By Scott Weese on Posted in Cats,Dogs,VaccinationThe recent H3N2 canine flu outbreak centred around dog shows in Florida has led to the usual round of questions and concerns. How many dogs have been affected? Hard to say. Cases aren’t carefully tracked and it is reasonable to assume that the majority of dogs that developed influenza (especially mild disease) were never diagnosed.… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationTwo rabid dogs have been identified in Whapmagoostui, a Cree community in a remote region of northern Quebec. Rabies is very rare in dogs in Canada, and in recent years, much of the concern has revolved around rabies in dogs from northern communities. Rabies is endemic in Arctic foxes, and dogs can be infected from… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationEvery few weeks I get a call or an email about travel-associated rabies exposure concerns. It’s usually from someone traveling to southeast Asia or India who has been bitten by a stray dog. Most of the time, it’s an unvaccinated person and the dog isn’t available for monitoring or testing. Since rabies is endemic in… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,VaccinationLately I’ve had a run on questions from veterinarians along the lines of “I have a client who is immunocompromised and their physician has said their pet should not receive a modified live vaccine. What should we do?” There are a few different types of vaccines. Modified live vaccines are vaccines comprised of (as the… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Cats,Dogs,Other animals,Rabies,VaccinationThis month, Public Health Ontario released a new Rabies Guidance Document for Healthcare Providers. It’s nothing particularly new but a good review of the recommended response to rabies exposure from various animal species, something that’s unfortunately often messed up or made more complicated than necessary. It includes some nice flowcharts, such as the one below. The full… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationIn many countries, rabies is a disease we’re concerned about but one that is rarely seen in domestic animals and is exceptionally rare in people. It’s easy to forget that people in other areas are confronted with a risk of rabies on a regular basis. Canine rabies is a major problem in Africa, leading to… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationThere tends to be confusion about what happens when an animal bites or is bitten, and rabies is being considered. Most of the confusion revolves around how long an animal is quarantined or observed. Yet, it’s actually pretty straightforward if you think about why quarantine/observation is being performed and some basics about the virus and… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Cats,Dogs,Horses,Other animals,Rabies,VaccinationThe 2016 Compendium of Animal Rabies Prevention and Control has been released by the US’s National Association of State Public Health Veterinarians (NASPHV). This version has updates in a few different areas, such as some changes to recommendations for dogs, cats and ferrets that have potentially been exposed to rabies. It can be downloaded directly here or be found… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Other animals,Rabies,VaccinationEvery few days, it seems, I get an email or call that goes something like “I was just bitten by [insert various mammals here]. Do I need to worry about rabies or do anything?” The answer’s pretty similar every time. While the relative risk posed by different animal species in different geographic regions varies, you… Continue Reading
By Maureen Anderson on Posted in Rabies,VaccinationRaccoon-variant rabies cases around the Hamilton area continue to trickle in slowly but steadily each week. The total number of cases is now up to 187 since December 2015, with 132 cases in raccoons and 53 in skunks. The remaining two cases were in less common – but not altogether unexpected – species: a fox… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Horses,Other diseases,Vaccination‘Tis the season for mosquitoes, so ‘tis the season for some nasty vector-borne diseases. Few are worse that Eastern Equine Encephalitis (EEE), a viral infection that causes typically fatal disease in horses, and less commonly other species, including people. Cases tend to start mid-summer and peak late summer to fall, depending on the mosquito dynamics… Continue Reading
By Scott Weese on Posted in Dogs,Rabies,VaccinationI’ve written a lot about the issues of dog importation and the diseases that can sometimes “come along for the ride”. However, high risk movement doesn’t need to be international. Any movement from a high risk area can be a concern. A recent article in Canadian Communicable Disease Report (Curry et al. 2016) addresses the issue of… Continue Reading
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 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 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
