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Batman and beyond
Cutting-edge research at the University of Minnesota may lead to advancements in treating brain tumors in both dogs and people. Teaming together to help fight these deadly cancers, researchers from the university's College of Veterinary Medicine, Medical School and Masonic Cancer Center are using a three-pronged attack in an attempt to save the life of a canine patient named Batman and to further the science of human cancer treatment. For more information, contact Jan Williams at 612-624-6228 or willi320@umn.edu.

Saddling up
Figuring out how to get thoroughbreds back into racing form after they've suffered an injury may ultimately prove to be good news for horses and people alike. Researchers at the College of Veterinary Medicine and Biomedical Sciences at Colorado State University are looking to benefit both species as they develop a new injection therapy for treating horses with cartilage damage. If successful, the treatment could get horses – and people with similar conditions – back in the running. For more information, contact Dell Rae Moellenberg at 970-491-6009 or DellRae.Moellenberg@colostate.edu.

Every breath you take
From people with sleep apnea to victims of spinal cord injury, the ability to breathe a bit easier may one day be a reality thanks to research being conducted at the School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. After years of study, university researchers working with rats recently announced a breakthrough that holds promise for individuals whose breathing control is impaired for a variety of reasons. For more information, contact Tania Banak at 608-263-6914 or banakt@svm.vetmed.wisc.edu.

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Keeping our food safe
As concerns about antimicrobial "superbugs" in humans continue to rise, veterinarians are cautioning that wide-scale bans on approved uses of antimicrobials in food animals would hurt animals, do little to improve public health and could, in fact, lead to an unsafe human food supply. The American Veterinary Medical Association recently took this message to Capitol Hill in effort to add more scientific evidence to the debate surrounding the use of antimicrobials in livestock. For more information, contact David Kirkpatrick at 847-285-6782.

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A sampling of interesting upcoming events and pet-related campaigns ...

World Rabies Day, Sept. 28, 2008: Communities across the globe – from Atlanta, Ga., to the Democratic Republic of the Congo – will celebrate the second annual World Rabies Day, an event supported by the American Veterinary Medical Association, the Alliance for Rabies Control, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention and the World Organisation for Animal Health, to name a few. The event will increase knowledge of the disease and raise awareness that rabies, while responsible for killing about 55,000 people each year, is preventable. For more information, go to www.worldrabiesday.org, or contact David Kirkpatrick at 847-285-6782.

National Pet Wellness Month, Oct. 1, 2008 - Oct. 31, 2008: By age 2, most pets have already reached adulthood. Many enter middle age at 4. By age 7, many dogs, particularly larger breeds, are considered "senior." That is why the American Veterinary Medical Association and Fort Dodge Animal Health have joined forces since 2004 to urge pet owners to stay on top of their pet's health. National Pet Wellness Month helps raise awareness about the pet aging process, disease prevention and the importance of twice-a-year wellness exams for all cats and dogs. For more information, go to www.npwm.com.

American Association of Bovine Practitioners Annual Conference, Sept. 25, 2008 – Sept. 27, 2008: From animal welfare issues to vaccinations and agroterrorism, veterinarians will address a variety of issues as they gather in Charlotte, N.C. For more information, go to www.aabp.org.