MAGAZINE of thE cuMMINGs school of vEtErINAry MEdIcINE faLL 2011 VOL. 13 NO. 1

veterinary medicine

InsIde the eR the tough and tender stories of pets in crisis

PLUS: bad kitty EyE SEE LyME LiGHt

29023cvr.indd 2 11/3/11 12:24 PM case solved

true hollywood story

an award-winning career. a triumphant return from retirement. a battle with a life-threatening illness. a starring role in a film that’s getting Oscar buzz. in her 10 years, bella, a wirehair fox terrier, already has seen enough drama to warrant her own sensational tell-all on the E! television network. “i fell in love with bella at first sight,” says Lucia Hackett of the retired show dog she purchased from a breeder. bella (or Ch Hiwire act at Hexham Cd RE SE CGC, as the title- winning terrier is officially known) and Hackett began obedience work and soon started showing, this time in the veterans’ ring. Life seemed unfailingly sunny. then last april, Hackett brought bella to tufts’ foster Hospital for Small animals with gastrointestinal issues. Veterinarians found a lump in her abdomen: a mast cell tumor, a common type of skin cancer in dogs. “i couldn’t believe bella was so sick,” says Hackett, who lives in North Grafton, Mass. “i love this dog, and i never want to see her suffer.” Rob McCarthy, V83, a veterinary surgeon at tufts, removed the tumor and two lymph glands, one of which was malignant. five days later, bella was back home.“i didn’t want her climbing stairs, so i decided to sleep with her on the kitchen floor,” says Hackett. “Later that night, she came to lick my ear. Her tail was wagging, and i think she was saying, ‘i’m home.’” determined to be optimistic about bella’s recovery, Hackett submitted some photos of her pet to a casting call posted online for a new Wes anderson film. anderson, who received academy award nominations for The Royal Tenenbaums and The Fantastic Mr. Fox, cast bella in his seventh movie, Moonrise Kingdom. four weeks after her surgery, bella was on set in Newport, R.i., with the actors bill Murray, bruce Willis and tilda Swinton. the film, about two runaways, comes out early next year. it’s already garnering Oscar chatter. far from the glare of tinseltown, Hackett is content to simply enjoy more time with bella: “i hug her especially tight each day.”

photo: AloNso NIchols

29023cvr.indd 3 10/31/11 7:01 PM contents fALL 2011 vOLUME 13 NO.1 features 6 the Landlord Ray Powell, V84, is the guardian of 13 million acres of land in New Mexico that generate $500 million annually for the state’s public schools, universities and hospitals.

8 ain’t misbehavin’ Some expert advice on transforming your “cat from hell” into a mannerly feline. By Genevieve Rajewski

COvEr StOry 12 inside the er Their stories are heartwarming and heartbreaking, and more than 10,000 of them play out in the emergency room of the Foster Hospital for Small Animals each year. We take you behind the scenes in this photo essay. By Alonso Nichols 20 Forces of nature 12 Even though 61 percent of folks say they would ride out the fury of a natural disaster rather than abandon their pets, it wasn’t until after Hurricane Katrina that officials began thinking about the plight of animals in these dire situations. By Genevieve Rajewski departments

2 From the Dean 3 upFront 28 PEOPLE, PLACES & ANIMALS 24 on Campus CUMMINGS SCHOOL NEWS 28 researCh tHE PAtH tO dISCOvEry 30 BeyonD BounDaries PrOvIdING tHE MEANS fOr ExCELLENCE 32 triBute

On the cover: Adam Porter, v08, senior resident at the foster Hospital Er, cradles Ozzie, the Belgian shepherd he diagnosed with a virulent lung cancer. Photograph by Alonso Nichols Back cover photograph by Alonso Nichols

29023p01-05.indd 1 11/1/11 7:43 PM from the dean

veterinary medicine

First-rate responders vOL. 13, NO. 1 fALL 2011

tornadoes, a hurricane and an unusually early snowstorm Executive Editor in October reminded us to expect the unexpected in Massachusetts Deborah T. Kochevar, Dean Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine this year. Around the world natural disasters, including earth- quakes and tsunamis, have devastated animals and humans and Editor reinforced the impact of misfortune in a global economy. Genevieve Rajewski In this issue you will read how veterinarians respond to emer- Editorial director gencies—from those that play out in the microcosm of the Foster Karen Bailey Hospital to regional and national crises in which trained veteri- design director nary responders render assistance through increasingly sophisti- Margot Grisar cated networks. Emergency response is about being prepared and having the right organization followed design 2COMMUNIQUÉ by the right process. Our students benefit from learning these principles and are eager to apply their talents when regional and national emergencies strike. It is gratifying that many Contributing Writers already have participated in local emergency preparedness organizations even before they Gail Bambrick, Marjorie Howard begin their veterinary studies. Staff Photographers Our students hone their interest in service throughout their time at Tufts University Alonso Nichols by mounting campaigns to assist shelter animals, collecting supplies for and conducting Kelvin Ma research with veterinary schools in developing countries and responding generously to Contributing Editor disasters in the U.S. and abroad. The quality of our students reassures all of us that the vet- Bob Sprague erinary profession remains solidly on the right track, despite persistent national economic Editorial Advisors challenges. Shelley Rodman, Director These challenges have led to reductions in the numbers of faculty and staff, the elim- Veterinary Development and Alumni Relations ination of some programs and dwindling resources for basic, clinical and translational Joseph McManus, Executive Associate Dean research. For the sake of current and future students, there is a sense of urgency on the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine part of the profession to reverse the national trend of declining state and federal support for veterinary education. Tom Keppeler, Associate Director Public Relations The Tufts way is to address economic challenges by harnessing and enhancing creativity. A partner and leader in these efforts is the university’s new president, Anthony P. Monaco, Tufts Veterinary Medicine is funded in himself a physician and scientist. His first semester at Tufts has highlighted themes impor- part by the Edward Hyde Cox Fund for Publications. It is distributed to alumni, tant to our campus, including excellence in graduate and professional education, evidence- friends, veterinary students, veterinarians based thinking and learning, research in infectious diseases, neurosciences and clinical and key university personnel. specialties and a commitment to global health and active citizenship. To achieve our aspirations, we draw support from tuition, return on research invest- We welcome your letters, story ideas, ments, revenue from our hospitals and clinics and critical philanthropic partnerships with and suggestions. Send correspondence to: our friends. Sadly, one of our most ardent supporters, Dr. Agnes Varis, passed away this Genevieve Rajewski, Editor summer. This issue ends with a tribute to Dr. Varis that I hope you will enjoy. She was Tufts Veterinary Medicine a friend to animals and to our students and valued the many ways in which veterinary Tufts University Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine medicine brings good to the world. Her partnership transformed our campus, and she is 200 Westboro Road remembered with great fondness, esteem and gratitude. North Grafton, MA 01536 or email: [email protected]

Sincerely, The Cummings School’s website is www.tufts.edu/vet The telephone number is 508.839.5302.

Follow us on Facebook and Twitter. deborah turner kochevar, d.v.m., ph.d. dean and henry and lois foster professor

tufts Prints Green Printed on 25% post-consumer waste 2 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011 recycled paper. Please recycle.

29023p01-05.indd 2 10/31/11 7:35 PM upfrontpeople, places & animals

sWat team

Pooled expertise strengthens response to outbreaks of infectious disease By Genevieve rajewski

he northeastern united states is known as a hot spot for The genesis for the network was the infectious diseases that sicken both animals and people. West Nile Cummings School’s Seabird Ecological virus and Lyme disease made their first U.S. forays in the region, Assessment Network (SEANET), which dis- andT Eastern equine encephalitis and rabbit fever infect wildlife and sporadically patches volunteers to monitor the welfare of claim human lives. seabird populations along coastal northeast- Despite its vulnerability, the Northeast did not have a designated wildlife ern United States and Canada. team to investigate potential disease outbreaks—until the Northeast Wildlife Citizen-scientists combing beaches Disease Cooperative was established earlier this year. Administered through the over hundreds of miles in many states and Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, the organization pools the expertise Canadian provinces can detect patterns of of veterinarians, scientists and wildlife managers throughout the region to detect, seabird mortality. However, SEANET can- investigate and manage outbreaks of infectious diseases. not provide data on disease outbreaks in

