Weekly companion animal news: November 27, 2023

Dogs are coming down with unusual respiratory illness in several U.S. states

Veterinary laboratories in several states are investigating an unusual respiratory illness in dogs and encouraging people to take basic precautions to keep their pets healthy as veterinarians try to pin down what’s making the animals sick, The Associated Press reports. Oregon, Colorado and New Hampshire are among the states that have seen cases of the illness, which has caused lasting respiratory disease and pneumonia and does not respond to antibiotics. Symptoms of respiratory illness in dogs include coughing, sneezing, nasal or eye discharge and lethargy. Some cases of the pneumonia progress quickly, making dogs very sick within 24 to 36 hours. The Oregon Department of Agriculture has documented more than 200 cases of the disease since mid-August. It has encouraged pet owners to contact their veterinarian if their dog is sick and told state veterinarians to report cases as soon as possible.

Feline coronavirus blamed for thousands of cat deaths in Cyprus

When thousands of cats started to die this year on the Mediterranean island of Cyprus, the crisis made international news. The animals had fevers, swollen bellies and lethargy—symptoms that pointed to feline infectious peritonitis, a common condition caused by a type of cat coronavirus. But scientists struggled to explain the apparent explosion in cases. Now, researchers have identified a possible culprit: a new strain of feline coronavirus that has co-opted key RNA sequences from a highly virulent dog pathogen called pantropic canine coronavirus. The findings, posted as a preprint on bioRxiv, could help explain how severe illness managed to spread so widely among cats on the island. Although canine-feline coronavirus crossovers have been reported before, this appears to be the first documented case of a cat coronavirus combining with pantropic canine coronavirus, Science reports.

Researchers release guidelines on dog and cat seizure emergency management

A first consensus statement provides official guidelines to veterinarians for the first time on managing seizure emergencies in dogs and cats, U.K.-based Vet Times reports. The statement, published in the Journal of Veterinary Internal Medicine, is the first consensus statement for management of status epileptics and cluster seizures. Work on the statement was an acknowledgement that seizure emergencies are common but challenging disorders with complex pathophysiology; are progressive drug-resistant and self-sustaining; and have a high morbidity and mortality. Lack of standardized official directives has led to a divergence of how to treat them among many veterinarians. A panel of five specialists evaluated and amalgamated existing evidence in peer-reviewed literature to form recommendations in the statement. When clinical evidence was deficient, they instead drew on data from pharmacokinetic studies, foundational research and principles in human medicine to compile the recommendations.

Chewy lays off more than 200 employees

Chewy confirmed it has laid off more than 200 employees, including at its Plantation, Florida, headquarters and other sites, TechCrunch reports. Sources said the affected roles spanned HR, recruiting, data and business intelligence, and even included some directors and higher managers, including a vice president. “As we head into 2024, we took the opportunity to consolidate some of our headcount and align our efforts into priorities which we believe will gain us the most significant customer wins and generate the highest business returns, to enable us to strengthen the company’s future,” said Chewy spokesperson Diane Pelkey. Chewy reported a surprise profit of 4 cents per share in its most recent quarter on revenue of $2.78 billion, but analysts were concerned over declining active users of the e-commerce site, which fell from 20.49 million in the year-ago quarter to 20.39 million, according to TechCrunch.

VIN Foundation’s next student competition to examine telemedicine and the VCPR

The VIN Foundation announced its eighth annual Solutions for the Profession Competition. This year’s competition asks veterinary students to examine current efforts to expand the use of telemedicine and the impact upon regulations defining criteria for establishing a veterinarian-client-patient relationship. Students submitting entries are required to explore the pros and cons of these efforts for veterinarians, clients and patients, and to propose a solution that entails maximizing the benefits and minimizing the risks. Prior competitions have addressed topics such as teaching hospitals, staff shortages, diversity, practice consolidation, challenges of veterinary school and the relevance of veterinary education to career goals. The annual competition is open to currently enrolled veterinary students worldwide. Three entrants will win cash scholarships to help support tuition and education-related expenses.

Custom home design for pets gains popularity

Fueled by social media images, magazine spreads and home renovation TV shows, Americans are investing heavily into home design for pets—or “barkitecture,” as Pinterest has dubbed the trend. In 2021, Johnathan Lower, then a real estate agent in South Carolina, posted some old photos on TikTok that showed how he had turned a closet into a miniature home for his golden retriever. The post racked up millions of views and Lower set out to build an even more elaborate indoor doghouse. The popularity of his custom doghouse helped Lower build an 11 million-follower social media empire under the name AGuyandaGolden and led to partnerships with brands like PetSmart, Subaru and Hilton. Lower believes there’s been a decrease in the share of households with children and a continued rise in pet ownership. Still, high-end pet renovations are too expensive for most pet owners, The Guardian reports.