A new economic report commissioned by the Human Animal Bond Research Institute (HABRI) examined the health care cost savings associated with pet ownership in the United States. Overall, the report found that pet ownership could save the United States health care system $22.7 billion annually.

The report, made possible by a grant from Banfield Pet Hospital, was co-authored by Terry L. Clower, PhD and Tonya E. Thornton, PhD, MPPA, both of whom have extensive expertise in economic and public policy research, according to a release from HABRI.

 The conclusion that pet ownership can save humans money on their own health care comes from a connection of pet owners having better overall health in the form of fewer doctor visits per year and also specific savings for key public health issues affecting millions of Americans, including reduced obesity, reduced infections, and better mental health for children, seniors, and US veterans.

“The results of this analysis are conservative and likely underestimate the positive health care savings connected to pet ownership,” said Clower in the release. “Presently, there is not yet sufficient data available to calculate the direct heath care cost savings for some of the known beneficial health effects of pet ownership and we believe that future analyses will show even greater economic benefits.”

“By commissioning this economic report, we are documenting the important role of pets as valued contributors to public health,” said Steven Feldman, president of HABRI, in the release. “This data suggests that there should be stronger societal support for keeping pets and people healthy together.”

To conduct their research the authors first reviewed relevant, peer-reviewed academic and professional literature regarding the health benefits of pet ownership. Then, they looked at the most recent cost estimates for health services and treatments related to the health conditions identified in the literature review based on an examination of publicly available health care cost data. Pet ownership data was also identified from publicly available sources. The estimated savings to the U.S. healthcare system associated with pet ownership were calculated using these inputs.

New report shows major economic benefits associated with pet ownership. News release. Human Animal Bond Research Institute. Published May 23, 2023. Accessed June 8, 2023. https://habri.org/pressroom/20230523

Articles

Pet ownership saves the US health care system $22.7 billion annually, according to report commissioned by the Human Animal Bond Research Institute

New report links pet ownership with human health care savings

Rio, an 8-year-old American Quarter Horse gelding, is the beloved horse of Alana Alpern, DVM, and her family who was bred, born, and raised on the family farm in Texas. Rio recently fell ill and Alpern knew exactly where to take him, her alma mater, the UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine.

UC Davis equine services team collaborated to treat Rio. (All images courtesy of Uc Davis School of Veterinary Medicine). 

 Rio presented to the Large Animal Clinic at UC Davis having been diagnosed with atrial fibrillation, an irregular heart rhythm, and a common equine cardiac problem. Over 15 years ago, when Alpern was a student at UC Davis, the school was among the few places in the nation performing transvenous electrical cardioversion (TVEC), a procedure that shocks the heart back into a regular rhythm. Since Alpern graduated in 2007, the school has performed only a number of TVEC procedures because of the lack of essential equipment over the past decade.

Rio is doing well after the TVEC procedure.

“It’s been a long time since we’ve performed a TVEC at UC Davis,” said Jessica Morgan, DVM, PhD, of the equine field service, in the release. “But I gained a lot of experience with them in my time as a clinician at the University of Pennsylvania, so we have the right team and equipment to offer that option again.”

Morgan consulted with Fiona Wensley, BVM&S, MRCVS, DACVIM, in the equine medicine service treating Rio, the cardiology service, and the anesthesia service and Alpern to discuss the possibility of a TVEC being an option for Rio. “Rio had previously been given the drug quinidine, a medication commonly used for cardioversion, but it failed to correct his arrhythmia,” said Morgan. “Dr Alpern was looking for an opportunity to try something else, and we agreed that a TVEC was the answer.”

A cutaneous method—placing electrode paddles on the chest—is the preferred method of performing an electrical cardioversion on dogs and humans, however a horse’s large muscle mass does not allow the shock wave to reach the heart without causing deadly complications. Thus, veterinarians must approach the horse’s heart with electrodes on the tips of catheters placed across the heart through the horse’s veins.

Electrodes on the tips of catheters were placed in Rio's chest to perform the TVEC procedure.

Two catheters were placed in Rio’s right jugular vein with one advanced into the left pulmonary artery and the other into the right atrium. Their positions were placed with the assistance of echocardiography and confirmed with X-rays of his chest. Then, Rio was anesthetized, and a shock wave produced by a life pack was sent to the electrodes to stun the atrium, enabling it to restart, according to the release.

