News
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Poop, parasites and public health
It may look like ordinary, everyday dog poop, but to researchers at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM), those little lumps contain a treasure trove of public health information. That’s one of the key facts that I learned this summer as a WCVM research student, travelling around Saskatchewan collecting dog feces — a job that gave me first-hand experience …
February 03rd, 2014 Full story »
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Study tests faster cure for UTIs in dogs
Anyone who has taken antibiotics knows that the longer the treatment time, the more likely a dose is missed. And as the symptoms disappear, so does the motivation to finish the entire vial of pills. Owners face the same challenges when treating their pets with antibiotics. While the typical antibiotic treatment time for women with urinary tract infections (UTIs) usually …
January 06th, 2014 Full story »
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Put the CAHF on your gift list!
With Christmas just a few days away, the Companion Animal Health Fund (CAHF) can help you track down some final presents for those pet lovers, groomers, pet sitters and veterinarians on your gift list. A gift to the CAHF means a great deal to companion animals as well as to students, faculty and staff at the Western College of Veterinary …
December 16th, 2013 Full story »
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Cats join WCVM nutrition study
They won’t be walking around the Bowl like the pack of beagles did over the last few years, but a group of cats are joining a nutrition study similar to the one that made the dogs famous at the University of Saskatchewan (U of S). The beagles that the campus community was so fond of seeing were part of a …
December 02nd, 2013 Full story »
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The twists and turns of research
It’s common knowledge that no matter how well you prepare, research experiments never go perfectly according to plan. I think back to this idea as I watch a team of veterinary specialists try, for the fourth time, to unsuccessfully place a catheter into the spleen of an anesthetized dog. “It [can be] a little bit frustrating sometimes just because it’s …
November 07th, 2013 Full story »
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New clinical tool helps vets save lives
A $20,000 gift from Dr. David Stark — a Saskatoon-based dental specialist in endodontics — has allowed the Western College of Veterinary Medicine’s Veterinary Medical Centre (VMC) to purchase a clinical tool that provides critical data about blood coagulation. It’s vital information that can mean life or death for an animal, says Dr. Casey Gaunt, an assistant professor in the veterinary …
October 02nd, 2013 Full story »
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Ultrasound key to improving sample accuracy
A researcher at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) is conducting a study that will pinpoint the most effective and economical way to aspirate canine lymph nodes. Lymph node aspiration is a diagnostic tool commonly performed by veterinarians. The technique involves using a thin needle to extract cells from a lymph node so they can be sent off to …
July 09th, 2013 Full story »
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A safer solution to a sticky problem?
When my little dog Maggie was young, she would chew anything she could get her paws on: a lamp cord, cell phone charger, TV cable, garbage cans, clothing, the bathroom curtain and even the bottom of a door. But most of all, she loved to gnaw on the pig’s hoof that I gave her to chew. One day Maggie seemed …
June 01st, 2013 Full story »
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Vital animal health projects receive funding
Two longtime research funds have directed more than $170,000 in funding to researchers at the Western College of Veterinary Medicine (WCVM) in support of vital pet and equine health research projects. The Companion Animal Health Fund (CAHF) is investing more than $67,000 in eight pet health projects while the Equine Health Research Fund (EHRF) will provide eight teams of equine …
May 22nd, 2013 Full story »
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Cancer scientists go to the dogs for help
Though similarities between human and canine cancers have long been recognized, researchers are just now beginning to explore the potential of using canine oncology research models. “Canine oncology research models are still really new,” says Dr. Valerie MacDonald, associate professor of medical oncology in the WCVM’s Department of Small Animal Clinical Sciences. MacDonald, who treats hundreds of dogs diagnosed with …
April 08th, 2013 Full story »
