https://phys.org/biology-news/veterinary-medicine en-us Veterinary medicine news stories about diseases, disorders and injuries in non-human animals Upon infection or immunization, all jawed vertebrate species generate proteins called antibodies that bind and neutralize pathogens. Strong and long-lasting antibody responses in warm-blooded species such as mammals are produced in secondary lymphoid microstructures (SLMs) among which germinal centers (GCs) are the centerpiece. https://phys.org/news/2023-12-scientists-uncharted-fish-immunology.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Fri, 01 Dec 2023 14:00:01 EST news620648327 Dog and cat owners are familiar with the age-old debate: which of the two species is smarter? However, answering this question is impossible, especially due to the difficulty of a sound comparison. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-dogs-cats-skilled-human-gestures.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Thu, 30 Nov 2023 12:39:14 EST news620570352 Dogs' food preferences are mirrored in their brain activity, particularly within their caudate nuclei -a brain region associated with reward processing, a new study combining behavioral and neuroimaging data by researchers from the Department of Ethology, Eötvös Loránd University (Hungary) and Symrise Pet Food (France) finds. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-pickier-dogs-brains.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Thu, 30 Nov 2023 12:36:38 EST news620570195 Mimicking sugar structures in plants plays a crucial role in the development of effective vaccines against the stomach worm Ostertagia ostertagi. This has been demonstrated by Ruud Wilbers of Wageningen University & Research (WUR) together with researchers from Ghent University and Leiden University Medical Center with a proof-of-concept study. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-effective-vaccine-cow-parasite-modification.html Veterinary medicine Agriculture Tue, 28 Nov 2023 17:09:04 EST news620413741 University of Helsinki researchers have collected data about the personality traits of thousands of dogs, cats and their owners to explore owner–pet attachment. The data encompass about 2,500 pet owners and 3,300 pets. The work is published in the journal iScience. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-owner-personality-mental-well-being-humanpet.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Mon, 27 Nov 2023 16:07:45 EST news620323662 Vampire bats may soon take up residence in the United States and bring with them an ancient pathogen. "What we found was that the distribution of vampire bats has moved northward across time due to past climate change, which has corresponded with an increase in rabies cases in many Latin American countries," said Paige Van de Vuurst, a Ph.D. student in Virginia Tech's Translational Biology, Medicine, and Health Graduate Program. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-links-climate-vampire-expansion-rabies.html Ecology Veterinary medicine Mon, 27 Nov 2023 16:07:40 EST news620323657 A pair of veterinary medicine specialists at the University of Glasgow has found that the famous dancing monkeys of Pakistan have highly elevated levels of stress hormones. In their study, published in the journal Applied Animal Behaviour Science, Mishaal Akbar and Neil Price Evans, obtained and tested fur samples from tamed captive dancing monkeys in Pakistan and compared the level of stress hormones in them with similar monkeys living on a primate sanctuary in Florida. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-monkeys-pakistan-highly-elevated-stress.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Fri, 24 Nov 2023 09:30:01 EST news619782766 When we point at an object, the toddler focuses on the object, while the dog usually takes the gesture as a directional cue. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-dogs-world-salient-smarter.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Sat, 18 Nov 2023 10:00:01 EST news619432614 Pigs fed a low-protein diet can show more damaging behaviors, but this can be counteracted by supplementation of essential amino acids to their diet. This has been demonstrated in research from Wageningen University & Research. The outcome is important for both pig welfare and the environment. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-amino-acid-supplementation-negative-effects.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Wed, 15 Nov 2023 15:53:03 EST news619285981 Recently, morning omelets and holiday dinners have gotten more expensive. One likely cause is bird flu, outbreaks of which led to the deaths of millions of chickens and turkeys from infection or culling in 2022, according to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, and which still demands rigorous monitoring of wild populations. