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abscesses, aggression toward veterinarians, undesirable sexual behaviours and urine spraying in males (56, 57). However, the current neutering results should be interpreted cautiously because the neuter status at death was used and was modelled as time-independent (i.e. a single value applies throughout life) because of the nature of the available data. Cats aged less than five months tend to be entire whereas a consistent proportion of older cats tend to 17 be neutered (58) suggesting that neutering ideally should be modelled as a timedependent variable (van Hagen et al., 2005). With ongoing VetCompass data accrual, future studies will increasingly use time-dependent modelling. This study had some limitations. Many of the study cats were privately-owned and therefore the results may not reflect longevity in unowned or feral cats. Data on some cats that died and were buried at home or that went missing may not have been included. Exclusion of records with unconfirmed cause of mortality in this study could have resulted in under-estimation of deaths caused by RTA (59) or animal attacks (60). The veterinary practices included in the study had progressive attitudes to data sharing and were situated mainly in central and south-east England, and thus may not be representative of all veterinary practices in England. The validity of the data relied heavily on owner-reported information and on the clinical acumen and note-making of attending practitioners (14). Conclusions Crossbred cats showed greater longevity than purebred cats on average but individual purebred cat breeds varied substantially in longevity. Increasing bodyweight in adult cats was negatively associated with longevity. The most common cause of mortality in younger cats was trauma and in older cats were renal disorders, non-specific illness, neoplasia and mass lesion disorders. The study identified important breed and 18 phenotypic associations with longevity variation that can be used to direct breeding and research strategies. Increased awareness of the common causes of mortality within subdemographics of cats should promote improved management and diagnostic methods that will improve feline welfare. Acknowledgments Support by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA) for this study is gratefully acknowledged. We thank Peter Dron (RVC) for VetCompass database development and Noel Kennedy (RVC) for software and programming development. We are especially grateful to the Medivet Veterinary Partnership and other UK practices and clients for participating in VetCompass. Conflict of interest statement None of the authors of this paper has a financial or personal relationship with other people or organisations that could inappropriately influence or bias the content of the paper. Funding This work was supported by an RSPCA Animal Welfare Research Grant. 19 Abbreviations CI, confidence interval; EPR, electronic patient record; IQR, interquartile range; RTA, road traffic accident 20 Table 1 Breed longevity (breeds with 10 or more study animals) for cats attending primary-care veterinary practices in England ranked by median age at death. The interquartile range (IQR), range and number of study cats are also shown (n = 4,009). Breed Median (years) IQR Range No. of cats Birman Veterinarians in Biomedical Research A teacher resource developed by the American Veterinary Medical Association www.avma.org Why have a teacher guide? The goal of AVMA sponsored 4th-6th grade learning activities is to heighten awareness of the vital role that veterinary medicine plays in the lives of humans, animals, society, and the environment. This initiative has five objectives: • To teach children that there is an inseparable relationship between animals and humans • To teach children that veterinary science makes vital contributions to our world • To teach children that veterinary science significantly impacts their lives every day • To interest young students in a career involving biology, mathematics, and applied science • To promote a greater understanding of the scope of veterinary medicine What do biomedical research veterinarians do? Veterinarians who work with animals in a research environment may work for a company or for the U.S. Government. Veterinarians working in pharmaceutical and biomedical research firms develop, test, and supervise the production of drugs, chemicals, and biological products, such as antibiotics and vaccines for human and animal use. In both government laboratories and in corporate research facilities, veterinarians provide daily medical care to the animals involved in research, ensure that the animals are properly and humanely cared for, and use their expertise to improve surgical techniques for humans and animals. Some veterinarians who work for the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) visit research laboratories to ensure that the treatment of the lab animals adheres to the federal laws designed to protect the lab animals. Research veterinarians may also work at other government agencies such as the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or the U.S. Public Health Service (USPHS). Research veterinarians at these agencies work to find cures for diseases and
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