AVC was pleased to host Government of New Brunswick partners on two occasions in January of this year. On January 7, the Hon. Mike Olscamp (Minister of Agriculture, Aquaculture and Fisheries), Mr. Michel Theriault (Assistant Deputy Minister of Fisheries), and Mr. Robert Rioux (Executive Director, Aquaculture) visited the College. The Hon. Gail Shea, Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, was on hand to meet them, as were agriculture, aquaculture and fisheries counterparts from the Government of Prince Edward Island. And on January 11, Yves Pelletier (ADM, Post-Secondary Education) and Rene Boudreau (Director of Post-Secondary Education) visited AVC. Accompanying Mr. Pelletier and Mr. Boudreau was Susan MacKenzie (Director, Advanced Learning, Government of Prince Edward Island). During both visits, our guests had the opportunity to meet New Brunswick students studying at AVC, tour our...

In 2011, the Atlantic Veterinary College is celebrating 25 years of excellence in veterinary education, groundbreaking research and outstanding professional services. Dr. Donald Reynolds, Dean of AVC, launched the anniversary celebrations on February 14 in The McCain Foundation Learning Commons. Faculty and staff who have been with AVC since the beginning were presented with t-shirts printed with AVC’s 25th anniversary logo on the front and “An AVC Original” on the back. AVC will continue to celebrate this milestone with events and activities throughout the year.

Anton Smith, US Consul General for Atlantic Canada, met several AVC students during a tour of the College on Wednesday, March 16. With Mr. Smith (right) and Dr. Don Reynolds (left), Dean of AVC, are Stephanie Alford (Class of 2012) of Marlborough, Massachusetts; Emily Gassman (Class of 2013) of Jericho, Vermont; Kyle Vititoe (Class of 2013) of Santa Barbara, California; Marissa Herzog (Class of 2012) of New York City, New York; and Nicole Amon (Class of 2012) of Venice, Florida. Mr. Smith was visiting UPEI as part of a larger tour of universities in Atlantic Canada to acquaint himself with the post-secondary climate in the region.

A tour of AVC is now available on the AVC website. Hosted and narrated by AVC student Bruno Boutet (Class of 2012), the tour of AVC runs about five minutes and provides an opportunity for prospective students, faculty and others to get to know us better. The tour of AVC can be viewed at www.upei.ca/avc/tour.

Dr. J Trenton McClure, Chair of the Department of Health Management at AVC, recently received a Distinguished Alumnus Award from his alma mater, Louisiana State University’s School of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. McClure graduated from LSU School of Veterinary Medicine in 1989 and earned a Master of Science degree from the University of Wisconsin—Madison in 1994. He has been a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine since 1995. He joined AVC in 1998 and has been Chair of Health Management since 2009. He is internationally recognized for this work in pharmacology, immunology and infectious diseases. Congratulations, Dr. McClure!

AVC now offers one of only two veterinary cardiology residency programs in Canada and one of 38 in the world. Designed and led by Dr. Etienne Côté, Associate Professor of Companion Animal Medicine at AVC and one of eight veterinary cardiologists in Canada, this post-graduate program provides a veterinarian with three years of full-time, referral-level cardiovascular medical practice and training, and new courses for didactic learning at a specialty level. During the three-year term, the resident must also complete a Master of Science degree. Dr. Erin Trageser, a graduate of the University of Pennsylvania’s veterinary medical school, is the first resident to be accepted into the program. She began both full-time clinical work in the AVC Veterinary Teaching Hospital and her master’s program in August of 2010, with expected completion in 2013.

For the past two and a half months, AVC has been home to a very special little patient—an orphaned squirrel monkey from the Magnetic Hill Zoo in Moncton, New Brunswick. Named Sheldon after a character in the popular television show The Big Bang Theory, the monkey was born on New Year’s Day. Unfortunately his mother died soon after the birth, and the infant monkey was taken to AVC where he has been receiving 24-hour care from Dr. Marion Desmarchelier, Assistant Professor of Zoo, Exotic Animals and Wildlife Medicine, and a team of technicians and veterinary students. Now over two months old, Sheldon is healthy and active, and beginning to eat solid food such as monkey chow and fruit. Recently, about 50 Grade Five students from Montague Consolidated School asked to meet Sheldon as part of their classroom work on zoos. The students were excited to see Sheldon and peppered Dr....

A generous donation from the Equine Foundation of Canada has enabled the Atlantic Veterinary College (AVC) to purchase new equipment for equine dentistry and laryngeal surgery. With the grant, AVC has purchased a Powerfloat, a mechanized dental device for floating horses’ teeth, as well as new hand floats equipped with tungsten carbide blades. The funding has also enabled the College to purchase instruments used in surgery performed to correct partial paralysis of a horse’s larynx, which can cause obstruction of airflow. Click here to read more.

