The companion animal Ontario Animal Health Network has produced a series of mini-podcasts on COVID-19 precautions in veterinary clinics, featuring none other than Dr. Scott Weese. Each mini-podcast features a quick 3-5 minute “lighting round” on common questions and topics – bite-sized bits for busy practitioners and clinic staff who may only have a
How to Stay Healthy Around Pets – CDC
I’m always on the lookout for good-looking, easy-access resources to help communicate (and to help others communicate) messages around safe and responsible pet ownership, which is how this blog got its start! I also don’t like re-inventing the wheel when I don’t have to, and I appreciate that many organizations have people with vastly better
News From the North: Rabies in Tuktoyaktuk
While the COVID-19 pandemic and its associated controversies continue to dominate our collective attention, much older, more familiar diseases are still out there too, causing their old familiar – and deadly – problems. Rabies has once again reared its snarling head, this time in the small Arctic coastal community of Tuktoyaktuk, NWT. Rabies is
Fostering Chicks and Ducklings: It’s All Fun and Games Until…
We all know that backyard chickens are becoming increasingly popular – despite some of their associated infectious disease hazards, which we’ve discussed many times before. The latest “pandemic pastime” takes the trend to a whole new level, with scores of people fostering chicks or ducklings as a family activity, aka something
Leishmaniasis in a Dog from California
Around here, infection in dogs caused by Leishmania infantum typically comes up in the context of imported dogs, particularly those from countries around the Mediterranean (e.g. Greece, Israel, Spain). This parasite is usually transmitted between a variety of mammalian species, including dogs and humans, by certain species of sandflies. We’re quite lucky here in Ontario
An Unusual Case of Echinococcus multilocularis in Manitoba
Last spring, we posted about a report of alveolar echinococcosis (AE) in a child in Quebec from 2018. This very serious parasitic infection is caused by the intermediate stage of the fox tapeworm, Echinococcus multilocularis (EM), which despite its common name is often also found in coyotes (including right here in southern Ontario
A Plague of Men, and Dogs, and Marmots
Taking a break from the latest pandemic microbe, there have been a couple of recent items about another very old pandemic bug that’s never really completely gone away – Yersina pestis, known commonly as plague, and the cause of the Black Death of the mid 1300s, aka the deadliest pandemic recorded in human history.
Practical ways to help vets during COVID-19
The COVID-19 pandemic has put a lot of strain on a lot of people, and those in the veterinary profession are no exception. Thank you, Captain Obvious. Self-care and mental health support at times like these are critical, but can be hard to come by for many still working on the front lines in clinics,
5 things to remember about zoonoses
A recent CDC expert commentary was recently published on “Animal Lovers and Zoonotic Diseases: 5 Things to Know“. Regular readers of Worms & Germs will find many of the points very familiar, but the article provides a nice summary of some of the recurring themes that arise when dealing with animals and people
Canine brucellosis international, factsheet for veterinarians
Recently another couple of good examples have cropped up of the risks of canine brucellosis (caused by Brucella canis) associated with both canine breeding kennels and international movement of dogs.
The state veterinarian for Iowa confirmed that there were several cases of brucellosis diagnosed in dogs from a small breeding facility in Marion County