Departures can happen for a lot of reasons and should never be a surprise. It is not always a bad thing, or anyone's fault. Jason Evanish shares the importance of handling such changes for the departing team member and for the remaining employees. His article includes guidance for leaders on how to manage the transitions, including some templates for internal … [Read more...]
How we think and act to get results = Culture (video)
Culture is not about pizza, ping-pong or management retreats, asserts Jessica Kriegel, EdD. Instead, leaders must be intentional about the experiences they create for their employees. She shares common misconceptions regarding workplace culture and how to promote a healthy work environment. If culture is how we think and act to get results, then it's really based on the … [Read more...]
Worth a Glance – February 1, 2024
Last week’s AHD Bulletin – Animal Health Digest Bulletin, January 15, 2024. Link. Most read post(s) from the January 25th AHD Bulletin – Develop an opportunity mindset. Link. How dogs understand time. Link. An update on multi-drug-resistant parasites in horses. Link. ============================================ 8 Pet supply, service businesses on … [Read more...]
Instinct Science acquires VetMedux
ICYMI. Instinct Science, a leading software provider for veterinary hospitals, announced this week that it acquired VetMedux, a trusted education and point-of-care information company that owns Clinician's Brief and Plumb’s Veterinary Drugs. Instinct is on an ambitious path to provide game-changing software tools to the veterinary caretakers of today and tomorrow,” said Caleb … [Read more...]
Studies: Early social housing helps dairy calves thrive
Dairy cows are social creatures so they seek contact with fellow calves after birth. Their eventual social status within herds can play a role in their access to water and food. Research results increase our understanding of paired housing in the critical newborn and pre-weaned stages of dairy calf lives. . . . housing designed to facilitate early socialization can build … [Read more...]
Ready or not, here they come
Oklahoma State University shares ways to get ready for calving season. The article is a good resource to send in newsletters or post on social media to help producers prepare for calving. Yes, they probably know most of this . . . but have they acted on it? Give them a nudge to save a middle-of-the-night emergency during a storm. Source: The Cattle Site, January 23, 2024. … [Read more...]
How to read cattle mineral tags
Pet food labels are not the only confusing product labels animal owners must read and decipher. Understanding how to choose the correct mineral for cattle can be challenging. This article from Penn State University provides an overview of how to read mineral tags. Source: The Cattle Site, January 24, 2024. Link. INSIGHTS: Consider this article as a resource when working … [Read more...]
Cattle industry and animal health pros gather for NCBA CattleCon
CattleCon24 provides education, networking, business ideas, advocacy and fun for those who work in the cattle industry. It’s happening in Orlando January 31 through February 2. Not going? Never been? Follow posts here: #cattlecon24 Source: NCBA. Link. See the floor plan and exhibitor list here <Link>. … [Read more...]
Without the farrier, early laminitis infection may go undetected
When a farrier sees the symptoms of endocrinopathic laminitis, it’s essential that the owner immediately be informed and encouraged to seek veterinary assistance. The veterinarian needs to check the fasting level of insulin in the horse and plan an exercise, diet and/or medication program to reduce insulin levels. If the owner and vet both do their part, the foot should return … [Read more...]
Using standing equine CT in veterinary diagnostics
Equine standing CT is an accurate diagnostic imaging tool that could make CT safer and more accessible due to its ease of use, writes Haylie Kerstetter. Newer technology allows horses to remain standing, making it safer for animals and easier for veterinarians to use.” Source: The Horse, January 25, 2024. Link. INSIGHTS: Horse owners are known to read content voraciously. … [Read more...]
Houseplants: 6 to keep, 6 to keep out of pet spaces
With the holidays over, some pet owner’s homes are getting reset for the rest of winter and early spring. Offices, too, are getting a fresh look. Plants are often a part of these space revitalization activities and in some cases contractors choose and care for the greenery. Houseplants, beyond being decorative, are assets to purify the air and remove toxins but, not all … [Read more...]
Tips for discussing weight management with pet owners (video)
Hill’s Karen Shenoy, DVM, shares advice for veterinary teams when discussing a pet’s weight with clients and addressing a case of obesity with animal owners. Her guidance about working pet owners’ behaviors into proactive feeding plans and considering the inclusion of treats is excellent counsel. We reminded veterinary teams to include food and treat information in pet … [Read more...]
Episode 3, Zoetis’ Born of the Bond
Complimentary Sponsored Content The health of an operation depends on the health of its herd. This episode of The Born of the Bond Series documents the story of the Schuler Red Angus Operation. By being proactive in vaccinating their cattle, the Schulers have helped their operation avoid any serious health issues for more than two decades. The Born of the Bond series … [Read more...]
What dogs may do better than your friends
The research on the human-animal bond has given us much to consider and even more to learn. Stacy Colino shares information from neuroscience, psychologists and veterinary behaviorists. They just sit there and look at you with loving eyes. Dogs don’t judge or criticize. This silent form of canine encouragement can have a calming effect when you’re anxious or under pressure, … [Read more...]
IBPSA Fast Bites – January 29, 2024
Posting OSHA 300 logs, animal voting rights, M&A in pet food, small business accountants speak, budgeting, money lost and more, including last week’s AHD Bulletin. Source: IBPSA, January 29, 2024. Link. The 2024 IBPSA FLOW Business Conference will be held in Tucson, Arizona September 24th-26th. Use this link if you wish to become a speaker at the conference <Link>. … [Read more...]
