Why I love my job!

Today I placed an IV catheter and got fluids and antibiotics started in a 50# angus calf with scours, and got him tucked in with warm blankets and supplemental heating.

Then I drew blood for an FIV/FeLV test and ran anesthesia on a 0.8# kitten while Doc enucleated both of his eyes (he was found with ruptured corneas due to severe URI). He’s currently recovering while snuggled up in my lap, and I’ll be fostering him until he’s well enough to go to his new home =^.^=

She should have a statue. Not those confederate MFs.

- Rood & Riddle Equine Podiatry

Little boy about to receive a dog for his birthday (1955)

THIS IS WHAT IM HERE FOR

My dad and his veterinarian mother, with their pet lion which they raised for two years, 1959

magic cat

blessed post

West Nile Virus seems to be particularly virulent this year.  We are seeing an increase in neurologic cases - some confirmed and some assumed to be caused by WNV. 

Here are some commonly asked questions about the virus:

What is West Nile Virus?  West Nile virus (WNV) belongs to a family of viruses, the flaviviridae, many of which can cause encephalitis, a potentially fatal inflammation of the brain and spinal cord. It is known to affect birds, horses, and humans - and occasionally other mammals.   West Nile has been identified in 138 species of birds, with blue jays and crows seeming to be especially susceptible, but most species of raptors are severely affected, as well.  It has been reported in raptors in the US since 2002.

How is it spread? The virus is spread by mosquitoes from infected birds and animals to other birds and animals.  The virus is zoonotic, but there are no known cases of transmission from person to person or from birds or mammals to humans. There was, however, a report of the virus being spread through a blood transfusion.

What are the symptoms of WNV in raptors?  Clinical Signs of WNV in raptors seem to occur in three phases:

Phase 1: Depression, anorexia, weight loss (in proportion to duration of starvation), sleeping, pinched off blood feathers, elevated white blood cell count Phase 2: In addition to the above, head tremors, green urates (indicating liver necrosis), mental dullness/central blindness and general lack of awareness of surroundings, ataxia (clumsiness or poor equilibrium), weakness in legs, exaggerated aggression, very high fever, polio-like flaccid paralysis, excessive sleeping, detached retinas. Phase 3: More severe tremors, seizures, and death

What is the treatment and prognosis?   There is no prescribed treatment, just supportive care (fluids, warmth, nutrition, and high doses of non-steroidal anti-inflammatories).  The chance of recovery depends on what phase the bird is in. Phase 1 birds respond reasonably well to supportive care. Once they reach Phase 2, some birds respond to supportive care, but others do not and proceed to Phase 3. Complete recovery is uncertain but they are typically close to death. Unfortunately, it is not known if they will have permanent neurological damage, even if they have survived the virus infection.

Is it preventable?  A couple of equine vaccines (one made by Fort Dodge and one by Merial) have been used in birds but we do not know how well they actually work.  We have vaccinated some of our resident birds with the Fort Dodge vaccine and no side effects were seen.  Other than that, it is just trying to protect the birds from mosquito bites.  This can be difficult when you are housed outside.  We use fine mesh netting on our enclosures to try to help with this.  We try to reduce the amount of standing water.  Mosquito control is key.  

Although the infected birds we admit at the clinic are from all over the surrounding area.  So for us, we focus mainly on the treatment of it - but we do want to protect the other patients, as well as our resident population.  

did u kno dolphins puff puff pass

aight but imagine being a puffer fish getting passed around by a bunch of high ass dolphins like 100x your size

ARE YOU FUCKING KIDDING ME

2:33 3132 // some biology notes I took whilst studying for the mcat! It’s summer break but I’m not truly on vacation since I’m always studying.

taken from my instagram @izzybooks. 

04.11.17 || Viruses and Vaccines for Bio Notes 🔬

Pregnant Guinea Pig. Guinea Pigs are born precocial which means they pretty much walk out of their mothers ready to go. They are able to eat whole food, their eyes and ears are open, and they are fully furred! Guinea Pig gestation is anywhere from 59-72 days, which is a crazy length of time for a rodent to be pregnant. How many skeletons can you find?

I see 3!

#freshly peeled sheeps

reblogging solely for that deeply unnerving caption

@theosartisticthematics

FRESHLY PEELED SHEEPS

Fuck this. Does everyone just not see the blood scrapes on some of their backs and faces???!!! Anyone, seriously, correct me if I’m wrong because this is making me upset af

Domesticated sheep need to be sheared because they don’t shed their coats on their own and it can be bad for their health if it gets too big.

Also, it looks considering how close they cut that it went fairly well. I see like 2 nicks maybe, but with the photo it’s hard to tell. I mean, unfortunately, you’re going to nick a few animals because they don’t understand the order of “stand still” very well. 

Sheep can die from heat exhaustion if they aren’t sheared. 

Also, their skin secretes lanolin, which quickly soothes and heals any nicks they get during shearing. 

in conclusion, it is good to peel the sheeps

I got more nicks going to get my hair cut as an unruly child than these sheep.

