2016 Student Travel Award Winners

The IAAAM Student Liaison Committee is pleased to announce the five awardees for the 2016 Student Travel Award Competition: 

• Dr. Laura Thompson, a post-doctoral fellow at Mystic Aquarium, for her work: Complement Activitation in Belugas (Delphinapterus leucas) and Harbor Seals (Phoca vitulina) in Response to Nitrogen Bubbles; Evidence of a Less Reactive Immune Response in Deep vs. Shallow Diving Marine Mammals
• Dr. Susan Fogelson, a Ph.D. student at the University of Georgia, for her work: In Vitro Antimicrobial Susceptibilities of Genomically Characterized Aquatic Mycobacterium chelonae-abscessus Complex Isolates
• Dr. Molly Martony, the veterinary intern at the National Marine Mammal Foundation & Sea World San Diego, for her work: Establishing Marginal Lymph Node Ultrasonographic Characteristics in Healthy Bottlenose Dolphins (Tursiops truncatus)
• Megan Strobel, a veterinary student at the University of Florida, for her work: Auditory Evoked Potentials and Behavioral Considerations with Hearing Loss in Small Cetaceans: Application as a Standard Diagnostic Test In Health Assessment
• Dr. Estelle Rousselet, a veterinary resident at the University of Florida, for her work: Clinicopathological Findings and Immune Function in Florida Manatees (Trichechus manatus latirostris)

The Student Liaison Committee congratulates the awardees and we look forward to seeing their presentations at our upcoming conference! 

USDA Extends Comment Period for Marine Mammal Proposed Rule

USDA’s Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service is extending the deadline for submitting comments on the proposed rule to amend the Animal Welfare Act’s regulations and standards concerning the humane care, handling, and treatment of marine mammals in captivity. We will now accept comments for an additional 30 days – until May 4, 2016. 

The Animal Welfare Act sets basic standards for humane care and treatment that must be provided for certain animals used in certain activities – including marine mammals used for public exhibition or biomedical research. The current standards for marine mammals were established in 1998. Our proposed changes are based on recently documented scientific studies, and our goal is to better ensure humane handling and treatment of marine mammals in a way that is practical and enforceable. As we developed this rule, we considered information from professional organizations, exhibitors, hundreds of public comments and published scientific studies – as well as the combined experience of our marine mammal experts. 
 
The proposed rule can be viewed here. A factsheet in question-and-answer format can be viewed here. You can submit your comments regarding this rule here. 

Special Issue of the Journal of Wildlife Diseases on Wildlife Welfare

In an effort to advance wildlife welfare, the staff of the Journal of Wildlife Diseases has provided FREE ACCESS to a special issue on Wildlife Welfare - JWD 52(2) - to all members of AAWV, AAZV, and IAAAM, even those who are not WDA members. A couple of the articles are related to aquatic species (green sea turtles and fish anesthesia) which may be of interest to you.

The instructions for accessing this issue are located in the Member's Only Services area of the IAAAM website. You must be a current member of IAAAM with a password to access the website.

Proposed Rule for Standards of Care for Marine Mammals in Captivity

In case you missed last week’s marine mammal stakeholder teleconference, we wanted to provide a toll-free number to listen to the recorded call:  855-558-0656.  The recording will be available for 30 days from the date of the original call.  

The marine mammal proposed rule was also published in the Federal Register today so I wanted to provide a link to the rule, which is now available for public comment: http://www.regulations.gov/#!documentDetail;D=APHIS-2006-0085-0001

The comment period closes on April 4, 2016.

Thanks,
Hallie Zimmers
Adviser for State and Stakeholder Relations
U.S. Department of Agriculture
Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service

USDA Requests Comment on Proposed Rule for Standards of Care for Marine Mammals in Captivity

The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) is inviting public comments on a proposed rule to amend the Animal Welfare Act (AWA) concerning the humane handling, care and treatment of marine mammals in captivity.  The proposed rule will be available for comment for 60 days.  

The Animal Welfare Act (AWA) sets basic standards for humane care and treatment that must be provided for certain animals including marine mammals that are used in exhibition or research.  The current standards for marine mammals were put in place in 1998.  The proposed changes are based on recent documented scientific data and studies to better ensure humane handling and treatment of marine mammals in a way that is practical and enforceable.  As it developed this proposed rule, APHIS considered information from professional organizations, hundreds of public comments, exhibitors and published scientific studies, as well as the agency’s own experience with marine mammals.

The rule proposes the following changes to the standards:

• requiring appropriate pool exit and entry areas for pinnipeds, polar bears, and sea otters to make it easier for older or infirm animals to access dry spaces;
• strengthening the requirements for an entity to receive a variance to the standards, including requiring a report from two APHIS-selected experts, if needed;
• maintaining current performance-based standards for water temperature, while allowing for adjustments to be made based on animal health and published scientific data;
• establishing new standards to address air quality problems at indoor facilities;
• reducing allowable bacteria counts in water to improve water quality;
• expanding recommended air and water temperature standards at outdoor facilities to include all marine mammal species; 
• requiring full spectrum lighting appropriate to the animals’ natural environments as well as accessible and sufficient shade for all animals; 
• clarifying that, in addition to specific requirements in section 3.111, all in-water interactive programs must comply with AWA regulations and standards; and
• increasing allowable time for interaction between marine mammals and the general public from 2 to 3 hours and requiring at least 10 continuous hours without public interaction.

