The
Mogollon Rim in north central Arizona rises suddenly to an elevation of about 7-8,000 feet above sea level. This sudden elevation change means that the rim gets more snow in the winter and more rain during the summer monsoon than anywhere but the highest mountains in the state. The area was made famous to the rest of the world by General Crook's campaigns against the Apache in the 1870's, and
Zane Grey's writing in the 1920's. The rim has been an important summer hunting and gathering ground for thousands of years. The combination of high altitude and the resulting increased moisture means that water and a variety of plant and animal foods are available on the highlands above the rim when the desert below is sweltering in temperatures well over 100 degrees Fahrenheit. The berries we usually pick are not quite ripe yet, but should be within a week or so, and other interesting plants and animals are active.
A view of the Mogollon Rim from it's crest.
A mountain tree-frog Hyla eximia, one of two tree-frog species in Arizona.
This is the first time I have ever seen one, and I would have missed it among the green leaves if it had not moved when we walked by.
The first edible wild mushrooms of the year.
Oyster mushrooms are fairly easy to identify, and do not really have any toxic lookalikes.
Always be cautious collecting and eating wild mushrooms-consult 2-3 references and someone with experience first.
An unsuccessful attempt to dig a red squirrel out of it's refuge.
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Dear Bartimaeus,
ReplyDeleteThank you for posting your misgivings about the potential for Newcastle Virus vaccine induced serum to effectively treat Canine Distemper.
On the Wikipedia site, there are references to other possible treatments for Canine Distemper and also for Canine Parvovirus, please see:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canine_distemper
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Canine_parvovirus
Other treatments Wikipedia mentions for Canine Distemper include:
1- the antiviral Ribavirin
2- Vitamin A
3- Interferon Alpha
Regarding Ribavirin, please see:
www.vetinfo.com/treating-canine-distemper-ribavirin.html and
http://en.citizendium.org/wiki/Canine_Distemper_Virus
Regarding Vitamin A please see:
http://jn.nutrition.org/cgi/content/abstract/137/8/1916
I did not find any sites discussing treatment with Interferon Alpha.
What is your opinion of the potential efficacy of any of these treatments for Distemper?
Other treatments Wikipedia mentions for Canine Parvovirus include:
1- the antiviral Tamiflu
2- colloidal silver
3- IMULAN Bio Therapeutics LLC is researching a new biologic?
4- Recombinant Feline Interferon Omega which is produced in silkworm larvae using a baculovirus vector. Wikipedia lists 4 references for this treatment:
^ Ishiwata K, Minagawa T, and Kajimoto T. (1998). "Clinical
effects of the recombinant feline interferon-ω on
experimental parvovirus infection in beagle dogs.". J. Vet.
Med. Sci. 60 (8): 911–7. doi:10.1292/jvms.60.911. PMID
9764403.
^ Martin V, Najbar W, Gueguen S, Grousson D, Eun HM,
Lebreux B, Aubert A. (2002). "Treatment of canine parvoviral
enteritis with interferon-omega in a placebo-controlled
challenge trial". Vet. Microbiol. 89 (2-3): 115–127.
doi:10.1016/S0378-1135(02)00173-6. PMID 12243889.
^ De Mari K, Maynard L, Eun HM, Lebreux, B. (2003).
"Treatment of canine parvoviral enteritis with
interferon-omega in a placebo-controlled field trial". Vet.
Rec. 152 (4): 105–8. PMID 12572939.
^ Kuwabara M, Nariai, Horiuchi, Nakajima Y, Yamaguchi Y,
Horioka I, Kawanabe M, Kubo Y, Yukawa M, Sakai T. (2006).
"Immunological effects of recombinant feline interferon-ω
(KT80) administration in the dog.". Microbiol. Immunol. 50
(8): 637–641. PMID 16924149.
Please also see:
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed.9764403 and
http://www.felipedia.org/~felipedi/wiki/index.php/Feline_Panleucopenia
which states that:
"Feline recombinant interferon-omega is effective in the treatment of parvoviral enteritis in dogs and also inhibits replication of FPV in cell culture(9). So far, no data are available on the efficacy of this cytokine in FPV-infected cats, but it is expected to perform well - if not better - in the homologous host (Evidence based medicine grade IV)"
Regarding Tamiflu please see:
http://www.jackbroadhurstdvm.com
A Dr. Broadhurst in NC seems to be having success treating Parvovirus (Canine Parvovirus in dogs, and Feline Panleukopenia in cats and Feline Panleukopenia or maybe Raccoon Parvoviral Enteritis in raccoons) with the antiviral Tamiflu.
As for colloidal silver I did not find anything to support it as a treatment for parvovirus, and I did not find anything about IMULAN Bio Therapeutics new treatment either.
What is your opinion of the potential efficacy of any of these treatments? Not asking much eh? :)
Thank you in advance for any insights you can offer.
Sincerely,
Edythe Butler
Ottawa, Ontario, Canada
Edythe; I took the liberty of copying this comment to the post on the newcastle treatment of distemper and will address your questions there.
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