Sharp transection of the suspensory ligament as an alternative to digital strumming during canine ovariohysterectomy.

OBJECTIVE: To compare time efficiency and nociceptive input between digital strumming (DS) and sharp transection (ST) of the suspensory ligament during ovariohysterectomy (OVH). STUDY DESIGN: Randomized controlled trial. ANIMALS: 30 adult female dogs. METHODS: Dogs were randomly assigned to ST or DS procedures. Measures of nociception were assessed through measurements of preoperative and intraoperative heart rate during manipulation of the suspensory ligament. Measures of pain were assessed through preoperative and postoperative pain scores by using the short form Glasgow Composite Pain Scale. Time efficiency was measured through total surgical time and the time to release each suspensory ligament. RESULTS: After body weight was accounted for, the total surgical time was 1.1 minutes (P = .06) faster for ST than for DS, and each additional kilogram of body weight increased total surgical time by 0.1 minutes (P = .02). Digital strumming had 30.6-fold greater odds of taking greater than 1 minute compared with ST (P = .001). The heart rate from baseline to peak was 7.4 beats per minute lower in the ST group than in the DS group (P = .06). No complications were observed, and there was no difference in postoperative pain scores between treatments. CONCLUSION: Sharp transection was faster and generated less intraoperative acceleration in heart rate but did not differ in postoperative outcomes compared with DS. CLINICAL SIGNIFICANCE: Sharp transection is a viable alternative to DS for breakdown of the suspensory ligament during canine OVH. Sharp transection may improve surgical efficiency, especially when performing large volumes in the spay/neuter setting and could influence veterinary student training.

A randomized trial to compare smooth monofilament suture vs. barbed suture using the three-layer continuous closure technique in canine ovariohysterectomy in a high-quality high-volume spay/neuter clinic.

The primary objective of this study was to compare time efficiency and complication rates between smooth monofilament suture (SMS) and barbed suture (BS) using the three-layer continuous incisional closure pattern after ovariohysterectomy in a high-quality high-volume spay/neuter clinic. The study was designed as a randomized controlled trial enrolling 71 adult female dogs. Dogs were randomly assigned to SMS or BS treatments. The effect of closure with BS or SMS on closure time was tested through multilevel, multivariable linear regression in a generalized linear mixed model. Body condition score, weight, and pre-closure incision length were tested as covariates. Surgeon was included in the model as a random effect. Pre-closure incision length (p = 0.01) and method (p ≤ 0.0001) were associated with closure time. Adjusting for pre-closure incision length, the average time for closure with SMS was 6.5 min (range 3.70-10.31 min), and the average time for closure with BS was 4.91 min (range 3.05-8.05 min). Accounting for the closure method, the closure time increased by 39 s for each additional centimeter of incision length. BS was more efficient than SMS when performing the three-layer continuous suture pattern. No short-term telemedicine-assessed complications were noted with either treatment method. BS can improve efficiency in surgical closures, especially considering large volumes of animals, and appears to have a similar short-term, telemedicine-assessed complication rate when compared to SMS.

Epidemiology's Adoption of System Dynamics is a Natural Extension of Population Thinking.

Epidemiologists have adopted systems thinking as an approach to understanding why health conditions occur in animal populations beyond the knowledge of simple linear relationships. Beef production systems are complex adaptive systems and decisions and policies throughout the system can positively or negatively affect the health of cattle. Those decisions may occur far removed in time or place from the health event and may be logical in the context of other factors in the system. Causal loop diagrams and stock and flow models are tools for sharing and testing thoughts about the ways systems might behave.

Factors Associated with Shelter Dog Euthanasia versus Live Release by Adoption or Transfer in the United States.

The objective of this study was to identify phenotypic characteristics predicting the outcome of euthanasia for dogs entering shelters compared to live release. Individual dog records for 2017 were requested from shelters in five states (Mississippi, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Colorado, and Oklahoma) receiving municipal funding and using electronic records. Duplicate dogs were removed and records from 17 shelters were merged into a dataset of 25,047 unique dogs with variables of breed, gender, coat color, size, age, region, and time in shelter. Only data from dogs with the potential to be adopted (n = 19,514) were analyzed. From these data, a simple random sample of 6200 dogs was used for modelling. Variables describing coat length, estimated adult size, and skull type were imputed from the breed description. A Cox proportional hazard model with a random effect of shelter was developed for the outcome of euthanasia using manual forward variable selection and significance for variable retention at alpha = 0.05. A size by geographic region interaction was associated with the hazard of euthanasia (p = 0.0204). Additionally, age group and skull type were both associated with euthanasia compared to live release (p < 0.0001). The results of this study indicate that phenotypic characteristics of dogs are predictive of their hazard for euthanasia in shelters.

Sedation with dexmedetomidine is associated with transient gallbladder wall thickening and peritoneal effusion in some dogs undergoing abdominal ultrasonography.

