Tell your Senators to Support the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act

From the American Veterinary Medical Association:

U.S. Senators Jerry Moran (R-Kansas) and Angus King (I-Maine) introduced this week the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act (S. 950). This bipartisan legislation will allow veterinarians to legally carry and dispense controlled substances to protect the health and welfare of the nation’s animals, ensure public safety, and safeguard the nation’s food supply.

Last month, veterinarians and U.S. Reps. Kurt Schrader (D-Ore.) and Ted Yoho (R-Fla.) introduced companion legislation, H.R. 1528 and we asked you to contact your Representatives to voice your support for this issue. More than 10,000 of you took action.

We need your support again.  Tell your U.S. Senators TODAY that veterinarians must be able to legally carry and use controlled substances for the health and welfare of the nation’s animals, to safeguard public safety and to protect the nation’s food supply.

We encourage you to contact your Senators and urge them to co-sponsor the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act.  This legislation amends the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) which currently prohibits veterinarians from transporting controlled substances to treat animal patients outside of their registered locations.

Veterinarians treat multiple species of animals in a variety of settings. Unfortunately, the CSA makes it illegal for veterinarians to take and use controlled substances outside of the locations where they are registered, often their clinics or homes.

This means that it is illegal for veterinarians to carry and use vital medications for pain management, anesthesia and euthanasia on farms, in house calls, in veterinary mobile clinics, or ambulatory response situations.

The Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA), which enforces the law, has informed organized veterinary medicine that without a statutory change, veterinarians are in violation of the CSA and cannot legally provide complete veterinary care. The DEA has already notified veterinarians in some states that they are in violation of the law.

Tell your Senators that veterinarians need to legally be able to transport controlled substances to the locations of the animal patients, not only for the health and welfare of the nation’s animals, but for public safety. Support S. 950, the Veterinary Medicine Mobility Act, NOW.

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Help Ensure that Veterinarians Can Provide Complete Care to Their Animal Patients

Veterinarians treat multiple species of animals in a variety of settings. Unfortunately, the Controlled Substances Act (CSA) makes it illegal for veterinarians to take and use controlled substances outside of the locations where they are registered, often their clinics or homes.

This means that it is illegal for veterinarians to carry and use vital medications for pain management, anesthesia and euthanasia on farms, in house calls, in veterinary mobile clinics, or ambulatory response situations.

Veterinarians must be able to legally carry and use controlled substances for the health and welfare of the nation’s animals, to safeguard public safety and to protect the nation’s food supply.

Read more on the AVMA web site.

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Cape Teen Rescues Beloved Horse From Slaughterhouse

A Harwich teenager and the horse she grew up with have become a leading face of the latest national effort to ban slaughtering horses and exporting them for meat.

In a one-in-a-million happenstance, Brittany Wallace found her childhood companion, Scribbles, hours before the mare was to be shipped to Mexico or Canada to be killed and eaten.

Read more on the Cape Cod Times.

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Cat & Dog Teams Face Off: Cats Put Pups in Doghouse!

From the A.D.O.P.T. Pet Shelter (Naperville, Illinois 60563)

As of today, the Cat Team is ahead of the Dog Team…but that may not last for long.  If you are not able to walk yourself, consider sponsoring one of our animal teams!

Karate Kideo and the Kool Kats

I am Karate Kideo, as my shelter friends call me because I love to play.  I am so excited to have been selected by my fellow cats to be captain of this year’s Makin’ Strides for Strays Walkathon cat team, representing the 70-80 current feline residents here at A.D.O.P.T… with plenty more arriving once kitten season hits.  Please sponsor our team and help us put those pups in their place!

Click here to support the Cat Team

Benny and the Jets

We are just giving those cats a false sense of security…I am Benny, Team Captain of Benny & The Jets, a team of canine residents representing the shelter in the Makin’ Strides for Strays Walkathon!  We want to raise funds to help dogs who find themselves here at A.D.O.P.T. — Many of us have medical issues that can be very costly to treat; many of us are seniors. If it weren’t for A.D.O.P.T. we might not have the chance to find forever homes.

Click here to support the Dog Team

This year is the 20th Anniversary of the Makin’ Strides for Strays Walkathon!  Please join us on Sunday, May 5 at Fifth Avenue Station for family games and refreshments as we celebrate!  For more information, visit the A.D.O.P.T. Pet Shelter web site.

