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National Report -- A new educational Web site aimed at creating greater awareness among pet owners about diabetes was launched, just in time for Pet Diabetes Month in November.

The AABP named its officers for the upcoming year at its 42nd annual conference in Omaha.

People should be vigilant on behalf of their animals, a veterinarian says.

Baton Rouge -- The Louisiana State University School of Veterinary Medicine?s Equine Medication Surveillance Laboratory (EMSL) will be conducting drug tests for all Louisiana racehorses for another three years.

A proposal to create new wild-horse preserves may raise public awareness and perhaps stir more interest in adoptions.

Columbia, S.C. -- The South Carolina Association of Veterinarians (SCAV) is pushing state legislators to allow veterinary team members to give rabies vaccines. At present, only veterinarians can administer the vaccination to cats and dogs.

Two brands of dry cat food were recalled in New York after they were found deficient in thiamine.

Ithaca, N.Y. -- A reproductive biologist at Cornell University's College of Veterinary Medicine is the first veterinarian to receive the National Institutes of Health's Pioneer Award, which provides a five-year, $2.5 million research grant.

Rockville, Md. -- The 2006 Executive Report from the National Antimicrobial Resistance Monitoring System (NARMS) was released today by the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) Center for Veterinary Medicine.

Athens, Ga. -- A symposium on veterinary translational medicine research will be held Oct. 29 at the University of Georgia's College of Veterinary Medicine.

Washington -- Uncle Sam's animal inspectors hope a proposed new rule under the Animal Welfare Act will make it easier to conduct unannounced inspections at circuses, mobile petting zoos and other animal acts.

San Antonio -- PurinaCare Insurance Services, Inc. selected Central States Indemnity Co. of Omaha (CSI) as the new underwriter of its pet health insurance policies.

Geneva, Switzerland -- The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation has given almost $10 million to the World Health Organization to help fight rabies in Tanzania, South Africa and the Philippines using a plan developed at Scotland?s Glasgow University veterinary school.

Pomona, Calif. -- Researchers at Western University?s College of Veterinary Medicine landed a $100,000 grant to work on improvements to captive endangered species? breeding programs.

Washington -- The National Thoroughbred Racing Association's (NTRA) Safety and Integrity Alliance has accredited 12 racetracks and established several uniform safety and integrity measures during its first year of operation, and now an independent monitor will examine its work and issue a report on its effectiveness.

London -- Microchipping may become mandatory for dogs in the United Kingdom.

St. Louis -- Purina is giving free horse feed to a family in Missouri who take care of six children and six rescue horses, as well as a family in Texas who volunteer with a therapy riding program. Both families are in upcoming episodes of the ABC television show ?Extreme Makeover: Home Edition.?

Schaumburg, Ill. -- The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) has a new director of the Scientific Activities Division.

Roseland, N.J. -- Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health is donating 7,250 doses of EquiRab rabies vaccine to 150 equine rescue and retirement facilities nationwide, through the Unwanted Horse Veterinary Relief Campaign (UHVRC) in honor of the recent World Rabies Day.

New housing requirements for swine, veal calves and poultry were adopted in Michigan after a last-minute push by the Humane Society of the United States.

Schaumberg, Ill. -- The American Veterinary Medical Foundation (AVMF) and Pfizer Animal Health are partnering to offer a new annual scholarship program that will dole out $2 million to veterinary students by 2012.

No one is exactly sure why, but the number of horse deaths at the nation's racetracks declined very little in 2008, despite ongoing industrywide efforts to raise health and safety standards.

Columbus, Ohio -- Animal-welfare experts, veterinarians, food-animal producers, consumers and others with an interest in food-animal production are invited to a symposium on farm animal welfare issues Oct. 16 arranged by The Ohio State University's Department of Animal Sciences and College of Veterinary Medicine.

Several new health-care reform bills are circulating and require individuals to carry insurance and businesses to offer it. A look at three of the leading ones and how they would impact veterinary practice owners and associates.

Reported cases of Eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) during the first eight months of 2009 already have surpassed last year's total in the United States, while West Nile virus (WNV) cases are sharply down from 2008, according to the USDA's Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS). The report was last updated Sept. 9.

New Orleans -- Another municipal mandatory spay/neuter and breeding-restriction ordinance is under consideration, this time in New Orleans.

Del Mar Thoroughbred Club is the 11th racing facility to win accreditation by a national safety organization.

Ames, Iowa -- Iowa State University's College of Veterinary Medicine secured a $10,000 grant from the new Echo360 Research Grants Program.

Sacramento, Calif. -- Fees imposed by the California Veterinary Medical Board (VMB) could go up in almost every area if the board enacts a forthcoming proposal.

North Grafton, Mass. -- A new master of science in conservation medicine degree is under development at Tufts University's Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine.