 editorial team has been counting down our Top 20 news stories and articles of the year, from January 1, 2024, to November 15, 2024. Rank was determined by measurable audience interest and engagement.

In the final installment of 20-part series, the No. 1 

 story of the year is shared. The following article is No. 1 on the list:

USDA permanently revokes license of Virginia breeders

A pair of animal breeders in Virginia recently had their Animal Welfare Act (AWA) license permanently revoked by an order of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) that cited numerous violations. The USDA and the Virginia Attorney General’s Office also oversaw the surrender of approximately 200 animals in the care of breeders Elena Mikirticheva and Andrey Mikirtichev of North Chesterfield, Virginia, who are also facing more than $300,000 in civil penalties.

“The humane treatment of animals has always been a top priority of APHIS, and we use all available resources to carry out this goal,” said Roxanne Mullaney, DVM, deputy administrator for the USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) Animal Care Program, in an agency release.

 “We applaud the work of our inspectors and our partners, and value the partnerships that help ensure enforcement of the AWA.”

Under court order, approximately 45 animals were surrendered to USDA, which placed the animals for adoption through shelters and rescue organizations in Virginia. The federal agencies also worked with the Virginia Attorney General’s Office to seize more than 150 more animals at the facility for placement with the Humane Society of the United States.

The actions and penalties imposed upon the defendants are part of preliminary injunction relief issued by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) for alleged pervasive mistreatment of animals. The relief was ordered by US District Judge David J. Novak for the Eastern District of Virginia to replace a temporary restraining order that cited more than 50 AWA violations—identified by APHIS inspections—for failure to provide adequate shelter, medical care, and other animal care to cats and dogs.

 The pair of breeders also failed to provide access to USDA inspectors.

For more on this story, including the legal filings of APHIS, view the full article: 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/usda-permanently-revokes-license-of-virginia-breeders

Articles

The top dvm360 news story of 2024 is revealed in the final installment of this 20-part series 

2024 veterinary news in review: #1

Photo: Kristen Coppock Crossley, MA/dvm360

Joshua Broadwater, DVM, DACVO, (left) and Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, discuss evidence-based eye care solutions.

 is counting down our Top 5 videos of 2024. The ranking is based on measurable interest and engagement from our digital viewers. These 5 videos feature thought leaders from throughout the veterinary care industry, who discuss a variety of topics.

The second video on the Top 5 video countdown

 features Joshua Broadwater, DVM, DACVO, of Charlotte Animal Referral & Emergency Center in North Carolina. In this video sponsored by Sentrx Animal Care and recorded at Charlotte Animal Referral & Emergency Center, Broadwater talks with Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, chief veterinary officer of dvm360, about a line of evidence-based eye care solutions.

: All right. Let's do it. Well, let's talk about lubricants in general. What's the importance of having them for our patients?

: Adam, it's huge. So, you know, when we talk about the anatomy of the eye, we used to start with the lectures of saying, "Here's the cornea and here's the sclera" and all the parts of the eye, and now I start all my lecture with, "Here's the pre-corneal tear film" because it is so important to the eye. The pre-corneal tear film is what lubricates the surface of the eye. It's what keeps the clarity of the corneal surface. It's what washes away bacteria and debris from the eye, keeping us from getting infections and irritations and ulcers. So extremely important.

: Yeah. And the function of the tear film in general, I know for nutrition purposes, has a lot of functions, correct.

: Yeah, absolutely. I mean, our cornea needs that tear film to provide lubrication, nutrition, all those things to keep our cornea healthy, keep our cornea clear so we can see so well, and our patients can be comfortable and have great vision.

: Excellent. Okay, so let's get into some of these products. Shall we? Okay, Josh, looks like the first one up we have is the Eye Lube pro. So tell us a little bit about this.

: So I see so many cases that come into the clinic for eye problems, ulcers, and I'm always having ulcer owners saying, "What can I do to prevent things like this from happening in the future?" And when you have lubrication and you can provide more lubrication to the surface of the eye, you can only help these patients to hydrate the eye, to try to protect the eye from future ulcers. There are so many things that this can be used for because of keeping from infections, keeping from irritations. You have dogs, correct?

: Do you have any that love to hang their head out the window while you're driving?

: I know what I try to bring them in, but... but yes, some of them do.

: So we in the field call that a practice builder, okay? Because that's what causes ulcers and irritations in foreign bodies to the eye. So I have owners that say when to use these products and I'm telling them anytime that they are basically taking the dog for a grooming, they're going to give them a bath, they're going to take them on a car ride. And anything like that, put this in the eye, try to protect the health of their eye from getting any irritation or ulcers.