 

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“We’re Everywhere… Except Your Lap”: Dumb Friends League Launches Multimedia Campaign to Increase Cat Adoptions

There’s no question about it—cats have quickly become the lions of the Internet. With millions of views, likes and shares, they’ve made their way into our hearts and dominated online content through viral videos and funny, clever photos. So why, on any given day, are there still hundreds of homeless cats and kittens available for adoption? That’s the question the Dumb Friends League (Denver, Colorado 80231) is asking in a new campaign aimed at increasing cat adoptions at its shelters.

To help these cats find homes, the Dumb Friends League is hoping to bridge the gap between online and your lap through its “We’re Everywhere… Except Your Lap” campaign by highlighting the many positive attributes that make cats such lovable online celebrities.

As part of the multimedia campaign promoted through television, radio, print and online content, as well as the creation if its very own Internet cat memes (a form of viral online content), the Dumb Friends League will be offering a variety of adoption specials to help get more cats into forever homes throughout the spring and summer. The specials will take place at all adoption locations—the Quebec Street shelter in Denver, the Buddy Center in Castle Rock and the adoption center at The Shops at Northfield Stapleton—as well as on its mobile adoption unit, the Pet Care-avan, and six participating Petco locations.

All feline adoptions include a spay/neuter surgery, initial vaccinations, a microchip ID implant and a free office visit with a participating veterinarian.

More info.

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Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month

April is Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Month, and each year, the ASPCA urges supporters across the country to support its efforts and Go Orange for Animals in honor of the signing of the ASPCA’s charter in 1866. Throughout the month, the ASPCA will be encouraging its members to show their support by donning its signature color and going orange for animals.

Please join the ASPCA for this month-long celebration of its victories in the fight against animal cruelty.

Ways to go orange.

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Testimonial: Spring Naturals Nourishes Diabetic Pup

“Love in a bag!” is exactly what Angie Morphis and her Irish Setter, Shayne O’Malley, from Greensboro, NC, think about the Spring Naturals line of Grain Free Dry Dog Food. After being diagnosed with diabetes Shayne went from 104 lbs. to 83 lbs. in just a matter of months. Since switching to a Spring Naturals diet, Shayne has successfully maintained his new weight and feel satisfied, all while assisting with keeping his diabetes under control.

Shayne O’Malley. Photo © Angie Morphis

Initially, Morphis decided to try a Spring Naturals sample bag after confirming it included all the healthy ingredients she was looking for. And when Shayne “woofed Spring Naturals down like a T-bone steak”, she immediately picked up a larger 4 lb. bag.

It’s especially important that Shayne loves his food because Morphis uses it as a distraction when it’s time for the pup’s insulin injections. “Every evening at 6 p.m., I pour two cups of the Spring Naturals chicken flavor grain free dry dog food into his bowl,” explains Morphis, “and while he is munching down I give him his evening injection. He is so engrossed in his ‘treat’ he doesn’t even realize I’m giving him a mean, old shot.” She continues on to describe the Spring Naturals product as a “healthy, nutritious and great tasting dog food that has made our lives better. For me, it’s love in a bag!”

Image courtesy Spring Naturals

Spring Naturals is proud of Morphis and Shayne’s experience because it proves that their commitment to providing nutritious and palatable food for pets is making a difference. Since the line was launched, the brand has been recognized multiple times by leading trade magazines and The Whole Dog Journal.

Check out the entire line of the Spring Naturals Dry Food, Wet Food and Treats for dogs, both in whole grain and grain free formulas in flavors, including chicken, beef, turkey, lamb, and more.

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New Dumb Friends League Mobile Spay/Neuter Clinic Hits the Road

As part of its goal to offer more spay and neuter opportunities for pets and reduce pet overpopulation, the Dumb Friends League (Denver, Colorado 80231; Castle Rock, Colorado 80109) recently unveiled its newest spay/neuter mobile clinic, the Meow Mobile. The new Meow Mobile gives the Dumb Friends League even more mobility to offer spay and neuter services for cats in underserved areas of metro Denver at reduced fees, subsidized by Dumb Friends League donors.

The Meow Mobile is a 33-foot, custom spay/neuter clinic built by LaBoit, a manufacturer in Columbus, Ohio. This state-of-the-art surgery suite on wheels has two surgery tables, a surgery prep table, built-in kennels and a fully functional office work space with computer.

“With the new vehicle, we will be able to access more neighborhoods to perform more surgeries,” said Outreach Manager Tracy Koss. “Thanks to this generous gift, we’ve been able to design a state-of-the-art vehicle from the chassis up and get important mechanical upgrades, as well.”

