The first message from the President’s corner here in Eastern Ontarioon this, my 16th day on the job…..a little bit daunting to say the least.

I’ll start with thank you’s: Dr. Lance Males for the great job you did inhandling the OABP Presidency last year. Dr. Randy Graham, who has finishedhis term as CABV President - I can only hope to run our meetings as efficiently.

Having now finished my term as chair of the CE Committee I would liketo thank all the committee members. It is through their input of all ourmembers that the last meeting evolved from a nugget of a concept to reality.Notably, Drs. Ann Godkin and Stephen Leblanc whose knowledge of differentspeakers and related topics of research always provide the committee with upto date information from which to base our speaker decisions.

This past year’s (late November) AGM was highlighted by awards givento two worthy candidates: the OABP Veterinary Service Award to Dr. BruceRobinson and the OABP Award of Excellence to Dr. Henry Ceelen. Congratula-tions – well deserved!

It is likely that an AHL mastitis wet lab will be given through OABP CEthis coming year. At last spring’s DHMCP meeting there was interest fromparticipants for such an undertaking. Dr. Jim Fairles prepared a survey whichwas presented at the AGM and was to be filled out by attendees. This surveywill be available on our website also. Please make your opinions be known sothat we may proceed with a format most suitable to all.

A great PowerPoint presentation was prepared by OMAFRA titled“Health Standards for 4-H Shows”. This presentation has been used byveterinarians involved with 4-H clubs. It was a follow up to a newsletter articlewritten by Dr. Henry Ceelen and Dr. Adam Haight which was published in theApril/May 2011 issue of the Ontario Dairy Farmer magazine. This is alsoavailable to read on the OABP website. This led to a meeting of 4-H, OABP,and associated industry just prior to the AGM. It appears as though 4-H andEastGen are willing to take appropriate steps to ensure that only healthy calvesare eligible for 4-H sanctioned shows. The two main diseases of interest at

(cont’d on page 3…..)

December 2011

PRESIDENT’ S mEssage— D r . D a v i d D o u g l a s

Inside this issue:

Quote of theDay

Take care of eachmoment and you

take care ofall time.

The Buddha

Ontario Association of

Bovine Practitioners

2012 OABP Executive 2

OABP Board Member Update 2

Editor’s Notes 2

President’s Message (cont’d) 3

OVC Bovine Club Update 3

Student Case Competition 3

CFIA Update 4

CABV/ACVB Update/Forum 5

Product Withdrawal Info 6

OVC Research Summaries 7

CQM Information Sharing 9

News from SRVO 9

News from OAEP 10

AABP Update 12

OLPC Update 17

Dairyland Initiative 18

ABPA Update 11

WCABP Update 10

Bovine Education Trust 16

Veterinarian Recognition 13

Upcoming Events 18

Visit OABP online at www.oabp.ca

UPDATEUPDATE

Season’s Greetings

P A G E 2 D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

Editor’s notes— D r . A d a m H a i g h t

I will keep this note short as this edition of the newsletter is quite long! I hope that you enjoy some of thechanges that you will see, most notably a number of updates from industry partners.

Thanks to Phil for handing over the reins as Editor of the newsletter and for all of the effort that went intoprevious issues. Also, thank you to Ruth for all of the time and effort that has gone into creating this newsletter.

If you have any comments or questions regarding the newsletter please forward them along to Ruth. Also, Iwould appreciate any suggestions for articles, news, or other items that you would like to see in upcoming editions –please also forward them to Ruth at oabpruth@bell.net.

Happy Holidays to you and your families.—Adam

20 12 oabp executive

President: Dr. David Douglas1st Vice-President: Dr. Phil Meadows2nd Vice-President: Dr. Kelly BarrattSecretary: Dr. Ann GodkinTreasurer: Dr. Rob WalshPast-President: Dr. Lance Males

Executive Assistant: Ruth Cudmore, Elora, (519) 846-2290, Fax: 519-846-8165Email: oabpruth@bell.net

Directors: Dr. Jason Brownridge Dr. Adam Haight Dr. Cynthia MiltenburgDr. Chris Church Dr. Geert Jongert Dr. Tom WhealDr. Randy Graham Dr. Stephen LeBlanc Dr. Rob WalshDr. Kelly Haelzle Amanda Topp (OVC Student Representative)

Dr. Cynthia Miltenburg is new to the OABP Board this year. Dr. Miltenburg graduated from OVC in

2010 and is currently working for Vankleek Hill Veterinary Services in eastern Ontario.

Dr. Tom Wheal , also new to the Board this year, graduated from OVC in 1978. His practice, Oxford Bo-vine Veterinary Professional Corporation, is located in Ingersoll. Welcome Cynthia and Tom!

OABP Board MEMBER UPDATE

Thank you to outgoing board members Dr. HenryCeelen and Dr. Rob McGregor (pictured below

with President Dr. Lance Males) for theirtremendous contribution to OABP.

Thank you to outgoing President Dr. Lance Males(pictured below with President-Elect Dr. David

Douglas) for your tremendous leadership duringthis year as President.

P A G E 3D E C E M B E R 2 0 1 1

present are warts and ringworm. Hopefully, through education and surveillance we veterinarians will notbe forced to make a difficult decision at the fairgrounds regarding the health status of calves which onlyleads to frustration on all parties and a 4-H-member with a bad experience.

I am really looking forward to the upcoming year. We have a great organization that is veryinvolved in events related to the Ontario dairy and beef industry. Our involvement means that we have avoice. Make sure we hear what you have to say. Our Directors are spread out across the province sothere is sure to be someone close by to contact if need be. Dr. Phil Meadows and Dr. Kelly Barratt arenow my two best friends (1st and 2nd Vice Presidents respectively). I will be leaning heavily on them tohelp steer through the coming year.

Go Sens!!! Merry Christmas to all. Enjoy the season with your family and friends.

- Dave

PRESIDENT’ S MESSAGE ( c o n t ’ d )

OVC BOVINE CLUB UPDATE—A m a n d a T o p p , O A B P S t u d e n t R e p r e s e n t a t i v e

The OVC Bovine Club has had a very busy fall and we have enjoyed a great turnout at all ourevents. Events enjoyed by our club members include:

A lunch talk from Dr. Nancy Charlton from DeLaval; A captive bolt lab lead by Dr. Bateman; Our Annual Steak BBQ; A lunch talk sponsored by Merial about BRD; The OABP Fall CE; The OABP Student-Practitioner night.

