and scientific visualization specialist Jyrki Hokkanen obtained up-close footage of a rare Sunda clouded leopard during a nighttime expedition through the forest. Experts believe it is a young female. The species faces loss of habitat due to deforestation, which is occurring at a record pace. BBC (12/10)     

• Other News

• Brazil announces positive BSE test
  Bloomberg (12/10)     

• Cape Cod Bay turtle strandings swamp rescuers
  Boston Herald/The Associated Press (12/8)     

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Animal News

• Dog contracts rabies, exposes family and other pets
  Veterinarians Katy Dunn and Ronnie Robertson immediately suspected rabies when they evaluated a family dog that was acting aggressively at home. The dog was euthanized, and tests confirmed that it had rabies. Three additional dogs in the home were euthanized as well, and each family member must undergo post-exposure prophylaxis therapy. "People are not getting their animals vaccinated as often as they need to," said Dr. Dunn. Mount Pleasant Daily Tribune (Texas) (12/8)     

• View AVMA's rabies brochure      

• Veterinary clinic assembles care packages for canine troops
  Staff at Pewee Valley Veterinary Center in Kentucky are assembling care packages for canine troops serving in Afghanistan. The center is also raising money for wartime necessities such as cooling vests to help the dogs avoid heatstroke in the hot climate and paw booties to protect their footpads from damage and infections. "Dogs have been used in the military since the Revolutionary War, and they are forgotten a lot of times," said Carolyne Tilford, who works at the center. WAVE-TV (Louisville, Ky.) (12/7)     

• Other News

• Owners make "bucket lists" for terminally ill pets
  WebMD/Tales from the Pet Clinic blog (12/7)     

• Veterinarian fashions spectacular holiday lights display
  WIAT-TV (Birmingham, Ala.) (12/9)     

Around the Office

• Last-minute tips for reducing your tax bill
  The end of the year is rapidly approaching, but it's not too late to minimize your tax bill, Bonnie Lee writes. You can write off certain costs associated with launching your business, and you might also be able to deduct expenses that you incur while throwing holiday parties for your employees or customers, she notes. Fox Business Small Business Center (12/7)     

Policy Watch

• Taxes on some veterinary supplies set to go up
  Under a rule announced by the IRS on Friday, products used by physicians and veterinarians such as gloves, infusion pumps and catheters may be subject to increased taxes. That will increase the cost of the items for veterinarians and could result in higher prices for clients, according to a report by the Heritage Foundation. DailyCaller.com (12/8)     

Hot Topics

Top five news stories selected by Animal Health SmartBrief readers in the past week.

• Family farmers go "Gangnam Style" in parody (DairyHerd.com)

• Veterinarian uncovers evidence of embezzlement (Wisconsin State Journal (Madison))

• Veterinarians investigating deaths of 19 horses from prison program (The Denver Post)

• Dog recovering from multiple snake bites after saving owner (The Daily Mail (London))

• Feral cat attacks family after sneaking in doggy door (WINK-TV (Fort Myers, Fla.))

• Results based on number of times each story was clicked by readers.

Association News

• Podcast: Catnip
  While our cats are often models of grace and composure, some of them can achieve altered states of drooling relaxation or fits of frantic energy just by getting a whiff of a little bit of catnip. But what exactly is catnip, why does it have such a strong effect on some cats and not others, and is it in any way harmful to our cats? In the latest AVMA Animal Tracks podcast, Dr. Gayle Sternefeld, senior associate veterinarian at the Cat Hospital at Towson in Baltimore, talks about catnip. Listen to the podcast.     

SmartQuote

Alas for those that never sing, But die with all their music in them." --Oliver Wendell Holmes Sr., American physician, writer and poet