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Animal Resources

Pet Library

NOVA Cat Clinic provides you with a full library of pet medical information from the Veterinary Information Network. VIN is the world’s first and largest online veterinary community, where new articles are added weekly by the experts at VIN to make sure that our readers have the most current veterinary information available.

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VIN Library

Click here to begin 

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Resources

Homes for Pets

Below is a list of local and national organizations and websites focused on finding forever homes for deserving pets. If you have any you think should be added to our list, please feel free to email us at office@novacatclinic.com.

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If you have any questions on ways to prepare for your new arrival or what to look for when doing your first meet and greet, please email your questions to office@novacatclinic.com.

Food Recalls & Notices

Please note that none of the current recalled foods are sold at NOVA Cat Clinic.

 

Latest food recall

Bravo cat food for Listeria contamination. See FDA List for details regarding product numbers, sizes and places it was sold.

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For more information visit:

 

Food Recalls in 2014

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Additional Links & Resources

In addition to the Pet Health Care Library, we have provided the following links to websites that provide some great information on a variety of topics related to veterinary medicine and pet health care. We will update this page frequently and would love to hear your ideas. If you know of links that you would like to see us add to this page and share it with other pet owners, feel free to send us your favorites. If we like them, we will add them to our list!

  • Medical Terms
    A great website that has a good search engine for any further questions or information that you may be searching for on a wide variety of subjects.

  • Heartworm Society
    Everything you ever wanted to know about heartworm disease can be found here!

  • Behavior problems
    Founded by Brian Kilcommons and Sharon Wilson, best-selling authors and recognized experts on animal training and behavior. This site is a terrific resource for advice on a variety of behavioral problems. If you want to learn more about feline house soiling, barking dogs, aggression, or any other behavioral problem, check this one out!

  • Association of Pet Loss and Bereavement
    We have all experienced the pain of losing a pet. The Association of Pet Loss and Bereavement has set up this site for support during this most difficult time. You will find inspirational stories, grief counseling resources, hotline numbers, and many other resources.

  • National Animal Poison Control Center
    This is the website of the National Animal Poison Control Center. It includes a library, links to other sites, and phone numbers for the poison control center.

  • Plants Toxic to Animals, Introduction — Vet Med Library, UIUC
    A lot of information about toxic plants can be found here. You can search under the common name or scientific name of the plant.

  • The Cat Fanciers’ Association (CFA)
    The Cat Fanciers’ Association website has lots of pictures, as well as information on cat breeds, cat care, upcoming cat shows, and much more.

  • Veterinary Schools in the US
    This is a great link to all of the websites of veterinary schools in the United States.

  • USDA Animal and Plant Health Inspection Service
    The USDA maintains this website with information on a variety of animal health-related topics, including the latest news on such things as Mad Cow Diseases, foot and mouth disease, and many other things.

  • Revolution Fea Treatment
    This site is sponsored by Pfizer Animal Health, the makers of Revolution. This site is full of great information in dealing with fleas/heartworms and the treatment of both issues. Revolution is NOVA Cat Clinic’s number one choice for flea & heartworm control.

  • Advantage Flea Control
    This site is sponsored by Bayer Animal Health, the makers of new K9 Advantix for dogs and Advantage flea control for dogs and cats. It is loaded with information about fleas and flea control.

  • Frontline TopSpot by Merial
    Sponsored by the makers of Frontline TopSpot for flea and tick control, this site has basic information about fleas and ticks as well as TopSpot questions and answers

  • Rainbow Bridge
    Anyone who has ever lost a pet should visit this wonderful site. It is a terrific tribute to our lost family members

  • West Nile Virus
    This site is maintained by the Centers for Disease Control in Atlanta and has the latest information on the spread of West Nile Virus in the US, as well as information on disease transmission, symptoms, etc.

  • American Veterinary Medical Association
    This site is a good starting point to learn more about a variety of topics, including feline injection-site sarcomas and the latest subjects in veterinary medicine

  • American Association of Feline Practitioners
    The AAFP is like the American Medical Association for cat doctors and has lots of good information regarding feline health

  • Recall Information

Melamine – A New Toxin

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A new toxin Melamine has been found in recalled foods.

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The following is an FAQ on this contaminant:

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What is melamine used for?

Melamine monomers can be polymerized into melamine resins and then crosslinked with formaldehyde to form thermosetting plastic laminates, the most common of which is Formica. It is used in plastic utensils. It is also used as a flame retardant and a non-protein nitrogen source (fertilizer) when combined with appropriate microorganisms that can metabolize the compound into urea or ammonia.

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Is melamine toxic?

As far as we can ascertain, melamine is minimally toxic. In acute toxicity trials in rats and mice, LD50 was >3g/kg. Intravenous injections (0.3mM/kg) and acute oral administration of melamine (125mg/kg) to cats failed to induce any toxicity (Lipschitz & Stokey, 1944, J Pharm & Exp Ther). In chronic dosing studies, rats developed cystic calculi (bladder stones) and consequent carcinomas of the bladder after 6 months of the administration. There is virtually no mention of nephrotoxicity in the published literature. It is considered a mild ecological toxin, and generally safe in a work environment (inhalation and dermal or mucosal contact).

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Is melamine present in the affected foods?

Yes. Studies have confirmed that melamine is present in the affected foods. It is not present in other foods tested. It is present in the gluten used in the manufacture of the affected foods.

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Is it present in high concentrations in the affected foods?

Melamine was present at about a 1-3% concentration in the gluten used in the manufacture of affected foods. Therefore it is present in a 0.01-0.2% (10mg – 200mg/100g food) concentration in affected foods.

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How does this translate into dietary toxicity?

If extrapolated from toxicity studies in rats (and assuming cats have the same acute toxicity doses as rats), cats would need to consume about 4kg of food per day to approach the rat LD50. Thus, we are skeptical of the ability for melamine to produce toxicity that is being reported.

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Can melamine act as a marker for affected individuals?

We believe so. Since it appears to be present only in the contaminated foods and is relatively easily detected in urine and kidneys of affected animals, melamine may be a reasonable marker of exposure to affected diets. This may help rule out dietary causes of acute renal failure. However, more information is needed to determine the validity of this hypothesis.

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How can melamine be detected?

Currently, melamine is detected by mass spectrometry. The University of California, Davis is now offering this test.

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