IllUSTRATION: JON CANNEll fall 2011 tufts veterinary medicine 3

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other species or in other ecosystems, says the lab to get data to decision makers faster. With so many people living in such a small Julie Ellis, executive director of SEANET. They, in turn, can keep the public informed area, if a wildlife disease pops up, it’s a very Scientists decided that the region could about diseases affecting human health or short hop to a large human population or its dramatically increase its capacity for agriculture.” food supply.” diagnosing outbreaks of all kinds simply This kind of collaboration will enable In fact, 60 percent of the infectious dis- by marshaling the expertise in their own the region’s veterinarians and veterinary eases identified between 1940 and 2004 are backyard, says Sarah Courchesne, V07, pathologists to share their findings and track zoonotic, meaning they first occur in ani- project director for SEANET. the movement of disease across state lines. mals, according to a study published in the journal Nature in 2008. The research also found that 70 percent of those diseases origi- “Withsomanypeoplelivinginsuchasmall nate in wildlife. Even wildlife diseases that don’t infect us area,ifawildlifediseasepopsup,it’savery can affect our well-being. Consider white-nose syndrome, a lethal shorthoptoalargehumanpopulationorits fungal infection in bats that was first iden- food supply.” —randy mickley, usda biologist tified outside Albany, N.Y., in 2006. While the disease (which gets its name from the ring of white fungus on the muzzle) is Before, if a wildlife biologist noticed an The cooperative will develop a system for decimating bat populations, humans are unusually large number of deaths in a cer- responding to and reporting wildlife dis- unscathed. But the disease is harming “our tain population, deer for example, there was eases, including centralized communications shared ecosystem,” says Rich French, direc- one primary option for figuring out what was and a shared database of verified outbreaks. tor of the veterinary diagnostic laboratory going on: Ship the carcass to the National Within three years, the cooperative also at the University of New Hampshire. The Wildlife Health Center in Madison, Wisc., plans to begin assessing the health of wild- only major predator of night-flying insects, home to the only federal wildlife diagnos- life populations throughout the Northeast to bats devour thousands of tons of potentially tic laboratory serving the eastern United predict the emergence of new diseases before harmful agricultural pests each year as well States. In short, that’s a whole lot of territory they become widespread. as pollinate crops. to cover, from Minnesota, south to the Gulf “Emerging infections can lead to wildlife If the Northeast Wildlife Disease Coast and east to the Atlantic. population exterminations or even species Cooperative had been around in 1999, The Northeast cooperative will ease extinction,” says Ellis, citing as one example perhaps West Nile virus, a mosquito- some of the burden on the Wisconsin the fatal fungal disease chytridiomycosis. borne illness, could have been contained health center by sending dead wildlife to First discovered in Australia in 1993, chy- before it spread from New York City to veterinary diagnostic laboratories at the tridiomycosis has been linked to dramatic neighboring states and then throughout Cummings School, Cornell University, population declines and even extinctions of the U.S., says Ellis. When crows began the University of Connecticut and the frog species on that continent and in west- dying and some elderly residents got very University of New Hampshire for postmor- ern North America, Central America, South sick in Queens, it took public health offi- tems and other analyses. America and the Caribbean. cials months to connect the dots because “There’s capacity at the national level, At its core, the wildlife cooperative is a the multiple labs involved were not set up but it’s being stressed,” says Chris Dwyer, a public health initiative. “Humans are ani- to collaborate. migratory game bird biologist with the U.S. mals, too, so whether we are talking about “West Nile Virus was finally identified Fish and Wildlife Service, which provided a disease in children, pets or wildlife, we are because of the persistence of a veterinary $50,000 to help launch the cooperative. all interrelated,” says Randy Mickley, a wild- pathologist at the Bronx Zoo,” says Ellis. “If “By pulling together the considerable but life biologist with the U.S. Department of there had been quicker, more coordinated scattered expertise within our region, we Agriculture. “Here in the Northeast, we have diagnostics offered by a regional lab, the dis- enable experts working in the field and in about a quarter of the nation’s population. ease may have been addressed much faster.”

oVerheard “When it’s not available, that limits the little bag of tricks to reach into.” —kristine burgess, a veterinary oncologist at the foster hospital for small animals, in a wall street journal story about drug shortages, including doxorubicin, a chemotherapy medication used to treat cancers in humans and pets.

4 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011

29023p01-05.indd 4 10/31/11 7:35 PM Down to the Bone

When M.S.A. Kumar started his career in anatomy, criminal investigations weren’t part of the plan. But a guy who makes his living studying bones can come in handy when authorities find remains they can’t identify. And so they call Kumar—a handful of times in the past few years alone. “Once the police brought me a bone they thought was from a human pelvis,” says Kumar, a professor of biomedical sciences at the Cummings School. “It was actually easy for me to tell it was from a pig. In a hu- man pelvis, the pubic bones come together at the bottom because we stand erect.” Most recently, the Grafton (Mass.) Police department asked Kumar to examine some bones unearthed during the renova- tion of a Civil War-era building into a com- munity arts school. Kumar determined that the severely deteriorated bones were from heartworm alert two large animals, most likely a cow and a sheep. He estimates the bones—part of the great indoors isn’t a haven against the disease a skull and pieces from a spine and hind limbs—were more than 150 years old. While Kumar’s osteo detective work has not turned up a gruesome crime scene, he many owners believe that if their dogs stay indoors and only make brief does know at least one dicey story. trips outside, they don’t need protection against heartworm. “you get to know a lot about early history That’s a dangerous myth, says Michael Stone, a clinical assistant professor at studying bones because many [bones] were the Cummings School. A bite from a single infected mosquito can spread the named by the Greeks and romans,” he says. potentially lethal disease, which is caused by parasitic worms living in the arter- “I know how roman soldiers used to spend ies of the lungs. their time,” he offers, tossing an astragalus “We all have been bothered by a mosquito buzzing in the bedroom after the (a sheep anklebone) across his desk. lights have been turned out,” says Stone. So although the risk of a strictly indoor “Another word for astragalus is talus, dog getting heartworm is lower than that for a hunting dog, that risk is “not zero,” which means ‘dice’ in Latin,” he says. “the he cautions. romans used to roll anklebones for sport. Although owners and some veterinarians once believed dogs were only sus- the smooth surfaces of the joint would have ceptible to the disease in the high humidity of the South, heartworm is now found numbers painted on them.” Hence, the ori- in all 50 states.If that’s not enough evidence to support prevention, consider gin of “roll them bones” at the craps table. this: the only FDA-approved medication to treat heartworm infection in dogs, —genevieve rajewski Immiticide, is in very short supply, and it’s unclear how long that shortage will last. An ounce of prevention is what veterinarians recommend. The cost of treat- ing heartworm infection is $1,500 to $2,000. Compare that to the $8 monthly pill that prevents the disease in a 25- to 50-pound dog. —betty liddick

Betty Liddick is the editor of Your Dog: The Newsletter for Caring Dog Owners, published by the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. This article is adapted with permission. For subscription information, go to www.tuftsyourdog.com or call 1.800.829.5116.

IllUSTRATIONS: ANN BOYAJIAN fall 2011 tufts veterinary medicine 5

29023p01-05.indd 5 10/31/11 7:35 PM The Landlord

By Genevieve Rajewski photograph by julien m croberts

as new mexico’s land commissioner, ray powell, v84, manages a land trust roughly half the size of Pennsylvania. Those 13 million acres generate $500 mil- lion annually for the state’s public schools, universities and hospitals from leases for grazing, mining oil and gas and producing renewable energy on wind and solar farms. ¶“What makes my job very unusual is that although it’s an elected position, Athe land commissioner in New Mexico can sell, lease or trade the land without any- one else’s approval,” says Powell, who was elected to a second 10-year term this year. “Given the enormous autonomy and responsibility, you have the power to do really good things in office—or be a real scoundrel.”

Typical Day aT The Office: None. “If I look support our public schools. But we have just back at the 10 years I previously served as as many opportunities in terms of renew- state land commissioner [1993 to 2002], lit- able energy. We are among the top five erally no two days were the same. One day I states nationwide when it comes to potential was dealing with oil and gas issues. The fol- resources for solar, geothermal, wind and lowing day I was dealing with predator/prey biomass energy production. Our land can relations affecting agriculture and urban support us, literally forever, if we care for it communities; the next, catastrophic forest in a thoughtful and respectful manner.” fires. The only consistent thing is that I get inspireD By: Jane Goodall. “After I served for to work with and learn from some of the 10 years as state land commissioner, I went brightest people around.” back to my small animal veterinary practice. prOuDesT achievemenTs: Helping pass legis- I got a call from the Jane Goodall Institute and lation banning animal fighting and increas- joined them as a regional director of wildlife ing penalties for animal cruelty. Bringing research, education and conservation. Dr. the first wind turbines to New Mexico. Jane has become a great friend and mentor.” Brokering land swaps to protect wilderness his WinDing paTh: Changing places, from areas, national parks and sacred tribal lands, the Southwest to the Northeast—and back deals that led to such projects as Mesa del again—and shifting interests, from anthro- Sol, a 13,000-acre, master-planned com- pology to plants to animals. “I was capti- munity in Albuquerque, and La Semilla, the vated by native cultures’ use of the land and 3,000-acre urban nature preserve next door. became a field botanist before I went to Tufts. “Mesa del Sol will bring billions of dollars to I am originally from New Mexico, and Tufts our public schools over the next 75 years— at the time had a contractual agreement to while leaving the lightest footprint on the take five students from the state because we land possible. And even amidst an economic didn’t have a veterinary school.” downturn, it has created thousands of high- Where his hearT is: New Mexico. “It is really tech jobs for New Mexicans.” a dream location if you are a natural sciences On his TO-DO lisT: Renewable energy. “We are person. Within a mile, you can travel from blessed in New Mexico with huge amounts 5,000 feet to more than 10,000 feet above of nonrenewable resources—oil, gas, coal, sea level. It’s a great place to study natural potash, uranium—and those are mined to resource and ecological issues.” tvm

6 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011

29023p06-23.indd 1 10/31/11 6:15 PM New Mexico has five of the six global life zones (all but the tropics), says Ray Powell, who likes to explore the natural world with his wife, Jean, and the four-legged members of their family.

