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Hello 👋
Welcome back to another edition of Weekend Rounds!
This week's edition is a battle royale between American government, corporations, and professional associations. On the one hand, the outcomes of what we cover today will impact us all. But on the other hand, we're Canadian, so we don't really have much say or room to influence opinion. We're pretty much just grabbing our popcorn and watching the show.
Here’s what we’re covering:
🥩 DOJ vs. Raw Pet Food
⚖️ Mission Pet Health vs. the VPA
🔁 Everything else in Rounds Roundup
🥩 DOJ Sues Darwin's Natural Pet Products
The Department of Justice filed a civil complaint on August 7th seeking to permanently stop Arrow Reliance Inc., the Washington-based company behind Darwin's Natural Pet Products, from manufacturing raw pet food until it complies with federal safety requirements. Of 18 FDA samples taken since 2023, 12 came back positive for pathogens, nine for Salmonella, one for Listeria, and two for both. The complaint also documents 49 consumer complaints since 2016, several animal deaths, and a 2024 case in which a four year old child developed hemolytic uremic syndrome after the family dog was fed the company's products.
We all know that raw diets carry known pathogen risks, and most of us have had that conversation with a client before. What's notable is the timeline… the FDA has been flagging this company since at least 2016, and the company kept manufacturing and selling anyway. The DOJ complaint frames this less as a one off event and more as a company that treated federal warnings as a cost of doing business.
For practitioners, this is a useful anchor point the next time raw feeding comes up: the conversation can be about this brand specifically, and the risks we all know about. Darwin's has also sold nationally for years, so some of your clients are likely feeding it right now without knowing any of this history.
The case is pending in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Washington, and it's worth watching for whether it signals a broader FDA appetite for enforcement against repeat offenders in raw pet food.
⚖️ Mission Pet Health vs. the VPA
Colorado's Veterinary Professional Associate role has been law since January, and the state's first CSU cohort starts training this fall. But the fight over whether the VPA should exist at all is far from settled. And this month it got even more pointed, as dvm360 covered.
On August 6th, Mission Pet Health, the 900-plus hospital network formed by the merger of Southern Veterinary Partners and Mission Veterinary Partners, published a formal statement opposing the VPA model. Their argument: the role asks for a fraction of a veterinarian's training while adding oversight burden onto the vets who supervise it, and the workforce shortage math doesn't hold up. Mission joins the AVMA, AAHA, and a long list of state associations in opposition.
The Coalition for the Veterinary Professional Associates fired back a few days later by defending the VPA’s training requirements, including roughly 1,000 hours of regulated supervised training and accusing Mission of mischaracterizing the curriculum.
This is getting interesting for two reasons. First, this is no longer a debate confined to associations and legislatures; it's being waged in public by one of the industry's largest consolidators, meaning one the largest prospective employers is opposed to hiring these new grads. And regardless of how the argument shakes out, the VPA role is moving forward in Colorado on its own timeline, with other states watching to see whether it becomes a template or a cautionary tale.
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🔄 Rounds Roundup
What else happened this week? Here are some of the other stories that caught our eye:
BiomEdit acquires Folium Science's assets: the animal health biotech picks up a CRISPR-based microbiome platform and an approved poultry feed additive, broadening its precision microbiome pipeline for livestock.
Small Door and Bond Vet merge: the two subscription model vet chains combine into a network of 55-plus clinics across the Northeast, Mid-Atlantic, and Midwest, with AAHA accreditation named as a priority for the new organization.
New World screwworm: the full interagency response: a clear breakdown of which federal and state agencies do what in the NWS response, useful reference as case counts climb.
ASPCA marks 160 years, leans into access to care: a history retrospective paired with new polling data showing more than half of Americans are worried about rising veterinary costs.
Social skills training may ease resident and intern burnout: new research out of Brazil finds that teaching house officers self advocacy and communication skills measurably reduces stress and emotional distress during training. Trigger warning: the linked article discusses suicide.
NAVC and Today's Veterinary Business launch Best Places to Practice: a new free benchmarking program lets practices survey their own workplace culture and staff experience, with top performers featured in a 2027 issue.
PetSmart Charities launches a Veterinary Fellowship Program: a new initiative aimed at improving access to care by supporting the pipeline of veterinary professionals.
AVMA announces its 2026 award honorees: Dr. Dilip Bhandari (Global Veterinary Service), Dr. Rosemary Sifford (Public Service), and Dr. Kathleen Brasky (Lifetime Excellence in Research) are among this year's recipients.
