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An introduction to veterinary pharmacology
Br. vet.
3.
(1986) . 142, 585
BOOK REVIEWS Book Ri .v it,%%
EnII OR :
Social Space for Domestic Animals
(Current Topics in Veterinary Medicine, Volume 35) . Edited by R . Zayan . Dordrecht : Martinus Nijhoff . 1985 . 291 pp . £42 .95 . Although some aspects of the behaviour of domestic animals have been studied in the past in relation to spatial conditions provided by intensive systems e.g. floor area or group size, their social behaviour has largely been observed under relatively extensive, or freerange conditions . The proceedings of this seminar in the CEC programme of co-ordination of research in animal welfare, represents the first major collection of papers to attempt to relate these two subjects . The twenty papers are divided into four sections, the first of which outlines the problems of definition and interpretation inherent in this type of research . The use of the term `social space' is controversial in itself; Wiepkema states that its meaning is unclear, and Dawkins adds that the term is not used in other areas of ethology, although this has not apparently affected the choice of title . In fact, the papers are broadly concerned with the effects of physical restriction on behaviour, and with the possibility that changes in behaviour might alter the availability of space . Section II presents the results of recent research on laying hens ; pigs, dairy cows and sheep are mentioned in Section III, which includes topics such as the effects of changes in cubicle number on the lying behaviour of dairy cows . In general, by concentrating on the behavioural context in which particular spacing patterns are observed, this new work reveals an interesting shift away from the importance of aggressive and competitive interactions in mediating spacing behaviour . For hens in battery cages, at least, it appears that available space may be shared rather than fought over during the performance of many activities . The papers in these two sections make interesting reading, and are relevant to the design of housing systems and their assessment in relation to welfare .
J . M . Rt i - rFR The final section comprises five papers concerned with the possible cognitive mechanisms by which animals may perceive space and recognise their conspecifics . The papers are individually of interest but appear disjointed both within the the section itself, and from the rest of the book as a whole . This, no doubt, reflects the fact that a coherent knowledge of how animals process information about their spatial relationships with others has still to be developed . The book is an important addition to the literature . I would strongly recommend it to anyone interested in the questions it raises about the current organisation of intensive housing systems . C . J . Nicol
An Introduction to Veterinary Pharmacology
Frank Alexander . London and New York : Longman . 1985 . 4th edn . 429 pp . £12 .50 (Paper) . The success of this text is demonstrated by the arrival of the fourth edition, twenty-five years after the first appeared in 1960 . With a lifetime's experience of teaching pharmacology at the Edinburgh Veterinary School, Professor Alexander has continued with his original objective of providing a concise textbook aimed primarily at undergraduates . This policy has the great advantage of providing a book of manageable size and affordable price, which, with its concentrated style, must be attractive to the student . Inevitably the book has increased in size since the first edition . This latest edition is a collaborative exercise with five contributors, all teachers of veterinary pharmacology, in addition to the senior author, who is responsible for ten of the twenty-eight chapters. The problems inherent in a book of this size, designed to present the applied aspects of a subject are firstly to decide how much fundamental information is required, and secondly to what extent therapeutics should be included . The authors have deliberately avoided both these temptations, but in doing
586
BRITISH VETERINARY JOURNAL, 142,6
so they oblige most readers to seek additional information elsewhere . In spite of the multiple authorship the style and content is generally uniform and wellbalanced, although some differences are apparent . In some chapters, drug names are given in bold type, but appear in others in italics, and decisions on the use of subheadings seem to have been a matter for personal choice . The first chapter on general principles covers such a wide range of fundamental topics that the treatment is necessarily superficial . Simple mathematical descriptions of the various kinetic parameters have not been used . In particular, the discussion of plasma clearance and the excretion of drugs in milk would have benefitted from more detailed examination with appropriate examples . The succeeding chapters give broad coverage of the wide field of drugs used in veterinary medicine and surgery . The need for brevity has demanded a style which reads like a student's notebook with short and sometimes unrelated factual statements following each other in rapid succession . Each chapter provides a wealth of information, but additional sources must be consulted if it is to be digested and understood . The text is liberally interspersed with structural formulae for the majority of the compounds mentioned . The purpose of these is not always made clear, since there is often little reference in the text to the pharmacological importance of the structural differences presented . Many of the illustrations proved disappointing and did not usefully enhance the text. Some are not referred to directly and the captions are often inadequate unless the reader is already familiar with the subject . For example, the illustrations of equipment in the chapter on general anaesthetics were particularly uninformative, while those showing atrial fibrillation in the dog and the effect of ouabain on the isolated auricle in Ch . 13 require captions to explain what is shown . In contrast, the schematic diagrams are very instructive, as are the few graphs and histograms . Occasionally the determination to achieve brevity at all costs leads to the inadequate treatment of an important topic . For example, the endogenous opioid peptides are covered in a single paragraph (p . 133), while the paragraph on carcinogenicity (and mutagenicity) tests in the final chapter fails to
convey what is involved in this complex and evolving area . A list of references for further reading is given at the end of each chapter and these will prove essential for the serious student of the subject . The general layout of the text allows easy reading and the use of subheadings within each chapter is helpful . Overall the book achieves its objective as an introduction to the subject and will continue to give good service to present and future veterinary students . Its value to the veterinary clinician is limited by the lack of therapeutic detail, although it provides interesting and useful background information . J .SAXiuRU
Equine Diseases H . J . Wintzer Translated and revised by David Weaver Berlin : Paul Parey . 1986 . 439 pp . D M 196 . The orginal publication of Krankheiten des
Pferdes in 1982 by Professor Wintzer benefited by contributions from other eminent workers in Berlin, together with those from Berne, Zurich, Utrecht, Stroe, Vienna and Saskatoon . Professor Weaver (formerly of Glasgow University) has not only successfully translated the 1982 edition from the German, but also revised parts of the text and added two appendices appropriate to an English language version . Inclusion in the bibliography of current references in the English language is especially valuable . Thirteen chapters deal comprehensively with diseases under the following headings : Respiratory, Cardiovascular, Digestive, Urinary System, Reproductive (mare and stallion), Limbs, Soft tissues of the head region (including eye and ear) and neck, Trunk, Skin, Central Nervous System, Infectious, Metabolic and finally Toxicology . There is good reference to both surgical and medical treatments although the opinions expressed on topical matters, e .g . navicular disease and thermo-cautery are contentious . Recent advances in diagnostic imaging such as scintigraphy or echo-cardiography are omitted . This is a well illustrated book which both has a sound basis in pathology and distills current knowledge succinctly . It can be recommended to the student of equine disease and the veterinarian alike . S . G . LAKE
3.
