News

As hurricane season ramps up in Texas, so do threats to livestock health. Beyond downed fences and flooded pastures, contaminated water can quietly set the stage for dangerous skin infections in cattle, horses, sheep and goats. June marks the start of hurricane season, and each year the southern United States experiences increasingly intense and frequent […]

The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, regularly performs testing to detect and mitigate the effects of pyoderma, a bacterial skin infection commonly found in canines. Clinical signs of pyoderma include redness, pustules, crusting, hair loss and itchiness around affected regions.  The disease is classified into three categories based on the depth of infection: […]

On May 7, Erika Schwarz, DVM, MPH, PhD, DACVM joined the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) in College Station. She will serve as TVMDL’s assistant agency director for microbiology. Schwarz is a four-time graduate of the University of Florida. She earned a bachelor’s degree in 2011 and simultaneously earned a Master of Public […]

Canine parvovirus, also known as CPV or “parvo,” is a highly contagious disease infecting puppies and occasionally adult dogs. The disease can cause severe symptoms like vomiting, diarrhea and dehydration. The absence or delay of treatment can increase the risk of critical health complications including the possibility of death. Diagnostic testing plays a key role […]

April is National Heartworm Awareness month. Spring is also the time of year when mosquitoes, the heartworm vector, become active. As the month winds down and the temperature goes up, the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, is addressing three common misconceptions related to heartworm disease and testing. “Heartworm disease is serious issue,” said […]

Electrolytes and macrominerals are important for maintaining several physiological functions. In veterinary medicine, an imbalance of these components could disrupt bodily mechanisms like blood circulation, muscle contraction, metabolism, endocrine function and more. The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, provides comprehensive diagnostic services to help veterinarians develop effective treatment plans combating issues like analyte […]

The Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory, TVMDL, has expanded its services to help pet owners identify and treat common springtime parasites like ticks and heartworms that become more prevalent as temperatures warm. “Like plants and flowers coming out of a dormant wintertime state, parasites also become more active as the weather warms,” said Mindy […]

The detection of highly pathogenic avian influenza, HPAI, subtype H5N1 in dairy cattle was confirmed in March 2024 by the U.S. Department of Agriculture, USDA. This finding was the first of its kind and shocked the global scientific community. The official confirmation came on the heels of testing performed at the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical […]

Julie Piccione, DVM, MS, DACVP, clinical pathology section head, and Randi Gold, VMD, PhD, DACVP, veterinary pathologist, are among the experts who contributed to a journal article set to be published in the June issue of Virology. The article covers the frequency in which hepadnavirus is detected in blood and liver samples from domestic cats. […]

Michael Piccione, DVM, joined the Texas A&M Veterinary Medical Diagnostic Laboratory (TVMDL) as a veterinary diagnostician on March 24. Piccione is a two-time graduate of the University of Florida. In 2007, he earned a bachelor’s degree in animal science and in 2012 he earned a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine. Piccione comes to TVMDL from Banfield […]