CEO Departs as PetSmart Officially SoldMarch 11, 2015The PetSmart retail chain has new owners and a new CEO. The equity firm BC Partners and a coalition of other financial backers today completed their $8.7 billion acquisition of Phoenix-based PetSmart. Stockholders received $83 a share, a 39 percent spike from July 2014, when investors began calling for a takeover because of what at least one critic called “years of underperformance.” PetSmart shareholders approved the deal Friday. Employing 53,000 people, PetSmart operates more than 1,400 stores in the United States, Canada and Puerto Rico. Many of the locations house a Banfield Pet Hospital veterinary clinic in an arrangement that is expected to remain in place. PetSmart’s new owners did not announce any changes other than the departure of President and CEO David K. Lenhardt. His replacement is Michael J. Massey, the former CEO of Collective Brands Inc., which owns the Payless ShoeSource chain. “My 15-year journey with PetSmart is filled with wonderful memories of our passionate associates who represent the best and brightest in retail,” Lenhardt said in a statement released by PetSmart. “I am confident that PetSmart will continue to lead the industry by creating more moments for people to be inspired by pets.” PetSmart in early March …
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Future Looks Bright in Pet IndustryMarch 11, 2015In what appears to be encouraging news for veterinarians, the American Pet Products Association (APPA) has documented a sharp rise in the number of younger pet owners. The Greenwich, Conn., organization’s 2015-2016 National Pet Owners Survey found that the majority of the 8 million new pet owners are members of generations X or Y—groups that began reaching adulthood in the past 30 years. Overall, the number of pet-owning households in the United States is estimated at 79.7 million, a 50 percent rise over the past two decades. The total actually fell slightly over the past two years because of a decline in pet ownership by the older baby-boomer generation. APPA President and CEO Bob Vetere previewed the soon-to-be-published survey last week during Global Pet Expo in Orlando, Fla. The latest data should hearten pet retailers, he said. “This is really exciting, as the industry as a whole has been trying to engage Gen Y in pet ownership the way generations before them did,” Vetere said. “These numbers demonstrate huge potential for the industry to grow with up-and-coming, new pet owners.” APPA estimated that nationwide spending on veterinary care should hit $15.73 billion in 2015, a 4.6 percent increase over 2014 …
Tufts Hospital Upgrade Fully FundedMarch 11, 2015The Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine has reached its goal of raising $8 million to pay for renovations to the Henry and Lois Foster Hospital for Small Animals. A $2.5 million challenge grant from the Amelia Peabody Charitable Fund was quickly answered by a $2.5 million gift from longtime hospital supporters Travis and Anne Engen. The balance, collected from other donors, will cover the first phase of Tufts’ master plan, which forecasts spending at least $65 million to remake the veterinary school. “The Engen family and trustees of the Amelia Peabody Charitable Fund understand what the hospital renovation will mean for us and truly value the school’s mission of clinical service, teaching and research,” said Deborah T. Kochevar, DVM, Ph.D., the school’s dean. A spring groundbreaking is planned for the remodeling of Foster Hospital, Tufts reported Tuesday. The upgrades will include additional examination rooms as well as larger treatment rooms for ophthalmology, cardiology, neurology and dermatology services. “The renovation is not about bricks and mortar. It’s about what happens inside: medical innovation and education, enhancing our care and maintaining high standards of quality for our patients and their owners,” said Virginia Rentko, VMD, Dipl. ACVIM, …
Merial Wins Feline Immunotherapy LicenseMarch 10, 2015A protein-based immunotherapy for cats recovering from fibrosarcoma surgery received a conditional license from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, developer Merial Ltd. reported today. The first-of-its-kind treatment, called Feline Interleukin-2 Immunomodulator, is indicated to delay the post-surgical recurrence of fibrosarcomas in adult cats with Stage 1 disease, the company stated. “When administered in proximity of a tumor, Interleukin-2 stimulates immune responses involved in the rejection of tumors in cancer patients,” Merial noted. “In a European field study, safety and reasonable expectation of efficacy of Feline Interleukin-2 Immunomodulator was demonstrated by administration of the immunotherapy and observation of the time for recurrence after surgery and radiotherapy.” The immunomodulator was granted a U.S. Veterinary Biological Product conditional license. Additional potency and efficacy tests are underway, according to Duluth, Ga.-based Merial. Robert Menardi, DVM, Merial’s director of Veterinary Technical Solutions, called the immunotherapy “an option that serves an unmet need for a very serious health condition in cats.” Fibrosarcomas are aggressive malignant tumors that often return in cats after surgery and radiation. “Having this conditional license will enable us to work closely with veterinary oncologists to further monitor the efficacy of Feline Interleukin-2 Immunomodulator and better understand treatment needs,” Dr. …
Tornquist Promoted to Oregon State DeanMarch 10, 2015Oregon State University has removed the “interim” tag from Susan Tornquist’s title and made her dean of the College of Veterinary Medicine. Dr. Tornquist, a professor of clinical pathology, moved into the dean’s office in 2013 when Cyril Clarke, BVSc, Ph.D., Dipl. ACVCP, left to become dean of the Virginia-Maryland College of Veterinary Medicine. Under her leadership, the Oregon State veterinary college surpassed its $47 million fundraising goal, was reaccredited by the Council on Education and launched a graduate program in comparative health sciences, the university reported Friday. Sabah Randhawa, Ph.D., Oregon State’s provost and executive vice president, said Tornquist was “a very effective leader … over the past 17 months.” “[She] has demonstrated that she has the very best interests of the college at heart and the skill set for enhancing the college’s education, clinical services, research and outreach,” Randhawa said. Tornquist, DVM, MS, Ph.D., Dipl. ACVP, previously served as associate dean of student and academic affairs. Expansion of the college’s teaching and clinical facilities is on the horizon, she said. “We are looking forward to great opportunities for research and strengthened clinical capabilities in oncology and infectious diseases and continued collaboration with Oregon Humane Society …