29023p06-23.indd 2 11/3/11 12:27 PM 29023p06-23.indd 3 10/31/11 6:15 PM By Genevieve Rajewski illustration by ward schumaker

for five years, toby and ivy, sibling sphynx cats, lived happily together—until the day their owner returned home to find their relationship had inexplicably turned ugly. “I left them sleeping together at the sliding door a few hours before. I usually see them as soon as I come home. But that day I didn’t,” recalls Diane Hutchison, of Agawam, Mass. She found Ivy cowering under the bed. “Something had happened while I was away, but I had no idea what,” she says. When she went to bed that night, Toby joined her as usual. But when Ivy tried to claim her normal sleeping spot, “Toby went straight after her,” says Hutchison. “You know the horrible screech- ing and wailing you hear when there’s a catfight outside? Well that was happening under the covers.” For more than a month, the cats remained on the outs. “The situ- ation finally brought me to tears,” says Hutchison. “I thought I was going to have to give one cat up. Or one was going to have to live upstairs and the other downstairs.” Hutchinson wondered if the medication Toby took for a heart mur- mur was causing his aggressive behavior. She found a path to feline harmony in the office of Nicholas Dodman, director of the Animal Behavior Program at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine. “Medical issues can masquerade as behavioral changes, and behavioral issues can fool people into thinking it’s a medical problem,” says Dodman, the veterinary equivalent of a human psychiatrist. Dodman specializes in unwanted behaviors that may require medi- cation as well as medical problems that may have behavioral symp- toms. Working with him on Toby’s case was Nicole Cottam, VG03, the behavior and research coordinator at Tufts’ Foster Hospital for Small Animals. As an applied animal behaviorist, Cottam, who earned a master’s degree in animals and public policy at Tufts, is like a psycholo- gist in human-medicine terms: qualified to provide counsel on pets’ ain’t emotional issues, but unable to write prescriptions. misbehavin With professional help, you can transform your bad kitty into a mannerly feline

29023p06-23.indd 4 10/31/11 6:15 PM When the Fur Flies 20 minutes and then for increasingly longer Veterinarians initially screen a misbe- Feline aggression—whether directed at periods. having cat for kidney issues, bladder prob- another cat or the owner—is the second After three months, Toby and Ivy were lems, diabetes and signs of pain. “We will most common cat behavior problem treated finally back to being pals. It’s been 15 take blood samples if we suspect hyperthy- at Tufts. Still, it’s not normal. months since the fur first flew. roidism,” a possible cause of aggression, “Cats are not programmed to behave night yowling and compulsive grooming, aggressively, because as solitary hunters, they a little Detective Work says Dodman. have to maintain their own health to sur- Despite the proven success of feline behavior Once all potential medical causes of the vive,” says Elizabeth Colleran, V90, VG96, treatment, cats still lag far behind dogs in aberrant behavior have been eliminated, the president of the American Association receiving appropriate care for such issues. vets look to the cat’s home for clues. of Feline Practitioners. “Cats’ main defense Of the 600 behavior cases treated at Tufts “We ask clients about the people in mechanism is to leave, to just get out of the each year, just one in 10 involves a cat. the cat’s environment, other pets, where way. Aggression is their last resort.” Dodman suspects this may be because many resources such as food and litter boxes are When aggression is directed at a human, cat owners ascribe to a common misconcep- located and where the cat came from,” says it usually indicates a cat is being mishandled tion: their animals cannot be trained. Colleran. “Cats are happy to have a social in some way. “If a 16-year-old cat bites you “Cats are smaller and quieter than dogs,” life with people and with other cats, but after you touch his back or hips, he’s saying, he adds. “They aren’t going to tear holes they don’t need it. What they do need is ‘Don’t touch me there. I have arthritis, and in the walls the way a dog with separation to feel unthreatened. Their sense of safety it hurts,’ ” says Colleran. anxiety will. Your neighbors won’t complain depends on having adequate places to eat, Combativeness between cats may stem about noise like they would with barking.” to rest, to hide and from which to view their from incompatible temperaments, territo- However, cat owners should be aware surroundings. They look at the world in a rial struggles or too many animals in too that ignoring behavioral changes can whole different way from the way we—or little space. But even cats that have gotten endanger their animals’ health. even dogs—do,” she says. along famously may experience an abrupt “Cats are creatures of habit,” says “Owners don’t influence what a cat falling out after a separation, such as after Colleran, who also holds a master’s degree does as much as they do with dogs,” a visit to the vet, or when one cat is startled in animals and public policy from Tufts. Dodman notes. “The majority of cat and attacks the other. “So whenever there is an abrupt change in behavior problems are actually normal That’s what the Tufts animal behaviorists behavior, even if it’s subtle, the first thing I cat behaviors that are inappropriate from suspected had happened with Toby. “We see think of is, ‘Okay, what kind of health prob- an owner’s perspective. These cats are not a lot of cases where cats get into a fight while lem is going on here?’ ” so much in need of a shrink as much as the owner is away,” says Cottam. “One cat sees something out the window that freaks him out, and since he can’t get to the thing that has frightened him, he turns around managing your own and beats up his cat buddy.” To reconcile the feuding felines, Dodman ‘cat from hell’ designed a gradual reintroduction program keyed to positive experiences. He instructed DOn’T gO iT alOne. Regardless of what type of behavior problem your cat has, always consult Hutchison to install hook-and-eyelet latches your veterinarian to ensure that the cause is not a medical one. Many feline diseases first on doors in her home so she could reac- present themselves as behavioral problems. quaint Toby and Ivy at mealtime, feeding them in adjacent rooms so they could see DO geT an experT OpiniOn. The Cummings School’s VetFax service (go.tufts.edu/vetfax) and smell each other through the cracked enables your veterinarian to seek consultation on a puzzling case. You also can use the doorway. As the cats appeared to grow more school’s PetFax service (go.tufts.edu/petfax) to request a report describing potential causes comfortable with each other, Hutchison and a treatment plan to bring to your veterinarian. For more information, call 508.887.4640. would move their food bowls closer to the door. Once the growling and hissing DO TaKe a viDeO. Technology makes it cheap and easy to capture problem behavior and share subsided, Hutchison let them in the same it with your veterinarian. A picture can be worth a thousand words. room; she swaddled Toby, the aggressor, in her lap while petting Ivy to soothe her. Once DOn’T give up. Fortunately, treating a behavior problem is often easier than the detective work it seemed safe to release Toby around Ivy, needed to determine the cause. And your cat will thank you for it! Hutchison spent time supervising both pets, distracting them with treats or toys. Then For more tips on common feline behavior problems—including plant eating and couch shred- she started leaving them alone, first for just ding—visit go.tufts.edu/badkitty.

10 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011

29023p06-23.indd 5 10/31/11 6:15 PM someone to straighten out their environ- adopted with a bit of a bully. She was afraid to munch on Billingham’s cashmere sweat- ment so it works for all involved.” to use the covered litter box because she ers and once even gnawed a hole in a dress Consider the number-one feline behav- couldn’t see where he was, and the bully cat while she was wearing it. When the cat ior problem: inappropriate urination. guarded the entrance to the room with the was hospitalized after his digestive tract “People talk about a cat that’s urinating other box. The client got an uncovered litter became blocked by the clothing fibers, outside the litter box as, ‘Oh, she’s mad and box and put it in an open, easily accessible Dodman diagnosed Gabriel with anxiety getting back at me,’ ” says Colleran. “But it’s spot. And the problem was over.” related to construction work being done in never about revenge.” the home. The noxious nibbling was suc- A full examination is necessary to deter- other hairy issues cessfully treated with Prozac. mine the cause of inappropriate urination. When a cat is torn between fight or flight, A lapse in litter box training can be caused it may channel that emotional tension into televiseD baD behavior by a urinary tract infection or other condi- a seemingly unrelated behavior. For exam- Cesar Millan’s show about misbehaving tions that can quickly develop into a life- ple, “there’s a whole subset of cats that lick mutts, The Dog Whisperer, has aired on the threatening urinary blockage. themselves so much that they lose fur,” says National Geographic Channel for seven Other illnesses can cause a cat to drink Cottam. years, turning the trainer into a multimedia more water than usual, meaning it can’t After first ruling out dermatological and dog-product franchise. Animal Planet’s always make it to a litter box in time. And as problems, Dodman treats obsessive groom- competing program, It’s Me or the Dog— a cat ages, Colleran says, the litter box may ing with Prozac to reduce the cat’s anxiety. featuring positive-reinforcement training tips for getting pets out of the family doghouse—has been “These cats are not so much in need of airing almost as long. However, it wasn’t until a shrink as much as someone to this past summer that Animal straighten out their environment so it works Planet launched My Cat from Hell. In the pilot, Jackson for all involved.” —Nicholas Dodman Galaxy, a musician by night and a cat behaviorist by day, brings his guitar case full of cat be in a spot “that’s too inconvenient or pain- He and Cottam also work with owners to toys and knowledge to the aid of couples ful to reach, or the box’s walls are too high identify stressors in the household. whose relationships are strained by dys- for arthritic joints.” Pica, a medical disorder in which cats functional cats. Treating the underlying medical condi- develop an appetite for nonfood substances, It’s certainly time for such a culture tion usually resolves litter box issues. such as wool or other fabrics, is another shift, says Colleran, of the American When illness is ruled out and the prob- common compulsive disorder. “It appears Association of Feline Practitioners. She lem persists, veterinarians look for other to have a genetic component as it’s seen opened her two cat-only veterinary clin- explanations, such as stress-induced urine predominately in Oriental breeds, such as ics in California and Oregon because she marking. Unneutered male cats often Siamese and Burmese cats,” notes Dodman. felt cats were an underserved population in engage in this type of territorial marking That was Stephanie Billingham’s expe- small animal medicine. during mating season, and so fixing the cat rience. Over the years, the South Easton, “When you consider that behavioral usually fixes the problem. Mass., psychologist has sought help at issues are the top reason that healthy cats In other cases, cats may boycott the litter Tufts for several Siamese cats with expen- are surrendered to animal shelters, helping box when something about it is not to their sive tastes. owners understand and live with their cats liking—whether it’s too dirty, filled with “I first saw Dr. Dodman after meeting better is an absolutely crucial part of saving the wrong kind of litter, covered or recently with multiple vets because Sebastian, one of feline lives,” she says. moved to a less-private area of the home. my two Siamese cats, was eating anything To owners, retraining a cat may seem Social conflict can also cause cats to I hung up to dry. He’d gnaw nylons, run- intimidating, but the rewards are well worth abandon their litter training. ning gear, even towels,” says Billingham. it, says Hutchison, the owner of the once- After one of Colleran’s clients adopted Dodman diagnosed Sebastian with an eat- pugilistic Toby. two cats, one consistently urinated outside ing disorder, which he treated by putting the “I felt discouraged by having to do all this the litter box. “I went to the house to see cat on a high-fiber diet to sate his cravings. work,” Hutchison says of the behavior-rehab where the cats lived,” she says. “One litter The same problem occurred when program for Toby. “But Tufts held my hand box was covered, and the other was shoved Billingham’s Siamese kitten, Gabriel, the whole way, and the effort really paid off. into a tiny little bathroom with one access developed a taste for cashmere. Gabriel, Toby and Ivy are lying together on the couch point. Well, this one poor cat had been now 13, used to climb into dresser drawers right now, and they’re just fine.” tvm

fall 2011 tufts veterinary medicine 11

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emergency surgery and heavy-duty antibiotics saved sarkis, a german shepherd with a ruptured bowel. Opposite page, top: faculty member Therese O’Toole, v95, senior surgical resident shanti Jha and Jonathan Babyak, v09, emergency and critical care resident, review the dog’s x-rays and discuss a treatment plan; bottom: the anesthesiology and surgical teams move sarkis to the operating theater. This page, left: lena rosen, v12, and Katherine rodriguez, v12, prepare the dog for anesthesia; below: Jha removes the damaged piece of the dog’s bowel.

