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Los Angeles -- Despite the nation's lagging economy, a Los Angeles-based veterinary hospital chain is reporting a double-digit revenue increase for the second quarter.

Place all the day's treats in a reusable container every morning.

Lawndale, Calif. - Treating heart disease in companion animals is an ever-evolving science. And, especially for the aging U.S. pet population, the risks for heart disease increase.

Pediatric dogs and cats dehydrate quickly with inappetence or illness, and assessing the hydration status of these animals is difficult.

All normal dogs have a small number of Demodex species mites that live in their hair follicles. These mites are not visible to the naked eye. But some dogs develop an overgrowth of these mites, a condition called demodicosis, or demodectic mange.

Paradise, Calif. - Thick smoke forced him from his home, but it hasn't kept Dr. Mike Seely from visiting a local evacuation shelter where he checks on hundreds of pets and livestock displaced by the wildfires that burn throughout California.

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.

Although floodwaters receded along the banks of the Mississippi, the aftermath will continue to be felt for months and even years.

Veterinary Medicine has found a good home at dvm360.com.

Veterinarians often are called upon to help their clients sort out all of the commercial choices available when equine products are being purchased. Equine nutritional products (primarily feeds), vitamin, mineral and other performance supplements and joint-protection products tend to be the three areas where client confusion abounds and veterinary clarification is sought.

Nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory drugs (NSAIDs) are effective analgesics but, in rare cases, can cause serious side effects.

Editor's Note: Understanding consumer behavior can help you as a clinician and business manager. DVM Newsmagazine asked five veterinary market leaders to join this year's DVM Newsmakers' Summit at CVC East in Baltimore. Following is the last of three excerpts from the panel discussion.

When the equestrian events of the 2008 Beijing Olympic Games are held Aug. 9-20, the world will see if China has met the numerous challenges facing the successful staging of those events. Concern was raised, even from the beginning of China's Olympic bid, in three main areas:

Washington - A report exploring big agriculture's impact on the environment, animal welfare and human health is encountering strong criticism from a faction of leaders in veterinary medicine.

New Orleans - Veterinarians once again squared off on animal-welfare and human-health issues at this year's American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) House of Delegates meeting.

San Diego - Veterinarians can earn more than 300 CE credits and peruse the offerings of numerous product vendors at the American College of Veterinary Surgeons' Symposium in San Diego Oct. 22-25 at the Manchester Grand Hyatt.

Sacramento, Calif. - Municipalities won't be able to ban state-sanctioned medical practices if a proposed bill passes in California.

The directions I held in my hand were leading me to a residential district in Lubbock, Texas. That would not have been a big deal, were it not for the fact that I was on my way to visit a horse. I knew that people in a city residential area were likely to know as much about horses as I knew about submarines, but I could be wrong.

Devastating floods in several Midwest states left most farm animals unscathed, but food shortages and disease still loom as major concerns for farmers and veterinarians in coming months and years.

Lexington, Ky. - It is the most common fatal injury of the racing Thoroughbred - catastrophic injury to the fetlock, involving the distal cannon bone and/or the proximal sesamoid bones of the metacarpo/metatarsophalangeal joint, with a rupture of suspensory apparatus.

With too many horses and not enough homes for them, Dr. Erica Lacher-like most equine practitioners-sees slaughter as necessary.

I could almost hear the "twang" when Blitz hit the end of his leash and it stopped him short. The snapping sound of his big mouth almost catching my arm followed immediately. Mrs. Whiteflag was quick to apologize.

New Orleans - Whether even to discuss a ban on antimicrobials in livestock feed for growth promotion split the House of Delegates nearly in half at the annual American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) conference.

Megaesophagus is a condition in which the esophagus has reduced peristalsis, and has poor tone at rest. The esophagus can have a mild, focal motility problem, or the entire organ may be dilated and functioning poorly.

We keep a chart that lists incidents of adverse reaction to vaccination.

Impotent might be the best word to describe a law that would have required almost every cat and dog older than 4 months to be spayed or neutered before the measure was dramatically altered on the California Senate floor.

In 1981, calcium oxalate was detected in only 2 percent of feline uroliths submitted to the Minnesota Urolith Center, whereas struvite was detected in 78 percent. However, beginning in the mid-1980s, a dramatic increase in the frequency of calcium oxalate uroliths occurred in association with a decrease in the frequency of struvite uroliths (Figure 1) .

Washington - A team of reproductive experts performed what is believed to be the first reverse vasectomy on an equid at the Smithsonian National Zoo.

Equine doctors and the AVMA oppose the U.S. ban on horse slaughter. But small animal veterinarians are divided.

Heat stroke is a life-threatening condition characterized by an elevated core body temperature and central nervous system dysfunction. Despite aggressive lowering of core body temperature and treatment, the pathophysiologic changes associated with heat stroke can lead to multi-organ dysfunction, which can be fatal.