Coronavirus: How Can Vets Help?

No matter where you look, coronavirus is in the news all around us. Should we as aspiring veterinarians be concerned about the animals we treat? Are they are risk? Check out this infographic from My Vet Candy (created by infectious disease guru Dr. Jenifer Chatfield) and watch the podcast interview with coronavirus expert, Dr. Gary Whittaker from Cornell University! 

Vet Students Supporting Environmental Health

Are you interested in getting more involved with environmental health and wellness? Read below about what Kaitlyn Denny and her classmates at Michigan State University are doing to help veterinary medicine become a little more environmentally friendly!

Last year, myself and a group of my classmates started the SAVMA Environmental Wellness Committee. I served as a co-founder and the first chair of the committee. Our goal is to help bridge the gap between veterinary medicine and the environmental issues our world is facing. We strive to provide education and tools for CVM students to be responsible stewards of our planet. We hosted various talks and events throughout the semester to encourage sustainability at MSU CVM. We started an initiative of bringing reusable containers for lunch/dinner meetings to decrease waste, brought more recycling bins to the CVM, and hosted speakers about animal agriculture, plastic waste, and the effects of climate change. We also we able to get funding to gift students with bamboo toothbrushes and reusable produce bags. These small items serve as a daily reminder that even the smallest of actions in our daily lives can have profound effects on our environment.The efforts of this committee are vitally important in today's world and I have learned so much from being the inaugural chair.

Post-Exam Feels

Katelyn Jaqeway, Lincoln Memorial University

World Vets - Nicaragua

Carinne Ramirez, Lincoln Memorial University

During my second year in veterinary school, I had the opportunity to participate in World Vets in Nicaragua.  I initially decided to go in order to prepare myself for third year surgeries; but after my first day I knew this experience would be so much more than that.  

I had never been to Nicaragua or participated in World vets.  After the first few days, I was shocked at all the limitations the clinic had and the lack of money locals had for their animals despite how much they depended on them for their livelihood.  I learned how to monitor and administer total intravenous anesthesia because isoflurane was too expensive and too hard to keep supplied in the clinic. We used headlamps to see during surgery and made the best out of what we had.   

The clinic had no central air system, and in the summer of Nicaragua doing surgery with cap and mask made surgery difficult.  Many volunteer veterinarians brought checked bags to supply the clinic with needed supplies that could not be bought. It was a group effort to keep the clinic going; but it was much needed in the community.  Locals brought their pets to be spayed and neutered for free and we as students got surgery experience; but I gained so much more than experience. I gained a perspective that would forever change how I would practice veterinary medicine. 

So many people have horses that pull their carts to the market, and the money they bring in feeds their family.  These animals mean everything to them yet their income is so low they often do not have the resources to properly care for their animals.  They care so much for these animals that many would have their animals vaccinated before their children. I saw many horses with overgrown hooves and sores from pulling carts and most were underweight.  From an outsider perspective these animals appear abused and neglected, but these animals are so loved. I couldn’t believe how thankful the locals were when we had an outreach day that offered medical care and vaccinations for their animals.  It was a full day for us, and I felt so accomplished at the end of the day. We were able to provide necessary medical care for so many animals and in turn helped the welfare of not just the animals, but their owners as well. The experience was invaluable for me and gave me a new perspective I would take with me throughout the rest of my schooling and I will keep with me when I start my career next year.

Outreach and education are two very important characteristics I want to embody as a veterinarian.  Education on how to properly care for animals as well as information on what producers and owners can do to better animal welfare can only be obtained through working with those educated in the field.  In most cases, that person happens to be their veterinarian. As a soon to be mixed animal practitioner, I plan on holding seminars for producers to help them become better at their job and fulfilling the oath I took to promote animal health and welfare and relive animal suffering.  Nicaragua allowed me to see the oath I took in real world situations and gave me a clarity on the kind of practice I would go into. I will strive to continue to go to underserved areas and use my talents and the education I have received to serve both the community and the animals through public education.  Just like the veterinarians who worked hard to give me this experience, I want to volunteer my time to give students like me a new perspective and outlook on animal welfare in underserved areas.

Want to Learn More About Bullfrogs?

EFFECTS OF INTRAMUSCULAR ALFAXALONE AND DEXMEDETOMIDINE IN BULLFROGS (LITHOBATES CATESBEIANA)

Stephanie Thi1; veterinary student

Stefanie Golden1, Julie Balko1 ,  Kate Bailey1

1North Carolina State University- College of Veterinary Medicine

Amphibians are common in the field, zoos, museums, and research. It is necessary for them to undergo handling, restraint, and medical care that cause stress, impacting their welfare.  

There is little information available regarding anesthetic drugs for amphibians. Previous studies show alfaxalone to be a fast acting and effective drug for immobilization in frogs, though subjects did not reach a sufficient level of anesthesia for surgery1. Dexmedetomidine has been shown to prevent nociception in frogs, though they maintained consciousness2. We hypothesized that alfaxalone in combination with dexmedetomidine would produce a safe and efficacious method of immobilization in bullfrogs.

Three trials were conducted with 10 bullfrogs, with one week washout period in between. Frogs were administered either intramuscular (IM) 12 mg/kg alfaxalone alone, 1 mg/kg IM dexmedetomidine alone, or alfaxalone and dexmedetomidine in combination. Any trial containing dexmedetomidine included 0.1 mg/kg atipamezole reversal IM at 2 hours of observation, and hourly after if clinical signs persisted. Respiratory rate, heart rate, sedation score, and response to insertion of a needle into a hind leg muscle were evaluated every 15 minutes from induction to recovery.

One frog did not recover from anesthesia (9/10 frogs survived). Alfaxalone alone caused immobilization in bullfrogs, but inconsistent responses to needle insertion. Dexmedetomidine IM alone did not produce noticeable effects. Dexmedetomidine combined with alfaxalone caused immobilization of longer duration with reduced response to needle insertion when compared to alfaxalone alone. Therefore, the combination of these two drugs might provide effective anesthesia. 

Category: Anesthesiology/Clinical Medicine

Funding: Bailey Start Up Funds

References

1. LP Posner, KM Bailey, EY Richardson, AA Motsinger-Reif, CA Harms 2013. Alfaxalone Anesthesia in Bullfrogs (Lithobates Catesbeiana) By Injection or Immersion. J. of Zoo and Wildlife Medicine 44(4): 965-971. NCSU Libraries. 
2. GM Brenner, AJ Klopp, LL Deason, and CW Stevens 1994. Analgesic potency of alpha adrenergic agents after systemic administration in amphibians. Journal of Pharmacology and Experimental Therapeutics 270(2):540-545. NCSU Libraries.
   

Gular Reflex

Recording heart rate with Doppler

25 gauge needle used to assess response to noxious stimuli

Bullfrog regaining righting reflex