by genevieve rajewski

the waiting room at the foster hospital is packed with people and their pets on this Saturday evening. On the TV, the Red Sox, insiDe THe still in playoff contention, are up against their archrivals from New York. No one is watching. The real drama is unfolding in the emergency room, where veterinarians, technicians, students and others work in controlled chaos to care for animals in crisis. It’s only 5:30 p.m., but the staff is already handling 13 cases. Much like a traffic control- ler juggling jets at a busy urban airport, the lead veterinarian calls out directions to the ER staff. There’s the ever-present soundtrack of technology, people and sometimes the quiet whimper of someone’s pet. A pulse oximeter beeps insistently as it measures the oxygen in a dog’s blood. A student crouches by a kennel, murmur- ing sweetly to an anxious dog that was The pace is fasT, The sTaKes are high anD The care injured after it accidentally got tangled in ERis cOmpassiOnaTe pHoToGRapHs By alonso nicHols its lead. Two veterinary technicians soothe an unhappy cat as they replace the dressing on a laceration that has scored the length of its back.

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29023p06-23.indd 8 10/31/11 6:15 PM Then Sarkis arrives, so feverish and weak that the German shepherd can barely stand. His owner, Anthony Jetmore, rushed the dog 40 miles from his home in Stafford Springs, Conn. Sarkis instantly commands the attention of several veterinarians, veterinary techni- cians and students. In a swirl of blue scrubs, the team jumps into action—administering intravenous fluids and antibiotics, hang- ing the dog’s x-rays on a light board so the images are crisp in relief, and studying a cytology report to assess the causes of the excess fluid in the dog’s abdomen and chest. The diagnosis: a septic abdomen, potentially fatal. A bacterial infection and blood clots caused the fluid buildup in the stomach and chest, which is why he’s having trouble breathing. During a week in the intensive care unit, the dog will undergo lifesaving surgery to repair a bowel tear. It is a happy outcome. “Sarkis is doing great now,” reports Jetmore. “But he’s really lucky to be alive.” Like most pet owners, Jetmore never expected to end up at the ER. But the chances of a pet needing emergency care are actu- ally quite high: One out of every 10 cats and dogs visits the ER each year, according to the American Veterinary Medical Association. When it comes to deciding whether to rush a pet to the emergency room, owners should trust their instincts, says Armelle de Laforcade, V97, who heads the emergency service at the Cummings School’s Foster Hospital. Some indicators that a pet needs emergency care include difficulty walking or breathing, collapse, difficulty urinat- ing, weakness, vomiting or diarrhea, lack of appetite, heat stress or seizures. “You never know what type of day it’s going to be,” says de Laforcade, who over- sees more than 10,000 emergency cases each year. “You may see fulfilling emergency cases, ones with heartwarming endings. But you also have days when it feels like you put all your patients to sleep.” On the following pages, we take you to the ER, where the Tufts staff cares for their patients and the people who bring them there. tvm

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The foster hospital er treats more than 10,000 small animals each year—from guinea pigs to show dogs—and is home to the country’s largest training program in emergency veterinary medicine. clockwise from above: nicole Denezzo, v12, administers fluids to molly, a Jack russell terrier brought in for vomiting. sheba, who was treated for parasites, gets a head scratch from amy straut, v12. sarah Willis, v12, senior resident adam porter, v08, intern audrey Wanstrath and faculty member Therese O’Toole, v95 (white coat), examine a blue heron who injured its leg after becoming entangled in fencing alongside a road; once the bird was stabilized, they had to scramble to find a pet carrier big enough to carry their patient over to Tufts’ Wildlife clinic. On the phone with a pet owner, resident mary aslanian records vital information about the incoming case, while Bella, a Japanese chin, sits quietly, waiting to go home.

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29023p06-23.indd 10 10/31/11 6:15 PM all hands

some er patients are very sick pets that their regular veterinarians refer to Tufts for intensive care. Others arrive after experiencing an accident or other trauma or suddenly becoming gravely ill. above and at right: The er team works to resuscitate gabby, a Bichon frise that went into acute respiratory distress during a visit to her local vet.

16 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011

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The foster hospital emergency room staff consults with an array of veterinary specialists, including ophthalmologists, neurologists and cardiologists. left: veterinary technician shannon Weaver soothes princess, a young maltese that needed a neurological exam after she experienced a cluster of seizures. Below: a tear test and fluorescein stain identify the cause of the redness and swelling in coco’s eye: a superficial scratch on the dachshund’s cornea.

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29023p06-23.indd 12 10/31/11 6:16 PM say goodnight

pet owners are welcome inside the emergency and critical care unit. “We always offer people a chance to come out back,” says armelle de laforcade, v97, head of the foster hospital’s emergency service. “if they live far away and can’t visit every day, they can still visualize where their pet might be staying for a few days.” Below: sue martone hugs phoebe, a young bulldog with pneumonia, as her neighbor and phoebe’s owner, elizabeth haight, strokes her puppy’s chin. Bottom: paul and pat ruggeri crowd into a kennel to say goodnight to Blue, their greyhound that had a chest tap to remove fluid around his heart. it was the first time Blue, right, had ever spent a night apart from his sister, Dori, left.

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“i know he’s older, and that i’m not going to get another 10 years,” says erin swantner, left, of Ozzie, her beloved 12-year-old Belgian shepherd. “i thank god for giving me even a couple extra weeks with him.” Ozzie was referred to Tufts by his vet in rhode island for coughing, wheezing and vomiting. The diagnosis was not good: aggressive lung cancer. senior resident adam porter, below, with swantner, prescribed steroids so that she could keep Ozzie comfortable at home—and gave strict orders that the dog eat “nothing but steak tips and ice cream” if he likes. “it’s hard,” says porter, who had hoped Ozzie’s x-rays would reveal treatable pneumonia or even heart failure, which can be managed. “most of the animals that come through the door are very sick,” he says. “i think if you can give people solace during a difficult time, that’s as important as any other part of the job.”

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29023p06-23.indd 14 10/31/11 6:16 PM When trouble heads your way, here's how you can keep your animals safe

of naTuRe

By Genevieve R ajewski PhotograPh by alonso nichols

in just 25 seconds, they lost everything. While JoAnn Kass, her husband, grandson and their three dogs huddled in the basement, a fast-moving tor- nado plowed through central Massachusetts, leveling their farm in Brimfield. “It sounded like we were being attacked by aliens,” Kass says. “We heard the roof go first, then the sucking sound of everything being pulled out of the house.” There was nothing left: house, barn, car, truck— all gone. She and her husband, Steven Bush, raced to the paddock to check on their four horses. They found Leader nuzzling the body of their quarter horse, Dakota, killed after being hit in the head by a 4,000-pound horse trailer that the twister had tossed the length of a football field. Their 9-year-old paint, Cajun, had a finger-sized shard of wood protruding from his right rear leg.

20 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011

29023p06-23.indd 15 10/31/11 6:16 PM cajun is one lucky horse.

29023p06-23.indd 16 10/31/11 6:16 PM u.s. army soldier alfredo lopez offers water to dogs that had been evacuated from a flooded new Orleans neighborhood after hurricane Katrina in 2005. Officials say that at least 10,000 people ignored mandatory evacuation orders and refused subsequent rescue attempts because they were determined to remain with their pets.

