The objective of today's food animal enterprise is to produce a quality product while at the same time providing maximum economic return to the producer. Many factors are involved, including herd health programs, which work to maintain animal health and to decrease economic losses due to disease. A herd health preventive medicine program will increase the costs of production, but it will increase the economic returns if the level of performance is improved.

Since its discovery in 1975, taurine deficiency has been an important nutritional problem in cats. After the original findings of blindness and retinal degeneration, the number of clinical manifestations has increased to include reproductive failure, growth retardation and neurologic abnormalities in surviving kittens from taurine depleted queens. Cardiomyopathy, platelet hyperaggregation, and possibly immune function impairment are implicated as well.

This article contains news pertaining to the alumni of the College of Veterinary Medicine.

In a marketplace where all new professionals enter with a degree in hand, the advantage goes to those graduates who have experience in working with and solving problems with others. To increase awareness among students -future practitioners - of both architecture and veterinary medicine ofthe unique needs and features of a modern veterinary hospital, Hill's Pet Products, Inc. sponsors a hospital design competition each year. The combined effort of an architecture student and a student of veterinary medicine is required. To be successful, they must develop a working relationship that involves excellent communication skills as well as scholastic and artistic abilities.

Photos of the graduating class of 1990 of the College of Veterinary Medicine.