Next semester we hope to hold many events including a hoof trimming lab, a dairy tour, a smallruminants tour, and various lunch talks.

Once again, I would like to extend an open invitation to anyone who would like to present a lunchtalk or has an idea of an event we can run. Please feel free to contact me at atopp@uoguelph.ca.

Quote: “My theory is that all Scottish cuisine is based on a dare.” - Mike Myers

Student case competition

OABP congratulates Amanda Topp for placing first at the Student Case Competition, held recently in conjunctionwith the OABP Continuing Education meeting in November. Amanda made a presentation about “A Case of AcuteColiform Mastitis in a Periparturient Holstein Cow”.

The competition, sponsored by Pfizer Canada Inc., was open to current OVC students interested in bovine healthcare. Students were asked to work up an interesting medical/surgical case or project and prepare a writtensummary of 2-3 pages for submission to a review committee. From submitted papers, three finalists were selectedand invited to make a 15-minute presentation as part of the OABP Fall CE agenda on November 17, 2011.

Congratulations to finalists Jenna Donaldson and Benjamin Schlegel who placed second and third respectivelypresenting cases entitled “Trichobezoar in a Three-Week-Old Calf” and “Toxin-associated and other genes in Clos-tridium perfringens type A isolates from bovine clostridial abomasitis and jejunal hemorrhage syndrome”.

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downers, chronically diseased oracutely distressed and displayingdeviation from normal behaviour orappearance. Animals between 24-29months of age are eligible forsampling, but not eligible forreimbursement.

To be designated a BSEsuspect, certain clinical criteria mustbe met and the animal seen live bya veterinarian from your local CFIAoffice. Contact your CFIA DistrictAnimal Health office for moreinformation on BSE and samplesubmission.

If you have clients importingbovines into Canada, it would behelpful to remind them that it is aregulatory requirement to applyCFIA approved tags to bovineswithin 30 days of importation as perImport Permit.

On another note, after a fewquiet years, offshore exports fromOntario have increased in 2011 with1200 cattle shipped to Kazakhstan,over 2500 head to Russia as well as840 pigs to China and 4200 to Ko-rea. Hopefully this trend continuesas our Canadian genetics continuesto be in demand around the world.

Bovine practitioners are in a unique position to assist in the education of producers on certainregulatory issues in the province.

One ongoing item is the continued high incidence of antibiotic residues found in bob calves atslaughter. Producers do not seem aware that there are provincial abattoirs routinely buying calves at a coupleof weeks of age for immediate slaughter. When prescribing, and as a point of discussion with your clients, itwould be useful to remind them that bob calves are being slaughtered as young as two weeks of age.

It is better not to sell an animal until after the drug withdrawal time, but if such animals are sold, itwould be prudent to provide written notice of the medication, date of last treatment, and withdrawal time toaccompany the animal to the sale.

Although BSE is no longer making headlines in Canada, BSE surveillance is ongoing across the country.CFIA still provides monetary reimbursements for producers and veterinarians submitting samples. Cattleeligible for reimbursement under the BSE surveillance program are aged 30 months or older displaying clinicalsigns of neurological disease or part of the “4D” population including those found dead of undetermined cause,

CFIA UPDATE—D r . N a n c y G r i f f i t h , L o n d o n A n i m a l H e a l t h

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The CABV/ACVB held its Annual General Meeting in St. Louis, Missouri on September 22nd,followed the next evening by a reception graciously sponsored by Pfizer Animal Health. Both events werewell attended. Retiring Board members received a plaque in recognition of their services: Dr. RandyGraham (OABP), Dr. Tye Perrett (WCABP), Dr. Jason Cleghorn (ABPA), and Dr. Walter Verhoef (AMVPQ).The new board members are Dr. Dorothy Krysak (WCABP), Dr. Phil Meadows (OABP), Dr. Germain Nap-pert (AMVPQ), and Dr. Frank Schenkels (ABPA). Dr. Melodie Chan (WCABP) was reappointed for asecond three-year term.

The issue of compounding was raised at the AGM. Boards members committed to bring this itemto their respective association and report back with comments/suggestions at the next board meeting.

In the last quarter, CABV/ACVB was asked to comment on the draft documents of the “NationalOn-Farm Biosecurity Standard for Dairy” (full document and a “shortened” guide for producers) that aimat providing producers with a framework to work within when preparing and updating the biosecurityplans for their farms. Although very complete and detailed, both documents were deemed too long andexhaustive to be practical at the farm level.

The CABV/ACVB also participated in a workshop hosted by the National Farmed Animal CareCouncil looking at the development of an Animal Care Assessment Model.

For more details about our activities, please visit our web site at www.cabv.ca.

Cabv/acvb update—D r . R a n d y G r a h a m

CABV/ACVB Forum

One of the benefits of being a member of the Canadian Association of Bovine Veterinarians (automatic withOABP membership) is having access to the “FORUM”. Located on the CABV/ACVB website (www.cabv.ca),the “FORUM” is an opportunity for members across the country to communicate on matters of mutual inter-est. In order to access this discussion area, login as follows: Username: bovine Password: bovine

Once you have logged in you are able to view any topics that have been posted on the Board Index,however, in order to contribute, you must register by:

Entering your Username (this will be the name that you will be identified as on the Forum soideally please use your first initial and last name).

Entering your email address and password. Click on User Control Panel and then Profile tab. Please fill in the mandatory fields which are indi-

cated by an asterisk. In the Association field indicate your regional association affiliation (OABP). You will receive confirmation of your registration via email from CABV/ACVB.

Once successfully registered, go to the Board Index and then the CABV Forum. You are then able to post a“Topic” or “Reply”. You will receive an email notification anytime a new “topic” or “reply” is posted.

If you have any questions, contact Phyllis at the CABV/ACBV office at 306-956-3543 or email tocabv.acvb@sasktel.net.