It’s hard to obtain accurate statistics on Cross of Eastern Massachusetts. “People con- “I helped people climb over rubble to get just how many animals, large and small, are sider pets part of the family.” out and made arrangements for their ani- lost, injured or killed in natural disasters. In the Bay State, the all-volunteer State mals to be taken care of,” says Smith. “The The American Society for the Prevention of Massachusetts Animal Response Team National Guard brought in water trucks. of Cruelty to Animals estimated that more (SMART) trains and coordinates teams of There was so much assistance at my disposal. than 600,000 cats and dogs had been affected veterinarians, veterinary technicians, animal- I was able to tap into central command and by natural disasters this year—and that was control officers and shelter workers to con- say, ‘We need this or that,’ and help came before Hurricane Irene powered up the East duct animal search-and-research missions, extremely quickly.” Coast in August. Further complicating mat- operate emergency shelters for pets and care ters for first responders to these forces of for animals in the field following a disaster. you go, they go nature: Sixty-one percent of pet owners say SMART works as an adjunct to the tra- Disaster response veterinarians recommend they would not evacuate to escape a natural ditional emergency responders: firefighters, that folks take their small animals with them disaster if they had to leave their pets behind, police officers and the National Guard. “We if they have to evacuate. Most emergency according to a Zogby International poll. fold into the existing emergency manage- shelters for people still don’t allow pets, but Still, governments and emergency ment system because we don’t want to be in Massachusetts and other states, disaster responders only recently started consider- an additional burden,” says David Schwarz, preparedness plans now contain provisions ing the plight of animals when preparing for president of the SMART board, who taught for temporary animal shelters, either at disasters. The impetus: Hurricane Katrina, a course on emergency response and disas- the same location as the human shelters or which claimed nearly 2,000 human lives ter medicine at the Cummings School earlier nearby. SMART, for example, sheltered pets after it slammed into the Gulf Coast in 2005. this year. “And we can’t have people [doing near emergency housing for people during Despite evacuation orders up and down the unauthorized] searches for animals in build- hurricanes Earl and Irene. coast, a significant number of residents chose ings that might collapse. That adds the poten- “It’s a great source of comfort, both for to take their chances with the rising flood tial for even more casualties.” the animals and the people, to be able to see waters and damaged levees rather than aban- Being plugged into the emergency man- each other,” says Schwarz. “When everything don their pets. Back then, most evacuation agement system helps animal rescue teams else in your world is totally upside down, it vehicles and shelters did not allow animals. operate more efficiently, says Bonnie Smith, becomes therapy for everybody.” A year after Katrina, Congress enacted the V93, a large animal veterinarian who was Evacuating people and pets simultane- Pet Evacuation and Transportation Standards deployed by Massachusetts state veterinarian ously can save lives, says Dan Hebert, V01, Act, requiring state and local governments to Lorraine O’Connor, V88, to Brimfield on June who serves on the board of the Rhode Island develop emergency and evacuation plans that 2, the morning after two tornadoes had torn Animal Disaster Response Team. When the include pets and service animals. through the region. Over the next 24 hours, Pawtuxet River overflowed its banks in “It’s a mandate, but also good practice,” Smith checked on 175 horses in the town, Warwick, R.I., in March 2010, local offi- says Ben Dauksewicz, of the American Red where 100 homes were damaged or destroyed. cials told residents to evacuate without their

22 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011 PHOTO: AP PHOTO/LYNNE SLADKY

29023p06-23.indd 17 10/31/11 6:16 PM sixTy-one peRcenT of peT owneRs say THey woulD noT evacuaTe To escape a naTuRal DisasTeR if THey HaD To leave THeiR peTs BeHinD.

pets, even though shelters for animals had “In the shelter I volunteered at following ofposters from people who were missing their already been set up. Hurricane Charley, in 2004, maybe three out pets. People were constantly coming to the “A major apartment complex right on the of the 300 animals we received were micro- shelter to ask, ‘Do you have my animal?’ and river flooded, and the cops ended up going in chipped,” says Lori Prantil, V13. “Do you we didn’t. It was awful. Only once did I get with boats to rescue pets. It was just a mess,” remember how after September 11 people to hand this woman her cat. She was crying, says Hebert. The rescuers were endangered would put up posters of their missing fam- and I was crying, and it just really touched me “by having to go into a water-filled area with ily and friends? Well, that shelter had a wall more than anything I’ve ever done” (so much live wires to get cats and dogs.” so, in fact, that at age 39, she left a lucrative Of course, not every impending disaster management job at AOL to enroll in veteri- comes with a lengthy warning, as was the ready for nary school). case with the Massachusetts tornadoes. Once If you have large animals or farm animals, the storm had passed, Kass, the horse owner, anything the recommended disaster preparedness pro- made two phone calls: the first to her equine tocol can feel a little counterintuitive. veterinarian, Paula Orcutt, and the second The american veterinary medical “Whenever there’s going to be a chance to 911. It took Orcutt more than five hours association recommends that animal of high winds and flying debris, let your to navigate through downed trees and piles owners prepare an emergency kit con- animals out,” says Smith. “Your instinct is of rubble, often crawling on her hands and taining the following items: to keep them inside and protected. But in knees, to reach Kass and the injured Cajun, n a three-day supply of water for each the barn, they’re susceptible to anything around one o’clock in the morning. She did animal blowing around because they are stuck in a her best to remove the wood embedded in n a three-day food supply, plus a can stall. If they’re outside, they can get them- his leg and administered antibiotics and an opener and spoon for wet food selves into the lowest spot and out of the anti-inflammatory. n medications wind. The animals know their pastures way It took another 16 hours, 25 rescuers, n photos of your pet, preferably with better than we do because their whole life eight chain saws, a Bobcat and a trac- you in them, in case you need to prove depends upon it.” tor to clear a path so that the Animal ownership Kass says if she had locked her horses in Rescue League could trailer Cajun to the n copies of your animal’s medical the barn when the tornado warnings were Cummings School’s Hospital for Large history, particularly immunizations first issued, “there’s no doubt they all would Animals. Tufts surgeon Carl Kirker-Head n a collar with iD (plus a leash for have been killed.” eventually would perform three surgeries dogs); halters and leads for large In August, Cajun returned home to to save the horse’s life. animals Brimfield, where Kass and her husband are It’s important for animal owners to have n Bowls for small animals and buckets living in a trailer while their home is being a disaster plan, says Smith, the large animal for large animals rebuilt. But the homecoming was hardly veterinarian. “When you have a plan in place, n a crate or pet carrier serene: Hurricane Irene was headed for the you’re more likely to be able to help yourself n a small bag of cat litter, scoop and Northeast. in case somebody can’t get to you.” litter box for cats and newspapers A representative from the Federal Disaster plans for your pets should bor- and plastic bags for dogs Emergency Management Agency “called us row from best practices for people, says n a map of your area with possible to say we could not stay in that mobile home Dauksewicz, of the Red Cross. “Make a evacuation routes with a hurricane coming,” Kass says. “I was disaster kit and stay informed and ready,” he n contact information for your veterinar- frantic. But at least with a hurricane you have advises. (See “Ready for Anything.” ) ian and your own emergency contacts enough warning to move everyone to a safer It’s also important for rescuers and n a list of pet-friendly hotels and place.” other emergency personnel to be able to ID shelters Their three horses rode out Irene at a your animal in case you get separated from n animal first-aid kit nearby farm. Kass, her husband and the dogs it or your pet gets lost. Whether you own a spent the night at a pet-friendly hotel nearby. dog, cat, horse, goat or llama, a microchip more tips about disaster preparedness “What I’ve learned is if it doesn’t breathe, it is the best way to ensure you and your ani- can be found at avma.org/disaster. doesn’t matter,” she says. “Everything else mal are reunited. you can get through.” tvm

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Left: Tufts veterinary ophthalmologist Chris Pirie. Inset: An image of a feline fundus, taken with Pirie’s digital camera adaptor. “As long as the animal is reasonably well-behaved, you can get a quick snapshot,” he notes. “But that’s where I’m a little jealous of my human medicine counterparts. You can’t tell dogs and cats to just sit there and look straight ahead. You really have to move with your patients.”

to cobble together a solution. For two years he worked on developing a device capable Eye is for Invention of producing crystal-clear images. His two dogs and two cats were his coinvestigators, patiently sitting while he examined their Veterinarian develops device to advance diagnosis and treatment of pupils to check his progress. Each time an ophthalmic disease in pets and people By Genevieve Rajewski image turned out too blurry, Pirie built another prototype. “It could be frustrating, but it was also fun,” he says. “[I was] making a colossal hris pirie never fancied himself an inventor. he was busy mess all over the place, using a hand saw, enough as one of two ophthalmologists at the Cummings a router and various other tools. My wife School’s Foster Hospital for Small Animals, where he treats was about ready to shoot me.” patients and teaches veterinary students. His patience paid off. He now has a CBut, as the old saying goes, necessity is the mother of invention. working prototype with the potential to When it came to assessing the health of the back of an animal’s eye, known revolutionize digital imaging of the eye as the fundus, Pirie discovered he no longer had the proper equipment. The in both animals and humans. Instead Foster Hospital has always had a fundus eye camera that clinicians use to of building a table-mounted fundus eye monitor the progression of eye disease and how their patients are responding camera, he created an adaptor that can be to treatment. But recent advances in digital photography have rendered that attached to any digital camera. The device diagnostic machine pretty much obsolete. offers enormous flexibility at a reasonable “You can’t buy film for it anymore,” says Pirie, “and even if you could find cost, because it simply upgrades a tool most the right film somewhere, it’s just as difficult to get the pictures developed.” veterinary ophthalmologists already own. Replacing the camera didn’t make financial sense, especially during an “My adaptor does not have the same economic downturn: A new high-quality digital fundus eye camera costs magnitude quality as the table cameras that roughly $25,000, and more advanced models run around $80,000. cost $80,000. The images you get with those So armed with some introductory books on optical engineering—and a are phenomenal,” Pirie says. “However, the supply of glass, plastic and metal pieces—Pirie sat down at his kitchen table resolution is very good—comparable to

24 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011 photos: kelvin ma; inset CoURtesY oF ChRis piRie

