HVMA Updates

2024 Annual Business Meeting Notice

Our HVMA Hui annual business meeting will be held on Saturday Nov 9, 2024 at 12pm at the Hawaii Convention Center Room 325. Conference registration is not required to attend the meeting.

We will be voting on several bylaws changes, detailed below:

1. ARTICLE III, Section 2a.

Current:
Location – Each county shall be entitled to a Representative on the Executive Board in accordance with the number of Active Members within that County using the following formula:
1-25 Active Members-One Representative
26-50 Active Members-Two Representatives
51-75 Active Members-Three Representatives
Up to a maximum of four Representatives per County.

Proposed Amendment:
Location – Each county shall be entitled to representation on the Executive Board in accordance with the number of Active Members within that County using the following formula:
1-50 Active Members – Up to two representatives
51-75 Active Members – Up to three representatives
Over 75 Active Members – Up to four representatives
No more than four Representatives will be allowed per County.

2. Section 2(f): Change “serving in Hawaii by the U.S. Army” to “serving in Hawaii by the U.S. Armed forces”

3. Article II, Section 2(c) Reword/reformat for clarity.

Current:
Section 2. Election
a. All elections shall be conducted by written ballot unless there is only one nominee for an office in which case the Active Members registered and voting may instruct the Secretary to cast a unanimous ballot for the nominee.
b. To be elected, a nominee must receive a majority of the votes cast.
c. Shall be appointed by the Executive Board.

Proposed:
Section 2. Election
All elections shall be conducted by written or electronic ballot unless there is only one nominee for an office in which case the Active Members registered and voting may instruct the Secretary to cast a unanimous ballot for the nominee. To be elected, a nominee must receive a majority of the votes cast.

4. Article III, Section 3. Reformat for clarity and consistency with remainder of document

Current:
The Executive Board shall hold six regular meetings during the period between the Annual Meetings of the Association. These meetings shall be as follows:
1st – immediately following the Annual Meeting
Meetings 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th, to be held every other month after the Annual Meeting, i.e. January, March, May, July, and September.
6th – immediately preceding the Annual Meeting

Proposed:
The Executive Board shall hold six regular meetings during the period between the Annual Meetings of the Association. These meetings shall be as follows:
a. 1st – within 45 days following the Annual Meeting
b. 2nd, 3rd, 4th, and 5th – to be held every other month after the Annual Meeting, e.g. January, March, May, July, and September.
c. 6th – within 45 days preceding the Annual Meeting

5. Article V, Section 4. Notice; Reword for consistency with electronic communication allowed in rest of bylaws.

Current:
A written or printed notice stating the place, day, and hour of the annual meeting shall be mailed not less than thirty days before the meeting to each member of the Association.

Proposed:
At least thirty days prior to the meeting, uniform written notice, including electronic communication, shall be transmitted to all current members stating the place, day, and time of the annual meeting.

Additionally, this year we will be holding board position elections for the following positions (current nominees below):

President Elect – Alfred Mina
Vice President – Malia Lyons
Secretary – Jamie Furutani
Treasurer – Caren Tamura-Taira
Executive Vice President – Jill Yoshicedo
Kauai Delegate – Melissa Shaw
Oahu Delegate – Gabrielle Asay, Heidi Choy, Erika Sox

Nominations may also be made from the floor during the business meeting.
If you are interested in serving on the HVMA board or nominating a colleague, please email nominating_committee@hawaiivetmed.org.

Letter from the President – April 2024

Aloha everyone! I hope you are all content and well this Spring! The 2023 Honesty and Ethics Gallup Poll was recently published, and I was pleased to see that veterinarians hold the 2nd highest approval rating amongst professionals. This is in part due to the perception the public has that veterinarians are compassionate and dedicated to helping animals and their owners. The Pet Expo is a perfect example of this, so please volunteer a few hours of your time to support this free public event!

HVMA has been closely watching the Non-Veterinary Surgical Bills (SB 2562 and HB 1527). The current House and Senate versions are slightly different and will go back to committee for final revisions prior to approval. We are lucky to have Senator Tim Richards, DVM in the State Legislature, and he will advocate for the best language to close the current loophole allowing owners to perform surgery on their animals, whilst allowing livestock producers to continue to perform customary husbandry procedures.

Dairy cattle in Texas, Kansas, Michigan, New Mexico, Ohio, Idaho, North Carolina, and South Dakota have been found to be infected with avian influenza virus Type A H5N1. This is the same virus that causes Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza in birds; however, the disease in cattle is not characterized by high morbidity and mortality. It is important to note that pasteurization of milk kills pathogens in milk, including the influenza virus, so there is no threat to human health from milk and dairy products. This virus has not been detected in Hawaii, but farms containing multiple species such as poultry, swine, or cattle should continue to strengthen their biosecurity programs to prevent the introduction or spread of disease. The Center for Food Security and Public Health has excellent resources for developing a biosecurity program for various species.

