Hello 👋 

Welcome to Weekend Rounds! Put on your favorite tunes, make a strong cup of coffee, and let the needle drop on a music-filled edition of your favourite weekly veterinary newsletter.

Here’s the track list for today’s album:

• 🎵 Do animals like music?

• 💻️ Fuzzy Pet Health goes dark

• 📈 Chart of the week

• 🤑 Petabyte gets bought

• 🚀 Quick hits

P.S. We’ll be off next weekend for the Canada Day / July 4th long weekend. Enjoy the sun, stay safe, and we’ll see you in two weeks!

🎵 Do animals like music?

For years, animals have been a source of inspiration in our most popular music. They’re referenced in the names of countless acts (The Beatles, The Monkees, Tame Impala, Snoop Dogg, Pussycat Dolls, The Byrds, and more); they’re in song and album names (I am the Walrus, Eye of the Tiger, Bulls on Parade, Rock Lobster, etc.) and when the animals aren’t explicitly mentioned, often times they are in the inspiration for the song. There are literally thousands of examples of how animals have influenced music.

It’s clear that music is obsessed with animals, but are animals obsessed with music? Can they even recognize it?

Most studies on the mater have focused on what effect does music may have on non-human animals, without taking into consideration how or why these effects come about. But a paper published in Applied Animal Behaviour Science last year put forward a new framework for the questions we should be asking: what do animals actually hear when exposed to music, and how does it affect their overall welfare?

What are animals actually hearing?

The study’s author, Pralle Kriengwatana, a postdoctoral researcher at KU Leuven in Belgium has used behavioural tests to identify if animals are recognizing music. For example, a bird was trained to peck on their right side if they identified sounds with a pattern, and on the left side for irregular noises. Understanding the physiological capabilities of various species is important as well. For example, rats can only hear the highest of frequencies that are often found in music - so are they really hearing the music?

Available techniques

Once researchers have determined that the animal they are studying can hear the music and that they are reacting favorably to it, next they need to determine how and why. Kriengwatana and colleagues have three main hypotheses:

Sound masking: the first theory is that music is a more pleasing option than other environmental noises that could be causing stress to the animal. For example, a dog in a shelter may become irritated by the constant barking of fellow canines in distress, whereas music may be able to cover up the barks and provide a better auditory experience.

Sensory stimulation: the second hypothesis is that music improves welfare by adding to the complexity of an animal’s environment. However, like any intervention, this is not a one-size-fits-all approach. That dog at the shelter may appreciate some calming music, but another animal who is already overstimulated by external factors may not want any additional sounds.

Arousal Modulation: this hypothesis is the closest to what has been documented in humans, where we know definitively that music can influence emotions. While we don’t yet have the technology to monitor the brain activity or endocrine response of a freely moving animal exposed to music, certain physiological tests (like heart rate and blood pressure) or behavioural response (like a dog wagging it’s tail) can tell us how they are feeling.

So what do you think? Do animals understand music? Should we be exploring music therapy in our clinics?

Thanks to Discover Magazine for their excellent reporting on this topic.

💻️ Fuzzy Pet Health closes it’s doors

We’re sad to report that the tough economic environment has claimed a veterinary victim this week. The telehealth pet care startup, Fuzzy Pet Health, has abruptly closed its operations, leaving employees and customers without pay, insurance or service.

According to SF Gate, the company faced issues with payroll, insurance and 401 (k) deductions since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank in mid-March. Employees were blindsided, and did not receive any explanation or compensation from the co-founders. In a strange move, the company continued to hire new workers until the day of the closure email.

📈 Chart of the week

New veterinarians value mentorship as the top reason for choosing to accept a job offer—even more so than location, compensation, or benefits. For a full analysis on the study and what it means, visit the AVMA.

📧 Send it ‘round

In celebration of Pride Month, we’re giving away pronoun stethoscope clips to the next 5 people to share Weekend Rounds with 3 colleagues, once those colleague sign up with your referral link below!

They’ll get the same weekly dose of veterinary good vibes that you’ve grown accustomed to, and you’ll be able to encourage more inclusivity in healthcare by showing clients and colleagues your personal pronouns. That’s a win-win.

🤑 Chewy takes a bite of Petabyte

Petabyte, the maker of software including Rhapsody practice management software has been bought by none other than Chewy. The Seattle based company was sold for $43.4 million only a month after partnering with AAHA for their benchmarking initiative.

As VIN reported this week, this is a concern for some veterinarians. The AAHA program, which allows veterinary practices to compare their performance to others, has a half million dollar investment from AAHA, which is now being controlled by Chewy. Given the contentious relationship between the online retailer and veterinary practices, the use of this data becomes a concern.

The purchase makes Chewy an even larger player in the veterinary space, as they now have an additional vertical to add to their online retail business. The data and analytics available through this acquisition will be a substantial boost to them.

🚀 Quick hits

Why do we love ugly animals? [BBC Future] 

Does production pay undermine veterinary team well-being? [VIN]

U.S. approves chicken made from cultivated cells, the nation’s first ‘lab-grown’ meat [NBC]

Midwest Veterinary Supply sentenced to one year probation, pays $11M for misbranded drugs [AVMA]

Marijuana, other recreational drugs debut on pet toxins top 10 list [AVMA]

VIDEO: How artificial intelligence is helping us talk to animals [BBC]