James M. Lewis

A system that will provide the Thoroughbred racing industry with its first national database of racetrack injuries is off and running.

Hong Kong -- A 15-year-old gelding sustains a hairline fracture and requires surgery.

Veterinarians talk about the Beijing Olympic Games in DVM Newsmagazine interview.

Veterinarians talk about the Beijing Olympic Games in DVM Newsmagazine interview.

Hong Kong -- A team of veterinarians hunkered down alongside equestrians and 280 horses Wednesday morning to wait out a typhoon that blew into Hong Kong, site of the upcoming Olympic equestrian events.

Veterinarians' salaries continue to rank near the low end of those within the health-care field, but DVMs job security and job-growth prospects are among the best, according to the U.S. Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics (BLS).

National Report - The Thoroughbred racing industry, now effectively on notice to bring about serious reforms or look for Congress to do so, appears to be taking strides in that direction.

College Station, Texas - When the invitation came to take part in a special agricultural-veterinary mission to Iraq, Dr. William Moyer didn't need to ponder over his response.

Washington - Meaningful reform of the Thoroughbred racing and breeding industry is on its way - and probably much sooner than many would have believed as little as six months ago.

West LaFayette, Ind. - Tiny bone cracks caused by rigorous training usually are undetectable in horses before the cracks turn into hairline stress fractures or more serious problems, like the catastrophic bone failures that led to the deaths of at least three high-profile Thoroughbreds since 2006 and many others less well-known.

Lexington, Ky. - Veterinarians played a key role in handling another high-profile racetrack tragedy - this time at the Kentucky Derby - and they're working with the racing industry in the aftermath to help improve Thoroughbred-racing safety and equine health and safety in general.

Topeka, Kan. - Legislation that would have taken away the Kansas Board of Veterinary Examiners' ability to preside over its own administrative hearings is dead for 2008, though it is expected to come up for consideration again in next year's legislative session.

A major study of the incidence of exercise-induced pulmonary hemorrhage (EIPH) in performance horses could benefit all horses, and such a study might soon be undertaken if a research committee of prominent equine veterinarians determines the study should go forward and outlines its scope.

The weather always can be counted on to influence parasite populations around the country, but it plays a lesser role these days compared to what humans are doing environmentally to affect the number and spread of disease vectors, entomology experts say.

When Sandusky, Ohio, veterinarian Dr. Michael E. Metroka commemorated his practice's 75th anniversary in February, he had reasons to believe it might be the nation's oldest that has operated continuously "within the same four walls."

Salt Lake CitY - Veterinary clients anywhere near Utah's capital don't have to drive hundreds of miles anymore to the nearest specialty referral hospital.

He has practiced veterinary medicine 38 years, much of that time as a surgeon, but should someone at a party ask him what he does for a living, Dr. Derrel Elkins, DVM, MS, Dipl. ACVS, is about as likely to answer "sheep farmer" as "veterinarian."

Veterinarian Richard M. Linnehan went out for a walk the other evening. Make that way, way out -- as in outer space, 200 miles above the Earth. Better known to the world as a veteran astronaut than a DVM, Linnehan was the lead spacewalker on the U.S. Space Shuttle Endeavour in March. Photo: Courtesy of NASA

Kennett Square, Pa. - The Barbaro Fund and the Fund for Laminitis Research, both established a year ago after the death of the 2006 Kentucky Derby winner, grew substantially with recent gifts and pledges, according to the University of Pennsylvania's School of Veterinary Medicine.

Kansas City, Mo. - A federal grand jury indicted two Chinese firms, an American firm and their principals on multiple counts related to tainted pet foods that sickened or killed perhaps thousands of pets last year and triggered the largest pet-food recall in the nation's history.

Atlanta - If this southern metropolis keeps growing the way it has the last few years, "we'll soon be calling Chattanooga a suburb," says veterinarian Nicholas W. Petty, who has practiced in the Buckhead area near downtown Atlanta since 1976.

Sandusky, Ohio - When you first approach it, there's nothing especially remarkable about the one-story white concrete building with the black-lettered sign "Animal Hospital" over the entrance.

National Report - A new study suggesting a link between infection with Toxoplasma gondii, a parasite commonly carried by pet cats, and schizophrenia may offer new hope and lead to possible treatments for the roughly 2 million Americans who suffer from the mental disorder, researchers say.

A nationwide network of veterinary toxicology laboratories, each with similar testing capabilities and an efficient communication system, could become one of the best weapons to help ward off another major pet-food crisis, even helping protect the human food supply against a serious poisoning outbreak.

The number of stallions covering mares, and the number of mares bred in North America both declined in 2007, according to the latest statistics from the Jockey Club.

For any veterinary practice, maintaining good hygienic standards these days is much more than just a good idea.

It started as a payment issue - something common and relatively minor - but by the time it ended the board-certified veterinary surgeon felt so much heat from the media he closed his practice and left town.

VBMA chapters train students on customer service, negotiation, leadership and management skills.

Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA) poses a greater risk to equine veterinarians and to other people who work with horses than to the general population, a recent report suggests.

Are you facing a state-board inquiry? Think you can handle it alone?