WormsAndGermsPod

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**WormsAndGermsPod**

Our take on infectious diseases in animals, from our old nemeses to emerging diseases, with a focus on infectious diseases in pets, spread of disease between people and animals, and whatever else in the infectious disease realm seems interesting,
Brought to you by WormsAndGermsBlog.com, an infectious disease blog coordinated at the Ontario Veterinary College, University of Guelph, Canada.

Latest Episodes:

Half dose vaccination in dogs Jun 18, 2025

Show notes

Big dog, small dog, same vaccine.

Does that make sense?

Can we, and should we, use smaller doses of vaccines in smaller dogs?

How does that impact the immune response and adverse event risk?

Like a lot of things in veterinary medicine, data are sparse, but this podcast reviews what we know, and don't know, about half dose vaccines in dogs.

Flu antivirals: should we use them in animals Apr 10, 2025

Show notes

As H5N1 influenza continues to cause havoc across the world, there's continued spillover of this virus in domestic mammals. While antivirals aren't used much for influenza in animals, they might be effective in some situations.

However, should we use them?

What's the benefit and what are the potential resistance concerns?

This podcast dives into issues regarding antiviral use in animals, with thoughts about if/when/how to use them.

H5N1 influenza and raw pet food Feb 11, 2025

Show notes

As H5N1 continues its unprecedented march through wild and domestic animals, recent infections of cats have highlights concerns about risks to dogs and cats from raw diets. This quick podcast outlines the main issues and prevention measures related to H5N1 exposure from raw diets.

H5N1 influenza testing in dogs and cats Dec 27, 2024

Show notes

As H5N1 avian influenza continues to spread, we are seeing more issues with spillover into companion animals. This episode provides some thoughts about when, why and how to test dogs and cats for this virus. It's not as straightforward as you might think.
A companion podcast to a post on WormsAndGermsBlog: https://www.wormsandgermsblog.com/2024/12/articles/animals/cats/h5n1-testing-in-dogs-and-cats-who-when-why-how/

Do changes in antibiotic use in animals lead to changes in resistance in humans? Nov 21, 2024

Show notes

Do changes in antibiotic use in animals lead to changes in resistance in people? It's a bit of yes, no, maybe situation because it's complicated. However, there are some good data showing that what we do in animals can affect resistance in humans.
We dug into the archives for this interesting and still highly relevant 2010 paper (see link below) about changes in the use of ceftiofur in chickens and 3rd generation cephalosporin resistance in Salmonella from people.
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC2874360/

Using antibiotics in animals for growth promotion Nov 20, 2024

Show notes

Our World AMR Awareness Week series continues with Dr. Weese talking about the issues around use of antibiotics in animals for growth promotion.
Here's the link to he World Organization for Animal Health's ANIMUSE program that was mentioned: https://amu.woah.org/amu-system-portal/home

Antimicrobial prophylaxis in animals...it's messy Nov 19, 2024

Show notes

Part 2 of our World AMR Awareness Week series covers the controversial issue of antimicrobial prophylaxis in animals.
Should we use antibiotics in healthy animals to prevent disease?
No...except when we need to.
It's not a black and white issue....there's a lot of grey in between and understanding that great area is important. This pod tries to explain some of those issues and nuances.

Antimicrobial dogmas, misconceptions and barriers Nov 18, 2024

Show notes

As part of World AMR (Antimicrobial Resistance) Awareness Week (WAAW), Dr. Scott Weese outlines some dogmas, misconceptions and barriers that are commonly encountered in antimicrobial treatment of companion animals (and beyond).

Mission Rabies Oct 31, 2024

Show notes

Andy Gibson and Ian Battersby from Mission Rabies join Scott Weese to talk about canine rabies and Mission Rabies's international efforts to control this virus, that kills ~59,000 people a year.
To learn more about Mission Rabies, check out http://www.missionrabies.com
The Nature Communications paper about Mission Rabies' work in Goa, India that was discussed can be found here: https://www.nature.com/articles/s41467-022-30371-y

Tick talk Oct 07, 2024

Show notes

Dr. Katie Clow joins Scott Weese for a talk about ticks and tick borne diseases in companion animals.
Resources mentioned in the podcast:
Ontario risk map: https://www.publichealthontario.ca/-/media/Documents/O/24/ontario-blacklegged-tick-established-risk-areas-2024.pdf?rev=d7dafd390245466483d51e910f02c882&sc_lang=en
eTick: eTick.ca
AEROH lab: https://aeroh.uoguelph.ca/

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