February 2013 by Ronald D. Schultz, MS, Ph.D., Diplomate, ACVM

Audience: Veterinary Team

Video Length: 90 minutes

Are you relying on guesswork to understand what infectious diseases are occurring in your shelter population? Are you unsure what diagnostic tests are available, what the results mean and how reliable they are? Do you think diagnostic tests are not practical or cost-effective in a shelter setting?

Many diagnostic tests can be of tremendous value in helping shelters prevent future outbreaks of infectious disease. Diagnostic testing can also save money and - most importantly - can save animal lives.

Please join us for a free webcast from Maddie's Fund® with leading veterinary researcher Dr. Ronald D. Schultz of the Maddie's® Laboratory for Diagnosis and Prevention of Shelter Diseases at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. Dr. Schultz will give the audience insights on Cracking the Infection Control Code: Using and Interpreting Diagnostic Tests to Control Infectious Diseases in Shelters.

Information covered will include:

  • Diagnostic tests available to aid in diagnosis of infectious diseases in shelters.
  • How and when to use the available tests.
  • Cost, ease of collecting samples and time to obtain results.
  • How to interpret test results.
  • How to use test results to control diseases including canine distemper, feline panleukopenia, canine parvovirus and feline and canine infectious respiratory disease complexes.
  • What to expect from an effective vaccination program.

Cracking the Infection Control Code: Using and Interpreting Diagnostic Tests to Control Infectious Diseases in Shelters is part of an ongoing series of educational programs from Maddie's Institute, a program of Maddie's Fund®, the nation's leading funder of shelter medicine education. Maddie's Institute brings cutting edge shelter medicine information from universities and animal welfare leaders to shelter veterinarians, managers and staff as well as private practice veterinarians, rescue groups and community members to increase the lifesaving of homeless dogs and cats community-wide.

This course has been pre-approved for Certified Animal Welfare Administrator continuing education credits.

After viewing the presentation, click here to take the quiz and receive a Certificate of Attendance!

Bio photo of Dr. Ronald Schultz, smiling in a light blue dress shirt and colorful tie

Ronald Schultz, MS, PhD, ACVM

Dr. Schultz, chair of the Department of Pathobiological Sciences at School of Veterinary Medicine, University of Wisconsin-Madison, is one of the world's leading experts on veterinary vaccines, virology and immunology. In addition to his work with the Maddie's® Laboratory for Diagnosis and Prevention of Shelter Diseases at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Dr. Schultz was the first president of the American Association of Veterinary Immunologists and received the first Distinguished Veterinary Immunologist Award and is a member of the AVMA Feline Vaccine Associated Sarcoma Task Force. Currently, he is a member of the American Animal Hospital Associations' Canine Vaccine Task Force, the American Association of Feline Practitioners' Feline Vaccine Task Force, and the Veterinary Vaccine Group of the World Small Animal Veterinary Association.