BACKGROUND: Dexmedetomidine often is used for sedation before or during abdominal ultrasonography. The effect of dexmedetomidine on gallbladder wall thickness is unknown. HYPOTHESIS/OBJECTIVES: To investigate the relationship between dexmedetomidine administration and gallbladder wall thickening in dogs. The hypothesis was that sedation with dexmedetomidine will cause transient gallbladder wall thickening. Gallbladder wall thickness will be associated with duration of sedation and recumbency position. ANIMALS: Seventy-nine client owned dogs and 10 healthy research dogs. METHODS: A prospective observational study (n = 79) was used to establish the prevalence of gallbladder wall thickening (> 2.0 mm) after sedation with dexmedetomidine. A randomized, crossover study (n = 10) was used to evaluate the effect of time and recumbency position on the development of gallbladder wall thickening. Linear mixed models were used. RESULTS: The proportion of client-owned dogs that developed gallbladder wall thickening was 24.05% (19/79; 95% confidence interval [CI], 15.1%-35.0%) with a median dose of dexmedetomidine of 5.0 µg/kg (range, 2.0-12.5 µg/kg). After sedation, the proportion of research dogs that developed gallbladder wall thickening in left lateral (5/10, 50%; 95% CI, 18.7%-81.3%) and dorsal (7/10, 70%; 95% CI, 34.8%-93.3%) recumbency did not differ significantly (P = .45). Gallbladder wall thickening developed within 20 to 40 minutes. Duration of sedation was significantly associated with thickening of the gallbladder wall (P < .001). Five dogs developed 9 instances of peritoneal effusion in both lateral (5) and dorsal (4) recumbency. CONCLUSIONS AND CLINICAL IMPORTANCE: Sedation with dexmedetomidine is associated with gallbladder wall thickening (> 2.0 mm) and peritoneal effusion that could be confused with pathologic etiologies.

Phenotypic Characteristics Associated with Shelter Dog Adoption in the United States.

The objective of this study was to identify phenotypic characteristics of dogs predictive of adoption after being received into a shelter. Individual dog records for 2017 were requested from shelters in five states that received municipal funding and utilized electronic record keeping methods. Records from 17 shelters were merged into a dataset of 19,514 potentially adoptable dogs. A simple random sample of 4500 dogs was used for modelling. Variables describing coat length, estimated adult size, and skull type were imputed from breed phenotype. A Cox proportional hazard model with a random effect of shelter was developed for the outcome of adoption using manual forward variable selection. Significance for model inclusion was set at alpha = 0.05. Dogs from shelters in the North were more likely to be adopted than dogs from shelters in the South (hazard ratio (HR) = 3.13, 95% C.I. 1.27-7.67), as were dogs from Western shelters versus those from Southern shelters (HR = 3.81, 95% C.I. 1.43-10.14). The effect of estimated adult size, skull type, and age group on adoption were each modified by time in the shelter (p < 0.001). The results of this study indicate that what dogs look like is predictive of their hazard for adoption from shelters, but the effect of some characteristics on hazard for adoption depend on time in the shelter. Further, this study demonstrates that adopters prefer a certain phenotype of shelter dog including those that are puppies, small sized and not brachycephalic, when accounting for time in the sheltering environment.

Factors associated with rabies vaccination of dog shelter staff in the United States.

US animal shelters house and care for dogs with unknown medical histories. Such unknown medical backgrounds pose concern for zoonotic transmission of diseases to the shelter staff. One important zoonotic exposure is to rabies virus which is almost always fatal after the onset of symptoms. The objective of this study was to identify the characteristics of dog shelters associated with the probability that the shelter had a policy to vaccinate shelter personnel against rabies. Five states with an established shelter registry were selected from each geographic region of the United States. A list of shelters within those states was developed from the registry list, through Internet searches and comparisons with other known lists. At least two forms of direct communication were used to ensure that humane organizations met the study definition of a dog shelter. In total, 342 of 461 (73%) shelters that met the study definition were visited by a team of students. Forty-two of 332 (13%) shelters responding to the question required staff to be vaccinated against rabies. Logistic regression was utilized to test shelter characteristics for association with the probability that they have a rabies vaccination policy for shelter staff. Municipally funded shelters were more likely to vaccinate staff for rabies than shelters funded privately (OR = 3.0, 95% CI = 1.40-6.39). These results demonstrate that shelter funding source may influence rabies control programmes in shelters.

Clinically Prepared Veterinary Students: Enhancing Veterinary Student Hands-on Experiences and Supporting Hospital Caseload Using Shelter Medicine Program.

Referral-level medicine is important in the veterinary curriculum, however veterinary students also need a solid base knowledge of clinically relevant, routine surgical and diagnostic skills to be clinically prepared after graduation. Exposure to a referral-only, or primarily referral caseload, does not always provide veterinary students with the routine hands-on experiences and competencies expected by the American Veterinary Medical Association Council on Education, the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, the Australian Veterinary Boards Council, or prospective employers. The aim of this descriptive study was to assess how a shelter medicine program can fill the companion animal caseload gap and create the necessary hands-on experiences considered essential in the veterinary curriculum. Pedagogical frameworks, course curriculum and design, student experiences, and student assessments were described for three core curricular areas (surgery, medical days, population medicine) of the Shelter Medicine Program at Mississippi State University. The shelter surgery experience provided a high-quality, high-volume spay/neuter environment where fourth-year students averaged 65 sterilization surgeries in two weeks and demonstrated a quantifiable decrease in surgical time. The shelter surgery experience added on average 9,000 small animal cases per year to the overall hospital caseload. Shelter medical days, where students provide veterinary care during on-site shelter visits, created opportunities for third-year students to directly interact with shelter animals by performing physical examinations and diagnostic testing, and to gain experience in developing treatment protocols and recommendations for commonly encountered problems. The shelter medical days experience averaged over 700 small animal cases per year and over 1,500 diagnostic procedures. Finally, students participated in 15 onsite shelter consultations where they obtained a working knowledge of biosecurity at a population level, including how to minimize the risk of infectious diseases spreading to healthy populations. Despite several challenges, results from this curricular program assessment support the aim that animal shelters and humane organizations offer opportunities that can be mutually beneficial for both animal organizations and veterinary students. The primary care caseload for the teaching institution was positively impacted, and students were better prepared to meet potential employers' expectations and fulfill required core competencies in veterinary medical education.