Jennifer Fiala

Schaumburg, Ill. — In emergency session, American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) leaders voted unanimously last month to give up to $500,000 for disaster relief.

Washington — From North Dakota to Texas, cattle have been dying by the hundreds from what some claim is the largest anthrax outbreak on record.

Baton Rouge, La. — Faced with double the number of residents and more migrating by the hour, Louisiana State University (LSU) braces for an influx of pets from evacuees and veterinary hospitals around devastated New Orleans.

New Orleans — Fourteen Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) emergency teams and 200 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) officials descended on the toxic and disease breeding ground that's in flooded New Orleans.

Chicago — Initial estimates from Hub International reveal 70 practices along the Gulf Coast region likely will generate damage claims following what appears the most destructive hurricane to hit North America since the early 1900s.

Exeter, N.H.- Most students gain little legal direction from veterinary college curriculum on legal landmines in private practice. Yet experts warn that without knowledge and awareness, associates can be blindsided by the law.

Washington - With more than 2,220 federal positions earmarked for DVMs by 2007, pubic health represents an upsurge of job opportunities for future veterinarians.

Washington —When Dr. Michael Chaddock attended a recent luncheon for Sen. Sam Brownback, he was escorted to a seat beside the lawmaker and briefed him on the nation's need for more rural DVMs.

Minneapolis — In a move to recover from financial criticism that resulted in the resignation of its executive director, a newly appointed leadership rallies around the American Veterinary Medical Foundation (AVMF).

Schaumburg, ILL. — The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) is executing a plan to boost the profession's media presence, throwing its weight behind what officials describe as a "public image juggernaut."

Indianapolis —Dr. Bret Marsh is adding financial planning for the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) to a workload that already includes managing an $8-million budget and 150 staff members as Indiana's state veterinarian.

Minneapolis — American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) delegates challenged two Executive Board decisions on resolutions by voting to defeat a foie gras ban and advance a U.S. microchip standard.

Facilities built in the 1960s and 1970s "urgently" need upgrades.

Washington — Some Animal Welfare Committee (AWC) members plan to fight a House of Delegates (HOD) action to dump a ban on foie gras production in favor of further research.

Schaumburg, Ill. — The American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) votes to support sow gestation stalls until a more welfare-friendly housing system that's reliable, efficient and economically viable is conceived.

Chicago —Veterinarians concentrating in swine medicine gross nearly $110,000 annually, leading all practitioner categories and disproving a widespread belief that food animal DVMs rank low in wage potential.

Schaumburg, Ill. — Dr. James F. Peddie leaves the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) with more than $20 million in reserves, remodeled Washington real estate and some of the lowest professional membership fees in the nation.

Washington —As the nation shakes off a second case of mad cow, the veterinary profession relies on consumer reaction and government analysis to determine the finding' significance.

Trenton, N.J. — The New Jersey Veterinary Medical Association (NJVMA) is attempting to overhaul the state's animal cruelty statute in an effort to streamline the hodgepodge of amendments that tackle such offenses.

Colombus, Ohio —The autonomy of veterinary licensing boards is under attack, vulnerable to a nationwide shift toward consolidation and closer government directive.

Washington —The microchip controversy has entered Congress as an amendment to the House's agriculture appropriations bill for 2006.

Schaumburg, Ill. — Association of Veterinarians for Animal Rights (AVAR) members want space on the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) convention floor, and they're taking strides to get it.

Washington — Food animal veterinarians and industry experts applaud recent Supreme Court actions favoring beef and pork checkoff programs.

Washington — The U.S. Senate slated $750,000 of its $17.3 billion agriculture appropriations bill to fund a slimmed down version of the National Veterinary Medical Services Act (NVMSA).

Baltimore — Researchers report they have discovered the genetic mutation responsible for hypertrophic cardiomyopathy (HCM) — the most common disease in cats.

Washington — It took almost 10 years and $20,000, but Dr. Thomas Kendall's battle with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) has ended with a federal tax interpretation that favors the veterinary profession.

Wauwatosa, Wis.—As government scientists analyze the 2003 monkeypox outbreaks that spread across six Midwestern states, one veterinarian relives the epidemic as the first U.S. practitioner to encounter and contract the rare viral disease.

Schaumburg, Ill. — California veterinary leaders want the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) to stop endorsing its foundation until the non-profit resolves some "financial issues."

Washington — Association of American Veterinary Medical Colleges (AAVMC) officials want Congress to strengthen the nation's veterinary programs by more than $1.5 billion.

Whitehall, Pa. — Organized labor infiltrated private practice for the first time at a Pennsylvania emergency veterinary hospital.