Veterinary Record

Preventive healthcare is the focus of a large proportion of UK small animal veterinary consultations. The evidence base for how to optimise these consultations is limited. Therefore, evidence-based practical recommendations are needed for veterinary surgeons conducting these consultations. The aim of this study was to use an evidence-based methodology to develop the first consensus recommendations to improve dog and cat preventative healthcare consultations (PHCs).Evidence from multiple sources was systematically examined to generate a list of 18 recommendations...

Parrot bornaviruses (PaBV) are the causative agents of proventricular dilatation disease in psittacine birds, but have also been linked to other clinical signs, including behavioural disorders and neurological signs. The aim of this study was to correlate PaBV infection in birds showing feather-damaging behaviour or neurological signs for which no other cause of disease could be identified. Psittacine birds presented to a private practice were divided into three groups: birds with neurological signs (n=28), birds showing feather-damaging behaviour (n=42) and birds presented for routine examinations (n=56)...

Canine dystocia is a relatively common veterinary presentation. First opinion emergency care clinical data from 50 Vets Now clinics across the UK were used to explore dystocia management and outcomes in bitches. Caesarean section (CS) was performed on 341/701 (48.6 per cent (95 per cent CI 44.9 to 52.4)) of dystocia cases. The bulldog (OR 7.60, 95 per cent CI 1.51 to 38.26, P=0.014), Border terrier (OR 4.89, 95 per cent CI 0.92 to 25.97, P=0.063) and golden retriever (OR 4.07, 95 per cent CI 0.97 to 17...

Options for diagnosing Fasciola hepatica infection in groups of cattle are limited. Increasing the opportunities for herd-level diagnosis is important for disease monitoring, making informed treatment decisions and for flukicide efficacy testing. The sensitivity of a simple sedimentation method based on composite faecal samples for the detection of fluke eggs in cattle was assessed through a combination of experimental and statistical modelling techniques. Initially, a composite sample method previously developed for sheep was used to investigate the sensitivity of composite sample testing compared with individual counts on the same samples in cattle...

The requirement to pack the sulcus of the equine foot as an aid to diagnostic interpretation before acquisition of dorsoproximal-palmarodistal oblique projections is debatable. The purpose of this study was to investigate the benefit of packing the sulcus in the assessment of normal anatomy. 23 cadaver limbs were radiographed in a podoblock (https://www.podoblock.com/products-page/podoblock/podoblock/) A non-packed image (NP) and a packed image (P) of the same foot were acquired. The image quality of P was graded against the reference NP by five observers, where -1=P was superior, 0=no difference between P and NP, and +1=NP was superior...

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate whether a standard operating procedure (SOP) for canine packed cell volume (PCV) measurement reduces operator-dependent variation and improves accuracy within a veterinary teaching hospital environment. MATERIALS AND METHODS: Clinical staff and final-year undergraduate veterinary students were recruited to perform PCV measurements in blinded duplicate samples. Participants were randomly allocated to perform this with or without an SOP. Participants' results were compared against a reference, generated by the authors following the World Health Organization guidelines...

The accuracy of drill hole location is critical for implant placement in orthopaedic surgery. Increasing drill bit size sequentially has been suggested as a method for improving the accuracy of drill hole start location. The aim of this study was to determine whether sequential drilling or drill angulation would alter accuracy of drill hole start location. Three specialist veterinary surgeons drilled holes in synthetic bone models either directly, or with sequentially increasing drill bit sizes. Drilling was performed at 0o , 10o and 20o to perpendicular to the bone models...

The objective was to determine possible challenge areas that bovine veterinarians may face when working on certified organic livestock operations. All members of the American Association of Bovine Practitioners' electronic mailing list, who practised in the USA, were invited to participate in an anonymous online survey. Veterinarians (n=213) from 38 states participated in the survey. The focus of the survey was on the veterinarian's interest in and perception of organic farming, their knowledge of the use of alternative therapies under federal regulations and their needs for providing veterinary services to organic farms...

The success of the dog as a companion animal has undeniably led to a shift in dog breeding practices. While effects of inbreeding or large-scale breeding have given rise to numerous studies about potentially related health issues, it remains unclear to what extent behavioural development of dogs is influenced. By investigating the environment of puppies while at the breeder, the authors aimed to make an inventory of current practices regarding management, socialisation and environmental learning and subsequently to identify potential differences between breeder types...

