Veterinary Voices

Apoquel, a drug for skin allergies in dogs, came out two years ago in the United States in a chewable form flavored with pork to make it palatable. It's proven to be that, to an extreme.

Two separate organizations that operate hotlines for pet poison emergencies report a rising trend in overdoses in dogs and cats, who are breaking into the packaging and gorging on the contents.

This story was published on Sept. 18, 2025.

Chlamydia, a bacterial infection best known as a sexually transmitted disease in people, has increased the risk of koalas going extinct. Now, the approval of the first-ever vaccine to protect the iconic Australian bear-like marsupial from chlamydia promises to arrest a rapid decline in their numbers.

The vaccine also is regarded by scientists as a potential blueprint for treating chlamydia in other animals, such as sheep, cattle and humans.

This story was published on Sept. 16, 2025.

An allegation in a lawsuit filed by Lincoln Memorial University in Tennessee against the American Veterinary Medical Association could be undercut by a recent accreditation decision in the school's favor.

This story was published on Sept. 11, 2025.

Dr. Will McCauley remembers a parasitology unit in veterinary school when his professors at Texas A&M University described the New World screwworm fly, an insect that once wreaked havoc in Texas but has long been eradicated in the United States.

"It was here in the '60s and '70s, but not anymore," McCauley recalled the instructors saying. "You'll probably never see it."

But it's looking like that won't be the case.

This story was published on Sept. 9, 2025.

Dr. Julie Hunt knows how to sew latex fabric, wield a Dremel grinder and mix and pour foam like a practiced crafter. Early in her veterinary career, she did not anticipate these skills would play a role in educating future practitioners.

This story was published on Sept. 4, 2025, as the second of a two-part series. Read or listen to part 1.

When she was a veterinary student, Dr. Meghan Shannon was heartsick at the prospect of learning surgery by operating multiple times on a dog that didn't need it, then ending its life intentionally.

Being at a school in the southern United States, Shannon already felt like an outcast as a vegan Northerner sporting a crew cut and nose ring. So she didn't hesitate to openly question the practice.

This story was published on Sept. 3, 2025, as the first of a two-part series. Read or listen to part 2.

Show notes:

• A public records review of cadaver and terminal animal use in US and Canadian veterinary schools, Journal of Veterinary Medical Education, Aug. 20, 2025
• A survey of the use of live animals, cadavers, inanimate models, and computers in teaching veterinary surgery, Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association, Oct. 1, 1993
• Guidance on the operation of the Animals Scientific Procedures Act 1986
• AAVMC Use of Animals in Veterinary Medical Education Handbook

On a June morning two years ago, Kristin Laidre's dog, Molly, suddenly fell off her owners' bed.

"She just crashed to the ground," Laidre said. "She couldn't use her legs. They were basically like Jell-O."

This story was published on Aug. 29, 2025.

Veterinarians in British Columbia had a tough decision to make by the end of August about the regulatory fees they must pay to practice in the Canadian province.

The provincial regulatory body for the profession, the College of Veterinarians of British Columbia, asked them to approve a 36% hike in their annual registration fee to CA$1,900 (US$1,374), among a raft of other fee increases. Without the increases, the college said, it would become insolvent.

This story was published on Aug. 27, 2025.

Update: The proposed fee increases were approved, with 55.4% voting in favor and 44.6% against, the CVBC said in a statement on Sept. 2. Of 2,595 eligible registrants, 36% voted.

Jerrold Abber finished his shift as a veterinary technician on a recent Monday and returned to his home in Tampa, Florida, thinking nothing was amiss. Then, at 9:39 p.m., an email arrived from his employer, The Vets, a mobile veterinary services provider. The July 21 message said the company was furloughing its employees without pay, effective immediately.

Abber was astonished. "We had appointments the next day," he said. "It was crazy."

This story was published on Aug. 21, 2025.

Dr. Kristol Stenstrom didn't seek out beekeeping — the bees came to her.

The Kansas veterinarian came home one day in 2016 to find a honey bee swarm had taken up residence on her front porch. In awe but also frightened, she called acquaintances who were familiar with bees. Then, not one to turn down a challenge nor turn away strays — even 30,000 of them — Stenstrom decided to keep the bees.

"It was kind of baptism by fire," Stenstrom said.

This story was published on Aug. 19, 2025.