A mutt named Mole is a hero in Riverside, California for leading his owner to a hiker trapped in a rocky crevice. Read the whole story.
Oregon Humane Society Plays Yenta with Obama’s Dog
March 22nd, 2013
Single, curly, female seeks prom date. Just another posting on Match.com? No, it’s a message from a goldendoodle named Ramona who currently resides at the Oregon Humane Society in Portland.
Ramona made a You Tube video (with the help of the OHS staff) asking presidential pooch, Bo Obama, to take her to the Doggie Dash in May. The very funny video showcases Ramona’s computer skills and has gone viral. In fact, a recent Google search found the story on everything from MSN.com to United Press International.com.
So far, the handsome, bachelor Water Spaniel has not made up his mind so the Oregon Humane Society is asking supporters to sign a petition that will be sent to the White House. Read more.
Head Shaving and Other ‘Gifts’ Bring in the Bucks
March 22nd, 2013
Every year faculty, staff and students in the OSU College of Veterinary Medicine make an impressive showing in the cross-campus competition to raise the most money and food for Linn-Benton Food Share. This year featured a wonderfully creative cupcake war; a huge silent auction that included some amazing gift packages; a diverse and delicious chili cookoff; and for the first time ever, Jamie Senthirajah’s head raised a significant donation.
Dr. Jana Gordon was a relentless bidder and won the right to shave off Senthirajah’s luxiorious head of hair for a fifty dollar donation to the food drive. The spectacle took place in the Magruder atrium to cheers of support and provided a climatic end to this year’s very successful food drive. CVM’s total haul was 42,105 pounds of food to earn us second place in our category.
Grand totals for the OSU campus were $65,718 from events; payroll contributions totaled an additional $56,630; and 15,702 pounds of food was collected. All cash donations are converted by the statewide figure of 4 lbs. purchased for $1, bringing the total food poundage collected this year to 513,096.
CVM Gets Stuck For A Good Cause
March 14th, 2013
On March 6th, faculty, staff, and students volunteered to go under the needle at the 5th Annual CVM Red Cross Blood Drive. Organizer Lindy Young reports:
With additional help from the College of Forestry, 41 donor appointments were scheduled. Between 10:15 and 3:15 we exceeded our original goal of 30 units by collecting 31. Ten volunteers helped with registering donors and in the canteen on the Bloodmobile. A big thank you to everyone who helped to make this blood drive a smoothly run and very successful event.
Students See Acupuncture in Action
March 5th, 2013
Fourth-year students on morning rounds in the large animal hospital last Friday had an opportunity to see acupuncture in action. Dr. Jacob Mecham was treating a horse with a paralyzed arytenoid cartilage in her larynx by placing acupuncture needles in her neck. Student Melissa Flora helped by reading a list of designated locations from a treatment protocol to Dr. Mecham as he moved around the horse carefully twirling the needles into place.
Students Sarah Tremper and Whitney Madigan managed the scope that Dr. Mecham had inserted through the horse’s nose to view the larynx on a screen. “What was really neat about it is that they were running the endoscope so we could visualize the larynx while the acupuncture was happening to look for any immediate changes,” says Flora.
The treatment protocol was the result of a study done by Dr. Shen Huisheng Xie of the Chi Institute where Dr. Mecham received his acupuncture training. Dr. Mecham recently completed 130 hours of lectures and labs, and passed a four-hour written and practical exam to become certified in veterinary acupuncture. “Acupuncture is a great integrative modality with western medicine,” says Mecham. “Western medicine has better diagnostic capabilities and can provide surgery when necessary. Acupuncture helps with quality of life and probably the biggest, widest use of it is helping with pain control.”
Flora is currently enrolled in acupuncture education at the Chi Institute so she appreciates the value of students being able to observe this treatment. “It’s great for students who aren’t strongly interested in complementary medicine to be exposed to it, because clients know about it and often have questions that we should be equipped to answer. It is much easier to talk about something when you have a basic understanding and have seen it done.”
Guinea Pigs Are More Than Fuzz Balls
February 27th, 2013
A researcher in psychology at the University of Queensland has found that animals in the classroom have a positive impact on autistic children. Read more.
