Animal Health Institute

AHI issues summary, responds to questions, regarding FDA guidance documents

admin — Tue, 08 May 2012 20:18:07 +0000

On April 11 the Food and Drug Administration published three documents providing additional information on implementing its policy on the use of antibiotics in food animals. AHI recently posted educational material summarizing FDA Guidance Documents 209 and 213, as well as the veterinary feed directive (VFD). In addition, AHI created a question and answer sheet about the FDA’s policy on antibiotics in animal feed.

Animal Health, Food Safety Link Studied (via Farm Futures)

admin — Tue, 08 May 2012 17:42:35 +0000

A team of experts took on the challenge to look at the science of how changes to animal health impacts food safety. “The Direct Relationship between Animal Health and Food Safety Outcomes,” published by the Council for Agriculture Science and Technology, cites challenges agriculture faces in meeting some consumer demands while maintaining animal health and food safety.

Task force chair Scott Hurd, DVM, associate professor of veterinary medicine at Iowa State University and former deputy undersecretary for food safety for the U.S. Department of Agriculture, presented a summary of the report to several audiences. During his presentation, Hurd discussed how changes to the care and health of the animals may impact public health and food safety.

Report: Chronic Disease Grows with Pets’ Waists (via Veterinary Practice News)

admin — Thu, 03 May 2012 18:46:08 +0000

The recently released State of Pet Health 2012 Report, shows that certain chronic diseases in dogs and cats have risen drastically since 2007. The 2012 report, organized by Banfield Pet Hospital, shows that chronic diseases have continued to increase, some at an alarming rate. Overweight and obesity increased 37 percent in dogs and 90 percent in cats, whereas arthritis increased 38 percent in dogs and 67 percent in cats.

Read more about the study at Veterinary Practice News.

Bats may carry up to 66 new species of virus linked to measles and mumps, scientists say (via National Post)

admin — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:17:10 +0000

According to an Agence France-Presse report, “Scientists studying bats have found dozens of new members of a virus family linked to human disease, and warned of possible exposure as the winged mammals are driven out of forests into the cities. Sixty-six new species of paramyxoviruses, the viral group that causes measles and mumps and is behind three cattle diseases, have a natural host in bats, they said. It is not yet known if any of the newly-discovered viruses are a threat or are even transmissible to humans, but the experts urged caution.”

Reade more at National Post.

Feral pigs pick up nasty bacteria that can pass to people (via Milwaukee Journal Sentinel)

admin — Tue, 24 Apr 2012 13:50:55 +0000

The Milwaukee Journal Sentinel is reporting “Tests found that in Johnston County, North Carolina about 9% of the feral pigs surveyed showed exposure to Brucella suis.” This bacteria can pass between pigs and people, causing flu-like symptoms in humans. The study was published in the Journal of Wildlife Diseases.

Read more at the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.

Dog in Arkansas tests positive for rabies (via KTHV-TV)

admin — Mon, 23 Apr 2012 12:43:04 +0000

Rabies continues to be a problem for unvaccinated pets. A report from Arkansas shows keeping a pet in an enclosure does not guarantee protection from this deadly disease. KTHV-TV reports, “For the first time in two years, a dog in the state has tested positive for rabies. The dog belonged to a resident of Yell County where it had been living in a pen near the owner’s home. A rabid skunk had gotten into the pen with the dog and subsequently died, presumably after a fight with the dog.”

AHI Statement on FDA Guidance Documents and Draft Codified Language on Antibiotics

admin — Wed, 11 Apr 2012 16:03:29 +0000

AHI Statement

FDA Guidance Documents and Draft Codified Language on Antibiotics

April 11, 2012

The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) released three documents impacting certain uses of medically important antibiotics in animal agriculture. The animal health industry supports the process designed to protect the health of animals and ultimately public health, while preserving animal care tools for veterinarians and producers. AHI and its member companies have supported the stakeholder approach used by FDA to reach this point and we will continue to work collaboratively to implement the policy goals articulated in these documents.

The veterinarian is critically important in animal care decisions and, ultimately, in protecting food safety and human health. We strongly support responsible use of antibiotic medicines and the involvement of a veterinarian whenever antibiotics are administered to food producing animals.

Implementation of this policy means all medically-important antibiotics used in animal agriculture will be used only for therapeutic purposes – disease treatment, control and prevention — under the supervision of a licensed veterinarian. This policy will assure these medically important medicines are used in animal health in much the same way they are used in human health — under the supervision of a licensed professional and only to address disease challenges at various stages.

While we agree with this direction and the collaborative, stakeholder process, there are details that must be addressed to make this approach practical and workable. We will continue to work with FDA through the comment process to address these details.

The responsible use of antibiotics to keep food animals healthy is important to public health because healthy animals are the first link in the food safety chain. Other links in this chain include the reduction of foodborne bacteria at critical steps in processing, and good food hygiene through the safe handling and cooking of meat and poultry. Responsible use of antibiotics by farmers and veterinarians to keep food animals healthy at the beginning of the food safety chain helps the entire chain produce a safer food product.

It is important to note that this guidance and policy by FDA also fulfills the requests by a number of public health advocacy groups in a July, 2009 letter to the Senior Economic Policy Advisor at the White House.

AHI represents the companies that manufacture animal health products – the pharmaceuticals, vaccines and feed additives used in modern food production, and the medicines that keep pets healthy.

Kansas Bioscience Authority approves $1.6 million for animal health researchers (via AgriMarketing)

admin — Tue, 10 Apr 2012 13:18:53 +0000

The board of directors of the Kansas Bioscience Authority authorized approximately $1.68 million for investment in animal health research and development ventures that will be based in the area. $1.65 million was also assigned for human health and biomedical projects in the region.

This Season’s Ticking Bomb (via Wall Street Journal)

admin — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 19:36:09 +0000

A mild winter weather has experts concerned about a greater-than-usual Lyme disease rate, and in response, the One Health Initiative, a global collaboration effort, is targeting tick prevention education and working to increase communication between veterinarians and physicians.

Rural veterinarians face changing roles (via PorkNetwork)

admin — Thu, 29 Mar 2012 14:38:49 +0000

Changes in food and animal production means new challenges for veterinarians according to PorkNetwork. Providing a review of the 2012 Annual Conference of the Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC), Associate Editor Rick Jordahl writes, “Worldwide, experts expect that a great demand for agriculture and animal protein will expand the market for U.S.-produced food, increasing the need for the veterinary medical supervision and expertise.”