UC Davis Vet School Ranked No. 1March 10, 2015Defending No. 26 Dr. Susan Tornquist, dean of the Oregon State University College of Veterinary Medicine, released this statement after U.S. News and World Report ranked the college last among 26 schools: “As the U.S. veterinary school with the smallest class size and a relatively new small animal hospital—opened in 2005—it is difficult for some to appreciate the areas of excellence that Oregon State University’s College of Veterinary Medicine possess. “Our students receive excellent hands-on training and personal attention from faculty that result in excellent medical and surgical skills when they graduate. This is enhanced by the large numbers of surgeries each student performs during their three-week required rotation at the Animal Medical Learning Center at the Oregon Humane Society. “Our seniors have always scored significantly higher than the national average on the national veterinary board exam (NAVLE) and many years have an ultimate 100 percent pass rate. They are very competitive in obtaining internships and residencies with often a third of the graduating class entering advanced training. “Our research program is rapidly growing and very successful with receiving funding and national attention with publications in top journals. Our clinical programs are also growing rapidly with signature programs in cardiology, oncology …
St. George’s University Forms Articulation Agreement with Pennsylvania CollegeMarch 10, 2015St. George’s University in Grenada, West Indies, has formed an articulation agreement with King’s College in Wilkes-Barre, Pa., in an effort to provide international options to students interested in veterinary careers. Qualified King’s students may begin their program at St. George’s University after completing three years in the undergraduate college and after meeting all admission requirements to St. George’s. “We are proud to welcome King’s College students to our university community,” said Charles R. Modica, chancellor at St. George’s University. “We look forward to a long relationship with a school with such proud academic and ethical traditions.”
Penn Vet’s March Madness Enters 26th YearMarch 5, 2015 (function(d, s, id) { var js, fjs = d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0]; if (d.getElementById(id)) return; js = d.createElement(s); js.id = id; js.src = "//connect.facebook.net/en_US/all.js#xfbml=1"; fjs.parentNode.insertBefore(js, fjs);}(document, 'script', 'facebook-jssdk')); Post by Penn Vet New Bolton Center. Penn Vet’s New Bolton Center is celebrating 26 years of March Madness, a program designed to give fourth-year students intensive experience in medical and surgical care of farm animals, including cows, sheep, goats, pigs and alpacas. This year, March Madness runs March 2-27. “This is the capstone of the senior year for our students who are interested in veterinary practice for food animals once they graduate,” said Ray Sweeney, VMD, chief of large animal internal medicine and ophthalmology. Owners who participate in the program receive service discounts. “To encourage owners to send these cases to New Bolton Center for this rotation, the school underwrites some of the hospitalization charges so the seniors have a concentrated number of food-animal cases to work on,” Dr. Sweeney said. “Under supervision, they get to take more responsibility and do more of the hands-on work with these animals than they normally would up to this point in their veterinary training.” More than 100 animals participate …
Petcha.com Partners with Trupanion to Help Pets Find Forever HomesMarch 5, 2015Lumina Media and Trupanion today announced a new alliance that brings together animal rescues, shelters, and breeders to provide medical insurance to pets available for adoption on Lumina Media’s new pet finding website, Petcha.com. The collaboration will focus on three key areas: Integration of Trupanion data with Petcha Shelters, Rescues and Breeders: Petcha.com will offer Trupanion’s medical coverage plan to any consumer that acquires a dog or cat from any shelter, rescue or breeder that participates in Trupanion’s Shelter Support Program. This provides the new pet owner with medical coverage from Trupanion available at any veterinary hospital, emergency care center, or specialty hospital in the U.S., Canada, and Puerto Rico. Pets that qualify for this program will be tagged with Trupanion’s logo on Petcha.com. Pet Registration: Consumers that register their pets on Petcha.com will not only receive coupons, discounts and valuable content on care for their specific pet’s life stage and type, they will also receive a certificate for Trupanion’s medical coverage. Content and Education: As medical insurance for cats and dogs is fairly new to the U.S. marketplace, Petcha.com and Trupanion will work together to help educate pet owners, veterinarians, …
St. George’s University Forms Partnership with Canadian CollegeMarch 3, 2015St. George’s University (SGU) School of Veterinary Medicine in Grenada, West Indies, has established a combined degree program with St. Lawrence College in Kingston, Ontario. Through the partnership, students at St. Lawrence can complete the Ontario College Advanced Diploma Veterinary Technology Program and gain admittance to SGU’s veterinary medical program. The program at SGU is four years, the last of which will be spent at one of 29 clinical programs across the United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Ireland and Australia. “We are very pleased to have reached this agreement with St. Lawrence College, which opens a pathway for prospective veterinarians to join us here in Grenada,” said Charles R. Modica, Chancellor at St. George’s University. “We are confident that these students will excel in their studies and in their careers, and will be more than prepared to effectively treat their patients, both big and small.” To qualify, St. Lawrence students must express interest in the joint degree program upon gaining entry. They must also register a competitive GPA and competitive score on their Graduate Record Examination in addition to meeting the School of Veterinary Medicine’s admission criteria. “We are really excited with this opportunity for our students who are exceptional veterinary …