The Meow Mobile is a gift from longtime Dumb Friends League supporter Henry Roath, a retired attorney with a big heart for animals. In 2001, his capital campaign gift helped establish the medical center at the Quebec Street shelter, where roughly 8,000 pets a year are sterilized prior to adoption and thousands more receive lifesaving care.

“Henry has been so generous over the years,” said Bob Rohde, president and CEO of the Dumb Friends League. “We are truly blessed to have his support, helping us put more needed resources into medical care for pets in our shelter and in underserved areas of metro Denver.”

Last year alone, the two Dumb Friends League mobile units spayed and neutered 6,635 owned cats and dogs, with the Meow Mobile sterilizing 1,800 cats alone. Since the outreach program began in 2005, more than 36,000 owned cats and dogs have been spayed or neutered.

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Updated Cumulative Veterinary Adverse Drug Experience Reports

In the spirit of openness and transparency, the Center for Veterinary Medicine (CVM) has created and posted these ADE summary reports for the public. CVM has posted the Cumulative ADE Summaries Report so that veterinarians and animal owners can have easily available access to information about signs that have been associated with drugs. These reports will be updated on a monthly basis. This summary report does not include electronic submissions. We are currently developing this capability and will include electronic submissions at some point in the future.

ADE Report Description

The primary purpose for maintaining the CVM ADE database is to provide an early warning or signaling system to CVM for adverse effects not detected during pre-market testing of FDA-approved animal drugs and for monitoring the performance of drugs not approved for use in animals. Information from these ADE reports is coded and entered into a computerized FDA/CVM ADE database. CVM scientists use the ADE database to make decisions about product safety which may include changes to the label or other regulatory action.

The Center’s adverse drug experience (ADE) process takes into consideration confounding factors such as:

• Dosage
• Concomitant drug use
• The medical and physical condition of animals at the time of treatment
• Environmental and management information
• Product defects
• Extra-label-uses

However, the specifics of these complex factors cannot be addressed in these reports.

The CVM ADE reporting system depends on detection of adverse clinical events by veterinarians and animal owners. For information on ADE reporting, see Veterinary Adverse Event Voluntary Reporting. For information on how CVM reviews an ADE, see Data Analysis for Adverse Drug Events Reported to CVM.

Read more on the CVM web site.

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FDA Asks Kasel Associates Industries to Initiate a Voluntary Recall of Certain Pet Treats

The FDA hand delivered the following letter to Kasel Associates Industries:

Dear Mr. Kasel:Pursuant to section 423 ‘of the Federal Food, Drug, and Cosmetic Act (FD&C Act) (21 U.S.C. 3501), as amended by the FDA Food Safety Modernization Act, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) is providing your firm, Kasel Associates Industries, Inc. (Kasel), with an opportunity to voluntarily cease distribution and conduct a recall of pet treat products manufactured by your firm from April 20, 2012 through September 19, 2012. Section 423(a) of the FD&C Act provides in relevant part that if FDA “determines…that there is a reasonable probability that an article of human or animal food (other than infant formula) is adulterated under section 402 or misbranded under section 403(w) and the use of or exposure to such article will cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals,” before taking further action under section 423 of the FD&C Act, FDA must offer the responsible party the opportunity to voluntarily cease distribution and recall such articles (21 U.S.C. 3501(a)).

As discussed further below, FDA has determined that for those pet treats manufactured at your Denver facility from April 20, 2012 through September 19, 2012, which bear the lot codes BESTBY20APR2014 to BESTBY030CT2014 for products with a two year expiry, or BESTBY20APR2013 to BESTBY030CT2013 for products with a one year expiry (collectively, affected pet treats), there is a reasonable probability that such products are adulterated under section 402(a)(1)2 and (a)(4i ofthe FD&C Act (21 U.S.C. 342(a)(l) and (a)(4)) and a reasonable probability that the use of or exposure to these products will cause serious adverse health consequences or death to humans or animals. If you do not voluntarily cease distribution and conduct a recall, FDA may, by order, require you to immediately cease distribution of the affected pet treats and also may require you to immediately give notice to other parties. If you elect to take the action requested in this letter, you should do so within the time frame and in the manner described below under “Opportunity to Initiate a Voluntary Recall” to avoid further regulatory action by FDA concerning the affected pet treats.

Read more on the FDA web site.

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