A survey by AVC researchers to determine methods of euthanasia used in Canadian animal shelters and to identify whether they are likely to be associated with animal welfare issues was published recently in the Canadian Veterinary Journal. The study was funded by the Sir James Dunn Animal Welfare Centre at AVC and conducted by Niamh Caffrey (PhD student at AVC), Dr. Aboubakar Mounchili (formerly CVER at AVC, now Public Health Agency of Canada), Dr. Sandra McConkey (AVC’s Department of Biomedical Sciences), and Dr. Michael Cockram (Chair in Animal Welfare, Sir James Dunn Animal Welfare Centre at AVC). “The results of the research show that most shelters use an appropriate method for euthanasia. However, some shelters that conduct euthanasia without the services of a veterinarian have more limited options. Further study on euthanasia practices would be beneficial,” says...

AVC is home to a unique clinical diagnostic tool that allows the College’s Diagnostics Services Unit to respond to clients’ needs more efficiently and cost-effectively. Housed in a laboratory on the third floor of the College is a Bruker Daltonics® Microflex LT—a MALDI-TOF (Matrix Assisted Laser Desorption/Ionization Time-of-Flight) mass spectrometer used primarily to identify bacterial and fungal pathogens. With this innovative technology, 96 clinical samples can be processed in less than two hours. The technology was purchased with funding assistance from ACOA. Click here to read more.

A second edition of Dr. Etienne Côté's bestselling small animal medicine textbook, Clinical Veterinary Advisor: Dogs and Cats, has been published by Elsevier, the world's leading publisher of science and health information. A complete revision of the first edition, the 1,784-page book covers the diagnosis and treatment of hundreds of diseases in dogs and cats. Owners of the book can access a companion website that includes an electronic version of the text; all of the images in the book; a searchable drug formulary; and 150 client education sheets in English and Spanish. Elsevier describes the book as being “like six books in one--with concise topics within sections on diseases and disorders, procedures and techniques, differential diagnosis, laboratory tests, clinical algorithms, and a drug formulary.” A review by the Journal of Small Animal Practice says the...

During an intense wind storm that hit PEI in December, dozens of dovekies—small black and white sea birds also known as little auks—were blown on shore. The little birds rapidly become exhausted and weakened when they are out of their ocean environment. More than 20 birds were brought to the AVC Veterinary Teaching Hospital where they received intensive care until they had recovered from their ordeal. A team of veterinarians, technicians and students helped to take care of the birds over five days. Thanks to these dedicated people and financial support from the Sir James Dunn Animal Welfare Centre, the dovekies were released back to their natural habitat. Dr. Romain Béraud of AVC’s Companion Animals Department created this poster describing the “dovekie wreck.”

Dr. Jesse Benjamin, Class of 2007, was featured recently in Halifax News Net (Transcontinental Media, The Weekly News). Dr. Benjamin was the first Mi’kmaq student to graduate with a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine from the Atlantic Veterinary College. She now practices at the Sackville Animal Hospital in Sackville, Nova Scotia. Read the full article here.

The American College of Veterinary Internal Medicine (ACVIM) recently named Dianne McFarlane, DVM, PhD, to its list of “Heroes in Medicine.” An ACVIM Board-certified large animal internist, Dr. McFarlane is an associate professor of physiological sciences at Oklahoma State University’s Center for Veterinary Health Sciences. She is researching the similarities between Pituitary Pars Intermedia Dysfunction (formerly known as Cushing’s Disease) in horses and Parkinson’s disease in humans. Dr. McFarlane has a Bachelor of Science degree in animal science from Clemson University and a Master of Science degree in molecular genetics from the University of Georgia. She earned her DVM degree at the University of California and in 2005 her PhD in veterinary clinical pharmacology from AVC. Click here to read more.

Dr. Michael Cockram, Chair in Animal Welfare, Sir James Dunn Animal Welfare Centre at AVC, has accepted an invitation to sit on two committees of the National Farm Animal Care Council (NFACC). He is a member of the NFACC’s Equine Welfare Code Development Committee, representing research/academia, and the Canadian Veterinary Medical Association. He also represents the International Society for Applied Ethology on NFACC’s Sheep Welfare Code Scientists’ Committee. Dr. Jeff Wichtel, Associate Dean of Graduate Studies and Research at AVC, also serves as a scientific expert on the NFACC’s Sheep Welfare Code Scientists’ Committee. The NFACC addresses national animal care issues related to farmed animals, with a primary focus on animals raised for the production of food for humans.

