But enough about dogs: Let’s talk Cat Writers!
By Kim Campbell Thornton
November 25, 2008
I’m in Indianapolis for Thanksgiving, recovering from the Cat Writers Association meeting in Atlanta last weekend. Lots of good company and good times, as always, despite an occasionally–and unusually–queasy stomach. I took notes on a couple of the talks and thought I’d share a few details.
Feline vaccinations: Robert Menardi, DVM, technical marketing manager for Merial, was scheduled to speak on regulatory requirements and timelines for registration of new veterinary products. He immediately announced, however, that it was an incredibly boring topic and launched into a brief history of vaccination, followed by a description of the types of vaccines, their advantages and drawbacks, how vaccine injection site sarcomas probably came into existence–the use of aluminum-based adjuvants in feline leukemia virus and rabies vaccines in the mid-1980s–and ways to reduce the incidence and severity of those sarcomas.
His advice?
Avoid the use of adjuvanted vaccines.
Avoid overvaccination. “Our vaccines are labeled for one year, as most of them are, but that doesn’t me”an that veterinarians can’t choose to give them less often,” he says. “Why give them any more often than you have to?”
Use discretion in selecting vaccines such as FeLV and chlamydia. Not every cat needs those vaccinations.
Avoid the intrascapular space (between the shoulderblades) when administering vaccines. It’s recommended that vaccinations be given as low as possible on a hind leg. If cancer develops there, the leg can be amputated if necessary.
Pet behavior: Our behavior panel, moderated by Amy Shojai and consisting of John Wright, PhD, CAAB; Caroline Coile, PhD, Cathy Bruce and Chris Redenbach (whose credentials I am sorry I don’t have immediately available), discussed the most common behavior problems they see. None of them were surprises and lots of them were related to what is best described as human behavior problems.
Caroline Coile: “People choose breeds without understanding their background and then don’t understand why their Siberian Husky runs away when it’s off leash, why their Pointer won’t be still, why their Border Collie is always in their face, why their terrier digs and barks.”
On the human side, too many writers rely on outdated information, Coile says. “I evaluate a lot of pet books for publishers I write for and one of the number one things I still read is that dogs are trying to become dominant over us and that ‘dominant’ behavior should be managed with an alpha roll. I also still hear the idea that dogs are being spiteful when they pee on our pillows.”
John Wright says he sees a lot of cats with inappropriate elimination behaviors, cats that are aggressive toward other cats or toward people, separation-related problems and fears and phobias, and dog aggression. “People call and say ‘My dog has bitten people four times and I’m starting to get worried.’ “
Sigh.
For Cathy Bruce, it’s “My dog won’t listen to me” and “My dog is dominant.” She’s also frustrated by breed stereotyping, particularly of pit bulls, by the media.
Chris Redenbach addressed assumptions behind dog bites. “[There's this idea] that when a dog bites someone that the animal intended to do it and that there’s this evil intent…[but often what happens is] the dog feels threatened, reaches a threshold and strikes out. When I was doing humane education programs, I was amazed at how many bite scars these little kids had on them. A lot of them were terrified of dogs, but they also taunted dogs. Education at an early age is something I’d like to see more people doing. There’s no money going to early education [about dog behavior].”
Cool stuff: On Saturday afternoon, we had the opportunity to tour the country’s only CSI forensics van for animals. Driven–literally–by Melinda D. Merck, DVM, a pioneer in the new field of veterinary forensics, the nearly $200,000 vehicle is equipped with two work tables, one of which can be converted to a wet table; has digital x-ray capabilities; entomology kits for determining time of death; and much more. Merck and her crew can even perform surgery in it. The van goes to crime scenes at puppy mills, dog fighting busts, and other cruelty cases.
More cool stuff: At the conference, I spoke about the Darcy Fund, interweaving its story with advice on how to start a fund and ways to raise money for it. On Saturday night, I was very happy to win the Sticky Paws Training Award for a piece in Catnip on, yes, training cats, as well as a Muse medallion for a piece in Catnip on the use of alternative therapies in modern veterinary medicine. Thanks for the assignments, Arden!
Gratuitous Cavalier blogging: The Thornton girls are staying with pet sitter and artist Terry Albert, who has exciting “toys” such as box turtles and Icelandic ponies. Harper and Twyla are having a fine time barking at the horses (and probably the turtles if their last stay is any indication) and running around the very large yard. Even better, from Harper’s point of view, she found a piece of dried horse manure and carried it inside where she could more comfortably shred it on Terry’s sofa. “Thank goodness for sofa covers,” Terry wrote.
Yesh.
>> It’s recommended that vaccinations be given as low as possible on a hind leg. If cancer develops there, the leg can be amputated if necessary.<<
Dumb advice.
According to authoritative veterinarians and the AAFP, vaccinating in the leg does not make VAS curable.