Videos

The Top 5 countdown for 2024 dvm360 videos highlights the most viewed interviews of the past year

Dynamic keynote speakers are coming to Fetch Charlotte

hosted by Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, chief veterinary officer of dvm360, and edited by 

’sCaitlin McCafferty, featured a wide variety of veterinary topics and guests throughout the past year. As 2024 comes to a close, 

 is looking back and celebrating the Top 5 podcasts, as measured by audience interest and engagement. Through, New Year’s Eve, 

is counting down the Top 5 podcasts by sharing 1 of these episodes per day.

The following podcast is #2 on the list and features guest Shadi Ireifej, DVM, DACVS, chief medical officer of VetTriage. They discuss tips that general practitioners can implement at their practice to help clinics possibly see fewer pyometra cases.

 One of the pearls I like to stress when I give pyometra talks is surgical exposure. It's all too often that very experienced, well-intentioned general practitioners will try to create as small an incision as possible for their spay. And it looks impressive, it's quicker surgery because less closing time, the pet owner loves the tiny incision which means [their pet] is not going to be in that much pain postoperatively, [and] less chance of complications. However, if you are trying to operate on a large breed dog or a deep-chested dog, and you're working in those caverns, you need to not be shy about making a larger incision in order to get access to the ovarian tissue and that uterus. You don't need to overdo it, you should be adequate. You can always make your incision longer if you need to start small and go longer, but that's point No. 1.

Point No. 2 is retraction. So I'm fortunate as a boarded surgeon, that usually I have all the bells and whistles. I got all the toys, I can have 3 assistants in there if I want to right to retract stuff and hold things. That's me. Most spays are done by general practitioners. They're not going to have the staffing for that, nor the toys. So you need to have not only a big incision, as seems realistic for that dog that size a dog but also need to retract either have somebody, or something, push those organs aside, you can actually visualize the ovaries in that gutter or self-retracting Balfour retractors. Great solution.

Podcasts

A Top 5 episode of dvm360's The Vet Blast Podcast is revealed in our 2024 countdown. 

Top 2024 dvm360 podcasts: #2

 editorial team is counting down our Top 20 news stories and articles of the year, from January 1, 2024, to November 15, 2024. Rank was determined by measurable audience interest and engagement.

A spotlight is shining on 1 article each day through New Year’s Eve, when the No. 1 

 story of the year will be shared. The following article is No. 2 on this list:

Voluntary recall of dry dog food in certain US states

Owing to the potential presence of loose metal pieces in certain bags, Mars Petcare US issued a limited voluntary recall on May 17, 2024, for 315 bags of Pedigree Adult Complete Nutrition Grilled Steak & Vegetable Flavor Dry Dog Food. Only the 44 lb (19.9 kg) bag size was ffected, according to the company.

The limited recall involved bags sold by Walmart in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas, which accounted for all 315 bags. The Pedigree food bags in question had a ‘best by’ date of March 4, 2025, and lot code of 410B2TXT02, which was found on the bottom back of the bag.

According to the FDA, Mars Petcare US collaboratied with Walmart stores in Arkansas, Louisiana, Oklahoma, and Texas to guarantee that the impacted items were no longer available for sale and had been taken out of stock. Additionally, no pet injuries or illnesses attributed to the potentially affected Pedigree bags were reported at the time the recall was made. However, pet owners were strongly advised to refrain from using any of the purchased product.

The possible existence of loose metal fragments in the bags can present a health risk to pets. The FDA recommended monitoring pets when there was any suspicion that the recalled product had been ingested. 

For more on this voluntary recall and signs that a pet may have ingested a foreign body, view the full article: 

https://www.dvm360.com/view/voluntary-recall-of-dry-dog-food-in-certain-us-states

dvm360 is counting down the Top 20 news stories and articles from 2024 with this series of spotlights

2024 veterinary news in review: #2

 features Julia Miller, DVM, DACVD, an assistant clinical professor at the Cornell University College of Veterinary Medicine in Ithaca, New York. In this VetXchange® program sponsored by Blue Buffalo, Miller talks with Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, chief veterinary officer of dvm360, about diet trials in dogs and how they can be used to determine an allergen and for developing a diet plan. The video also offers the option to earn 0.5 continuing education credit.

“The diet trial [is currently] the only way to fully diagnose a dog as a food-allergic dog,” said Julia E. Miller, DVM, DACVD. On a recent episode of VetXChange, Miller joined Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, to discuss diet trials as a treatment plan for canines experiencing allergic reactions.

When a patient comes into the clinic because it is experiencing itchiness, clinicians usually consider 3 types of allergies: flea, food, and environment. Once ectoparasites are ruled out as the cause, the clinician should ask the client follow-up questions to determine whether the allergen is environmental or related to food.

Allergies caused by environment typically affect dogs aged 1 to 4 years, though certain breeds, like French bulldog, American bully, and doodle, can experience effects at just 6 months of age.

“If I’m getting a dog that’s itchy before 6 months of age, [I’m implementing a] diet trial,” said Miller. “That’s the first thing on my list every single time.” Similarly, if a dog has never had allergic reactions but becomes itchy at an older age, environmental allergens are an unlikely cause.