World Veterinary Year
By Katie Burns
Source:
 December 1, 2011
The only veterinarian to win a Nobel Prize, Dr. Peter C. Doherty was a state veterinary officer in Australia before embarking on a career in immunology research.
In his book "The Beginner's Guide to Winning the Nobel Prize" and in a recent interview with JAVMA News, Dr. Doherty described his experience with, and the global importance of, scientific discovery.
The Nobel Foundation awarded its 1996 prize in physiology or medicine to Dr. Doherty and Rolf M. Zinkernagel, MD, of Switzerland for their discovery in the early '70s of how T cells recognize virus-infected cells by looking for variants in certain molecules—histocompatibility antigens—on the surface of infected cells.
Since 1988, Dr. Doherty had been a member of the Department of Immunology at St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis. He now spends most of the year at home in Australia as a professor in the Department of Microbiology and Immunology at the University of Melbourne Faculty of Medicine, Dentistry, and Health Sciences, and he devotes much of his time to writing books about science for a lay audience.
"Life at its best is an adventure, a voyage of discovery," Dr. Doherty wrote in "The Beginner's Guide." "What could be more gratifying than to discover, describe, and explain some basic principle that no human being has ever understood before? This is the stuff of true science. Those societies that foster and harness that passion will be the prosperous, knowledge-based economies of the future."
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Caring for animals: healthy communities
Cape Town, South Africa, 10-14 October
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Pakistan Veterinary Medical Association & Pakistan Veterinary Medical Council
Source: Livestock & Poultry Informations Network
 Since times immemorial animal doctors have always existed and Veterinary Medicine evolved much earlier than Human Medicine. During the middle ages however, the evolutionary process suffered somewhat since the Roman Farrarius (black-smiths) who shod horses, became popular and also indulged in the art of diagnosis and treatment of diseases. Being a sheer quackery, the development on scientific lines remained dormant till the great plague (rinderpest) of 18th century turned the corners and Veterinary Science was revitalized as a branch of Medical sciences which dealt with prevention and cure of ill-health of all living creatures except the Man. Thus the range of clientele of a Veterinarian is quite expansive, and extends from domestic to wild; large to small; pets; zoo and laboratory animals; reptiles; rodents; sea dwellers like Fish, dolphins, Whales, Turtles, etc, etc. Pakistan has been blessed by the munificence of Almighty with an all-embracing bio-diversity that includes rare heritage like the Blind Dolphin of Indus and Green turtle of Arabian sea which is rarely found anywhere else in the world.
Dawda Jawara brought stability to Gambia for 30-plus years
By Malinda Larkin
Source:
September 1, 2011
Sir Dawda Kairaba Jawara expected to spend his life after college doing what he loved—being a veterinarian.
"There's not a cow in Gambia that doesn't know me personally," he once said.
But fate had a different plan for him.
Convinced that Gambia should become independent of British rule, he abandoned his profession in 1960 to enter politics. This move eventually led to him becoming the nation's first president. Until a military coup in 1994, this veterinary surgeon brought years of stable democracy to Africa's smallest mainland republic.
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Report by Dr. Waseem Shaukat DVM (UVAS), RVMP
Source:
In continuation of grand celebrations of the World Veterinary Year 2011, Vets Care Organization Pakistan and the Vets Care Club IUB organized a "Free Rabies Vaccination Camp" on 15th August 2011 at Civil Veterinary Hospital Sadiqabad, District Rahim Yar Khan. The objective of the camp was to protect companion animals from rabies by vaccinating them. The camp was properly advertised through newspaper, cable network, banners and posters, mobile calls to pet owners and personal visits with pet owners for attracting the public to get benefited of this.
Volunteers vaccinating the stray animals
It is worth-mentioning that Rabies is a fatal viral disease that is usually transmitted by the bite of an infected animal. Rabies is not only lethal for the animals but is also threat for human lives due to its zoonotic aspect. Statistics shows that one person dies from rabies after every ten minutes in the world. Therefore, keeping dog and cat as a pet is a constant threat of rabies to whole family. Every year 55,000 cases of rabies are reported throughout the world, most of them are children. Prevention from this disease can be ensured by vaccination only. However, in small cities pet owners often lack the awareness and do not get their animals vaccinated. Moreover, stray dogs increase the risk of carrying and spreading this fatal disease. In order to prevent human communities from Rabies, usually the local governments initiate the campaigns to kill stray dogs which lead into the cruel and inhumane death of these animals. Taking notice of this alarming condition, Vets Care Organization Pakistan decided to launch rabies vaccination campaign to help in saving the lives of animals as well as humans.
