Whether it is COVID-19 or something else, proactive preparedness is important for businesses and communities. CDC recently highlighted four key preparedness areas for businesses and employers to consider during a conference call convened by the National Retail Federation: Continuity Protecting the workforce Customers Community Source: National Retail … [Read more...]
Colostrum, more than just immunoglobulins (webinar video)
Colostrum is important to all mammal newborns. It is essential for the final development and maturation of the gastrointestinal tract and immune system. Calves that receive high-quality colostrum have higher survival rates, lower age at conception, and will yield more milk through the second lactation. Michael Steele shares information on colostrum supplementation, the … [Read more...]
BCS: low cost, big impact
VFD regulations are driving more productive interactions between livestock producers and their veterinarians. Routine site visits including face-to-face meetings are important to the success of this initiative and improve VCPR. <link> Matt Hersom is an advocate for body condition scoring (BCS). It has a low cost and high value that can help any cattle producer make good … [Read more...]
Treats without Kcals
Recent posts have focused on the importance of including the Kcals from treats in nutritional assessments and counseling. An owner of four Golden Retrievers has figured out how to treat his dogs without any Kcal consequences. Source: Buzz videos. Link. Also see: Search Results for: treats, Animal Health Digest. Link. INSIGHTS: Fun videos easily capture the attention of … [Read more...]
Today’s Bulletin is shorter than normal
Today’s AHD Bulletin has fewer postings than normal, thanks to some technical glitches. You will still find items about personal and professional development, practice improvement, livestock and companion animals. A full-length Bulletin will be delivered next Thursday. Thank you for your understanding. Source: Animal Health Digest. Link. Use this link to review February 2020 … [Read more...]
366 days this year. Saturday is February 29th.
2020 starts a new decade and is also a leap year. Leap day falls on a Saturday, to boot. Here are ideas for the bonus day this coming this weekend: Take a 29-minute walk Spend 29 focused minutes and realign with your life objectives Reconnect with at least one person who you’ve been meaning to call Share time with your kids, significant other or remaining … [Read more...]
Quiz: Is your ego is hurting your success? (video)
Suzy Welch offers ways to determine if you are confident or arrogant. She says, “Success makes some people grow, and it makes some people swell.” Source: CNBC, July 2019. Link. Also see: Related posts from Animal Health Digest Me. Me. Stop talking so much about yourself, February 11, 2020. Link. This was the most read post from the February 13, 2020 Bulletin … [Read more...]
The dog park is no place to socialize a puppy
Dog parks may seem like great additions to the community, but they’re rife with problems for you, and for your dog writes Sassafras Lowrey. She offers things to know and consider before heading to the dog park. Dog parks are not a safe place to socialize a puppy under 6-12 months old.” Nik Hof Source: New York Times, February 6, 2020. Link. Having your dog in a dog park … [Read more...]
Opinion – Conflict debt and the rubber room
Adults in a workplace are bound to have differences of opinions. These differences can cause disruption unless there is a process to manage things. I have used a rubber room exercise and often took the role of referee. Simple rules were established up-front and visibly displayed: Establish the discussion topic(s) as narrowly as possible Set a beginning time Set an … [Read more...]
Horse hoof care resources
Horse owners and stable hands are always learning. Each new horse and age milestones in on-farm horses can bring new challenges. Hoof care is one area where presenting sound information can help animal health pros increase their value on-farm and when discussing hoof care with horse caretakers. These articles are great aids to review and then share to benefit horses, owners and … [Read more...]
Facing veterinarians’ loss of mindshare
Veterinarians created Dr. Google by its restricting access to veterinary expertise at clients’ times of need, shares Ed Blach, DVM. If you bristle at these words, you are likely on a veterinary team. Blach’s article speaks to the declining influence veterinarians possess and how this occurred. An admonishment? Yes. But, not without a situation analysis and actionable … [Read more...]
Winter goat care
Temperature can be the least of challenges when determining how to keep goats warm in cold weather, writes Karen Kopf. She discusses the components of cold climate herdsmanship. Source: Backyard Goats, December 18, 2019. Link. Acclimation, nutrition, and habitation along with breed selection are all part of preparing to keep goats warm in cold weather. Also see: Search … [Read more...]
A new twist to tick infections
Scientists have found that temperature has little impact on the types of bacteria ticks carry. What they did find was humidity and competition among bacteria had the greatest influence on the combinations of pathogens carried by Ixodes Ricinus, one of Europe's most common tick species. Humidity, competition among bacteria influence pathogens ticks carry Source: UPI, December … [Read more...]
Most-read posts from January and February 2019
AHD selects actionable articles from more than 250 media sources we continuously review. These include about 40 sources directed to veterinarians and veterinary staff, more than 150 sources that focus on animal owners and popular press, blogs and social media. Source: Animal Health Digest, Most-read posts, January 2019. Better ways to say, “You screwed up.” Link. … [Read more...]
Top 10, most-read and best-of lists
Clicks count for media publishers. We learn what grabs readers’ attentions. Top article lists also help ensure the most interesting content is renewed for those who missed something earlier. Here are some best-of lists to peruse as you ramp up for 2020. Source: AHD, Search results for: most read. Link Source: DVM 360, Search results for: top stories. Includes the … [Read more...]