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-surveying-wetlands-infectious-bird-fluand.html Ecology Veterinary medicine Wed, 15 Nov 2023 13:01:15 EST news619275672 Among dogs, periodontal (gum) disease affects various breeds at rates between 44% and 100%, with higher susceptibility in smaller breeds and older dogs. Veterinarians normally advise dog owners to brush their dogs' teeth on a daily basis to remove the dental plaque and oral debris whose buildup can lead to gum disease; however, compliance can be difficult, often due to issues of willingness and temperament. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-doggie-dental-health-aged-garlic.html Veterinary medicine Mon, 13 Nov 2023 13:09:08 EST news619103341 Recent advances in gene editing technology could potentially be used to create disease-resistant animals. This could curtail the spread of avian influenza, commonly known as bird flu. https://phys.org/news/2023-11-bird-flu-eradicated-genes-chickens.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Sun, 05 Nov 2023 12:10:01 EST news618232055 Brittany Florkiewicz, an assistant professor of psychology at Lyon College, and Lauren Scott, a medical student at the University of Kansas Medical Center, have together found that housecats have hundreds of facial expressions that they use when interacting with other cats. In their study, reported in the journal Behavioral Processes, the pair recorded and analyzed the facial expressions of a large number of domesticated housecats residing in a cat cafe in Los Angeles. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-housecats-hundreds-facial-interact-cats.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Tue, 31 Oct 2023 10:40:01 EDT news617966202 A bacterium, closely associated with deadly septicemia, could have caused the deaths of six African elephants in Zimbabwe and possibly more in neighboring countries. The findings place infectious diseases on the list of pressures on African elephants, whose populations continue to be under threat. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-scientists-uncover-mysterious-deaths-elephants.html Ecology Veterinary medicine Tue, 24 Oct 2023 11:31:09 EDT news617365866 Golden retrievers are one of the most popular breeds of dogs. But research shows they have up to a 65% chance of dying from cancer. In a new study, University of California, Davis, researchers set out to find if certain genetic factors could help their survival rate. But instead of searching for genes associated with a cancer diagnosis in the breed, they instead chose to look for genes associated with longer life. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-golden-longer-gene-longevity.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Thu, 19 Oct 2023 17:06:04 EDT news616953962 A new study provides compelling evidence that animal care and management practices at zoos and aquariums have significantly improved over time. The study, led by Species360 and University of Southern Denmark Research Scientist Dr. Morgane Tidière in collaboration with 41 co-authors from academic, governmental, and zoological institutions around the world, is the first to examine life expectancy and lifespan equality together as a proxy of population welfare in marine mammal species. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-marine-mammal-longevity-reveals-remarkable.html Ecology Veterinary medicine Tue, 17 Oct 2023 19:00:01 EDT news616756183 A new analysis estimates a variety of potential benefits for environmental sustainability—for instance, reduced freshwater consumption and greenhouse gas emissions—that could result from switching all pet dogs and cats in the US or around the world to nutritionally sound, vegan diets. Andrew Knight of Griffith University, Australia, presented these calculations in the open-access journal PLOS ONE. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-vegan-dog-cat-diets-environmental.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Wed, 04 Oct 2023 14:00:02 EDT news615633417 Gut microbes found in wild wolves may be the key to alleviating a debilitating gastrointestinal condition common to domestic dogs, according to a study led by researchers at Oregon State University—Cascades. https://phys.org/news/2023-10-gut-bacteria-wild-wolves-key.html Cell & Microbiology Veterinary medicine Tue, 03 Oct 2023 09:29:03 EDT news615544142 Periodontal disease is one of the most common canine diseases, affecting at least 80% of dogs aged three and over. Periodontal disease begins as gingivitis, where gums become red and inflamed, and may bleed. Untreated, the disease can progress to periodontitis, where the alveolar bone is progressively damaged so that teeth may loosen or fall out. In turn, periodontitis is a risk factor for other diseases like cardiovascular and lung disease. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-mouthwash-dogs-additive-pomegranate-canine.