During the recent OABP Annual General Meeting, Dr. Randy Graham wasrecognized for his years of service to the Canadian Association of Bovine Veterinarians,and more recently, as President of the organization. In the photo, Dr. Henry Ceelenpresented Dr. Graham with a token of OABP’s appreciation.

Dr. Graham wishes to convey his appreciation to the OABP for the words of thanks andgift card on the completion of his term on the Executive and as President of CABV-ACBV.“Thanks truly comes from the opportunity to contribute to a great profession and workalong side remarkable people”.

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Veterinary product withdrawal information — D r . P h i l M e a d o w s

For our members in the trenches who need to provide “off label” drug withdrawalinformation to clients, it can be an onerous task at best. With the Canadian QualityMilk (CQM) program rolling out this year, dairy veterinarians will be required toprovide scripts more frequently for off label drug use. Currently, veterinarians cansubmit withdrawal information requests to the Canadian gFARAD (cgFARAD) in orderto receive science based withdrawal information. The OABP Executive wanted tofacilitate the sharing of cgFARAD rulings with respect to off label drug withdrawals.We have decided to create this column in our newsletter to provide cgFARADwithdrawal recommendations from questions that have been submitted by ourmembers to cgFARAD. If you have any comments about this column or would like toshare a cgFARAD response, please email Ruth Cudmore (oabpruth@bell.net).

gFARAD Western Centre

Western College of

Veterinary Medicine

52 Campus Drive

Saskatoon, SK S7N 5B4

Phone: 306-966-7359

Fax: 306-966-7376

www.cgfarad.usask.ca

Please note: Information not included on the label of a product may change over time. The cgFARADwithdrawal information in this column is current as of the date the submission was received by theveterinarian who contacted cgFARAD. It will still be an individual veterinarian’s responsibility to ensureinformation they provide with a product prescribed for extralabel use is valid, as is described in theprovincial Veterinarian’s Act.

SUBMISSION

Product: Formaldehyde FootbathDose: Formaldehyde 5% solution for prevention of strawberry footrot in 250 dairy cattle

Date cgFARAD Responded: July 21st, 2011Milk Withdrawal: 12hrsMeat Withdrawal: 12hrs

Excerpts from cgFARAD response

Topically applied formalin should not be absorbed systemically. The following information was obtained from theUS gFARAD (CA-101504-42956), who had a similar inquiry. "Formaldehyde is a normal mammalian metabolite.Some is normally found in cow and goat milk. In cattle and goats as concentration in feed increases so do milklevels and they stay at the 0.02 to 0.07 % levels of feed formaldehyde. It has been given IV to many different labanimal species where it has an elimination half life is 0 to 2 minutes while it is converted to the non-toxic normalcomponent formate. In goats fed formaldehyde there was not accumulation of parent compound in milk orcarcass. Formaldehyde-treated cattle feed is used is some countries." Formalin is a known carcinogen, butinformation from the US FARAD suggests that the potential adverse effects to human health are minimal followingits use in the above described manner. We have previously recommended a 12 hour meat and milk withdrawalinterval following this use of formalin. We do caution you that people working with formalin solutions must ensurethat they take appropriate precautions to ensure that they do not become exposed to the solution. In US, theformalin solution must also be disposed of correctly. You should be able to get disposal information from theprovincial government.

Therefore, the Canadian gFARAD recommends a withdrawal interval of 12 hours for meat and milk, whichshould be sufficient so that detectable residues are not found. Furthermore, this recommendation for residueavoidance does not address the risks of developing or transmitting antimicrobial resistance from treated animals toother animals or humans following the extralabel use of this antimicrobial. Because the Canadian gFARADwithdrawal recommendation is not an official withdrawal time and is based on data that has not been reviewed norapproved by the Veterinary Drugs Directorate or the Canadian Food Inspection Agency, responsibility for residueviolations rests with the attending veterinarian.

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J Dairy Sci. 2011 Oct; 94(10):5227-37Changes in management practices and apparent prevalence on Canadian dairy farmsparticipating in a voluntary risk assessment-based Johne's disease control programSorge US, Lissemore K, Godkin A, Jansen J, Hendrick S, Wells S, Kelton DF.

The objectives of this study were (1) to describe the change in Mycobacterium avium ssp. paratuberculo-sis (MAP) antibody milk ELISA-positive prevalence in Canadian dairy herds that participated in a riskassessment (RA)-based Johne's disease (JD) control program; (2) to describe the distribution of so-calledhigh-risk management practices on Canadian dairy farms; and (3) to assess if compliance with selectedrecommendations translated into changes in the scores of associated RA questions. In Ontario andwestern Canada, 226 herds voluntarily participated in a RA-based JD control program for several years. In2005-2007, a previsit survey, RA, and MAP-antibody milk ELISA of the entire milking herd wereconducted. Therefore, the interpretation of the results of this study is strictly for the MAP-antibody milkELISA status of cows or herds, because no culture of MAP (of fecal or environmental samples) wasconducted due to economic restrictions. In early 2008, a telephone interview was used to determinecompliance with recommended management changes after the first RA. In 2008-2009, a second RA andanother whole-herd MAP antibody milk ELISA were performed. At both herd tests, about 35% of thefarms had at least one MAP-antibody milk ELISA-positive cow, classifying them as a MAP-antibody milkELISA-positive herd. However, 28.8% of herds had changed their MAP-antibody milk ELISA statusbetween the 2 tests, demonstrating that a single herd test was insufficient to determine the long-termMAP-antibody ELISA status of a herd. The average within-herd MAP-antibody milk ELISA-positiveprevalence changed from 5.4 to 4.2% over the study period, but management practices did not changemuch throughout the 2- to 3-yr period and were similar to those reported in other parts of North America.The overall RA scores decreased at the second RA, in particular for management practices in the calvingand preweaned calf area, and when herds were test-positive at the first test. This was not surprising,because many of the recommendations at the first RA focused on these management areas andcompliance with some recommended farm-specific management practices in this area might be linked toreduced scores for associated RA questions. In conclusion, the participating farms did, on average,decrease their within-herd MAP-antibody milk ELISA positive-prevalence and RA total scores. Changes inRA scores could be linked to improved management practices, indicating that the RA questionsappropriately reflected management practices. Some herds changed their MAP-antibody milk ELISA statusbetween tests, which underlines that a current test of the entire milking herd is necessary to determinethe present MAP-antibody milk ELISA status of a dairy herd.

oVC RESEARCH SUMMARies— D r . S t e p h e n L e B l a n c

J Dairy Sci. 2011 Oct; 94(10):5062-4.Short communication: Milk ELISA status for bovine leukosis virus infection is not associatedwith milk production in dairy cowsSorge US, Lissemore K, Cantin R, Kelton DF.