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 The House of Commons has officially recognised 2011 as World Veterinary Year in an Early Day Motion (EDM) sponsored by Neil Parish MP, chair of the Associate Parliamentary Group for Animal Welfare (APGAW).
The EDM, which MPs will be encouraged to sign, also recognises the key role of vets across public health, animal health and welfare, food security and calls on the Government to deliver policies which complement the work of practitioners and enable and inspire future generations of veterinary students.
The motion notes the roles of both the British Veterinary Association (BVA) and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS).
Commenting, Harvey Locke, President of the BVA, said:
“We are a small profession but our impact is enormous and I am delighted that this is being recognised by Members of Parliament.
“As we mark 250 years of the profession it is important to note that the vision upon which it was founded – that of science-based veterinary medicine that recognises the links between human and animal pathology – is still strong today.
“Vet 2011 gives us the opportunity to celebrate our achievements from the extraordinary eradication of rinderpest to the everyday high-quality service delivered to clients.”
Dr Jerry Davies, President of the RCVS, added:
“The veterinary profession plays a vital and wide-reaching role in society, ranging from safeguarding the health and welfare of companion animals and livestock to protecting public health and ensuring the safety of the food we eat. The RCVS commends Members of Parliament in highlighting the important, and often unrecognised, contribution that veterinary surgeons make to our everyday lives.
“This year marks an important milestone for the profession and is an occasion to celebrate everything that has been achieved over the last 250 years. The year also provides an opportunity to reflect upon the regulation of veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses, and how animal health and welfare may best be protected in the future.”
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Public Awareness:
The following activities were carried out to sensitize the public about the celebrations.
• Health hints for 15mins in English and Hausa on RIMA Radio, Sokoto on Rabies.
• Gariyawaye, a 1hr program in Hausa on RIMA Radio, Sokoto on Veterinary Medicine.
• Announcement on RIMA radio and RIMA television, Sokoto.
• Spot light on Veterinary Profession for 30 mins on Nigerian Television Authority (NTA)
• Sokoto.
• Documentary on Veterinary Profession and Animal welfare for 5 mins on NTA AM express
• (International and Network i.e. National news).
• News report on the celebration by NTA Sokoto.
• News report on the celebration by NTA (Network).
• News report on the celebration by Federal Radio Co-operation of Nigeria.
• News report on RIMA television, Sokoto.
• News report on the celebration by print media.
Opening Ceremony:
The opening ceremony took place at the Auditorium of Sokoto State Polytechnic and was chaired by Dr. M. S. Ahmed, Executive Director, National Veterinary Research Institute (NVRI) Vom while Professor J. U. Umoh of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria gave a Guest lecture on the theme ‘’250 Years of Modern Veterinary Medicine: Reflections on the contributions of Veterinary Sciences to human life’’. He outlined the contributions the profession has made in the area of public health, security, Millennium Development Goals (MDG) and surgery.
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Release of a biography of Claude Bourgelat, founder of the veterinary profession and the inventor of Comparative Pathobiology
 
On August 4, 1761, by order of the Council of King Louis XV, was founded in Lyon (Rhône), the first veterinary school in the world. A few years later, that of Alfort (near Paris) opened its doors. Both gave birth later, in "School girls" throughout the world.
Claude Bourgelat, the founder of these schools was, among other things, Cadet of the musketeers of the King, lawyer, esquire, encyclopedia, commissioner of the stud inspector ... Lyonnais, before taking on the responsibilities of director and inspector general of Royal veterinary schools.
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Waseem Shaukat, DVM (UVAS), RVMP (Pak), Pakistan
As this year is being celebrated as World Veterinary Year all around the globe, so in connection to the Celebrations of this year Vets Care organization Pakistan and Vets Care Club, UVAS arranged a grand Photographic Competition at Conference Hall, University of Veterinary & Animal Sciences Lahore on 30th of May 2011 to pay tribute the 250 years services of the veterinary Profession. The competition was inaugurated by Dean Faculty of Veterinary Sciences, Prof. Dr. Nasim Ahmad together with President Vets Care Organization Pakistan Dr. Mohsin Ali Bhatti and Director Institute of Continuing Education & Extension Dr. Aneela Zameer Durrani.
Large number of students of Veterinary education and other disciplines (including Environmental Sciences, Microbiology, Pharmacy, Bioinformatics and bio technology etc) submitted their pictures out of which 82 pictures were selected to participate in the final competition against two categories i.e. “Role of Vets in the Society” and “Animals Matters to me”.
 It was just one of the winning pictures of the photographic competition ‘'Vets in Your Daily Life’.
Click here to see the winning pictures of the DG Sanco/OIE photographic competition.
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