Walking and using a phone is bad for your health
Duh! But the behavior and resulting text neck are insidious. There are real mental and physical risks to distracted walking, even for the most alert people. When we walk and use a phone at the same time we reflexively adjust how we move. Not only do we walk slower, we also increase the amount of load placed on the neck and upper back muscles. Source: The New York Times, … [Read more...]
Bad career advice women should ignore
Everyone has advice these days, especially for women moving into the workplace or seeking to advance their career position. Tomas Chamorro-Premuzic, PhD, and Cindy Gallop, MA, provide a list of popular suggestions they believe are best ignored. Source: HBR Ascend, April 15, 2021. Link. … [Read more...]
STOP thinking about work after hours
Thinking about our job after the official workday is over may not be beneficial. Constant rumination leads managers to be more depleted and less able to show up as leaders . . . something even their employees can pick up on. Research recently published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, suggests that constantly thinking about work may hurt rather than help your … [Read more...]
Do it NOW!
Speed has a force-multiplying effect. It eliminates festering problems faster and accelerates vital progress on important to-dos. Source: AXIOS, January 18, 2024. Link. Get it out of the way and you have freed up bandwidth . . . INSIGHTS: Per the old time management tip . . . handle it once. Also see: The Two-Minute Tool, GTD®, May 19, 2020. Link. David Allen explains … [Read more...]
The path to retention in veterinary medicine
AAHA’s recent retention study reveals challenges that must be met to keep educated veterinarians and vet techs by proxy practicing. Veterinary medicine has a problem: attrition. The study’s introduction includes these factors: 30 percent of those in clinical practice plan to change practices or leave within the next year. Once they leave clinical practice, only 10 … [Read more...]
When bosses should slow things down
“Better slow down there, young fella . . . see, if you take your time . . . you get a more harmonious outcome,” says the character Joe Gill to J.T. in the movie Crossfire Trail. It parallels another colloquialism, “The hurrier I go, the behinder I get.” Both quotes apply to the author’s assertion in the first article here. Two articles with two divergent perspectives are … [Read more...]
A plan is not a strategy
A comprehensive plan with goals, initiatives, and budgets is comforting, BUT starting with a plan is a terrible way to make strategy, says Roger Martin, MBA, author and Thinkers50 Number One Management Thinker in 2017. Martin’s YouTube video, A Plan Is Not a Strategy, was the most watched in 2023. What most strategic planning is in the world of business has nothing to do with … [Read more...]
Combatting lack of adherence to heartworm preventatives
Animal health pros need to share images like this one over and over. We recently featured disturbing data on noncompliance <Link> and called for more realistic imagery in that post. Kudos to AHS for this image of heartworm. What will you do with it? Source: American Heartworm Society, X, January 18, 2024. Link. … [Read more...]
Worth a Glance – January 25, 2024
Last week’s AHD Bulletin – Animal Health Digest Bulletin, January 18, 2024. Link. Most read post(s) from the January 18th AHD Bulletin – Cell phone addiction, how it impacts our relationships. Link. Leadership or sales tactics. Link. Practices that push cow-calf profitability. Link. ============================================ Elanco’s multi-year … [Read more...]
Biosecurity methods update, learning across segments
Driven by African swine fever, avian influenza, PRRS, the realistic risk of hoof and mouth disease, more livestock producers are paying more attention to how to protect our domestic food production animals and in the process protect human populations from zoonoses. We’re sharing two articles as animal health pros interact and work with animal owners. The devil remains in … [Read more...]
Don’t let dairy cows get lost in transition
One of the bigger threats to overall transition cow health is a reduction in dry matter intake while her energy requirements increase to support milk production. Mindy Ward gathered dairy management practices to help improve overall transition cow performance for this article. The transition cow is milking, producing more milk and not consuming enough calories to cover that . … [Read more...]
Dairy cattle genomics quietly improving sustainability
Since genomic testing became commercially available in 2008, more than 8 million U.S. dairy animals have been genotyped for dozens of key genetic traits related to milk production and quality, feed efficiency, reproductive viability and cow health. By optimizing genetics within their herds, dairy producers have successfully bred new generations of cows to produce more milk, … [Read more...]
Beef impact on dairy gestation
Little had been known about the impact of beef semen on the dairy cow until a project at Pennsylvania State University that was summarized in the Journal of Dairy Science. . . . using beef sires on your dairy herd isn’t going to hurt a herd of high-producing dairy cows.” – Bailey Basiel, PhD candidate Source: STgenetics, January 10, 2024. Link. Basiel reports there was a … [Read more...]
Marketing might benefit from some cynicism
Commentary We put Hannah O’Rourke’s article calling for more realistic messaging in this section acknowledging veterinarians serving producers are providing services and products in B2B settings focused on optimizing revenue in addition to animal health. She lends a dose of realism given how frequently products are presented as the Holy Grail with no room for business owners … [Read more...]
Ventilation required despite cold for backyard chickens
When temperatures fall below 35°F, supplemental heating is needed to keep backyard chickens from cold stress and frostbite. However ventilation is important to remove excess moisture and avoid a build-up of ammonia. Mary Hightower’s article provides several wintertime tips for backyard poultry raisers worthy of sharing on social media or in newsletters. Source: Farm Talk, … [Read more...]