The objective of this study was to assess whether the milk ELISA status for antibodies against bovineleukemia virus was associated with 305-d milk production in Canadian dairy cattle. Test results and test-day production data from 19,785 dairy cows were available for analysis. A linear mixed model was usedwith the estimated 305-d milk production as the outcome and lactation number, somatic cell count, calvingseason, days in milk, and breed as fixed effects. Herd nested in province was included as random effect.In conclusion, bovine leukemia virus antibody milk ELISA status was not associated with milk production.

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OVC research summaries ( c o n t ’ d )

J Dairy Sci. 2011 Oct; 94(10):4897-903.The association of serum metabolites with clinical disease during the transition periodChapinal N, Carson M, Duffield TF, Capel M, Godden S, Overton M, Santos JE, LeBlanc SJ.

Abstract

The objective of this observational field study was to validate the relationship of serum concentrations of nonesterifiedfatty acids (NEFA), β-hydroxybutyrate (BHBA), and calcium with disease in early lactation across different manage-ment systems. Fifty-five Holstein freestall dairy herds located across the United States and Canada were selected andvisited weekly for blood sample collection from 2,365 cows. Only diseases that were consistently recorded across

herds and blood samples collected beforethe disease occurred were considered.Metabolite concentrations in serum inwk -1 relative to calving were consideredas predictors of retained placenta (RP)and metritis, and metabolite concentra-tions in serum in wk -1 and wk +1 relativeto calving were considered as predictorsof displaced abomasum (DA). For eachdisease, each metabolite, and week ofsampling in the case of DA, a criticalthreshold was calculated based on thehighest combined sensitivity andspecificity and used to categorize theserum concentrations into high and lowrisk categories. Multivariable logisticregression models were built for eachdisease of interest and week of sampling,considering cow as the experimental unitand herd as a random effect. Cows withprecalving serum NEFA concentrations ≥0.3 mEq/L were more likely to develop RP[odds ratio (OR) = 1.8; 95% confidenceinterval (CI) = 1.3 to 2.6] and metritis(OR = 1.8; 95% CI = 1.5 to 2.9) aftercalving than cows with lower NEFAconcentrations. Precalving NEFA ≥ 0.5mEq/L (OR = 2.4; 95% CI = 1.5 to 3.7),postcalving NEFA ≥ 1.0 mEq/L (OR = 2.7;95% CI = 1.7 to 4.4), and postcalvingcalcium ≤ 2.2 mmol/L (OR = 3.1; 95% CI= 1.9 to 5.0) were associated withsubsequent risk of DA. In conclusion,elevated serum NEFA concentrationswithin 1 wk before calving wereassociated with increased risk of RP,metritis, and DA after calving. SerumNEFA and calcium concentrations in the 2wk around calving in combination wereassociated with the risk of DA.

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Sharing of cqm information between OABP members— D r . P h i l M e a d o w s

I attended the CQM follow-up information session in June this past summer. During thismeeting, a few veterinarians shared their CQM experiences and offered CQM tips. Severalveterinarians in the audience were interested in a way to share protocol/prescription templatesand other materials, to decrease repetition of work across clinics (why re-invent the wheel?).Several OABP Directors have already created several templates within their clinics and are willingto share some of this work with other OABP members. If you would like to find out what isavailable, please contact our Executive Assistant Ruth Cudmore via email: info@oabp.ca. Ruthwill pass your request along to the Executive members and one of these members will respond toyou promptly.

News from SRVO— D r . A l l y s o n M a c D o n a l d , P r e s i d e n t

Greetings from the Small Ruminant Veterinarians of Ontario: We are an active group of 80veterinarians formed 4 years ago as a source of continuing education and lobbying on behalf ofsheep, goats and small camelids. Over the last year we have had several quality CE opportuni-ties. Last week Dr Paul Plummer of Iowa State University did an evening of lectures on develop-ing Standard Operating Procedures, Vaccine Protocols and Mastitis Diagnosis and Therapy.

Our very active continuing education program emphasizes practical applications. InFebruary of 2011 we had our AGM in Tavistock, Ontario. We started the day with a hands-ondemonstration of ultrasound diagnosis of pregnancy in goats. After an introductory session ontechnique and principles we had a variety of ultrasound machines available and goats at variousstages of pregnancy to allow practitioners to assess the pros and cons of each machine. It was agreat communal effort after which we retired to a local restaurant for a lovely dinner supplied byPfizer Animal Health. We followed this with evening lectures on the most effective ways tointegrate CIDRs into reproductive management of breeding. This past June we had an afternoonon chronic wasting diseases of sheep and goats which started with several hours in the postmortem room with an interactive demonstration of post-mortem techniques and findingsfollowed by dinner and evening lectures on chronic wasting disease. This combination of thepractical and lecture format has been quite successful for us.

If you are interested in learning more about SRVO our website is www.srvo.ca and wewelcome new members. On February 24, 2012 we are bringing in Dr Phil Scott from theUniversity of Edinburgh. We will have a whole day of lectures on physical exams, diagnostictesting and how to apply these individual findings to herd health medicine. Dr. Scott has aparticular interest in neurologic and respiratory disease. The meeting will be held in theOrangeville area, monitor the website for updates.

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WCABP Update— D r . H e n r y M c C a r t h y , P r e s i d e n t

What WCABP Has Been Up To…….

Since August WCABP has held three regional meetings to train practitioners in the use of"extension-arm" ultrasound in bovine practice. All of the meetings have been well attended withmuch positive feedback.

We surveyed our membership about their relationship with the CFIA. There was a lot ofresponses and we have been asked to share our findings with other organizations.