Abstract A neurological syndrome of small ruminants, known locally as ' ormilo ', has been reported among pastoralist livestock keepers in Tanzania. This study was carried out in four affected pastoral communities to determine the prevalence and associated risk factors, characterise the clinical signs and investigate the aetiology of the syndrome. Questionnaires were administered at all households (n=480) within four study villages. Overall, 94 per cent of households reported at least one case in the previous 12 months...

Recent studies from North America and continental Europe have reported Zen 1 as a major allergen in atopic dogs, and Der f 2 as a minor allergen. In contrast, Der f 2 is considered a major allergen in Japan. In this study, allergen-specific IgE against Der f 2, Zen 1 and crude Dermatophagoides farinae (DF) was determined using ELISA assays in English atopic dogs. Serum samples were obtained from 59 dogs with non-seasonal atopic dermatitis. ELISA assays using horseradish peroxidase-labelled anti-dog IgE monoclonal antibody (Bethyl; A40-125P) and recombinant Der f 2 (Zenoaq), natural Zen 1 (Zenoaq) and DF extract (Greer Laboratories; North Carolina) were performed by Zenoaq, Fukushima, Japan...

A 3-year-old male neutered Shih Tzu cross was presented for investigation of a three-week history of weight loss, seborrhoea, vomiting and diarrhoea. Initial clinicopathological findings included pancytopenia, mild hypercalcaemia and marked hyperglobulinaemia. Subsequent bone marrow and skin biopsies revealed the presence of Leishmania amastigotes. Quantitative serology was positive for Leishmania species and PCR on the bone marrow sample confirmed a Leishmania infantum infection. The patient had been in the owner's possession since a puppy, had no travel history outside of the UK and had never received a blood transfusion or been used for breeding...

The objective of this study was to determine if buffering mepivacaine HCL (mepHCl) with sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3 ) would significantly decrease the time to onset of analgesia when performing median and ulnar nerve blocks in naturally lame horses. Median and ulnar nerve blocks were performed on the naturally lame limb of nine horses during two separate study periods, with a minimum washout period of three days between study periods. Nerve blocks were performed by administering mepHCl alone or mepHCl mixed with NaHCO3 (nine parts 2 per cent mepHCl to one part 8...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

The capability to set baselines and monitor trends of health and welfare conditions is an important requirement for livestock industries in order to maintain economic competitiveness and sustainability. Monitoring schemes evaluate the relative importance of conditions so that: appropriate actions can be determined, prioritised and implemented; new and (re)emerging conditions can be promptly detected and the effectiveness of any actions can be measured. In 2011, the national pig levy board published a strategy document highlighting health and welfare conditions of importance to the pig industry that were to be targeted for control...

This study investigated Mycoplasma hyopneumoniae colonisation and lung lesions at slaughter in pigs from vaccinated (V) and non-vaccinated (NV) sows, in two herds (A and B). In each herd, two sow batches were V against M. hyopneumoniae with a commercial bacterin at six and three weeks before farrowing and two sow batches remained NV. From each sow batch, laryngeal swabs were collected from the litters of five primiparous sows at weaning and seven days post-weaning. All samples were tested for M. hyopneumoniae by nested PCR...

In 2016, a veterinary service company, XL Farmcare UK, was awarded a Defra contract to manage a series of on-farm demonstration workshops to raise biosecurity awareness. The workshops provided free training for cattle farmers in England on the practical measures that they could take to limit the threat of bovine tuberculosis (bTB). Despite communicating these events to farmers, the number who subsequently attended them was low and the company decided to conduct research to seek explanation. Farmers were interviewed at agricultural shows, their comments analysed and the frequency of words in use were measured to produce a set of common themes...

The transmissible spongiform encephalopathy scrapie of sheep/goats and chronic wasting disease of cervids are associated with environmental reservoirs of infectivity. Preventing environmental prions acting as a source of infectivity to healthy animals is of major concern to farms that have had outbreaks of scrapie and also to the health management of wild and farmed cervids. Here, an efficient scrapie decontamination protocol was applied to a farm with high levels of environmental contamination with the scrapie agent...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

The feasibility of the home monitoring of heart rate (HR) and rhythm through ECG tracings recorded by owners with a smartphone ECG device was evaluated in dogs. Smartphone ECG tracings were recorded by owners at home using a single-lead ECG device and sent via email for interpretation. A questionnaire was prepared to assess the owner's opinion regarding this home monitoring service. Recordings were evaluated by two operators, and agreement was evaluated for HR and rhythm diagnosis. Thirty-three dogs were included...