King’s birthday weekend
All of our laboratories will be closed on Monday 3 June for the King’s birthday public holiday. Our laboratories will be open normal operating hours on Saturday.Enjoy the long weekend!
When is a swab more than a swab?
Geoff OrbellSometimes knowing which gel swab to use for a given sample type or pathogen can be confusing. ESwab® are quickly becoming popular in veterinary medicine as they are extremely versatile and can be used for a variety of cultures including:· Aerobic and anaerobic culture· Fastidious bacteria e.g. Nocardia sp., rapidly growing Mycobacteria and Chlamydiaceae· Gram stains· Fungal culture, […]
Exotic visitors
Sunao FujitaClinical historyAn 18-month-old, spayed, American Staffordshire Terrier recently presented at the veterinarian for lethargy and inappetence. Pale mucous membranes and pyrexia (39.9°C) were observed on physical examination. In-house CBC and chemistry revealed marked anaemia and mild hyperbilirubinemia, respectively. An EDTA sample was sent to Awanui Veterinary for a full CBC including blood film examination.Laboratory […]
Sheep poo required
Beef+Lamb NZ – Facial Eczema Three-Year Research StudyFacial Eczema (FE) costs the New Zealand economy a staggering $332 million dollars a year and is a challenge farmers are facing across the country.B+LNZ, along with our partners, are working to produce new solutions to tackle this devastating disease, but we need your help. It is easy […]
ANZAC day
All of our laboratories will be closed on Thursday, 25 April for ANZAC day.Lest we forget.
A potential ‘dermergency’
Michael HardcastleIt has been said that “dogs never die from skin disease, but only itch forever”, however there are a few dermatological conditions that are linked to serious systemic lesions. One of them is a rare syndrome seen exclusively in Miniature Schnauzers, a case of which was recently suspected at Awanui Veterinary, Auckland.Clinical historyThe patient […]
Unstained melody
Sandy WeltanClinical historyA 10-year-old male, neutered, Turkish Angora cat presented with a soft but uneven textured lobulated subcutaneous mass on the rump. There was a history of a cat fight. Fine needle aspirates were submitted for evaluation.Laboratory findings:On initial examination on low power (Figure 1) it looked like a mesenchymal tumour, but what are the […]
Autumn essentials
Liver and serum sampling in the autumn, or at drying off, provides an opportunity to ensure herd trace element levels are appropriate heading into winter.The testing options below focus on the essential autumn trace elements – copper and selenium – but you can add to these or change them using other trace element tests available […]
Pathologist spotlight
We are very excited to recently have two fabulous new pathologists join our team. Let us introduce you to Wilson Karalus and Sandra Bulla.Wilson Karalus graduated from Massey University in 2013 and spent the first three years of his career in dairy practice in Canterbury. He then moved to Portland Oregon, USA and worked as […]
When big isn’t better
Lisa Hulme-MoirAlthough we only receive small numbers of cytology submissions from cattle, cytology can be a very useful tool for narrowing your differential list and helping determine an appropriate course of action, particularly if the lesion is unusual. The following is an example of a case where cytology enabled a diagnosis to be reached.Clinical historyThe […]