A collaboration between the Taiwan Veterinary Medical Association and 18 veterinary clinics across the nation would ensure that dogs bitten by snakes have access to antivenom at all hours, the association said on Saturday.
Antivenoms were considered human-only medication until an amendment to the Animal Protection Act (動物保護法) was passed in 2015, association president Chen Pei-chung (陳培中) said.
Since then, veterinarians have been qualified to obtain antivenom, but veterinary clinics are often short on antivenom or there are not enough clinics to help dogs that have been bitten by snakes, Chen said.
There are about 50 to 60 reported incidents every year of dogs having been bitten by snakes, he said.
Most snakebites occur late at night or during weekends or holidays, Chen said, adding that most of the incidents happen in mountainous areas far away from veterinary clinics.
Dogs are known to aggravate snakes once they find them, which usually results in the dog getting bitten in the head, expediting the spread of the venom to the central nervous system, Chen said, adding that such incidents are time-sensitive and some dogs would not survive the trip to a clinic that has antivenom.
The association has been in close contact with veterinarians across the nation who are willing to work with the association’s local branches, he said.
The association has delivered 24 shots of lyophilized antivenom for Taiwanese krait and cobra bites, and 17 shots of lyophilized antivenom for spotted pit viper and Taiwanese bamboo viper bites, Chen said.
Veterinary clinics in Miaoli, Changhua and Chiayi counties collaborating with the association have yet to receive their antivenom, and the association would seek to ameliorate transport procedures and increase the amount of antivenom at the veterinary clinics, he added.
After a bite occurs, dog owners should identify the type of snake that has bitten their dog, or they would have to wait until the veterinarian identifies whether the venom is a neurotoxin or consists of hemotoxins, Chen said.
Antivenom costs NT$17,500 per shot, as they are primarily for human use and need to undergo Pharmaceutical Inspection Co-operation Scheme certification, he said.
The Centers for Disease Control has facilitated the collaboration between the association and veterinary clinics, Chen said.
The association considers the cooperation a trial effort that might lead to larger collaboration, he added.
Taiwan is to receive the first batch of Lockheed Martin F-16 Block 70 jets from the US late this month, a defense official said yesterday, after a year-long delay due to a logjam in US arms deliveries. Completing the NT$247.2 billion (US$7.69 billion) arms deal for 66 jets would make Taiwan the third nation in the world to receive factory-fresh advanced fighter jets of the same make and model, following Bahrain and Slovakia, the official said on condition of anonymity. F-16 Block 70/72 are newly manufactured F-16 jets built by Lockheed Martin to the standards of the F-16V upgrade package. Republic of China
Taiwan-Japan Travel Passes are available for use on public transit networks in the two countries, Taoyuan Metro Corp said yesterday, adding that discounts of up to 7 percent are available. Taoyuan Metro, the Taipei MRT and Japan’s Keisei Electric Railway teamed up to develop the pass. Taoyuan Metro operates the Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport MRT Line, while Keisei Electric Railway offers express services between Tokyo’s Narita Airport, and the Keisei Ueno and Nippori stations in the Japanese capital, as well as between Narita and Haneda airports. The basic package comprises one one-way ticket on the Taoyuan MRT Line and one Skyliner ticket on
A new tropical storm formed late yesterday near Guam and is to approach closest to Taiwan on Thursday, the Central Weather Administration (CWA) said. Tropical Storm Pulasan became the 14th named storm of the year at 9:25pm yesterday, the agency said. As of 8am today, it was near Guam traveling northwest at 21kph, it said. The storm’s structure is relatively loose and conditions for strengthening are limited, WeatherRisk analyst Wu Sheng-yu (吳聖宇) said on Facebook. Its path is likely to be similar to Typhoon Bebinca, which passed north of Taiwan over Japan’s Ryukyu Islands and made landfall in Shanghai this morning, he said. However, it
COLD FACTS: ‘Snow skin’ mooncakes, made with a glutinous rice skin and kept at a low temperature, have relatively few calories compared with other mooncakes Traditional mooncakes are a typical treat for many Taiwanese in the lead-up to the Mid-Autumn Festival, but a Taipei-based dietitian has urged people not to eat more than one per day and not to have them every day due to their high fat and calorie content. As mooncakes contain a lot of oil and sugar, they can have negative health effects on older people and those with diabetes, said Lai Yu-han (賴俞含), a dietitian at Taipei Hospital of the Ministry of Health and Welfare. “The maximum you can have is one mooncake a day, and do not eat them every day,” Lai
RSS