Our annual CE conference is coming up on January 19-21, 2012 at the Sheraton Cavalier,Calgary. We have an excellent program, with the third day offering five wet labs at the UCVM.We would welcome attendees from your Association. For more information check out theprogram posted on our website (www.wcabp.com).

News from OAEP— D r . M e l a n i e B a r h a m , P r e s i d e n t

The Ontario Association of Equine Practitioners (OAEP) has had a busy year thus far, with manycurrent issues arising and CE opportunities. This summer, we were asked to address the CVO with the mostpressing issues affecting equine practitioners. We presented to the Council about laypeople practicingveterinary medicine, emergency care provisions and the lack of clarity as well as difficulties for rural and solopractitioners, and ORC regulation of equine veterinarians.

In a letter to the AAEP, we addressed the issue of online pharmacy sales form the US to Canada. Theletter was prompted by a mailer included in Equus magazine (a publication sponsored by AAEP) advertisingheavily discounted drugs including rabies vaccine and antibiotics, shipping to Canada.

The OAEP also became a member of the OLPC (Ontario Livestock and Poultry Commission) this year,so that we may have a voice within this producer group.

In October, a $500 scholarship was awarded to an OVC student as a travel bursary to attend theAAEP conference in San Antonio, TX.

Our CE efforts have been focused on lameness and nutrition this year, with one CE event scheduledfrom September to March of 2011/2012. Our first talk was with Dr. Lance Bassage of OVC, discussingintra-lesion biologics for tendon and ligament rehabilitation, sponsored by OVC. Our most recent talk, awebinar (web-based seminar) was with Dr. Sarah Ralston, board-certified nutritionist, and leader in equinemetabolic disease research, lectured about insulin resistance in horses and feeding the geriatric horse.Web-based seminars are a newer format of education for the OAEP, but we have received lots of positivefeedback from members. It is particularly popular in the colder, more inclement months, as members do nothave to travel!

Upcoming events include additional webinars over the winter (two more featuring nutrition basedtopics), and an afternoon seminar on March 3rd, 2012, with Dr. Kent Allen, Dr. Pete Clegg and Dr. RichardSmith about back/sacro-iliac lameness, and a table topic forum on pre-purchase examinations. The afternoonwill be followed up with a cocktail hour and will be taking place in Milton, ON. Finally, our Annual GeneralMeeting in March will feature Dr. Anthony Yu from OVC, speaking about dermatology. Check our website forfurther details. www.oaep.info

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ABPA UPdate— D r . F r a n k S c h e n k e l s , P r e s i d e n t

Greetings from Atlantic Canada and the ABPA. Winter has arrived in Nova Scotia with 30cm plus of heavy snowthis morning—“great for skiing” says my son !! Not so great for driving to farms—think I !!

Another successful CE conference was held last week in Moncton, NB. This year’s conference was on BovinePharmacology with guest speaker, Dr. Chris Luby from the Western College of Veterinary Medicine. An inquisitive crowdwas in attendance to receive great information on applied drug use in the bovine. The information will assist local vetsin making better treatment decisions and to assist dairy producers with the CQM program. Drug residue testing was alsodiscussed. Given milk’s wholesome perception and the movement of milk between farms, processors and provinces, itwould be beneficial to have all residue testing standardized. Other drug issues, such as OUI, API’s, writing scripts, andthe CQM program were also on the agenda.

Dr. Scot Wells, University of Minnesota, addressed the group on Johnes control programs in the US and theirexperiences with the challenges of raising Johnes “free” cattle. Also, he spoke about the challenges with the control

of TB in cattle and deer inMichigan and Minnesota.

The Atlantic JohnesDisease Initiative (ADJI) isunderway and herd enrolmentin this voluntary controlprogram is over 30% already.The program is based on herdlevel environmental cultures(EC ) and herd risk assess-ments . ADJI only supportsthe testing of individual cattle inEC positive herds. Feel free tovisit the website atwww.atlanticjohnes.ca andplease do not send us yourJohnes positive cows!!

The ABPA will encour-age more bovine vets fromAtlantic Canada to becomemembers of the CABV. TheCABV is providing a strongnational voice for bovine vetsand is quickly becoming a go-toorganization for people andgroups seeking input onrelevant topics of importance tothe dairy and beef industry. TheABPA will attempt to buildstronger ties with local dairyand beef organization over thenear future to provide a localvoice on regional issues.

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AABP UPDATE— D r . G u y B o s c l a i r , D i s t r i c t 1 2 R e p

This year from our board meeting one subject could be interesting to watch and learn is the sustain-ability of the rural practice. Rural practice is a lot more than bovine practice and AABP is very sensitive tothis kind of practice but also the challenge to maintain those local clinics for those communities. A RuralPractice Sustainability Committee has been composed. This committee will inform the AABP on the needsfor those clinics. In the last two years AABP has been informed by the shortage of food veterinarians insome communities. After a deeper evaluation in collaboration with the AVMA, the economic viability seemsto be key words.

A second new committee has been created, Student Membership. This committee was created atthe suggestion from the Membership Committee. This committee’s recommendation to the Board ofDirectors was that it was time to designate a committee that would focus solely on student membership—

picking up on theseactivities alreadyestablished, and continueto look for ways to buildand enhance studentexperiences.

A last point ofdiscussion that interestedmyself was the use andcommercialization ofcompounding products.Some Board membersbrought this subject up atthe end of session. Itseems at some momentswe can find some of thoseproducts on farms. Ibrought this subject at theCanadian Association ofBovine Veterinarians. Itcould be interesting toevaluate this subject atdifferent levels: ethical,milk and meat quality, riskof adverse events, etcYou can also read thePresident’s message on thewebsitehttp://www.aabp.org/Next year the conventionwill be in Montréal. TheAMVPQ , bovine associa-tion in Québec, evaluatesa way to offer a discountto its members who willparticipate at theconvention.

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Veterinarian Recognition

At OABP’s November continuing education meeting, two awards were presented to very worthy recipients.