29023p24-32.indd 1 10/31/11 7:52 PM most fundus eye cameras on the market— She’S AlwAyS and the adaptor could be manufactured and sold for less than $1,000.” Stringing him Along To get his prototype to market, Pirie turned to the Tufts Office for Technology Licensing and Industry Collaboration, Ask Mark Pokras, V84, about Betsy, and he’ll tell you a story about his banjo. which helped him secure a patent for his Although he went to high school in Venezuela, where his father managed a invention and is working to license the idea chocolate factory, he was a fan of the Kingston Trio and Pete Seeger. On vaca- to a manufacturer. After receiving approval tion in the States during high school, he bought what turned out to be his favorite from the Cummings School’s Clinical instrument—the banjo. He named it Betsy, after Davy Crockett’s rifle, because, he Science Review Committee, Pirie is using says, it invoked a spirit of independence and the frontier. his device to diagnose and treat patients at Betsy was his companion throughout the journeys of his youth—a high school the Foster Hospital. hitchhiking adventure around Latin America and later around the United States, One of the clinical applications of when he took time off from college at the height of the Vietnam War. “I had to take his adapter is a technique known as fluo- her,” he says. “It wasn’t a choice. I had to have something musical with me.” rescein angiography, which allows vet- During his trek across America, Pokras hitchhiked through 47 states in a erinary ophthalmologists to see blood little more than three months. He earned money by washing dishes at diners and circulation in the retina and detect swell- restaurants and slept in churches and even jails on rainy nights. At campgrounds, ing in the optic disc, tumors and diabetic he discovered he could eat by playing the banjo, serenading other campers who retinopathy, a common condition that can offered him grilled hot dogs and hamburgers. lead to blindness. “It’s an imaging modal- Betsy now shares Pokras’ office at the Cummings School, where he is an associ- ity often used in human medicine,” Pirie ate professor of environmental and population health, along with an array of other says, “but it’s not done too often in veteri- instruments he plays: guitar, mountain dulcimer, flugelhorn and bouzouki, a lute- nary medicine because of the current cost like instrument used in contemporary Greek music. He’s got more instruments at of the equipment.” home—quite a collection for someone who never studied music. His secret? Plenty The adaptor also helps Pirie to teach of teach-yourself-to-play books. pet owners and students about eye disease. One of his favorite activities is open mike nights at the Cummings School, “With the LCD screen on the back of the which he hosts for the veterinary school and participants from the community. camera, you have the ability to immediately He’s especially pleased when show people what’s going on in an animal’s students bring their instruments. eye,” he says. “We’re in medicine, and The invention may someday have appli- these students spend so much cations in human medicine by allowing time every day focusing on the patients without access to an ophthal- technical and quantitative stuff,” mologist, such as those who live in remote Pokras says. “The relatively rigid, locations, to be monitored for potential relatively linear kind of thinking eye problems. With the adaptor, primary- we do doesn’t necessarily make care physicians could use their own digi- you a well-rounded human being.” tal cameras to photograph a patient’s The music, he says, adds another eyes and email the images to a consulting dimension. ophthalmologist. You’ll find Pokras plucking his Pirie’s inventive juices continue to flow. banjo in his office early in the “There are three or four different ideas I’d morning or when he’s on call at like to pursue, all along the lines of creating the Wildlife Clinic, and students cheaper imaging alternatives,” he says. don’t need him immediately. “I This time, though, he won’t encroach love being a veterinarian,” he on his family’s space. “Last year we bought says. “But there’s more to life.” Mark Pokras a house with a basement,” he notes. “That Just ask Betsy. and Betsy gives me more room for this kind of stuff.” —marjorie howard

PHOTO: ALONSO NICHOLS fall 2011 tufts veterinary medicine 25

29023p24-32.indd 2 11/9/11 8:40 PM on campus

A Backyard Education

Veterinarians brush up on the ABCs of poultry care

wo cummings school students went to she was a girl, led a session on caring for backyard the head of the class to help New England vet- layers and egg-handling safety. Kielbasa, who vol- erinarians respond to the surge in the num- unteered at a small free-range farm in Pennsylvania Tber of their clients who are keeping backyard before starting veterinary school, discussed issues chickens. Laura Jaworski, V13, and Laura Kielbasa, V14, related to humanely raising and processing meat and their professor, Robyn Alders, offered a continuing birds. Both students had taken a course on backyard education course on raising poultry to more than 70 poultry with Alders, an associate professor of envi- veterinarians this past spring. ronmental and population health, and Tufts farm Jaworski, who’s been around poultry since her supervisor James Phillips prior to assisting with the mother brought home some chicks on a whim when continuing education class. As the eat-local movement inspires peo- Veterinary students ple to think about where their food comes Laura Jaworski and from, more folks are turning to raising Laura Kielbasa their own meat and eggs. Of the 176 small animal veterinarians in New England who responded to a Cummings School survey, the majority said they have been receiving more poultry-related questions from their clients. However, 60 percent of those vets said they had never received training on caring for backyard birds, and 85 percent wanted more education in this area. One challenge to the veterinary profes- sion is that “with the trend toward back- yard birds comes owners who think of their chickens as pets,” says Kielbasa. “Instead of following traditional herd-health prac- tices—where a veterinarian would eutha- nize and necropsy a sick chicken to see what’s wrong for the benefit of the entire flock—clients want you to treat it as you would a sick dog or cat.” “People love their egg layers,” adds Jaworski. “Chickens can live a long time if no predators get to them, so you get to know their personalities. To most people with these pet chickens, the idea of kill- ing one—even to save the rest—is not appealing.” An American Veterinary Medical Association-approved provider of con- tinuing education, the Cummings School also offers lectures on companion ani- mals, horses and farm animals for owners and breeders. For a schedule of upcoming events, visit tufts.edu/vet/ce/events or call 508.887.4723.

26 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011 photo: alonso niChols

29023p24-32.indd 3 10/31/11 7:52 PM Students turn their tassels, signifying they have officially graduated from the Cummings School. Below, a group hug for a job well done.

Together, we begin…

In a time of transition and expanding horizons for the university, Tufts Alumni is pleased to invite you to meet Tufts’ And they’re off 13th president, Anthony P. Monaco.

For the 88 members of the Cummings school’s Class of All members of the Tufts community 2011, these words offered at commencement held special are encouraged to attend any of these significance: “this is your hour and your century. leave here special events to welcome President and make a difference,” the tufts trustee emeritus William Monaco and hear his thoughts on Tufts Cummings, a58, h06, told them. it was the real estate entre- today and his vision for the future. preneur’s foundation that provided the naming commitment for the school in 2004. London tuesday, november 29 During the school’s 29th annual commencement on may San Francisco monday, January 9 22, 77 graduates received Doctor of veterinary medicine Los Angeles tuesday, January 10 degrees, three received ph.D.s in comparative biomedical Honolulu Friday, January 13 sciences and eight received master’s degrees in animals Atlanta thursday, February 23 and public policy. two D.v.m. recipients also earned master’s Miami Friday, February 24 degrees in public health, while another six received the master Palm Beach saturday, February 25 of science in laboratory animal medicine. Clinical associate Sarasota sunday, February 26 professor mary labato, v83, who was in the school’s first Chicago tuesday, march 20 graduating class and is immediate past president of the Cape Cod Friday, June 15 massachusetts veterinary medical association, administered the veterinarian’s oath. As the president’s itinerary is developed, in keeping with the aspirational mood of the day, student event times and locations will be listed at speaker Carolyn Gross offered this to her classmates: “if we tuftsalumni.org/president. can achieve this dream, we can do anything.”

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29023p24-32.indd 4 10/31/11 7:52 PM research the path to discovery

even stop—the spread of Lyme disease, which is caused by the bite of a deer tick infected with the bacterium Borrelia burgdorferi. The scientists have launched their attack on two new fronts: They’re developing a vac- cine to kill off the bacteria in the wild as well as a more accurate way to detect persistent Lyme bacteria in people, a precursor to bet- ter treatment. Lyme disease was first identified in the mid-1970s near Lyme, Conn. Once the spiral-shaped B. burgdorferi bacterium invades the body, it goes undercover, trig- gering an immune response that can pro- duce symptoms ranging from flu to joint swelling and stiffness. Undetected, the bac- teria can spread and produce totally differ- ent symptoms throughout the body. That makes the disease even trickier to diagnose, because those symptoms may—or may not—be caused by the Lyme infection. The number of reported cases of Lyme disease in the U.S. nearly doubled between 2004 and 2009, when almost 38,500 people were diagnosed, according to the Centers for Sam Telford Disease Control (CDC). But the real story is trawls for ticks in the undergrowth. even worse, say the government epidemiolo- gists. Because of misdiagnoses and a failure to report, as many as 500,000 Americans could have Lyme disease. Human encroachment on wildlife habi- tats, including suburbanization, has caused Tick Trackers the explosion in Lyme cases, says Hu, the principal investigator on both the vaccine and bench science projects, who has been In the field and in the lab, Tufts scientists launch an assault studying the disease for nearly two decades. on Lyme disease By Gail Bambrick Seasoned hitchhikers, the deer ticks sim- ply hop a ride as their human taxis brush against bushy undergrowth. Lyme disease has been reported in nearly every state, but n search of his quarry, sam telford stalks the leafy underbrush, 90 percent of all infections occur in New wielding what looks like a giant white flag. His prey will surrender to the England, the Mid-Atlantic and Wisconsin cloth, called a tick dragger, which allows him to easily spot the sesame- and Minnesota, according to the CDC. seed-sized arthropods against the white background. In this patch of Iwoodland near Grafton, Mass., Telford counts how many of the deer ticks cling- BAIT And TrAp ing to his bug-catcher are likely carrying the bacterium that causes Lyme disease. In some New England communities, Despite a significant uptick in the number of reported cases of Lyme over the efforts to rein in the disease have focused past decade, efforts to prevent, diagnose and treat it have not achieved large-scale on reducing deer populations through con- breakthroughs. Attempts to curb the deer tick population have had limited suc- trolled hunts. Despite the deer-tick label, cess. There is no vaccine for humans—although one is available for dogs and deer don’t get Lyme disease, although they horses. And while antibiotics work in many cases, they fail to eliminate symp- are a primary host for the bacteria-toting toms in 10 to 12 percent of those treated for Lyme. ticks. The deer provide the transportation, Telford, an expert at the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in tick-borne ferrying infected ticks to new areas. Ticks diseases, and the Tufts immunologist Linden Hu are trying to slow—and perhaps contract the disease when they feed on