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Fri, 29 Sep 2023 00:20:01 EDT news615136225 Veterinary researchers have used organoids—three-dimensional organ-like structures grown from stem cells and tissue samples—to investigate the biological processes of lung cancer in dogs, a disease that is much rarer in our canine friends than it is in humans, but often far more deadly https://phys.org/news/2023-09-3d-organoids-insights-lung-cancer.html Cell & Microbiology Veterinary medicine Tue, 26 Sep 2023 11:58:08 EDT news614948240 A team of ethologists, natural scientists and psychologists affiliated with several institutions in Hungary has found evidence suggesting that some of the attraction by humans to flat-faced dogs can be tied to their stronger reliance on being helped than other dog breeds. In a study reported in the journal Scientific Reports, the group conducted experiments with two flat-faced breeds, comparing them with non-flat faced breeds, as they engaged in a task. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-flat-faced-dogs-cuddly-longer-muzzled.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Fri, 22 Sep 2023 10:10:01 EDT news614594150 Researchers from the University of Helsinki and the Folkhälsan Research Center, together with their international partners, have identified the genetic background of dilated cardiomyopathy, a disease that enlarges the heart muscle, in dogs and humans. The findings are published in the journal Genome Medicine. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-genes-heart-muscle-disorders-humans.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Wed, 20 Sep 2023 13:22:20 EDT news614434937 In a survey of cat owners, those who fed their cats vegan diets tended to report better health outcomes for their pets than those who provided meat-based diets, though the differences were not statistically significant. Andrew Knight of the University of Winchester, U.K., and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on September 13. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-owners-cats-vegan-diets-healthier.html Veterinary medicine Wed, 13 Sep 2023 14:00:01 EDT news613815924 In a study involving several wolves and dogs, both animals performed better at finding hidden food if they had observed the food being hidden by a person—suggesting that they remembered where the food was, and did not rely solely on scent to find it. Sebastian Vetter of the University of Veterinary Medicine Vienna, Austria, and colleagues present these findings in the open-access journal PLOS ONE on September 13. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-wolves-dogs-people-hid-food.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Wed, 13 Sep 2023 14:00:01 EDT news613815782 Behavioral sensors attached to wild boars have been used to detect when animals are sick with African Swine Fever, a fatal viral disease that affects both boar and domestic pigs. Accelerometer sensors, which measure tiny changes in movement, showed that wild boars reduced their daily activity by up to 20% when infected with the virus. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-accelerometers-behavior-wild-boars-infected.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Tue, 12 Sep 2023 16:28:52 EDT news613754924 Scientists from Duke-NUS Medical School and their collaborators have uncovered several previously unknown strains of swine flu viruses that have been circulating unnoticed in Cambodian pig populations over the past 15 years, potentially posing a pandemic risk. The strains include viruses that have been passed by humans to pigs, as well as some with genes originating from as far as North America. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-scientists-strains-influenza-virus-pigs.html Molecular & Computational biology Veterinary medicine Fri, 08 Sep 2023 09:38:04 EDT news613384681 Most dogs respond in specific ways to certain vocalizations, such as another dog barking or humans using certain tones of voice. Of course, this all happens while the dogs are awake. https://phys.org/news/2023-09-dogs-vocalizations-snooze.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Fri, 08 Sep 2023 09:30:01 EDT news613382274 A new epidemiological study of endangered juvenile green sea turtles in eastern Brazil suggests that factors such as water temperature, salinity and proximity to environmental stressors could trigger the development of a tumor disease associated with a herpesvirus. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-scientists-green-sea-turtle-tumor.html Plants & Animals Veterinary medicine Thu, 31 Aug 2023 12:59:04 EDT news612705542 In a pair of new studies, researchers from North Carolina State University have found that as veterinary students progress through their coursework, their beliefs about dog breeds' pain sensitivity and trustworthiness change, becoming more in line with those of practicing clinicians and faculty. The work is important in understanding how veterinary attitudes and culture are being transmitted to future veterinarians, particularly in cases where the culture may be at odds with reality. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-veterinary-school-transmits-culture-students.html Veterinary medicine Mon, 28 Aug 2023 15:20:03 EDT news612454801 Dogs show greater brain sensitivity to the speech directed at them than to adult-directed speech, especially if spoken by women, according to a new study in Communications Biology. https://phys.org/news/2023-08-dog-brains-tuned-dog-directed-speech.html Evolution Veterinary medicine Tue, 22 Aug 2023 13:54:10 EDT news611931246