Dr. Henry Ceelen was presented the OABP Award of Excellence by Dr. David Douglas. Following are some excerptsfrom nomination letters received from Dr. Ken Leslie (OVC), Doug Raven (OVMA), Dr. Guy Boisclair, Gerrit Rietveld(OMAFRA), Todd Nixon (Producer), and Dr. Douglas as follows:

“I am writing this letter in support of the nomination of Dr. Henry Ceelen ofGrenville-Dundas Veterinary Clinic from Kemptville for the Ontario Associationof Bovine Practitioners Award of Excellence for 2011. I have known Dr. Ceelenfor more than 30 years. Over that period of time, I have had on-goingassociations and interactions with Henry, in a wide variety of circumstancesand professional capacities. In my opinion, Dr. Ceelen is an extremelydeserving candidate for this prestigious OABP award.

Dr. Ceelen is an outstanding dairy practitioner. He has taken a proactiveapproach to the many roles that are embodied in the concept of an award fordistinguished veterinary service. As a veterinary practitioner, Henry has aprofound knowledge-base concerning the medicine, surgery, pathobiology,basic sciences for the practice of veterinary medicine with dairy cattle.However, it is in his enthusiasm and aptitude for dairy health management programs that are particularly astute andnoteworthy. Dr. Ceelen enrolled in, and completed, the first University of Guelph, Dairy Health Management CertificateProgram to enhance his production medicine advisory skills at the herd level.

As an educator, Henry has an exemplary record of mentorship of younger practitioner colleagues and veterinarystudents that are striving to succeed in dairy practice. Dr. Ceelen is extremely encouraging, patient, and instructive inpassing on his knowledge and abilities to the next generation of veterinary practitioners.

As a scientific investigator, Dr. Ceelen has been a keen participant in numerous research endeavours and he has workedrelentlessly to improve continuing education programs for veterinary practitioners.”

“Henry represented OABP as an OVMA Board Member from 2005 to 2009. During that time, he also served on the OVMALarge Animal Issues Committee. Throughout his tenure, Henry not only effectively represented the interests of thebovine sector, he also routinely brought his vision and wisdom to bear on the wide array of issues facing theassociation. Always thoughtful in his contributions to the debate at hand, the leadership he demonstrated as a memberof the Board in no small way helped to shape the decisions which have made OVMA as successful as it is today.Henry was and is an outstanding member of the veterinary profession who has always given his all to the organizationsin which he has become involved and I cannot think of anyone more deserving of this award.”

“I have known Henry Ceelen as a veterinarian for more than 15 years. I had the chance to be a member with him onAdvisory Committees in the drug industry for major drug companies. In those years we were seated together as bovinepractitioners. He has always expressed very well balanced positions based on science and great knowledge of theOntario dairy industry. His statements have always been clear. Henry Ceelen showed leadership and also great brother-hood to colleagues at those different meetings. I also had the opportunity to take part in many continuing educationsessions driven by Henry Ceelen as President and as a member of the organizing committee. Those sessions havealways been at top level and profitable for the members. Henry Ceelen is an active member of the AABP and he assistedmany of their annual conventions. His interests keep his practice and producers at the top of the dairy business isgreatly beneficial to his producers, partners, and colleagues.”

“The Livestock Medicines Advisory Committee has enjoyed the pleasure of Dr. Hendrikus Ceelen’s expertise, knowledgeand leadership during his term as representative for the College of Veterinarians of Ontario and food animalpractitioners across the province from 1995 to the year 2000. During his term, Dr. Ceelen graciously accepted thenomination for ‘Chair’ and was appointed for 1998-2000. (Cont’d on next page…….)

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Veterinarian Recognition ( c o n t ’ d )

The membership of the committee, comprised of representation from across the agricultural spectrum, relied on hisdedication, unswerving guidance and organizational skills in leading the group. Dr. Ceelen gave unselfishly of histime committed to his work on this committee. As the meetings were held in Guelph, this required significantpreparation and travel time away from his practice in Eastern Ontario. The committee, led by Dr. Ceelen, wasinstrumental and fully supportive of the Livestock Medicines Education Certification Program for producers and madea key recommendation to the Minister to implement this valuable initiative during his time as Chair. This programwas well received by all participants, as well as the industry and is regarded as a cornerstone for Quality Assuranceprograms for the dairy industry, as well as poultry, swine, and beef to help ensure foods are safe to eat and of thehighest quality.”

“Dr. Ceelen has been our dairy herd veterinarian since I was a young boy. By example, he has taught me amethodical approach to problem solving, and assessing opportunities and risks for our dairy. He has been critical inshaping my goals and expectations for our herd’s performance and health. Dr. Ceelen strives for what is achievable,and does not limit himself or his clients to industry averages or benchmarks. He has always helped us to implementa reproductive program which captures every cow, and when our pregnancy rate drops below 25 percent he getsconcerned. Dr. Ceelen has played a key role in the design of our facilities as we have expanded the dairy herd. Heseizes these opportunities to make improvements for the well being of the herd, and thus the profitability of ourfarm. He was a crusader for sand bedding which all but eliminated our environmental mastitis problem and providesfor excellent cow comfort and longevity. During our next phase of expansion Dr. Ceelen helped to convince us toallow ample space in the close up dry cow, and fresh cow pens, which has nearly eliminated ketosis and theproblems associated with it. He identifies a problem or opportunity, and then investigates to a conclusion. He hasunwavering enthusiasm, and we are lucky to have practicing veterinarians of Dr. Ceelen’s calibre in the Ontario dairyindustry.”

“Since graduating from OVC in 1981 Henry has been instrumental in growing his practice in Kemptville ethically andprofessionally. He has been part of many veterinary organizations—CCVA, OVMA,OABP, and CABV. His voice is loudand clear, his opinions well thought out and for that he has gained the respect of fellow veterinarians in both largeand small animal medicine. Henry rises to challenges and does not accept less than perfection from himself. At thesame time he makes others around him better. I believe he is very deserving of the Award of Excellence.”

OABP received the following letter of thanks from Dr. Ceelen……

I want to express to all of you, how honoured I am to have received the OABP Award ofExcellence for 2011. Words cannot express (and I tried to find those words over the last few days) howhonoured I feel. It was even more special because a tremendous friend, colleague, and classmate Dr.Dave Douglas presented the award to me. I will cherish the award forever.

