June 13 , 2012

Volume IX, No. 18

Notice from Illinois' Public Health Veterinarian - Reporting Salmonella

A multi-state outbreak of Salmonella ser. Infantis associated with contact with pet food is being investigated in the United States. Information on this outbreak can be obtained at http://www.cdc.gov/salmonella/dog-food-05-12/ or on the FDA website, which has a list of the Diamond pet foods under recall.

One human case in Illinois was recently identified; the individual used one of the recalled brands in the household. A dog and cat in the household also tested positive for Salmonella but the isolate was discarded before further testing could be performed.

If veterinarians identify Salmonella in animals who have consumed the recalled brands of dog food, they are asked to report the case(s) to the Illinois Department of Public Health (IDPH) Communicable Disease Control Section and, if possible, to secure the Salmonella isolate for possible serotyping and pulse field gel electrophoresis (DNA strain typing). In the United States, Salmonella isolates from pets will most likely NOT be serotyped and will not have DNA strain typing done. Salmonella in pets in Illinois is not reportable, making it difficult to accumulate information on Salmonella infections in pets consuming recalled product. Please contact the IDPH Communicable Disease Section at 217-782-2016. Thank you for your cooperation.

ISVMA Monthly Legislative Report

In an effort to keep ISVMA members more aware of Illinois politics and legislative and regulatory actions that impact their practices, ISVMA publishes a monthly legislative report. Please read the May Legislative Report.

ISVMA Membership Dues Have Been Mailed

It is membership renewal time and the ISVMA has sent out renewal invoices to all DVM and CVT members. If you have not received your renewal invoice, please contact ISVMA at (217) 546-8381 so that we can make sure your contact information is updated. ISVMA appreciates your support of organized veterinary medicine through your tax-deductible membership investment.

Second notices will be mailed on June 26, 2012. Please help ISVMA save postage and staff time stuffing envelopes for the second mailing and pay now! You can renew your ISVMA Membership Dues online.

FDA Appeals Judge's Ruling to Enact Ban on Antibiotics in Animal Feed

FDA Commissioner Margaret Hamburg and HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius have filed an appeal in an attempt to overturn a judge's decision to force the FDA to ban three antibiotics in animal feed. The antibiotics -- one penicillin and two tetracyclines -- were targeted for removal from animal feed in a 1977 FDA statement that was never enacted. Five nonprofit organizations recently initiated legal action to spark the FDA to follow through on that statement. Read more...

• View AVMA's resources on antimicrobial use and resistance.

Veterinarian Successfully Delivers Embryo-transfer Puppy

Courtesy AMVA - Veterinarian Nick Elam delivered a puppy in May that represented the culmination of 14 years of work. The puppy, named ET, was the first U.S. dog born via embryo transfer, a surgical procedure that takes an embryo from one animal and implants it into the uterus of another that is better able to carry the offspring to term. Read more...

Keeping Track of All Animal/Pet Related Recalls

Have you lost track of all the confusing pet food/treat recalls in recent months? The FDA has a Web page where you can see a summary of the recalls.

About the Photo

With its black and white plumage, long, thin red legs, and long neck, the Black-necked Stilt (Himantopus mexicanus) is both striking and delicate in appearance. It is a medium-sized shorebird with a black needle-like bill, black or dark brown upperparts, and a white breast. The iris is red, and there is a white spot above the eye. Breeding males have glossy black wings, back, and back of neck, and a pink tinge on the breast. Non-breeding males lack the glossiness and pink tinge. Adult females have a brown tinge to the back. Juveniles have brown upperparts with buff feather margins, and a white trailing edge to the wing in flight.

Black-necked Stilts are found on the margins of shallow inland ponds and lakes in open country. They are often associated with American Avocets, but will also use wetlands with more emergent vegetation such as flooded fields. During migration, Black-necked Stilts may visit coastal mud flats.

Black-necked Stilts are gregarious. They spread out while foraging and roost in small groups. Although during the breeding season and in winter, Black-necked Stilts are strongly territorial, the territories are aggregated, and adults will participate jointly in anti-predator displays; thus, there is some degree of coloniality. An anti-predator display called 'the popcorn display' consists of a group of adults encircling a ground predator and hopping side to side while flapping their wings. They forage visually by wading through the water and picking prey from at or near the surface. Black-necked Stilts often call loudly and incessantly when agitated.

Black-necked Stilts most often consume aquatic invertebrates. They also sometimes eat tadpoles, tiny fish, and seeds of aquatic plants.

Pairs form on wintering grounds, during migration, or on breeding grounds; pairs remain monogamous throughout the breeding season. Both sexes choose the nest site, which is often on a small island in the marsh. The nest, a shallow depression, is scraped by either sex while the other sex watches. Lining is added throughout incubation, especially in wetter spots where plant material is used to build up the nest. The female typically lays four eggs, and both sexes incubate and care for young. The precocial chicks are able to leave the nest within 1-2 hours of hatching. Family groups remain together well beyond the time when the young can fly. Juveniles gather in small groups prior to departure from breeding areas. Pairs normally have one brood per season.

The Black-necked Stilt, in recent years, has become a localized breeder in Illinois. It is found most commonly in Southern Illinois and in appropriate habitat like Emiquon National Wildlife Refuge and Lake Chautauqua National Wildlife Refuge.

I photographed this Black-necked Stilt in the L.A. River in 2006.

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