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The Cornell Leadership Program at Cornell University, USA, aims to assist talented veterinary students to embark on careers in research, academia, government agencies or industry. Over 400 students have participated since the Program began in 1990 and their subsequent careers have been followed. In this study, five sources of data were analysed: application documents of the participants; audio recordings of interviews with each participant from 2000 to 2007; annual tracking records of alumni after graduating with a veterinary degree; spontaneous comments from alumni about how the Program influenced their career plans; and a list of published scientific papers by alumni. Analysis revealed that about 50 per cent of veterinary graduates were establishing themselves in careers envisaged by the Program, although many of them experienced conflicts between a vocational commitment to clinical practice and a desire to solve problems through research. Many alumni asserted that the Program had influenced their career plans, but they had difficulty in accepting that rigorous scientific training was more important in acquiring research skills than working directly on a veterinary research problem. One career of great appeal to alumni was that of veterinary translational science, in which disease mechanisms are defined through fundamental research. It is concluded from the data that there are three challenging concepts for recently qualified veterinarians aiming to advance the knowledge of animal disease: research careers are satisfying and rewarding for veterinarians; a deep understanding of the chosen field of research is needed; and a high standard of scientific training is required to become an effective veterinary scientist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Free-roaming cats may experience numerous hazardous encounters in the outdoor environment, including: vehicular accidents, aggression from other animals and exposure to infectious disease. This research quantitatively examined the outdoor activities of 55 owned cats by monitoring pets outfitted with 'KittyCam' video cameras. KittyCams are a type of Crittercam, designed by National Geographic to allow recording of a cat-eye view without disrupting behaviour. We investigated the activities of free-roaming cats in suburban Athens- Clarke County, Georgia, during all four seasons. Research objectives included documenting the type and regularity of risk behaviours exhibited by free-roaming cats and identifying characteristics of pet cats (eg, age, sex, roaming habitat) which predict risky behaviour in the outdoors. The most common risk behaviours exhibited by suburban free-roaming cats included crossing roads (45 per cent of our sample), encountering strange cats (25 per cent), eating and drinking substances away from home (25 per cent), exploring storm drain systems (20 per cent), and entering crawlspaces of houses (20 per cent). Male cats were more likely to engage in risk behaviours than female cats, and older cats engaged in fewer risk behaviours than younger individuals. We hope this information can be used to encourage the public to keep cats indoors more often (with consideration for their indoor quality of life) or supervise them while outdoors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Epidemiological surveys are important tools to identify emerging trends in disease. The Minnesota Urolith Centre has been tracking the occurrence of uroliths for over 30 years. To evaluate global changes in the frequencies of canine uroliths, submissions to the Minnesota Urolith Centre in 1999 and 2000 (n=39,965) were compared with submissions in 2009 and 2010 (n=99,598). The proportion of calcium oxalate uroliths rose on every continent except in Europe. Seventy-five per cent of dogs with calcium oxalate uroliths were between 5 and 11 years old. The proportion of struvite uroliths decreased on every continent except in Australia-Oceania. Seventy-seven per cent of all struvite formers were between two and eight years old. The proportion of purine uroliths has declined slightly. Worldwide, uroliths composed of cystine, calcium phosphate, calcium phosphate carbonate and silica remain uncommon. Epidemiological studies of urolithiasis are essential for constructing effective experimental designs and selecting appropriate cases and controls to conduct clinical trials with meaningful results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A postal survey of the owners of Clydesdale horses in the UK and USA was conducted to obtain information on tarsocrural effusion ('bog spavin') as an indicator of osteochondrosis from 935 horses. Additional information requested included details of how this condition was investigated and treated. The reported tarsocrural effusion incidence was 10 per cent. The majority of respondents believed the condition to be of concern to Clydesdale owners, but only a minority were aware of the implications of tarsocrural effusion, suggesting that owner education would be of benefit. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The sensitivity and specificity of three commercially available complement fixation test (CFT) antigens from c.c.pro (c.c.pro), Central Veterinary Institute of Wageningen UR (CIDC) and the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) were comparatively evaluated by testing 410 sera collected from glanders-endemic and non-endemic areas (200 true-negative randomly collected sera and 210 sera collected from experimentally immunised animals (12 rabbits, 19 horses), clinically positive (135) and culture-positive (44) horses, donkeys and mules). Immunoblotting (IB) was used as the gold standard test. Highest sensitivity was shown for the CIDC antigen (100 per cent) followed by the c.c.pro antigen (99.39 per cent). However, the USDA antigen showed substantially less (p<0.05) sensitivity (62.19 per cent). Highest specificity was found for the USDA antigen (100 per cent) followed by the CIDC (97.5 per cent) and c.c.pro antigen (96.5 per cent). Positive and negative predictive values (assumed glanders prevalence of <0.1 per cent) for each antigen were calculated to be 95.88 and 99.48 (c.c.pro), 97.04 and 100 (CIDC), 100 and 76.33 per cent (USDA), respectively. Almost perfect agreement (0.96) was found between CFT using either c.c.pro or CIDC and IB. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Examines the pathogenicity of three isolates of porcine respiratory coronavirus in the U.S. Mild to moderate multifocal bronchointerstitial pneumonia from four to 10 days after inoculation; Characterization of the lesions; Necrotising bronchiolitis.

