Short Takes

Effective January 1, in a divorce, the judge has specific criteria to use when deciding who gets the cat (or dog).

In an effort to identify the tick species in pets across the United States, the National Center for Veterinary Parasitology (NCVP) at Oklahoma State University is offering a free tick identification service.

Compounded drugs are medications where bulk ingredients are mixed together by a pharmacist, as opposed to a commercial drug that is approved by the Food & Drug Administration (FDA) and manufactured under the FDAs monitoring. When an FDA-approved drug becomes available, the FDA forbids the same medication to be compounded. This is the case with Mirataz (mirtazapine transdermal ointment), which is applied to the inner surface of a cats ear to manage undesired weight loss.

A study from the Nationwide Childrens Hospital analyzed environmental exposures, like pets and secondhand smoke, to determine if they have a role in asthma control among children whose asthma is managed per National Asthma Education and Prevention Program (NAEPP) guidelines. Researchers found that, once asthma guidelines are followed, environmental exposures were not significant factors in overall asthma improvement over time.

Centragard (eprinomectin and praziquantel transdermal solution) was approved by the FDA in April and is now on the market. This drug is used to prevent heartworm disease caused by Dirofilaria immitis, which is spread through the bite of mosquitoes. It is applied monthly. Centragard is also approved for the treatment and control of roundworms, hookworms, and tapeworms in cats and kittens 7 weeks of age and older and weighing at least 1.8 lb.

A new law signed into legislation in New York state requires law-enforcement officials to check for pets who may have been abandoned by the renters and left behind when enforcing an eviction notice to renters.

Newsweek, The New York Times and other news outlets are reporting that someone is mutilating and killing cats across Washington state.

13-year-old feline became the first cat in the United States to receive a surgical spinal technique that involves placing a metal pin in the spine for spinal compression.

Livescience.com says the project D.C. Cat Count is being put together to better manage cats living in the Washington, D.C., area.

An article in the July 15, 2018, Journal of the American Veterinary Medicine Association looked at a French study on feline pleural effusion. Pleural effusion is a buildup of fluid in the pleural space, which is the space in your cats chest between the protective linings covering the lungs and the walls of the chest cavity itself. Normally, there is only a small amount of fluid in that area. Large amounts of fluid mean less room for the lungs to expand, which causes difficulty breathing and getting adequate oxygen to your cats body tissues.

KTVB in Boise, Idaho, reported in June that a cat tested positive for the plague. This occurred a month after a child tested positive for the plague, also in Idaho.

CNBC.com reports that nearly 70 percent of American households have a pet but most are unprepared financially for a veterinary emergency, which averages between $800 and $1,500, according to Petplan.