The procedure was successful, and Rio’s heart was shocked back into a regular (sinus) rhythm, confirmed by a post-procedure electrocardiogram. A follow-up echocardiogram several days after showed improvement of previous findings.
“From a cardiovascular standpoint, Rio has a good prognosis for return to athletic function, as long as he is able to maintain sinus rhythm,” shared Morgan. “He didn’t have any major complications with the procedure, and he hasn’t gone back into atrial fibrillation.”

To reduce the chance of recurrence, Rio was placed on medication and Alpern has a cell phone-based electrocardiogram unit to monitor him at home. After 2 months, Alpern says that Rio is doing well and has returned to giving short rides to her children.

Warren R. Electrical shock procedure corrects horse’s irregular heartbeat. News release UC Davis School of Veterinary Medicine. May 31, 2023. Accessed June 8, 2023. https://www.vetmed.ucdavis.edu/news/electrical-shock-procedure-corrects-horses-irregular-heartbeat

How the veterinary team approached the horse with this heart condition and an update on his recovery

UC Davis corrects horse’s irregular heartbeat with electrical shock procedure

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Happy Pride Month! To celebrate and commemorate this important occasion, Omar Farías, VMD and president-elect of PrideVMC joins 

 to talk LGBTQ+ diversity and inclusion in the veterinary profession. He shares his story of coming out and the work being done to make veterinary medicine a safer, more representative community for all.

Below is a partial transcript. Listen to the full podcast for more.

How important is inclusion in our profession?

: Inclusion is really, really important. And you know, seeing diversity and LGBTQ diversity...in all parts of the profession is so important....We're quite a diverse society, and the more individuals are included within the different layers of  leadership and opportunities to better represent that, ultimately, I think that's going to lead us to be in a better spot. Because to have diverse, dissenting voices, it's actually a good thing as part of the process.

Podcasts

Omar Farías, VMD shares what it means to him to be a gay in the veterinary profession and how being more inclusive is a win for all

Pride, representation, and inclusion in vet med

D Lahoud/peopleimages.com / stock.adobe.com

The Diversify Veterinary Medicine Coalition (DVMC) has announced that Mita Malhotra, president of Chewy Health, will join the organization’s board of directors. Malhotra will discuss and search for solutions to present challenges the Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) veterinary community face. She will also discover new ways that Chewy Health can further diversify the pet health space to benefit pet parents and veterinary partners.

 this comes in tandem with a $100,000 donation from Chewy Health to the organization.

“We are excited to appoint Mita Malhotra, a prominent leader at Chewy, to the DVMC board. This partnership, along with a charitable $100,000 commitment will help further the efforts of diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging (DEIB) in the veterinary profession,” expressed Courtney Campbell, DVM, DACVS-SA, chair of the Communications Committee at Diversify Veterinary Medicine Coalition, in the release.

He added, “This sponsorship will accelerate our efforts to meet the needs of members of the BIPOC community and other underrepresented groups who are interested in veterinary medical education. Chewy Health on our board means we have a key innovator in the pet health industry thinking about how to positively and demonstrably impact the lives of those who have been historically disadvantaged from pursuing a veterinary degree.”

DVMC focuses on 3 pillars of support including travel grants, scholarships, and internships, all with the goal of finding opportunities for students to be incorporated in veterinary organizations. Chewy Health chose DVMC as a partner of choice because the sponsorship and funding directly support these core pillars.

“I’m honored to join the board of the Diversify Veterinary Medicine Coalition,” said Malhotra. “This organization is meaningful to Chewy because it is focused on growth in an industry that is ripe for innovation and change. We are so excited to bring Chewy’s customer first mindset to this table, as we engage with the veterinary community to champion all things pet. Personally, taking a seat on this board marks a meaningful step as I have seen firsthand throughout my own career the positive innovation and impact that happens when we invite and amplify diverse voices.

This announcement is Chewy Health’s first direct involvement in organizations supporting DEI in veterinary medicine and there will be more in its future. The company is also supporting Pawsibilities Vet Med, the Multicultural Veterinary Medical Association, and a Blend Vet Med pipeline event in Chewy Health’s home state of Florida later in 2023.

DVMC and Chewy Health partner to nurture an industry ripe for change. News release. Chewy Health. June 7, 2023. Accessed June 7, 2023.

DVMC appoints Chewy Health president to board of directors to help promote opportunities for all pet parents and veterinary professionals to thrive and succeed

Partnership to promote diversity in veterinary medicine and more 

Continuing education opportunities can be found on our online


  platform.  And, along with our CE content, we have multiple non-CE programs on the horizon, including podcast episodes with
some familiar faces.