Opinion: A new decade begins
Our industry has experienced innumerable changes since the turn of the century. Some worth noting include: Resizing of major pharmaceutical companies and distributors through mergers and acquisitions Veterinary school graduates are now predominately female Expansion of corporate ownership of veterinary clinics Massive growth in the companion animal sectors … [Read more...]
Best wishes for the holidays
We wish you the best during this holiday season and for a fruitful 2020! We are privileged to provide a curation service for animal health pros. Our work spans four years of reading that generated over 4,000 individual posts. 2020 promises to be an exciting year to continue AHD for animal health pros. Animal Health Digest Bulletin is sent weekly by email to subscribers and … [Read more...]
Most read cattle and swine posts
In last week’s Bulletin, we featured the most-read livestock posts < link > which included poultry content. Readers expressed interest in seeing cattle and swine separately. Below are the most-read swine and cattle posts from June through October 2019 not featured last week. < link > Source: Search Results for: cattle, Animal Health Digest. Link. Heed OSHA … [Read more...]
Always exciting
When we launched Animal Health Digest, I didn’t realize what scouring 250-plus media sources each week would turn into. What initially seemed like a daunting task became one of the more uplifting parts of my day. From finding an article about the latest research on bovine respiratory disease to a piece about the Comedy Wildlife Awards, finding material animal health … [Read more...]
Favorite posts about ourselves
AHD readers continue to show interest in topics related to how we get along with other people, how we lead them and how we protect ourselves physically and emotionally to sustain our work in animal health businesses. Here are most read posts about human topics from June 1 through October 31, 2019: Things that make employees quit, AHD, October 25, 2019. Link. Invest one … [Read more...]
Most read livestock posts
Posts about poultry garnered remarkable readership by readers interested in food animals. Three of the most-read livestock posts from June 1 through October 31, 2019 were about poultry. Feed sows in late gestation to enhance colostrum, AHD, June 25, 2019. Link. DVM walks us through Fair Oaks Farms video (video), AHD, June 25, 2019. Link. In search of the perfect cow, … [Read more...]
Favorite equine posts
A horse is a horse, of course, of course, And no one can talk to a horse of course That is, of course, unless the horse is the famous Mr. Ed < link >. A lot has changed since Mr. Ed, the TV program about the talking horse, ran in the 1950s and 1960s. < … [Read more...]
7 most-read companion animal posts
Content about companion animals is expanding exponentially alongside the metamorphic consumer-retail market focus. Topics are varied, including how-tos, should-dos, opportunities and research. The seven most-read posts from June 1 through October 31, 2019 are listed here. Source: Animal Health Digest. Link. Snakebite dos and donts for dogs, AHD, June 25, 2019. Link. … [Read more...]
Top posts from Patrick T. Malone
With lessons on leadership, sales and customer engagement, Patrick T. Malone has provided weekly content since Animal Health Digest began. Readership for his posts is consistently in the top 25 percent of all posts read. Here are his top five posts from June 1 through October 31, 2019. Source: Animal Health Digest. Link. Most read posts from Patrick T. Malone: Integrity … [Read more...]
Animal Health Digest enters year 5
Four years ago, we set out to provide a curation service to help animal health pros meet the challenges of staying current with information relevant to our industry, jobs and customers. Our objective remains; to provide actionable content in the context of how animal health pros do their jobs and as close to the original publishing date as possible. You can then put the … [Read more...]
Giving thanks
It is that time of year when we reconnect with images of the first Thanksgiving when pilgrims and native Americans gathered to celebrate a bountiful harvest. More important than the meal was the gathering of cultures and mutual learning, plus the attitude of inclusion and survival. With this spirit, our team extends a hearty Thank You to our readers. Your input and our … [Read more...]
Top 10 tips for senior cats
November is Adopt a Senior Pet month. To honor senior cats, the American Association of Feline Practitioners provided tips to set up aging cats for success and build the special bonds between them and their owners. The list is a great resource to share in social media posts, newsletters or targeted communications. Source: Cat Friendly Homes. Link. Also see: Tips for … [Read more...]
CVPM focuses on client experience, retention to compete (video)
Dana Short, MS, CVPM, discusses how focusing on the client experience works in the practice she manages. For some practices, geographic practice saturation is a relevant situation and a limiting factor to practice growth. Customer experience management is a strategy this practice deploys to retain clients and their pets. Source: VHMA Practice Tips, October 2019. … [Read more...]
Fall foliage, while pretty, can be toxic
This interactive map predicts the timing of color changes in leaves across the continental United States. Created to promote fall tourism reasons, the map is also a good tool for animal health pros to know when to warn animal owners about the potential for leaf toxicity. Fall leaves can be toxic to horses, livestock, small ungulates Source: smokymountains.com. Link. Experts … [Read more...]
Pinkeye in cattle poses challenges more than 100 years after arrival
Pinkeye was first identified in the U.S. in the 1890s. Face flies, sometimes thought to cause it, entered this country from Nova Scotia in 1952. “M. bovis tends to be just in the conjunctiva in the lubricating fluid. Unless there is trauma to the eye, the bacteria can’t bind to the cornea,” says Annette O’Connor, DVM. Some of the things suspected of causing trauma include … [Read more...]