The proposed rule is scheduled to be published in the Federal Register where it will be available for public comment beginning Wednesday, February 3. 

IAAAM Letter of Support Regarding Sei Whale Mass Mortality Event

The IAAAM leadership recently sent a letter of support to Subsecretario Raul Sunico Galdames of Chile regarding the recent Sei whale mass mortality event.

Click here to read the letter.

International Ketamine Rescheduling - A Call for Comments

Due by Oct 15, 2015

International Ketamine Rescheduling: Can You Help Us Protect Veterinary Access to this Drug?

It appears that the World Health Organization (WHO) may be considering another proposed change to the international scheduling of ketamine, and the AVMA is seeking your help in asking the FDA to protect veterinarians' access to this critical drug.

In April, we informed you that the WHO had received a proposal from China to regulate ketamine hydrochloride as a Schedule 1 drug. The AVMA, in cooperation with the World Veterinary Association and the World Medical Association, fiercely advocated against this change, because international regulation of ketamine as a Schedule 1 drug could mean that it would no longer be available to U.S. practitioners. As a result of those advocacy efforts, ketamine was not rescheduled at that time.

But this week, on Oct. 5, the FDA issued a request for comments regarding the abuse potential, actual abuse, medical usefulness, trafficking and impact of scheduling changes on the availability for medical use of 10 drug substances - including ketamine. The comments will be considered as FDA prepares a response to the WHO regarding the abuse liability and diversion of these drugs.

The AVMA is drafting a letter to the FDA that will outline how critical ketamine use is in veterinary medicine and how important it is that it remain available to U.S. veterinarians as we treat our patients. But our voice is made stronger when it is joined by the voices of individual members. So we're requesting your help during this urgent time to reinforce our message.

Will you consider writing to the FDA yourself to explain how critical ketamine is in veterinary medicine and why it must remain available to veterinarians? We've created a template letter that will allow you to personalize your response to make more impact.

Comments are due to the FDA by Oct. 15 – next week – and the FDA's comments will be provided to the 36th Expert Committee on Drug Dependence (ECDD), which will meet in Geneva Nov. 16-20.

Among the information requested by WHO is the following:

• Ketamine use in clinical settings - when is ketamine the anesthetic, sedative or analgesic agent of choice for any of the following: emergency situations; conducting procedures with pediatric patients; short surgical procedures; long surgical procedures; surgery conducted outside a hospital without respiratory support facilities; and other?
• Veterinary therapeutic indications approved for ketamine (choices offered: anesthesia; pain management; sedation; no approved uses; other)
• Current use of ketamine in medical or scientific research (including clinical trials)

Please submit your comments by Oct. 15 to the FDA regarding your professional use of ketamine and its importance to patient care. Detailed instructions for submitting comments either electronically or on paper can be found here:

https://www.federalregister.gov/articles/2015/10/05/2015-25201/international-drug-scheduling-convention-on-psychotropic-substances-single-convention-on-narcotic#h-6

Feel free to copy us on your comments to the FDA, as this can also help guide us as we write the AVMA's response. We will post our own letter with comments to the FDA on our website as soon as it's completed.

Thank you in advance for helping us protect veterinarians' ability to continue using ketamine to treat patients. Your voice will make ours even more powerful and effective in advocating on behalf of our member veterinarians and our patients.

Caribbean Watch - August 2015

Here is the latest edition of CARIBBEAN WATCH, the Caribbean One Health Newsletter which is published by a group of IAAAM members in conjunction with the the European Union's "One Health One Caribbean One Love" Project.

Click here to read the newsletter.

REINTRODUCING THE WILDLIFE VETERINARIANS EMPLOYMENT AND TRAINING ACT OF 2015

This bill contains a variety of measures and funding support for wildlife and zoological medicine training in vet schools, encouragement for employment, and education debt relief. It was designed to benefit wildlife veterinarians, particularly younger ones, who will practice on a wide variety of captive and free-ranging species.

Click here to view the Bill: https://www.congress.gov/congressional-record/2015/5/12/extensions-of-remarks-section/article/e675-3

If you support this bill, now would be a good time to contact your representative.

Compounded Animal Drugs Survey

Dear Colleagues,

The Food and Drug Administration is in the process of revising the rules under which compounding pharmacies operate.  Some of their suggested changes may adversely affect the ability of our members in “non-domestic animal medicine” to practice quality medicine.  The AAZV will be attending a small stakeholders meeting with the FDA in Washington on 15 or 16 July, and we want to have as much useful information as we can for the meeting.  With coaching by the AVMA’s Washington based Government Relations Division, we have developed a survey for veterinarians who practice zoo, wildlife, aquatic, avian and exotic animal medicine. 

You may view the survey by following this link:
http://www.aazv.org/surveys/?id=CompoundedAnimalDrugs

 We have three specific requests.  

1. Many of our colleagues are members of more that one association, so they might be invited to take the survey by more than one group.  We ask that people only take the survey once.
2. We must cut the survey off on 14 July so we can compile all of the data.  
3. The U.S. FDA is only concerned about practices in the United States and its territories. If you are not practicing in the United States, please refrain from taking the survey.

The survey is in the public section of the AAZV Web site, so non-members of AAZV may take the survey.

We thank you for your immediate attention to this pressing issue.  

Robert Hilsenroth, DVM
Executive Director
American Association of Zoo Veterinarians
rhilsenrothaazv@aol.com
(904)225-3275