A VAS is shaped like an octopus with many tentacles reaching out from the primary tumor. That is why it is practically impossible to completely remove the whole tumor surgically. That is why radiation is utilized to try to kill the parts that were not surgically removed.
A VAS between the shoulder blades is in a nasty place and difficult to remove because those tentacles can extend down under the scapulas and between the spinus processes where they cannot be removed.
Many cats who were vaccinated in the leg and subsequently developed a VAS and had the leg amputated and even part of the pelvis removed plus radiation have still had the VAS come back.
The recommendations of the AAFP to prevent VAS are:
1. Reduce the number of vaccines.
2. Use alternative methods of immunization like intranasal vaccines.
3. Avoid adjuvanted vaccines, which have been shown to be 5 times more likely to cause VAS.
ADJUVANT HAS BEEN SHOWN TO INDUCE MUTATIONS IN THE GENES (P53) THAT PREVENT CANCER.
(Non adjuvanted vaccines cost the same, and yet non adjuvanted vaccines only have 10% of the market right now)
4. Look for a lump at the vaccination site and if one persists have it removed BEFORE IT BECOMES CANCER!
If every Vet would do these four things VAS would be practically non existent.
Comment by Pamela Picard — November 25, 2008 @ 6:31 pm
I’m curious… this was the Cat Writers’ Association meeting, yet it seems like at least half of the topics you discussed there were dogs?
I’m accustomed to the fact that this blog tends to talk dogs more than cats (I know that the bloggers have more dogs than they do cats in this group), but I was confused as I read this particular article and you were suddenly talking about dog breeds, dog dominance, dog bites. Is the Cat Writer’s Association really a generic pet writers group?
Comment by Feline — November 25, 2008 @ 8:02 pm
I can clarify. There are two organizations: The Dogs Writers Association of America and the Cat Writers Association.
The CWA got the really wonderful idea to host a writing conference a decade or so ago. The conference was so well-received that they invited the DWAA to come in as a sponsor, co-host, I’m not exactly sure what would be the official way to put it, but it’s kind of a joint conference now.
Since many people who write about pets belong to BOTH organizations, combining the conference and the topics works out well. There are several panels running at the same time, usually, so you can get more dog, more cat, more business of writing, etc., depending on your preference as an attendee.
Kim was president of the CWA for a few years, by the way, and she did a great job. I’ve been on the boards of both at one time or another, but am not currently a member of either.
I will also say that both organizations have over the years been very supportive of new pet-care communicators, helping to introduce them to mentors, editors, agents and so on. Each organization also sponsors an annual writing competition.
They’ve also been a source of some wonderful friendships. I met Kim through CWA/DWAA many years ago, along with my horse book co-author Audrey Pavia, who’s currently (or at least until recently) VP of the CWA. I’ve met many other wonderful writers, photographers and editors through the organizations.
Links for more info:
http://catwriters.org
http://dwaa.org
Comment by Gina Spadafori — November 25, 2008 @ 8:11 pm
While the advise given about the vaccine is good it is also dangerous if we become over zealous against vaccine. The press and certain groups would make it sound like vaccine sacromas are epidemic. This is not true. If you get a group of veterinarians together and ask how many have seen these vaccine sacromas most have not. They are uncommon. The percentage of vaccinates cats that develop these is extremely low.
Important point to remember is that the number one medical procedure that has saved more human and animal lives is vaccinations. We don’t want to return to yesterday where feline leukemia is a weekly disease.
If the follow information is a statement is from Merial
“Non adjuvanted vaccines cost the same, and yet non adjuvanted vaccines only have 10% of the market right now” it is a false statement.These non adjuvanted vaccines are about 4 times higer that is why they only have a 10% market share. In addition there is not any good independent research to show they are really safer. This is Merial’s baby.
In fact Merial own researcher’s have reported cats that have develop sacromas to a whole variety of things including sterile saline and certain antibiotics.
Bottom line
It is important to discuss what vaccine are needed depending on the cat’s life style,risk factors and location the area of the country where a cat lives in with the veterinarian you trust
Comment by Owen Fisk — November 25, 2008 @ 10:31 pm
Dr. Menardi and Dr. Jane Brunt, who was attending his presentation, both noted that vaccine sarcomas are rare—I think they estimated five to a dozen per year in a practice—but Dr. Menardi noted, of course, that if it’s your cat, the condition’s rarity isn’t much comfort.
Re his comment on frequency of vaccination (not giving them every year), it was related to new guidelines that now recommend vaccinations no more than every three years, unless circumstances dictate otherwise. Yes, it’s absolutely right that you should discuss which vaccines are needed depending on the cat’s lifestyle, risk factors and location of the country.
Comment by Kim Thornton — November 26, 2008 @ 7:13 am
Okay, what’s the difference between a adjuvanted and non-adjuvanted vaccine? If I’m going to discuess this with my vet, I’d like to know a bit more. . .
Thanks!
Comment by Dorene — November 26, 2008 @ 5:03 pm