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Veterinary News Network Media Insider
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Greetings!
 Out here in Colorado, we finally got some relief from very high temperatures. In fact, snow was actually falling on top of Pikes Peak yesterday! (Thanks to KOAA for the picture of the summit of the mountain). BUT...I know that many areas of the country are dealing with severe drought and extreme temperatures.
Use your media savvy as well as resources from us to reach out and talk about pet safety during these hot summer months. By focusing on simple things that pet owners can do to help their pets (purchasing kiddie wading pools, etc), you can show your concern for your community's pets as well as increase your expert reputation.
Today's column is very short, asking just one basic question...what can VNN do to help you? There is a link to a short survey included.
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Animals, Veterinarians and VNN Members in the News
 VNN Member, Dr. Larry Baker of Northgate Pet Hospital in Decatur, IL reminded me that the American College of Veterinary Dentistry will be reaching out to owners of service dogs. The first annual National Service Dog Oral Health Exam will be held during August. Qualified pups will received a complimentary oral health screening from a board certified veterinary dentist. Let your clients with service animals know about this wonderful opportunity and encourage them to register! This could be another great way to tie in your own information about the importance of dentistry for ALL pets when you do your media outreach.
Despite months of testing and continued announcements, the chicken jerky treat fiasco is on-going and the FDA is now estimating more than 1800 reports of sickness and/or deaths associated with the treats have been filed. Another class action lawsuit has been filed against Del Monte/Milo's Kitchen. We do have messaging on this topic at MyVNN.com and I am updating the numbers of reported problems as we get new information.
In a related item, threads on VIN are discussing problems with sweet potato treats imported from China as well. I have only been able to find blog postings on this topic so far instead of actual news stories. Brands implicated are Canyon Creek Ranch Yam Good Dog Treats, 16 types of Beefeaters Sweet Potato Treats, treats from Drs. Foster and Smith and 4 types of Dogswell Veggie Life Vitality. We will continue to monitor this story.
 Next month (Aug) is National Immunization Awareness Month...why not use this as a news hook to get on air/in print with your local media? With stories like the 200+ dogs euthanized in Kentucky after exposure to canine distemper or the "indoor only" cat found playing with a bat outside (thanks Dr. Melanie Marsden), good, expert and professional advice about vaccinations for pets is sorely needed!
Finally, I encourage you to visit the SkeptVet blog. His latest entry looks at the "Dog Cancer Expert"...a human chiropractor who is selling books to pet owners on how to deal with canine cancer. Check out Bad Advice from An Unreliable Source.
Any easy way to keep up with important animal health or veterinary news is to "Like" our Veterinary News Network Facebook page. Daily posts will help keep you up to date and recommendations for using VNN resources will occur routinely as well! If you are more interested in a private setting to discuss media stories affecting the veterinary profession, join our VNN Linked In Group.
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 Finding Out What YOU Need From VNN...
 Thomas F. Dock, BS, CVJManaging Editor, Veterinary News Network
Board of Certification, American Society of Veterinary Journalists
Every two weeks, I reach down into the vast knowledge about media that resides in Dr. Jim Humphries' brain and try to find a pertinent, timely article on using the media to market your practice. It is our sincere hope that these columns are providing you with some good advice and some new ideas about how you can reach out into your community. Today, though, I want to take a different tack. I want to find out what YOU want or need to hear about from us. Is it the best practices for managing your Facebook page? The pros and cons of Twitter use? What about more traditional media articles? Please take a moment and let us know how we can best help you. I have created a survey that will take you just a moment to complete and I anticipate will provide us with some incredible and important ideas for future articles. Please click this link to access the survey and help us help you! Thanks for your feedback! |
New at MyVNN.com
 On July 15th, VNN released another video story. Our latest release is about veterinarians using in-house laboratory analyzers to help with diagnosis of patients in a more expedient manner. "Rapid Blood Analysis Delivers Vital Results to Your Veterinarian" will be a great educational piece for your clients and maybe even your staff as well! At the start of August, another VNN video story will be released. This upcoming untitled story takes a quick look at how to choose a pet food. I anticipate that this story will ruffle some feathers as people have very passionate beliefs about what they feed their pets. BUT, like all of our VNN stories, I feel that this will be a balanced overview and focuses on keeping veterinarians involved with discussions about pet nutrition. Look for this story to go live on August 1st! We would like to welcome the team at Friendship Hospital for Animals in Washington DC back to VNN as well as Dr. Raymond Schultz of Valley Vet Supply, Dr. Paul Williams and his wife, Tonua from Surgi-Snuggly, Dr. Brent Morris and Michael Hernandez from Windsor Veterinary Clinic and, last but not least, Ms. Kristina Marchi from Veterinary Emergency and Rehabilitation Hospital in Fort Collins, CO. |
 American Society of Veterinary Journalists
Our organization designed with a goal of bringing professionalism back to journalism involving veterinary medicine and animal care is continuing to grow!! Are you someone who should be credentialed as a Certified Veterinary Journalist or do you know someone who should be??
If you would like to know more about becoming a Certified Veterinary Journalist, visit http://asvj.org. We highly encourage all VNN members to get their certification!
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At VNN, we are here, 24/, to help you with your media needs. Please don't hesitate to contact us whenever you need help!
Sincerely,
Thomas Dock
Managing Editor
719-445-7065
tomdock@MyVNN.com
Dr. Jim Humphries
President and Founder
719-495-2100
dr.jim@MyVNN.com
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