Nicks happen! Just like you, they look worse than they are. I know a minor ankle nick makes the bathtub look like a murder scene for me.

Johne’s Disease

For the past week I have been on a very tiring dairy placement which has involved daily groggy 4am starts. I’ve got another week of the placement left and them I am back to vet school for year two! During my first year we briefly touched on Johne’s (pronounced Yo-nees) disease as a cause of diarrhoea. At the dairy farm I noticed a number of cows with plastic bands around their ankles, and the farmer explained these were to indicate the cows who had the disease. There are quite a few cows in the herd with the disease so I felt prompted to look in to it a bit more.

Johne’s disease, also known as paratuberculosis, is a worldwide problem with only some states in Australia reported as being free from the disease. It is caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium avium subspecies paratuberculosis. This bacteria is 99% related to Mycobacterium avium but infects mammals instead of birds. It’s known for infecting ruminants but has on rare occasions been found in other mammals. I’m going to be focussing on how it affects cows today. Another difference, on a more technical note, is that the Johne’s disease-causing subspecies of Mycobacterium avium requires the addition of an iron transport chemical in order to grow, so cannot multiply outside of the body, giving it different environmental distribution properties to Mycobacterium avium which naturally possesses these chemicals. Although it cannot multiply outside the body it is hardy and can survive in the external environment, spreading infection. In an infected herd only a small number of cows develop clinical signs although up to 50% of the herd can be asymptomatic carriers, causing a losses in production and fertility. Eradication of the disease from a herd can be very costly and take many years.

The main clinical signs of the disease are diarrhoea and wasting mostly seen in 2-6 year old animals. The animals will have a healthy appetite but will still experience weight loss. Looking out for weight loss and reduced milk production can help spot the disease early. It normally infects the animals when they are under a year of age with initial infection often happening shortly after birth and signs only manifesting themselves after a few years. Infection can occur through consumption of infected faeces from soiled water, food troughs and the mother’s coat/teats, or through consumption of milk/colostrum containing the bacteria (from animals in the advanced stages of the disease). The disease can also infect the calf while it is still in the uterus.  At my farm, the infected cows due to give birth were separated from the other cows. As soon as they calved (in a clean barn) we’d check the sex of the calf and if it was a heifer, remove the calf immediately. This is because the dairy heifer calves are the future of the farm’s stock so it is important that the farm reduce as much as possible their chances of acquiring the disease. If the calves were male, they could be left on the mother as they are going to be sold for meat anyway, so will be slaughtered before the disease begins to take hold. It’s a harsh concept but makes sense economically. The milk from the infected cow would only be fed to male calves or calves being sold for beef. Infected cows can have their milk enter the ‘main tank’ for human consumption. I am presuming this is because the pasteurisation process kills the bacteria, but I’m not sure.

The disease causes diarrhoea through altering the structure of the intestinal villi. The final section of the small intestine, called the ilium, contains areas called Peyer’s patches which house macrophages and lymphocytes used in immune responses. These patches are covered in cells called M-cells which pass possible antigens found in the intestine to the macrophages and lymphocytes enabling them to assess the substance and form an immune response if needed. When M cells present the Johne’s disease-causing M. paratuberculosis to the patches, the macrophages consume them with the intent to destroy the harmful bacteria. Instead, for unknown reasons, the bacteria thrive and multiply inside the macrophages and eventually kill the cells, going on to infect others. In response to the infection the immune system produces more macrophages leading to a huge influx of cells to the villi of the intestine. As the villi experience this influx of cells they become shorter and fatter. The epithelial cells on the surface have to stretch, losing their brush border and reducing the surface area for absorption. The intestine, upon inspection, has a thick and ‘cobblestoned’ appearance and under a microscope you can clearly see the bacillus-shaped bacteria peppering the intestine inside the macrophages.

Diagnosis includes looking for antibodies in the blood and inspecting faeces for infection. It is a hard disease to control as animals can shed the disease before showing clinical signs and the diagnosis techniques often have low detection rates in the early stages of the disease. A vaccination is available in many countries and can be imported to the UK under licence. It should be given to calves when less than a month old and although it does not eradicate the disease fully from the herd it is said to largely reduce the number of cases. This isn’t often an option in the UK as it is not cost effective and interferes with the skin test for bovine tuberculosis.

Overall it is a disease that can cause huge financial losses to both the dairy and beef industries and it is important for farms to balance out the costs of prevention/eradication against the losses the disease is causing them. It is estimated that in the US, 68% of dairy herds have at least one animal infected by the bacteria. Practices such as removing calves immediately from infected cows, calving in clean areas, being careful not to spread the infected manure around the farm, ensuring water is clean and not feeding calves the infected waste milk if they are going to be used as future stock are all relatively cheap and important measures for farms to consider.

I’m pretty obsessed with curly haired animals. Imagine a farm with nothing but these curly creatures!