This OABP Fall Conference also marked the end of my tenure on the OABP Executive. I willdefinitely miss serving on the Executive. But, as always, it is in great hands. It is an outstandingorganization whose role has changed quite a bit from when I joined it seven years ago. Continuingeducation continues to be the key responsibility of the executive. Playing a key role in the evolution ofthe dairy and beef industries in Ontario, advocating for our profession and for the animals under our care,are becoming more prominent responsibilities. Our members are counting on the OABP Executive toprovide leadership. Thank you for your continued support of the OABP and all its efforts.

Finally, remind me to never play poker with any member of the current OABP Executive!

(Cont’d on next page…….)

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Dr. Bruce Robinson was presented the OABP Veterinary Service Award by Alec Martin. Following are someexcerpts from nomination letters received from Dr. Ken Leslie, Dr. Stephen LeBlanc, Dr. Elise Tatone, and AlecMartin as follows:

“I met Bruce almost seven years ago as an undergraduate student interestedin applying for veterinary college. Through mutual acquaintances, I arrangedto spend some time on the road with Dr. Robinson. From the first day that Ispent with him, I could tell that Dr. Robinson was a dedicated professionaland teacher. He is a man who obviously loves his job and cares a great dealfor his clients and his co-workers. Bruce’s enthusiasm and positive outlook isinfectious. I intended on pursuing a career in small animal medicine until Iwas introduced to the dairy industry during my time at Dundas AnimalHospital. Dr. Robinson is a great believer in giving back to the communityand to the future of bovine medicine. He has accommodated countlessstudent volunteers, externship, and VSTEP students. No one was as excitedas Bruce, when I entered veterinary college and opted to focus on foodanimal production and the dairy industry. As one of his externship students,I benefited from his vast knowledge and compassionate nature. Heencouraged me to pursue particular interests, as well as ensuring that I had a well-rounded experience. Throughoutfourth year as a Food Animal student, I continued to benefit in his desire to further education, as he requests manyof his producers to become involved in the donation of cases to OVC, especially during the food animal rotations.With the consent of his clients, Dr. Robinson requested in particular that donation surgeries are to be done by thefourth year student to the case. Dr. Robinson is more than deserving of this award. He has devoted his career andmuch of his time to helping others and providing excellent service to his clients.”

“Since its creation in 2005, the Veterinary Skills, Training & Enhancement Program (VSTEP) has provided instructionto over 170 international veterinary graduates in their efforts to become licensed fully contributing members of theveterinary profession. Dr. Robinson has been an integral part of our program for this entire period in his role as ahost bovine field placement practitioner. Dr. Robinson has also assisted international veterinary graduates outside ofthe VSTEP and he consistently receives accolades from all who attend his practice and benefit from his skilledmentorship. As a demonstration of support for those he mentors, Dr. Robinson regularly attends the VSTEPgraduation ceremonies held each year in November. His scheduling flexibility makes our job of assigning VSTEPparticipants a bovine field placement a breeze. He recognizes the learning requirements of our participants andprovides numerous practical opportunities for them.”

“Dr. Robinson’s support for the final year DVM Food Animal Medicine and Surgery rotation has been particularlynoteworthy, and is central to this aspect of this nomination. This rotation was started in 2004 to enhance thehands-on medical knowledge and skills of students in the food animal stream, primarily through cases donated tothe teaching hospital. By far, Bruce has been the leading contributor of referrals and donations to this rotation everyyear since its inception. It is no exaggeration to say that the rotation would not have functioned most years withouthis contributions. It is clear that he consistently goes out of his way to find case material and encourage andarrange for his clients to make appropriate donations of animals in support of the rotation. This ongoing effort tosupport the next generation of bovine practitioners is worthy of grateful recognition by our association.”

“It is absolutely astounding to consider the number of individuals, and the overall level of impact, that Dr. Robinsonhas imparted to students and to future colleagues, as well as through them to the general public. Bruce has used hisprofound knowledge and understanding of the broad range of disciplines encompassed in veterinary practice tofacilitate this assistance. In brief, Bruce has an exemplary record of mentorship for veterinary students and youngpractitioners, who are striving to succeed in veterinary practice.”

Congratulations to Henry and Bruce for this well-deserved recognition!

Veterinarian Recognition ( c o n t ’ d )

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BOVINE EDUCATION TRUST (bet)

The Bovine Education Trust (BET) exists to provide funding of enhanced learning activitiesfor OVC students interested in bovine veterinary medicine and to contribute to the training ofveterinarians to serve rural communities. Application for funding for the BET elective stipend isopen to Phase 3 veterinary students preparing for their final year. The BET will fund students upto a maximum of $1,000 per student. The amount awarded in a given year will be dependent onavailable funds and the quality of applications. This year, four student received funding and thefollowing is a brief summary of the recipients’ elective opportunities.

First of all I would like to thank the OABP and all involved for awarding me this scholarship. As a result ofreceiving the award, I was able to travel abroad and gained valuable experience in the bovine field that was not availableto me here in Canada.

I was able to participate in a 2 week rotation at the New Sweden Dairy in St. Peter, Minnesota where they milk3000 cows and house over 20000 cows over two facilities. While there I was able to participate in fresh cow checkslearning about common diseases and their presentations as I will see them in practise. Due to the large number of milkingcows here, I was allowed the opportunity to practise my surgical skills as well. During my 2 weeks on the dairy I performedtwo LDA surgeries and repaired an umbilical hernia under the guidance of the staff veterinarian. I believe that although itwill be unlikely I ever work with a dairy on such a large scale, the skills I was able to learn while there will be applicable tomy future career.

The second opportunity I was able to participate in was a 2 week rotation to Green Meadows Dairy in Elsie,Michigan. Like Minnesota, this was an extremely large dairy milking 3200 cows. Responsibilities I undertook whileworking there were; fresh cow checks, treatment of sick cows, and I was allowed the opportunity to perfect my surgicaltechniques. By the end of the second week I was able to perform common procedures that you will see in practise; likepulling calves, LDA surgeries, and trimming hooves without any assistance from the facilities veterinarians. While there Iwas also allowed to gain more experience in performing pregnancy checks and aging pregnancies, a skill I was lacking afterI had finished my externship.

Thank you again Bovine Education Trust Award community. The knowledge and experience I was able to gain onmy external rotations will allow me to graduate with the confidence needed to begin a long career in food animal medicine.