28 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011 photo: kelvin ma

29023p24-32.indd 5 10/31/11 7:52 PM mice infected with Borrelia burgdorferi. the mouse-baiting program to launch. The ticks, in turn, broadcast the disease Potentially, Telford says, the vaccines A New Look when they feed on birds, dogs, horses and could cut the infected tick population at humans. least in half, and maybe by as much as 90 at Old Lungs Telford and Hu, a professor at the percent, “if consistently deployed.” Sackler School of Graduate Biomedical Sciences, figured that if they could inoc- Bacteria Detectives Biomedical researchers at Tufts have dem- ulate mice against the Lyme bacterium, But what about people who already have onstrated for the first time how aging is as- they might be able to break the disease Lyme disease—particularly the 10 to 20 sociated with a loss of lung stem cells that transmission cycle. percent of patients who continue to expe- are vital for tissue repair and regeneration. Here’s how their vaccine would work: rience joint, neurological and other health The findings hold enormous potential for Lyme-infected mice would eat food baits issues for months, or years, even after sev- understanding why serious lung diseases, impregnated with the vaccine, causing eral courses of antibiotics? including cancer and emphysema, are so them to produce an antibody to the dis- “Right now we have tests that deter- common in people over age 40. ease. A tick that feeds on these mice would mine the level of antibodies in your When we are young, we can regenerate also draw up the Lyme antibody, and so, blood that are fighting Lyme, but we can- parts of our lungs, says Andrew M. Hoffman, could not be infected. The population of not test for the presence of the bacteria a Cummings School researcher who studies “clean” ticks would grow, while the Lyme- itself,” says Hu. lung disease. However, human lungs lose carrying tick population would decline. In work funded by the National their regenerative ability at about the time And if an infected tick dined on a vacci- Institutes of Health, Hu discovered that we stop growing taller. nated mouse, the antibody would kill the some mice whose Lyme antibodies had In analyzing lung tissue samples Borrelia burgdorferi. dropped to normal levels still had B. burg- from mice of various ages, Julia Paxson, The researchers are planning to load dorferi in their systems. Because it has V04, a research assistant professor at the mouse baits with a genetically modi- already been established that the bacteria Tufts and the lead author on the study, fied cow pox virus, similar to the human are drawn to a tick’s saliva, Hu turned to discovered that one particular kind of small pox vaccine, to trigger an immune xenodiagnosis—letting Lyme-free ticks stem cell, the mesenchymal stromal response against Lyme. The vaccine deliv- feed and then testing them for the bacte- cell, disappears as a mouse ages. ery system borrows from Tufts veterinary rium. His research team was able to detect “As mice age, the number of mesen- school research that used oral vaccine B. burgdorferi in dogs, mice and monkeys, chymal stromal cells, and the ability of baits to keep Cape Cod free of raccoon even after they had received antibiotic those cells to respond to stimuli that would rabies in the 1990s. treatment for Lyme. ordinarily cause them to divide, diminishes To determine whether mice would Now he’s using the same method on to the point where there are very few left,” actually go for the baits, Telford did a human volunteers to see whether he can says Hoffman. “This means the lung is com- test run, minus the actual vaccine. He replicate those results and determine how pletely vulnerable to injury as it gets older, flavored the baits, which look like a long the Lyme bacterium can remain in because there are either no mesenchymal two-inch-square granola bar, with pea- the body. Though xenodiagnosis has a stromal cells, or the ones that remain aren’t nut butter and then loaded them with high “ick factor,” Hu says it has been used capable of doing the repair work.” a harmless fluorescent dye. In field tri- successfully in humans in other instances, The study was published August 30 in als between April 2009 and June 2010, such as diagnosing Chagas disease, a para- the online science journal PLoS ONE. the baits were placed in 10 mouse nest sitic infection that is a major health prob- In continuing their work, Hoffman and boxes across two acres on the Cummings lem in Central and South America. Paxson are investigating whether mesen- School campus. Mice were trapped However, Hu cautions, much more chymal stromal cells could deter tumor monthly, and if the rodent had gnawed research needs to occur before biomedical growth in lung cancer patients. There is a on the bait, one of their hairs would be science can proclaim that because people strong relationship between aging and lung marked by a fluorescent band from the are still infected with B. burgdorferi, that’s cancer, which rarely kills people under age dye. The result: More than half of the 85 the definitive cause of any Lyme-like 45 but remains the deadliest cancer. mice that were trapped had nibbled on symptoms they continue to experience. Additional research into why mesenchy- the baits. “The first thing is to see if the bacteria are mal stromal cells decline in number may “So we have a system that will deliver there at all,” Hu says. “This is at least a pre- produce new treatments that could slow, the vaccine with little effort to more liminary step in changing how we think or even halt, the course of lung disease. than half the mice,” says Telford. He and about Lyme disease.” Possibilities include developing drugs to Hu have applied for funding to conduct increase the survival or proliferation of mes- the additional field testing required by Gail Bambrick, a senior writer at Tufts, enchymal stromal cells or even transplant- the U.S. Department of Agriculture for can be reached at [email protected]. ing the cells into the lung, Hoffman says.

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29023p24-32.indd 6 11/3/11 12:42 PM beyond boundaries providing the means for excellence

$1.2 Billion raised

Beyond Boundaries campaign ends triumphantly

ufts university has completed its $1.2 billion beyond Top: With classrooms, study lounges, a fitness Boundaries campaign, the largest fundraising effort in the univer- center and café, the Agnes Varis Campus Center sity’s 159-year history. The goal was reached during the most chal- is now the nucleus of the Cummings School lenging economic climate in decades and on the eve of Lawrence community. Above: Lydia Scheidler, V11, feeds a baby squirrel at the Wildlife Clinic. The clinic S. Bacow’s departure from Tufts in July, after serving as president for a decade. T and related programs in conservation medicine The campaign mobilized nearly 140,000 donors, including half of Tufts’ and environmental research benefited from the alumni. Together they contributed $434 million for scholarships—among them Beyond Boundaries campaign. 630 new endowed and term scholarships—and other enhancements to the stu- dent experience. Another $386 million is earmarked for faculty recruitment and loans for students from families with mod- research and $137 million for new facilities. The balance will fund new academic est incomes and offer paid summer intern- and research programs. Among the donations were the six largest gifts in Tufts’ ships at nonprofits. On top of that, a first- history, two of them exceeding $100 million. The campaign added $609 million of-a-kind university-wide loan repayment to the university’s endowment. assistance program helps alumni working Jonathan Tisch, A76, a university trustee and cochair of the campaign, was in public service or nonprofit jobs repay a jubilant about the outcome. “The goals of Beyond Boundaries were thought- portion of their education loans. fully developed with Tufts’ academic leadership to support our core priorities Thanks to Beyond Boundaries, Tufts has as a top teaching and research university,” he said. “To be able to garner this 23 new named professorships. These coveted kind of support, particularly in this economy, is not only a good story for Tufts; posts have helped Tufts attract and retain it’s a great story.” world-class researchers. And new construc- Supporting student access and affordability was a campaign priority, and tion and renovations have benefited stu- some innovative financial aid programs have arisen as a result. Tufts can now pro- dents, faculty and staff on all three of Tufts’ vide scholarships for needy undergraduates to attend summer school, eliminate Massachusetts campuses.

30 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011 photos: Joanie toBin (CampUs CenteR), alonso niChols

29023p24-32.indd 7 10/31/11 7:52 PM cummIngs goEs BEyond During the campaign, the Cummings The Art and Science School was named by a $50 million commit- ment from Cummings Foundation Inc., and of Veterinary Practice its chief benefactors, William Cummings, A58, H06, a university trustee emeritus, and What makes a superb veterinarian? Research tell us there’s a very his wife, Joyce Cummings. human answer: integrity, good attitude and good communication skills Veterinary students are important ben- rank as the most important qualities to clients—in addition to having eficiaries of the campaign. Endowed funds good technical ability and medical knowledge. for scholarships more than doubled, with that’s not surprising to lisa Freeman, J86, v91, n96, a professor $11 million added during the campaign. An in the Department of Clinical sciences at the Cummings school. “if endowment for the Henry L. Foster, D.V.M., we ask why someone didn’t like a physician, he might say: she was Scholars Program was established by the late condescending. i felt rushed. nobody says he didn’t know how to Henry Foster, V83, H92, a trustee emeritus, put in good stitches,” says Freeman. “that is also how people judge who served as the school’s campaign chair veterinarians. so we wanted to give our students the training to be until his death in 2008. practicing at the highest possible level.” The dedication of the Agnes Varis that training has evolved into the accelerated Clinical excellence Campus Center boosted the sense of (aCe) program, which offers coursework in communication, lifelong community at the school. The late Agnes learning and evidence-based medicine—topics that generally are not Varis, H03, a trustee emerita and veteri- included in veterinary medical education, but can contribute to gradu- nary overseer, made a $4 million nam- ates’ success. ing gift for the campus center (and later Freeman will continue to develop the tufts aCe program, thanks committed $2.5 million for an adjacent to a gift from nestlé purina petCare. as head of the school’s Clinical auditorium), while trustee emeritus and nutrition service, she has juggled that job (plus a busy teaching and overseer David McGrath, V86, gave $1.5 research schedule) with establishing the aCe program. the gift made million toward the project. it possible for her to hire a second faculty member for the nutrition A $3.7 million gift from The Manton service so she can devote more time to amplifying the aCe program. Foundation funded a six-stall isolation unit “i spent 15 years developing the nutrition service,” Freeman says, to care for large animals, including horses, “and i’m very grateful that nestlé purina recognizes the good work cows, goats and alpacas, with infectious dis- we’re doing. this funding allows us to expand the nutrition program eases. A $1.5 million bequest from the estate and enhance the student experience.” of Edward Lanciani established the Anne and kurt R. venator, a veterinarian who serves as a marketing official Edward Lanciani Endowed Fund for Wildlife at nestlé, says, “We believe that the participation of two nutrition- Medicine, supporting the school’s Wildlife ists at the school will strongly contribute to the success of the aCe Clinic and related programs in conserva- program and the nestlé purina nutrition outreach program.” tion medicine and environmental research. the impetus for introducing evidence-based medicine as well as Overseer emeritus Gabriel Schmergel and his nonscience topics to the Cummings school curriculum came from wife, Valerie, committed $1 million to fund feedback from recent graduates and their employers. interns in the Wildlife Clinic. “Communications always comes up,” says Freeman. “the aCe pro- Gifts from Anne and D. Travis Engen, gram helps students polish their communications skills and reinforc- totaling more than $1.25 million, advanced es the importance of lifelong learning. another important aCe compo- faculty and resident research in comparative nent, evidence-based medicine, gives students the tools they need to oncology, cardiology, emergency and criti- keep pace with rapid advances in their profession and to continue to cal care, and internal medicine, improving practice veterinary medicine at the highest level of excellence.” diagnosis and patient care in all these spe- at tufts, students also are introduced early on to opportunities cialties. The philanthropy of overseers V. to get involved in the clinics and clinical research. “in the past it Duncan and Diana L. Johnson and many wasn’t until third or fourth year that they met the clinicians,” says others benefited homeless cats, dogs and Freeman. “now we want them from day one to feel part of this whole other animals by supporting training in clinical experience.” shelter medicine. A $4 million bequest from the estate of an anonymous benefactor, a longtime client of the Foster Hospital for Small Animals, supported that hospital as well as the Hospital for Large Animals.