Background: The aim of the study was to identify and analyse the frequency and types of dialogue directed to animals by veterinary surgeons (i.e. pet‐directed speech) in 55 routine companion animal consultations in the United Kingdom and United States. Methods: Instances of pet‐directed speech were identified from video transcripts, coded, and analysed for content. Results: All consultations included pet‐directed speech, with 779 instances in total, 284 in the United Kingdom and 495 in the United States. There were 12 unique dialogue codes identified, the top three being 'praise,' 'small talk,' and 'explanation'. Conclusion: This study identified a wide variety of communication directed to the animal, which, combined with further research, could help enhance understanding of rapport built between the veterinary surgeon, animal, and owner during a consultation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Fairs and petting zoos have been associated with outbreaks of zoonotic disease. Previously, the presence of meticillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) was documented in commercial pigs; therefore, it was hypothesised that antibiotic-resistant S aureus may also occur in pigs exhibited at agricultural fairs. To test this hypothesis, 157 pigs were swabbed at two state fairs in 2008 to 2009. Both nares were sampled and cultures were grown in enrichment broth, then plated onto selective MRSA plates and blood plates. S aureus was confirmed using phenotypic and molecular methods, and was analysed using spa typing, gene-specific polymerase chain reaction and antibiotic susceptibility testing. The presence of S aureus was confirmed in samples collected from pigs exhibited at USA pig shows. Twenty-five of 157 (15.9 per cent) samples were positive for S aureus. Two isolates (8 per cent) were resistant to meticillin; 23/25 (92 per cent), 14/25 (56 per cent) and 15/25 (60 per cent) were resistant to tetracycline, erythromycin and clindamycin, respectively. spa typing revealed multiple isolates of spa type t034 (9/25, 36 per cent) and t337 (7/25, 28 per cent) and singletons of t002, t209, t526, t1236, t1334, t1683, t3075, t5784 and t5883. These results verify the presence of antibiotic-resistant S aureus in pigs exhibited at USA fairs, suggesting that pigs are a potential reservoir for S aureus within this environment. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Reports that California-based Genetic Savings and Clone Inc. is offering customers in the United States the chance to have their pet cats cloned. Cost of the cloning service; Company's cloning capacity for 2004; Length of time required to complete the processes of cloning, pregnancy, and weaning.

Recently, in the USA, virulent mutants of feline calicivirus (FCV) have been identified as the cause of a severe and acute virulent systemic disease, characterised by jaundice, oedema and high mortality in groups of cats. This severe manifestation of FCV disease has so far only been reported in the USA. However, in 2003, an outbreak of disease affected a household of four adult cats and an adult cat from a neighbouring household in the UK. Three of the adult cats in the household and the neighbouring cat developed clinical signs including pyrexia (39.5 to 40.5°C), lameness, voice loss, inappetence and jaundice. One cat was euthanased in extremis, two died and one recovered. A postmortem examination of one of the cats revealed focal cellulitis around the right hock and right elbow joints. The principal finding of histopathological examinations of selected organs from two of the cats was disseminated hepatocellular necrosis with mild inflammatory infiltration. Immunohistology identified FCV antigen in parenchymal and Kupffer cells in the liver of both animals and in alveolar macrophages of one of them. In addition, calicivirus-like particles were observed by electron microscopy within the hepatocytes of one cat. FCV was isolated from two of the dead cats and from the two surviving cats. Sequence analysis showed that they were all infected with the same strain of virus, but that it was different from strains of FCV associated with the virulent systemic disease in cats in the USA. The outbreak was successfully controlled by quarantine in the owner's house. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses the seroprevalence of production-limiting diseases in wild or feral pigs in order to estimate the risk they may pose to domestic pig populations in the U.S. Wild pigs were sampled for antibodies to porcine reproductive and respiratory syndrome virus (PPRSV), porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV-2), Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae and swine influenza virus (SIV) subtypes H1 and H3. The authors call for further studies to determine whether the pathogens can be successfully transmitted from wild pigs to domestic pigs.

The article focuses on the survey conducted by the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), which investigates the mental health of practicing veterinarians in the U.S. It states that veterinarians are more likely to suffer from psychiatric disorders and experience depressive episodes and suicidal thoughts. It mentions that 10 percent of veterinarians might experienced psychological distress and contemplated suicide.

Reports on the expansion of the bovine spongiform encephalopathy (BSE) research program of the U.S. Department of Agriculture. International collaboration with the Veterinary Laboratories Agency to study the biology of the BSE agent; Funding increase for BSE research; Evaluation of diagnostic tools for detecting atypical BSE cases.

Reports on the implementation of an expanded BSE surveillance program in the U.S. Objective of the program to determine whether BSE is present in the cattle population. Target of the surveillance to populations of cattle at highest risk of exposure to BSE agent; Review of the program by both the international scientific panel and by the Harvard Center for Risk Analysis.

Examines the risk of the spread of avian influenza in the U.S. to Great Britain. Banned importation of birds and eggs; Cumulative number of diseased birds.

Reports that the genome sequence of the domestic dog has been determined by scientists at the Institute for Genomic Research and the Center for the Advancement of Genomics in Maryland. Description of how the genome of a male standard poodle was sequenced and analyzed; Comparisons with the human and mouse genome; Description of the potential applications of the sequencing of the dog genome; Observation that many genetic disorders in dogs resemble human conditions and their causes.