Up Your Dermatology Diagnostic Game With Artificial Intelligence

: Cory D. Penn, DVM; Kristin Owens, DVM, DACVP (Clinical Pathology); and Shannon B. Sura, DVM, MBA

Dermatologic cases, including skin and ear disease, make up a significant portion of a small animal veterinarian’s daily caseload. This session will explore an innovative way to obtain efficient cytology results for your everyday dermatology cases with the use of Vetscan Imagyst. Learn how deep learning artificial intelligence can alleviate challenges surrounding workflow and the time it takes to read samples while providing practitioners confidence in the accuracy of results for skin impression smears, along with ear and skin swab cytologic smears. 

A Practical Guide to Managing Osteoarthritis: Making Sense of Current Therapies

: Bryan T. Torres, DVM, PhD, DACVS (Small Animal), DACVSMR; and Catherine Ruggiero, MS, DVM, DACVIM (Nutrition)

Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health & Hill's Pet Nutrition

This session will explore the importance of osteoarthritis management in veterinary patients. This session will also discuss the evidence for the use of current therapies to treat pain and inflammation associated with osteoarthritis with a focus on non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs and therapeutic nutrition. Attendees will learn protocols for OA management that can be instituted in everyday practice.

: Anthony P. Carr, DVM, DACVIM (Small Animal Internal Medicine)

Exocrine pancreatic insufficiency is a disease seen both in dogs and cats, though the presentation is quite different. In dogs it is generally a disease of the young, whereas in cats it is usually seen in older cats. The varied clinical signs (classic diarrhea in dogs, in cats more likely weight loss without diarrhea) will be addressed. This lecture will focus on the diagnosis and treatment of EPI both in cats and dogs. If you are looking for it you will find a lot more cases than you think. You have to be aware of it as a differential as it will often not be as straightforward a diagnosis as we were taught in veterinary school. Culture Plate System (UTid+) and Conventional Urine Culture for Canine and Feline Specimens” will also be included.

Lean On Me...Because You Are Busy! Leveraging and Utilizing Your Technicians for Efficient Dermatologic Workups

Dermatologic cases often require a lot of hospital time. Learn how to effectively utilize your technicians while handling complex skin cases.

Each CE podcast is worth 0.25 CE credits. Head to the dvm360 Flex website,  and login, or create an account to redeem your free CE after listening to
the episode.

This podcast will discuss the clinical use of mushrooms in veterinary species for cancer (Trametes versicolororCoriolus versicolor), Ganoderma lucidum, Grifola frondosa, Lentinus edodes, andInonotus obliquus mushrooms); vaccine titer immune competence (Pleurotus ostreatus); support for patients with chronic kidney disease (Cordyceps mushroom); canine cognitive disorder (Hericium erinaceus), and microbiome support (all mushrooms).

: Susan E. Little, DVM, PhD, DACVM (Parasitology)

In this podcast, we discuss the importance of tapeworm infections to pets and pet parents, including the disconnect between how our profession traditionally views tapeworms and the way many clients feel about them. New strategies to identify and control tapeworm infections in pets are
also described.

dvm360 Flex™ CE programs provide multiple achievement levels for more in-depth, specialized education so you can both refresh and advance your career.


Flex Forecast: June 2023

Morris Animal Foundation is now accepting proposals for canine cancer research with a particular interest in studies in the areas of genetic epidemiology, genetic and epigenetic changes predictive of cancer risk, development of diagnostic and therapeutic biomarkers, and tumor genomic profiling.

 the foundation is looking for projects that maximize specimens and information from the Golden Retriever Lifetime Study,

 but also welcomes submissions using other data.

“The Golden Retriever Lifetime Study provides a unique opportunity to understand the origins of canine cancer,” said Kathy Tietje, PhD, MBA,chief program officer at Morris Animal Foundation, in the release. “We encourage the scientific community to include Study resources in their research proposals.”

Additionally, Morris Animal Foundation encourages fellowship applications from those from historically marginalized groups. These Minority Fellowships are being funded by Sally R. McIntosh through the Donor-Inspired Study program. McIntosh aims to offer fellowship funding to support applicants from historically marginalized groups interested in studying canine health to make "a tiny dent" in diversifying the animal health research community.

Interested researchers can find more information on Morris Animal Foundation’s Grants page. Proposals are due August 16, 2023.

Canine cancer focus of latest Morris Animal Foundation call for research proposals.

News release. Morris Animal Foundation. June 7, 2023. Accessed June 7, 2023.

Golden retriever lifetime study. Morris Animal Foundation. Accessed June 7, 2023. https://www.morrisanimalfoundation.org/golden-retriever-lifetime-study

Encourages individuals from historically marginalized groups to apply to diversify animal health research community

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