Dr. Anne Marie Carey, Community Practice Veterinarian at AVC, will give a workshop called “You and Your Cat—Relationship Counselling” in AVC Lecture Theatre A on Tuesday, April 26, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. This session will explore the unique relationship between humans and cats, and what we can do to make it "purr-fect." Dr. Carey is a member of a recently formed national committee called Care for Cats that aims to raise the social status and value of cats, draw attention to the cat overpopulation crisis and promote responsible pet ownership. The committee has initiated a nation-wide educational campaign called 2011—The Year of the Cat, designed to inform the public that cats should have the same level of care and respect as dogs receive. Dr. Carey’s presentation is part of the AVC Community Workshop Series. Admission is free, and everyone is welcome...

Dr. Don Reynolds, Dean of the Atlantic Veterinary College, will host a reception for alumni and friends of AVC at the upcoming Atlantic Provinces Veterinary Conference in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Please join Dr. Reynolds on Saturday, April 16, from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m., in Acadia Room A, Halifax Marriott Harbourfront. A great opportunity to greet former classmates and get caught up on AVC news! Everyone is welcome!

To mark the 250th anniversary of the veterinary profession, 2011 has been designated World Veterinary Year. Modern veterinarians provide medical care for animals and are advocates for animal welfare, but they are also key public health stakeholders because of the crucial role they play in promoting food security by supervising animal production hygiene, controlling zoonoses, monitoring food quality and safety, biomedical research, and protecting the environment and biodiversity. For more information about World Veterinary Year, click here.

Dr. Don Reynolds, Dean of the Atlantic Veterinary College, will host a reception on January 17 for AVC alumni attending the North American Veterinary Conference in Orlando, Florida. The reception will take place at 7 p.m. in the Orlando World Trade Centre Marriott (Crystal Ballroom C) in Orlando. A great chance to catch up with your fellow graduates!

A juvenile bald eagle soared free after being released near Georgetown, PEI, by Dr. Marion Desmarchelier, AVC Zoo, Exotic Animals and Wildlife Medicine Service. The eagle was found trapped in a snare in the Georgetown area in November and was taken to AVC’s Veterinary Teaching Hospital. The bird spent ten days in the hospital, recovering from severe capture myopathy (renal failure caused by exhaustion and stress of trying to escape from the snare), and wounds to its neck and one wing. Dr. Desmarchelier and a team of AVC students and staff treated the bird with fluid therapy, antibiotics, assisted feedings, wound care and massage of its injured wing.

In October 2010, the last in a series of workshops organized by the OIE (World Organization for Animal Health) in conjunction with one of its collaborating centres, the Canadian Cooperative Wildlife Health Centre (CCWHC), was held in Bangkok, Thailand. The workshops were intended for the training of professionals who inform and advise OIE Delegates in their countries about wildlife health. This final workshop, directed at Asian members of the OIE, was delivered by Dr. Ted Leighton, General Director of the CCWHC, and Dr. Pierre-Yves Daoust, Regional Director of CCWHC Atlantic Region and Professor of Pathology and Microbiology at AVC. Dr. Daoust is the third member of the CCWHC to deliver one of these workshops. AVC’s Dr. Maria Forzan and Dr. Scott McBurney gave similar workshops in Panama and Tanzania, respectively. The OIE has already asked the CCWHC to start planning the second...

Dr. Lawrence Heider, Dean of the Atlantic Veterinary College from 1991 to 1998, returned to AVC earlier this fall for a visit. While at the College, Dr. Heider had the opportunity to see firsthand the many upgrades and improvements to AVC that have resulted from its $45-million infrastructure project. His visit also provided a rare chance for a get-together with Dr. Don Reynolds, present Dean, and Dr. Tim Ogilvie who was Dean from 1998 to 2008. Dr. Heider was the third Dean of AVC, following the late Dr. Brian Hill who served in that position from 1990 to 1991. The Founding Dean of the College is the late Dr. Reginald Thomson who led the College from 1983-1990.

Dr. Mark Fast, Novartis Research Chair in Fish Health at AVC, recently delivered a presentation entitled “Trying to stop sea lice from partying like it’s 1999” at UPEI’s 25th Research Breakfast. His presentation outlined the work his research group is doing with sea lice, as well as the current crisis facing the salmon farming industry in Canada--specifically the Bay of Fundy--and strategies his team are using to develop new environmentally acceptable solutions. Dr. Fast also gave an update about the previous work he did in prototype development of a sea lice vaccine, and current projects investigating immunostimulant efficacy against sea lice. The Research Breakfast was well-attended by people from AVC, UPEI and the local community. Dr. Fast was also recently featured on the UPEI Office of Research Development blog.

Over 120 people participated in AVC’s recent Community Workshop Series to learn about first aid for horses. Dr. Erica Koch of AVC’s Ambulatory Equine Service gave a hands-on community workshop about the proper treatment of equine ailments in emergency situations. Topics covered included monitoring a horse’s vital signs, wound and injury treatment, administering medications, knowing when to call a veterinarian and must-have items for an equine first-aid kit. Please visit AVC’s website in the New Year for information about upcoming Community Workshop Series topics.