By Maureen Anderson on Posted in Dogs,VaccinationCanine influenza has once again reared its ugly head in fairly spectacular fashion, this time in Bloomington, IL. Apparently there have been numerous laboratory-confirmed cases, and also many suspected cases, and likely still more cases that have gone completely unreported. It’s estimated that “hundreds” of dogs may have been affected already – it’s very difficult… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Cats,Dogs,Other animals,Rabies,VaccinationSuccess can breed apathy. Apathy can lead to bad decisions. That’s a common problem with vaccinations. People lose sight of why we vaccinate. Growing up during a time when many major pathogens have been controlled by vaccines, it’s easy to forget about how bad those diseases are. Whether it’s resurgence in measles in people because… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Birds,Cats,Dogs,Miscellaneous,Other animalsIf you’re looking to test your zoonotic disease skills (or to procrastinate….which was basically what I was doing while making this up), here’s a little crossword puzzle. (You can click on the highlighted text for a downloadable version). The answer key will be posted next week.. … Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Horses,Rabies,VaccinationA horse in South Carolina was recently diagnosed with rabies. While rabies is common in some animal species in some regions, it’s a pretty rare disease in horses, so it’s a noteworthy event. This case has a couple of important takeaway messages. Rabies can be sneaky. Rabies (especially in horses and cattle) isn’t always obvious… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animals,Rabies,VaccinationIn a rather unusual development, a calf in Ellice Ward, Ontario has been diagnosed with rabies. It’s the first case of rabies in any animal species in Perth County since 2012, and looking at the Canadian Food Inspection Agency surveillance records, it’s the first rabid bovine in Ontario since 2011. Rabies has been in the… Continue Reading
By Maureen Anderson on Posted in Cats,Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationThe incursion of raccoon rabies in the Hamilton ON area reached a total of 10 confirmed cases as of last week. A map of the current MNRF control zone is available on the OMAFRA website. This is the area where the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) has spread oral rabies vaccine (ORV) baits… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationRabies is a hot topic around here lately, with the recent identification of raccoon rabies in the province. The virus probably inadvertently arrived in Hamilton via a raccoon hitching a ride across the border. Intentional importation can also lead to introduction of rabies to different areas – I don’t mean intentionally importing rabies (people do… Continue Reading
By Maureen Anderson on Posted in Cats,Dogs,Horses,Miscellaneous,Other animalsSince their discovery in the mid-1900s (which really wasn’t that long ago in the grand scheme of things), antibiotics have revolutionized human medicine, veterinary medicine and even food production. They save lives and prevent illness, helping to make both people and animals healthier, happier and more efficient at what they do. But if we want… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,VaccinationVaccination discussions can get pretty heated. It’s not as bad with animals as with humans (thanks in part to the discredited (and formerly Dr.) Andrew Wakefield). Yet, there is still a reasonable number of people who are opposed to vaccination of pets, and probably a bigger number who are wary. There are various reasons for… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,VaccinationIf you’re one of the many (many) people asking about what to do in the midst of a canine respiratory disease outbreak, or someone who just wants to know what to do to reduce everyday risk of CIRDC, here are some basic pointers: The microbes that cause respiratory disease in dogs are primarily spread by… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Cats,Dogs,Horses,Other animals,Rabies,VaccinationThe Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA) has launched its new (and long-awaited) rabies website. The site includes a section for the public which is an ideal resource for clients, and a section for veterinarians with detailed information about reporting, risk assessment, sample submission and testing, and post-exposure management (for companion animals and… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationWhen I saw “rabies socks“, my first thought was “someone’s going to be cursing their autocorrect“. Apparently not. The Ontario Association of Veterinary Technicians (OAVT) Rabies Response Program (RRP) World Rabies Day socks (they might want to come up with a shorter name) are on sale now, with a portion of the proceeds going to the… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationCDC has released a new dog importation poster along with an updated importation page on their website. Rules are still pretty lax (but stricter than in Canada), but more effective communication never hurts.… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Horses,VaccinationMandatory vaccination for horses entering shows, other events and sales has been a surprisingly contentious issue for years. Some groups have required equine influenza vaccination for a long time, and it’s an accepted measure. Attempts to mandate vaccination for some other groups or events have often been met with resistance, even when those attempts were… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Horses,VaccinationThe season has arrived. Right on schedule, the first case of West Nile virus (WNV) infection in an Ontario horse has been identified, prompting an advisory from the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs (OMAFRA). The affected horse was from Sudbury, Ontario, and was euthanized because of progressive and severe neurological disease. It… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationImportation issues, Part 1 A Facebook post was forwarded to me the other day. It reads “Drove to the airport today to pick up this lovely little girl [puppy] who flew all the way to Montreal from Baku Azerbaijan. Spent the afternoon with her romping around in Westmount Park. She will be up for adoption… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Horses,MiscellaneousAre you an Ontario horse owner? University of Guelph researchers now recruiting for new equine project! Horses travel frequently, and the nature and extent of these travel patterns can contribute to the introduction and spread of diseases. The University of Guelph is conducting a study to determine how these movement patterns can influence new disease… Continue Reading
By Maureen Anderson on Posted in MiscellaneousHand hygiene is an incredibly basic every-day infection control measure, and one of the most important means of preventing the spread of infectious pathogens. Hand hygiene should be used at home, at work, and especially in healthcare environments where there may be more bugs and more susceptible individuals. That includes veterinary clinics. Also keep in… Continue Reading
By Maureen Anderson on Posted in MiscellaneousA recent episode of the popular TVO current affairs show "The Agenda with Steve Paikin" explores the topic of “Our Relationship with Cleanliness" – an informative, yet fun look at the topic of germs. Panelists (including yours truly) take a cultural, historical, psychological and sociological look at the microorganisms on us and around us –… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in MiscellaneousThe Public Health Agency of Canada (PHAC) has released the 2012/2013 Human Antimicrobial Drug Use Report. Why write about this on a site dedicated to zoonotic diseases and diseases of animals? For a few different reasons, actually. One is that we have to realize that antibiotics (and bacteria) don’t care if drugs are used on… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in MiscellaneousSorry… nothing to do with zoonotic diseases, but still entertaining. Our two iPads stopped working over one weekend last October. Figuring they were destined for recycling, I came across some internet posts that said “whack it.” I figured that I had nothing to lose and if nothing else, I’d get the satisfaction of beating on… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in MiscellaneousThe International Society for Companion Animal Infectious Diseases (ISCAID) and International Feline Retroviral Research Symposium have joined forces for a combined conference in 2014. This meeting, which would be of relevance to veterinary researchers and veterinary clinicians with an interest in infectious diseases, will be held in Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario (Canada) Oct 19-22. More information can… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in MiscellaneousAnother popular post from the archives, and a nice light topic for the holidays! (Original post date 25-Nov-2010). Pardon my straying from the zoonotic disease realm, but here’s a little light reading… Medical Mysteries of the 100-Acre Wood Children around the world have been entertained by activities in the 100-acre-wood for decades. But at what… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in MiscellaneousI just read a recent Medscape article entitled Human-Animal Interactions: a primer for clinicians. I assumed it would be one more relatively generic article about zoonoses, focusing on agriculture. Some of those aspects were there, but it had a lot more depth than I expected and went beyond the same old superficial talking points. The… Continue Reading
