Penn Vet News

Surviving the Storms

Since Hurricane Katrina, displaced pets and their families have captured the attention of animal lovers everywhere. Some of the most heart-wrenching stories are of people separated from their four-legged family members. Penn Vet’s Dr. Sue McDonnell and Dr. Carlo Siracusa talked to Knowledge@Wharton SiriusXM Business Radio about how animals respond to weather emergencies and what owners, caretakers, and concerned citizens can do to keep them safe.

Ventilating with mixture of helium and oxygen improves outcomes for horses in surgery

A horse in general surgery is an awkward sight. For the best access, the animals may be placed on their sides or even their backs, a position that puts considerable pressure on their internal organs, often leading to partial lung collapse. In spite of using oxygen-rich ventilation, blood oxygen levels can fall to dangerous levels during lengthy procedures.

Laminitis—a crippling equine disease

Dr. van Eps’ research goal is to identify the key pathophysiological events that lead to different forms of laminitis in order to develop clinically applicable means of preventing this crippling equine disease.

New Bolton Center Experts to Explore Innovations in Imaging, Neurology at October First Tuesday Lecture

From planning advanced orthopedic surgeries to guiding successful cardiac procedures, Penn Vet’s robotics-controlled standing computed tomography (CT) system has propelled clinical diagnosis and treatment for many large animal patients who have walked through New Bolton Center’s hospital doors.

New Penn Vet Lecture Series Brings Companion Animal Expertise to New Bolton Center Community

Starting this October, the expertise of Penn Vet’s Ryan Hospital comes to New Bolton Center in a new series that connects the surrounding pet-loving community with the latest breakthroughs and techniques for small and companion animals.

A Pain in the Paddock

Stephanie Rzeplinski grew up around horses in rural Pennsylvania. Since age 4, she’s ridden and cared for the animals daily—so when her 13-year-old gelding, Robbie, fell ill, she immediately noticed something was wrong.

Cat-tastrophe

At only two months old, Bridget the kitten has had a lot of close calls. She was thrown from a stranger’s car off the South Street bridge in Philadelphia—where she landed, miraculously unharmed—and was rescued by her current foster owner, Ariel Smith, who named her after the ordeal. After a few weeks in the relative safety of Smith’s apartment, though, Bridget ran headfirst into yet another death-defying situation.

Knockdown and replace: A gene therapy twofer to treat blindness

The last year has seen milestones in the gene therapy field, with FDA approvals to treat cancer and an inherited blinding disorder. New findings from a team led by University of Pennsylvania vision scientists, who have taken gene therapies into clinical trials in the past, are proving successful, this time treating a form of retinitis pigmentosa, a disease that progressively robs people of their night and peripheral vision before blindness develops.

Connect with Leading Equine Clinicians at Penn Vet’s New Bolton Center during the 2018-2019 First Tuesday Lecture Series

From innovative surgical imaging to advancements in laminitis research and care, hear from Penn Vet’s leading equine care experts at the 2018-2019 First Tuesday Lecture series hosted by New Bolton Center located in Kennett Square, Pennsylvania.

Penn Vet Teams with Merck Animal Health to Educate Young Swine Veterinarians

Swine University participants, representing seven countries from across the globe, were involved in a training program that included lecture, interactive lab, and both small and large group activities. Facilitated by the foremost experts in swine health, the curriculum included a mix of practical and theoretical exercises on swine management, communication skills, economic analyses, and an in-depth review of diagnosis and treatment of respiratory and reproductive diseases.

Penn Vet’s Annual Conference to Showcase Practical, Current Continuing Education Opportunities for Veterinary Professionals

Registration is now open for the 118^th Penn Annual Conference on September 26-27, 2018, at the Chase Center in Wilmington, Delaware. The event offers up to 15 continuing education (CE) credits and is one of the largest gatherings of veterinary professionals in the region.

Vet students’ goat dairy aims to fill a nutrition gap in Gambia

Briana Wilson, a third-year student in the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Veterinary Medicine, plans to pursue a career as a small-animal vet, mainly caring for cats and dogs. But this summer, she’s getting a trial-by-fire education in goat husbandry, project management, and negotiating the challenges of helping launch a business in a relatively remote region of a developing nation.

The changing landscape of mosquito- and tick-borne diseases

Sara Cherry has a visceral memory of when Asian tiger mosquitoes, Aedes albopictus, first found their way into the Philadelphia region.

“I used to like to eat outside with my lab when I first started working here at Penn,” she says. “But then the tigers came and started terrorizing us and we had to eat inside. They are aggressive, and their bites cause welts.”

Penn One Health goes abroad

James Ferrara, a third-year student in Penn’s School of Veterinary Medicine, grew up in Montvale, N.J., with his family’s Labrador retriever, Cody. When Ferrara was 10 years old, Cody, also 10, suffered from arthritis and had to be put down. Ferrara says that this childhood experience encouraged his interest in veterinary medicine. While he hoped to one day minimize animal suffering, he later learned that animals and humans have a global impact on each other’s health.

Alice K. Holton Memorial Opportunity Scholarship

On Saturday, May 5, 2018, many friends and relatives of Alice K. Holton attended her Celebration of Life at Penn Vet's New Bolton Center. The outpouring of love and respect for Alice was extremely moving as were the many heartfelt stories shared about the way she touched the lives of so many people during her many years as the head librarian at New Bolton Center from 1963-1996. 

Senior Senator's Triumphant Return

Senior Senator has been called “one of the craziest horses that ever looked through a bridle.” But a serious accident in May 2017 temporarily dampened some of the eight-year-old gelding’s fiery, unique personality, nearly ending his racing career. While defending his 2016 Maryland Hunt Cup title at the 2017 race, the Thoroughbred and jockey Eric Poretz tumbled at the third fence in the notoriously challenging four-mile timber course.

Progress in addressing a severe skin disease that affects dogs and humans

Think of the skin as a kind of raincoat for the inner organs. With its densely packed layers of cells and lipids, it keeps foreign substances from leaking in and keeps water from leaking out, preventing dehydration. But in certain skin disorders, this barrier breaks down, and problems arise.

Meiosis and Fertility

Dr. Wang’s research interests are centered on the genetic regulation of germ cells in mice and humans, focusing on meiosis, transposon silencing, maternal factors, sperm motility, male infertility, and male contraception.

PA Horse Breeders Association Joins with Penn Vet New Bolton Center to Fund Cutting Edge Research into Gene Doping, Improve Integrity of Horse Racing

As part of its ongoing commitment to maintaining integrity in the horse racing industry, the Pennsylvania Horse Breeders Association (PHBA) has donated $300,000 to Penn Vet New Bolton Center’s Equine Pharmacology Laboratory to fund revolutionary research to detect gene doping in equine athletes. Gene doping involves the transfer or modification of genes or genetically modified cells of healthy human athletes, as well as equine athletes, for non-therapeutic purpose to enhance athletic performance.

Treating Orthopedic Injury Makes Dog and Owner Comfortable

During a casual conversation, a dog park friend once advised New York City resident Leslye Alexander to take her dog Olivia to Penn Vet in an emergency. “I never thought I would need it,” said Alexander. “But then Olivia was injured.”