NEWStat AAHA

Hypernatremia can occur in cats and dogs from a variety of causes, and treatment can be challenging. While hypernatremia can happen at any time of year, summer activities like a day at the beach or poolside can put dogs at increased risk for this condition. When a dog or cat present with hypernatremia, care must be taken to restore the proper balance of sodium in the bloodstream to avoid life-threatening cerebral edema, but treatment approaches are dictated by acute vs. chronic onset.

The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) Animal Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS) has halted the exportation of dogs and multiple other species to Mexico for an indeterminate period of time effective immediately. This comes after the USDA  announced on June 3, 2026, that Cochliomyia hominivorax or New World screwworm (NWS) larvae had been detected in the United States. A three-week-old calf in Zavala County, Texas, was found to have NWS larvae in its umbilical area.

Sponsored Content by MWI Animal Health Veterinary practices are being asked to do more with less—deliver exceptional care, maintain strong client relationships, and manage growing caseloads, often with limited staff. Technology should be part of the answer, but when practices cobble together disconnected systems, it can create more problems than it solves.

The idea behind First Responders’ Veterinary Network (FRVN) is simple yet profound: when animals are involved in a traffic accident or fire, deploy veterinarians to the scene like firefighters, police officers and other first responders. FRVN is the brainchild of Leigh J. Mack, MD, PhD, a clinical research physician and volunteer emergency medical technician and firefighter with the Blue Grass Fire Department in Scott County, Iowa.

Veterinary medicine has long centered on healing, curing, and extending life. Yet, in recent decades, a profound shift has occurred, one that reframes the final stage of life not as failure, but as an equally important opportunity for care. The rise of veterinary hospice and palliative care represents both a return to the profession’s roots and an evolution toward a more holistic model of care. Where did veterinary hospice originate?

There’s a version of this conversation happening mostly between people who aren’t in vet school right now. School deans, practice owners, conference speakers, and others in vet med are debating what artificial intelligence (AI) means for the profession, whether students are using it too much, and whether it undermines learning. And somewhere in there are the actual students—the ones about to graduate into this thing—who seldom, if ever, get asked for their thoughts.

Sponsored Content by Scratch Financial As practices face increasing pressure to maintain profitability without compromising the high standard of care their patients deserve, many are turning to innovative financial strategies. One such strategy gaining significant traction is credit card surcharging—a method of passing processing fees directly to the clients who choose to use credit cards.

In February 2026, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott issued a disaster declaration citing serious concerns for northern spread of the New World Screwworm (NWS) fly from Mexico and Central America. NWS was originally eradicated from the United States using a sterile fly technique in 1966 but the threat of re-emergence is growing as this pest spreads upward, nearing the Texas border. Currently, active NWS cases are still about 200 miles from the Texas-Mexico border.

The Canine Cognitive Dysfunction Syndrome Working Group recently published their guidelines for the diagnosis and monitoring of canine cognitive dysfunction syndrome (CCDS) in JAVMA. These are the first such guidelines on the topic, and they were created through the work of an international panel of CCDS experts. In the guidelines, the working group defined CCDS and described some of the ways in which the syndrome can affect dogs’ quality of life.

Veterinarians—and all the other members of the veterinary team—are often drawn to the field because of their caring nature. For many professionals in the field, the instinct to help doesn’t end when they leave the clinic, and many look for meaningful ways to share their expertise outside of work. The challenge is not finding a project. Volunteer opportunities are abundant. The challenge is finding the right project, one that energizes you rather than depletes you.