Sincerely,Cory Farrell, OVC Class of 2012

Thank-you to the Bovine Education Trust for providing this funding to help with the costs associated withexternal electives! I used the funds to attend the Cornell Milk Quality Elective in Ithaca, New York. The rotation wascomposed of lectures, laboratory work (microbiology and Dairy Comp 305), farm visits and presentations. A majorcomponent of this rotation was completing a milk quality work-up for a large herd, where we used farm visits to evaluatethe milking equipment, the parlour routine, teat ends, etc., in addition to Dairy Comp 305 data. I enjoyed this rotationtremendously, and felt like I gained some excellent experiences, insight, and knowledge from it. Thanks again!

Sincerely,Brett Gamble

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BOVINE EDUCATION TRUST ( c o n t ’ d )

I would like to thank everyone involved with the Bovine Education Trust for supporting a program which helpsstudents get the most out of our education. Unfortunately, many of the great experiences offered to students do require somefinancial investment which can make attendance difficult without financial aid of some kind. The Bovine Education Trustprovided me with experiences which were very beneficial to my continuing education in bovine veterinary medicineincluding the 2011 AABP Conference in St. Louis and the externship program offered at Green Meadows Dairy in Elsie,Michigan. Both of these opportunities contributed greatly to my knowledge and skill set as a future bovine practitioner andI would like to thank everyone involved for all of their hard work which made them possible. Thanks again to the BovineEducation Trust for your support in my endeavours to become a knowledgeable and skilled bovine practitioner.

Sincerely, Robyn Thompson

The Bovine Education Trust funds helped out greatly in my pursuit of bovine experience. I used the funds toparticipate in the Dairy On-Farm Clinical Rotation at the New Sweden Dairy in St Peter, Minnesota.

At this facility they house over 4000 milking cows as well as their dry cows and each day approximately 20 calvesare born. With so many animals on farm there was always something to do and animals to treat. My main goal for thisrotation was to become more comfortable working around cows, and over the 2 weeks at New Sweden Dairy I was able toobtain this goal. I was also able to greatly improve my technical skills and see many of the common presentations of themost important diseases of the dairy animal. I believe this will help me greatly in the future by allowing me to be able toidentify these important diseases when I am out in practice. In addition to the medical cases I saw, I also performedmultiple surgeries and participated in multiple labs and discussions about common bovine diseases. This helped me link theclinical presentations I had seen to the pathogenesis of the diseases we were discussing. The whole experience at The NewSweden Dairy increased my knowledge and technical ability greatly and helped me prepare for my fourth year rotations atOVC and hopefully my career as well.

Sincerely, Nadya Van Dyke, OVC 2012

Ontario Livestock & Poultry council (OLPC) UPDATE

Mass Carcass Disposal Planning Resources for Municipalities—OLPC was successful in receivingapproval under the Agricultural Biosecurity Program for $19,000 in funding to support a project todevelop Mass Carcass Disposal Planning Resources for use by Ontario municipalities. We will be usingmaterials produced by Alberta Agriculture as a template to produce a guide and workbook which will beused in the next phase of our outreach activities with municipalities. The goal is for the municipalities toassess their options for mass carcass disposal: consider where suitable sites might be within theirboundaries (from a hydrogeological and land use standpoint); what resources they would require in termsof equipment and biosecurity; and consider disposal options other than burial.

Biosecurity Education and Awareness Project—As reported in our last newsletter, OMAFRAapproached OLPC regarding the delivery of a project to create tools which would heighten awareness andincrease knowledge across livestock and crop sectors. Two industry input groups have been struck, onefor livestock and one for plants. These groups will be holding their first meetings in late October. TheCFIA National Farm-Level Biosecurity Planning Guides for plants and livestock are the basis from whichthe Ontario resources will be developed.

CONTACT INFORMATION:

Address: OABPc/o Ruth Cudmore71 Princess StreetElora, Ontario, N0B 1S0

Phone: 519-846-2290Fax: 519-846-8165Email: oabpruth@bell.net

Promoting bovine medicine for theVeterinary Practitioners of Ontario

ONTARIO ASSOCIATION OFBOVINE PRACTITIONERS

We’re on the Web!

www.oabp.ca

P A G E 18

January 19 to 21, 2012 Western Canadian Association of Bovine Practitioners Annual Conference,Calgary, AB. Email: info@wcabp.com or Website: www.wcabp.com

January 22 to 24 National Mastitis Council Annual Meeting, St. Pete Beach, Floridawww.nmconline.org/meetings.html

January 26 to 28 Ontario Veterinary Medical Association Conference and Trade Show,Westin Harbour Castle, Toronto www.ovma.org

April 17 & 18 OABP/OABA Spring Continuing Education Meeting, Holiday Inn, Guelphwww.oabp.ca

May 7 to 9 Global Development Symposium—Critical Links Between Human and AnimalHealth, University of Guelph. www.gds2012.ca

June 3 to 8 XXVII World Buiatrics Congress, Lisboa Congress Centre, Lisbon, Portugalwbc-2012.com/index.php/en_US/home

UPComing events

The Dairyland initiative

Over recent years, anyone intimately associated withanimal agriculture will be aware of growing consumer concernover the well-being of the animals producing our food. Amongthese concerns is the issue of housing, and the disease andinjuries associated with it.

The Dairyland Initiative’s main goal is to incorporate asmany research supported biological standards as possible toenhance the current engineering practices while producing afacility that is both economically viable and welfare friendly. Inaddition, we aim to: Accommodate cows and calves in groups which are socially

stable over time, and manage groups to minimizemovements between them;

Wherever possible provide exposure to natural light andventilation, but to utilize mechanical assistance whereneeded;

Provide a comfortable place to rest for a target period of 12h/d for both lame and non-lame cows which is designed tomeet the space requirement of the animal, and not inhibitrising or lying movements;

Provide enough feed and water space for each animal tooptimize metabolic health;

Design barn layouts that do not result in undue time out of the pen and minimize trauma to the cows' feet; Minimize morbidity and mortality rates.

For more information, visit the website at http://thedairylandinitiative.vetmed.wisc.edu/index.htm