01/10/2010

Pet Health Alert:  Intervet/Schering-Plough announced that three batches of Vetsulin® insulin product for pets were out of specification with respect to long term stability.  The alert was issued due to concerns that diabetic patients may experience delays in onset of action of the medication.  For pet owners, that could mean increases in their pet’s blood sugar levels, sudden drops in blood glucose levels, or even no effect at all.

To date, veterinarians and Intervet are not seeing and reporting any increase in adverse events associated with Vetsulin®.   It is important to note that Vetsulin® has not been recalled.  It is expected that supplies of Vetsulin® will be limited as the company attempts to determine the source of the specification errors.

Since each pet has individual requirements for insulin and the Vetsulin® alert is vague as to the effects the medication might have, pet owners are very worried.  The good news is that veterinarians do have other insulin options and have already started to transition their diabetic patients over to a new medication.

If you have any pet with diabetes or other long term condition requiring medication, be sure that you understand your pet’s normal routine.  Small variations could be early signs of a problem.  Never adjust your pet’s dose or switch brands of insulin without consulting your veterinarian.  Severe side effects or even death could result.  

This week Veterinary Pet Insurance (VPI) released its annual list of the most popular and most unusual pet names of 2009.  For dogs the ten most popular names were:

1.      Bella

2.      Max

3.      Bailey

4.      Lucy

5.      Molly

6.      Buddy

7.      Maggie

8.      Daisy

9.      Chloe

10.  Sophie

 

The ten most popular cat names in 2009 were:

1. Max
2. Chloe
3. Bella
4. Oliver
5. Tiger
6. Smokey
7. Tigger
8. Lucy
9. Shadow
10. Angel

While “most unusual” is certainly a matter of opinion, employees of VPI voted on the following dog names for their 2009 list:

1. Doogie Schnauzer MD
2. Sargent Sausage
3. I Am Sparticus
4. Lunchbox
5. Angus Sir Loin
6. Bam-Bam Noodle Butt
7. Mouse Meat
8. Fluffernutter
9. Kanye East
10. Inspector Foo Foo

Some of 2009’s most unusual cat names were:

Most unusual:

1. Snag L. Tooth
2. Clawed Monet
3. Velvet Elvis
4. Eartha Kitty
5. Blue Man Chew
6. Catzilla
7. Thurston Picklesworth III
8. Yardsale
9. Dishwasher
10. Polly Prissypants

Finally, many clients have told their veterinarians that they were postponing some procedures until after the holidays.  If you were waiting to schedule your pets spay, neuter, dental cleaning, vaccines, or other procedure until January, please call your veterinarian soon.  Our office has been experiencing a significant increase in procedures being scheduled this month.  If you want your preferred dates, it may require slightly more lead time than at other times in the year.