See you at the Pet Expo!

Jenee Odani, DVM, DACVP
HVMA President

Pet Expo 2024

HVMA’s Pet Expo 2024 will be held on May 4-5, 2024 from 10am-4pm each day at the Neal Blaisdell Center in Honolulu, Hawaii. Join us for a wide range of informative booths and pet merchandise, keiki crafts, contests, and more! Please bring a few canned goods for donation to the Hawaii Food Bank in lieu of an admission fee.

To register as a vendor for the event, please call 808-845-1762 or send an email.

Canine Influenza Detected in Hawaii

We wanted to alert our membership that canine influenza (H3N2) was detected on Oahu in four dogs from three families at two separate clinics. All affected dogs had been recently boarded at a single facility. Canine influenza virus can cause respiratory disease in dogs that can resemble kennel cough. Less commonly, more severe illness can be observed, especially in dogs that have an underlying health condition.

At this time, there does not seem to be any known spread to other dogs in the local community. Transmission of H3N2 canine influenza virus from dogs to cats has been reported in other outbreaks. To date, there is no evidence that transmission to humans can occur.

Veterinary clinics should take precautions to avoid transmission of the virus between dogs. The AVMA recommends that dogs with clinical signs suggestive of respiratory disease be separated from other dogs. This includes the waiting area, facility entrance/exit, examination/treatment area, and hospitalization ward. Personnel should wear personal protective equipment and disinfect the facility and potential fomites with an appropriate disinfectant. Many commonly used disinfectants are effective against influenza viruses. The EPA maintains a list of products that are registered for use against influenza viruses.

The best test to diagnose acute clinical infections is the PCR test on deep nasal (preferred) or pharyngeal swabs. Viral shedding peaks early in the infection, so the test is of highest value within the first 1-2 days of the onset of clinical signs. Avoid using cotton-tipped wood shaft swabs for sample collection because those materials may inhibit the PCR reaction. Please check with the laboratory ahead of time for their preferred storage tubes; in general, avoid using tubes with additives or gel media.

If you know of any confirmed cases, please contact Hawaii Department of Agriculture at hdoa.vls@hawaii.gov. HVMA leadership is monitoring the situation and can be reached at: public_relations@hawaiivetmed.org. There is also a private Facebook page for HVMA members (veterinarians only) and a specific chat thread to discuss this topic. The Center for Food Security and Public Health has an excellent review of canine influenza. The AVMA and the CDC also have good information available on their websites.

Update on Maui Wildfire Response

August 14, 2023

Remember that disaster response is a marathon, not a sprint. Here is an update communicated to us by the team working under Maui Humane Society (MHS).

Due to the severity of the fire and limited access following the event due to safety concerns, there were not nearly the amount of burn survivors as was anticipated. Most likely, those that could be saved have already been rescued, though the field teams are still looking. Thankfully many people were able to evacuate with their pets.

The next phase will include long term community outreach for those who are now living in Lahaina, Napili, and Kapalua, as they no longer have vets on the west side of the island. MHS is leading this effort. They and other nonprofit organizations will have mobile units in West Maui starting tomorrow that will need to be staffed. There won’t be a need for many trained vet professionals all at once, but more likely over a long period of time. We will be helping MHS coordinate the pool of volunteers.

If you are interested, please fill out this online form with your interest/availability in longer term volunteer efforts.

There have been many, many hours of meetings attended by HVMA leadership, Dr. Aleisha Swartz (primary HVMA liaison to HiEMA/ State Emergency Support Functions), Dr. Nate Lam (volunteer), MHS staff, all government agencies (county, state, fed) and non-governmental organizations (e.g. American Red Cross, ASPCA). We are doing our best to identify needs and respond appropriately in a rapidly changing and challenging situation. The right people are getting in place for the long term plan. Emergency management meetings are discussing the following considerations: getting feed & water to livestock whose pasture has burnt, disease management from decomposition, marine pollution, trapping feral/strays when they re-emerge, short and long term sheltering and feeding of displaced people and pets, keeping families together with pets, veterinary needs, etc.

HVMA’s role in this emergency currently is supportive to governmental agencies and organizations like MHS that are acting under the emergency declaration. We are making every effort to coordinate volunteers, gather information on needs, and share information on resources and identify information and needs gaps. We are also coordinating support offered from national organizations such as AVMF. Most of our time and work is remote and we may need remote volunteer support for this as well, as the board is all volunteering their time to coordinate this effort.

A call to action- if your HVMA membership is not current please RENEW today! The more members we have, the stronger we are in times like this, and the more resources we have to support these efforts.

We hope this helps with some of the questions and anticipation out there. Thanks again for all your care, concern, kokua, and patience! We are proud to be a part of the HVMA and the Hawaii vet community. Let’s continue to make our community stronger!

Your HVMA Board