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29023p24-32.indd 8 10/31/11 7:52 PM tribute

remembering Agnes varis

Cummings School overseer was a friend to animals and to Tufts University

gnes varis, a pioneer in the generic drug industry after Hurricane Katrina leveled New Orleans and put many jazz whose philanthropy helped transform Tufts musicians out of work, Varis hired them to play for Louisiana ele- University and its Cummings School of Veterinary mentary school children, he said. AMedicine, died in New York City on July 29, follow- Although Varis counted as friends some of the most influen- ing a two-year fight with cancer. tial people in the country, including Presidents Bill Clinton and A renaissance woman, Varis exuded her own special brand of élan Barack Obama, who appointed her to the President’s Committee about many things: education, animal welfare, affordable health on the Arts and Humanities, she also derived great joy from the care, the arts, the power of women and simple things in life, including her cats, her beloved Democratic Party. At her core, Zeus and Kallee. Agnes Varis she cared deeply about young people and and Zeus When Zeus was diagnosed with lym- believed in their ability to do good things phoma, Varis realized how difficult it was for society. A university trustee emerita and for pet owners to manage the cost of treat- overseer to the Cummings School, she was a ing their animals’ cancer. She responded by longtime supporter of Tufts because she was creating the Zeus Varis Fund, which helps convinced that the institution prepares stu- sustain the special human-animal bond dents to go out and do great things. that she so cherished. “I see all these young people who want to Her vision was grand and contagious. As change the world, which gives me hope for the founder of three pharmaceutical com- our country,” she once said. “Tufts builds panies, she learned that scientific inquiry citizens of the world. That’s our mission, changes lives, and she donated the funds to and boy, do we need it more than ever.” establish the Agnes Varis University Chair The daughter of Greek immigrants, in Science and Society at Tufts University. she helped establish the U.S. generic drug “My background is science, and whatever I industry that lowered the cost of pharma- have made, I have made as a result of sci- ceuticals for millions around the world. ence,” said Varis, who earned undergradu- One of her favorite conversation starters ate degrees in chemistry and English from was a throw pillow emblazoned with these words: “Behind Every Brooklyn College before heading off to business school. “But you Great Woman Is Herself.” can’t separate science from society.” Visitors to the Cummings School campus immediately under- Well-known patrons of the arts, Varis and her husband, Karl stand the influence this one-woman force of nature has had on New Leichtman, donated funds for the Karl Leichtman Performance England’s only veterinary school. Her unending generosity helped Stage and Agnes Varis Music Lecture Hall in the Granoff Music transform the school, including the construction of the Agnes Varis Center on Tufts’ Medford/Somerville campus. Varis was ever agile Campus Center and Auditorium, the heart and soul of campus life. in weaving together her varied interests. When she decided to mark Her philanthropy also enabled the Agnes Varis Lecture Hall, the the dedication of the Agnes Varis Auditorium at the Cummings Varis Cat Ward in the Foster Hospital for Small Animals, funds to School with a gift of a grand piano, the instrument’s arrival was expand the graduate program in biomedical sciences and summer heralded with a Concert for Animals. The audience included the research fellowships for veterinary students. specially trained dogs, cats and even a miniature horse that work A former managing director of the Metropolitan Opera (Beverly with the school’s pet-assisted therapy group, Paws for People. Sills admired her business savvy), a great supporter of Jazz at Those who knew Varis say she embodied the spirit of Tufts Lincoln Center, a friend to the Democratic Party and a mentor University and its commitment to public service. In awarding her and role model to women from all spheres, she dispensed her self- an honorary doctor of public service degree in 2003, President described “Agvice” to presidents and just plain folks. Lawrence S. Bacow commented on the “powerful commitment to Upon learning of her death, U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., active citizenship” that infused every aspect of her life. suspended debate on the federal debt ceiling to offer a tribute to Varis on the Senate floor. “Agnes was an angel to many,” Schumer Gifts in Agnes Varis’ memory may be made to the Zeus Varis Fund, said, noting that she provided free prescription drug cards to New Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine, Office of Development and York City workers who lost their jobs after the 9/11 attacks. And Alumni Relations, 200 Westboro Road, North Grafton, MA 01536.

32 tufts veterinary medicine fall 2011

29023p24-32.indd 9 10/31/11 7:52 PM advice for our readers ask the vet

Your horse’s special diet need not Break the Bank

Nicholas Frank, professor of large animal internal medicine and the new chair of the Department of Clinical Sciences at the Cummings School, responds to a reader’s concern about her horse’s special dietary needs:

What are good feeds for horses suffering from poly- saccharide storage myopathy? i have been buying a Q: commercial feed specially formulated for this condition, but at $46 for a 50-pound bag, it’s expensive.

first, let me offer a brief introduction to pssM, or polysaccharide storage myopathy, for readers who are not that display clinical signs but have negative genetic test results are A: aware of this condition. diagnosed with a muscle biopsy. pssM is a muscle disease that occurs primarily in horses with quar- horses with pssM should be exercised daily, and the intensity and ter horse bloodlines—including quarter horses, American paint horses duration of exercise must be increased gradually. they also benefit and appaloosas—and occasionally in draft breeds, crossbreeds and from a diet that decreases the amount of sugar in their bloodstream warmbloods. When a horse has pssM, its muscle cells store too much while providing calories through fat. of a carbohydrate called glycogen, and when the horse exercises, its the good news is that you don’t need to splurge on an expensive body can’t use that fuel the way it should. As a result, the muscle cells commercial feed to manage pssM. purchase a lower-sugar pelleted go into an energy crisis and become damaged both during and after feed and then add fat by mixing in a half-cup to one cup of vegetable exercise. oil. Another option is to feed a combination of molasses-free beet pulp commonly known as “tying-up,” symptoms of pssM include stiff- and vegetable oil. ness, sweating and a reluctance to move. A horse having a pssM episode also may have muscle tremors and a high heart rate from the pain, which is like the worst full-body charley horse ever. because Please email your questions for “Ask the Vet” to there is a genetic component to the disease, most pssM cases are Genevieve Rajewski, Editor, tufts veterinary Medicine, diagnosed through a genetic test on a hair or blood sample. horses at [email protected].

how to reach us

Main hospital switchboard and after-hours emergencies 508.839.5395 Website: www.tufts.edu/vet Henry and Lois foster Hospital for Small animals, appointment desk 508.839.5395 Hospital for Large animals, appointment desk 508.839.5395 if you are interested in learning tufts ambulatory Service, Woodstock, Conn. 860.974.2780 more about how you can support the tufts VEtS, Walpole, Mass. 508.668.5454 Cummings School of Veterinary Wildlife Clinic 508.839.7918 Medicine, contact: Jonathan burton, directions to tufts (ext. 84650) 508.839.5395 interim director of veterinary development Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine administration 508.839.5302 and alumni relations, at 508.839.7907, Veterinary Student admissions Office 508.839.7920 or email: [email protected]. Veterinary alumni Relations 508.839.7976 Cummings Veterinary fund 508.839.7909 tufts Pet Loss Support Hotline 508.839.7966 Continuing Education 508.887.4723 Public Relations 508.839.7910

IllustrAtIoN: ANN boyAjIAN

29023cvr.indd 4 10/31/11 7:01 PM Cummings School of NoNprofIt orG. Veterinary Medicine u.s. postAGE 200 Westboro Road pAId bostoN, MA North Grafton, ma 01536 pErMIt No. 1161 www.tufts.edu/vet

toRnado suRvIvoRs

Steven bush walks Cajun amid the wreckage of his farm, which was leveled when two tornadoes swept through a 40-mile stretch of Massachusetts this summer. the horse required three surgeries to recover from a leg injury, and bush and his wife, Joann kass, plan to rebuild their home. for more about their story and how you can keep your animals safe in a natural disaster, turn to page 20. tufts uNIvErsIty offIcE of publIcA tIoN s 8261 11/11

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