Wrap up: First canine patient dosed in developmental drug trial to extend senior dogs lifespan, and other veterinary news

Good morning dvm360 readers and happy Groundhog Day! Did you know that Punxsutawney Phil did not see his shadow this morning, predicting we will have an early spring! Did you know that the first time Groundhog Day was mentioned in the local Punxsutawney newspaper was 1886, making this a Pennsylvania, and United States, tradition for over 130 years.¹

Besides an early spring making headlines, here is what was popular this week on dvm360.com

• Loyal announced that Boo, an 11-year-old Whippet, was the first dog to receive a dog of its developmental drug that is working to extend the healthy lifespan of senior dogs of most sizes. LOY-002 received support from the FDA in November 2023 approving the Reasonable Expectation of Effectiveness on Loyal’s application for conditional drug approval.

• Morris Animal Foundation disclosed its selection of 10 new grants dedicated to improving equine health, particularly the well-being of domesticated horses, ponies, donkeys, and mules.
• On this week’s episode of The Vet Blast Podcast, Shadi Ireifej, DVM, DACVS, joins our host Adam Christman, DVM, MBA, to give general practitioners 5 hacks on how to have precision without the fuss and pus.
• Hanover College shared the news that it plans to launch an accelerated and hybrid Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) program beginning in 2026 with the college’s first cohort. The program will welcome 80 students in its first class with hopes of expanding to 100 by its third year.
• The Schwarzman Animal Medical Center (AMC) in New York, New York has officially opened its doors to its brand new state-of-the-art Denise and Michael Kellen Institute for Surgical Care, a part of AMC’s $125 million expansion that will be resulting in tripling its capacity.
• In the latest installment of the Veterinary Scene Down Under, Phil Tucak, BSc, BVMS, interviews Ben Schuster, BVSc, on his love for video gamers and how games link to veterinary medicine and animals, plus a new course on the science of emotional intelligence for human and animal medical professionals.
• And more!

Reference

Legend & lore. The Punxsutawney Groundhog Club. Accessed February 2, 2024. https://www.groundhog.org/legend-and-lore