(1986) . 142, 585
BOOK REVIEWS Book Ri .v it,%%
EnII OR :
Social Space for Domestic Animals
(Current Topics in Veterinary Medicine, Volume 35) . Edited by R . Zayan . Dordrecht : Martinus Nijhoff . 1985 . 291 pp . £42 .95 . Although some aspects of the behaviour of domestic animals have been studied in the past in relation to spatial conditions provided by intensive systems e.g. floor area or group size, their social behaviour has largely been observed under relatively extensive, or freerange conditions . The proceedings of this seminar in the CEC programme of co-ordination of research in animal welfare, represents the first major collection of papers to attempt to relate these two subjects . The twenty papers are divided into four sections, the first of which outlines the problems of definition and interpretation inherent in this type of research . The use of the term `social space' is controversial in itself; Wiepkema states that its meaning is unclear, and Dawkins adds that the term is not used in other areas of ethology, although this has not apparently affected the choice of title . In fact, the papers are broadly concerned with the effects of physical restriction on behaviour, and with the possibility that changes in behaviour might alter the availability of space . Section II presents the results of recent research on laying hens ; pigs, dairy cows and sheep are mentioned in Section III, which includes topics such as the effects of changes in cubicle number on the lying behaviour of dairy cows . In general, by concentrating on the behavioural context in which particular spacing patterns are observed, this new work reveals an interesting shift away from the importance of aggressive and competitive interactions in mediating spacing behaviour . For hens in battery cages, at least, it appears that available space may be shared rather than fought over during the performance of many activities . The papers in these two sections make interesting reading, and are relevant to the design of housing systems and their assessment in relation to welfare .
J . M . Rt i - rFR The final section comprises five papers concerned with the possible cognitive mechanisms by which animals may perceive space and recognise their conspecifics . The papers are individually of interest but appear disjointed both within the the section itself, and from the rest of the book as a whole . This, no doubt, reflects the fact that a coherent knowledge of how animals process information about their spatial relationships with others has still to be developed . The book is an important addition to the literature . I would strongly recommend it to anyone interested in the questions it raises about the current organisation of intensive housing systems . C . J . Nicol
An Introduction to Veterinary Pharmacology
Frank Alexander . London and New York : Longman . 1985 . 4th edn . 429 pp . £12 .50 (Paper) . The success of this text is demonstrated by the arrival of the fourth edition, twenty-five years after the first appeared in 1960 . With a lifetime's experience of teaching pharmacology at the Edinburgh Veterinary School, Professor Alexander has continued with his original objective of providing a concise textbook aimed primarily at undergraduates . This policy has the great advantage of providing a book of manageable size and affordable price, which, with its concentrated style, must be attractive to the student . Inevitably the book has increased in size since the first edition . This latest edition is a collaborative exercise with five contributors, all teachers of veterinary pharmacology, in addition to the senior author, who is responsible for ten of the twenty-eight chapters. The problems inherent in a book of this size, designed to present the applied aspects of a subject are firstly to decide how much fundamental information is required, and secondly to what extent therapeutics should be included . The authors have deliberately avoided both these temptations, but in doing
586
BRITISH VETERINARY JOURNAL, 142,6
so they oblige most readers to seek additional information elsewhere . In spite of the multiple authorship the style and content is generally uniform and wellbalanced, although some differences are apparent . In some chapters, drug names are given in bold type, but appear in others in italics, and decisions on the use of subheadings seem to have been a matter for personal choice . The first chapter on general principles covers such a wide range of fundamental topics that the treatment is necessarily superficial . Simple mathematical descriptions of the various kinetic parameters have not been used . In particular, the discussion of plasma clearance and the excretion of drugs in milk would have benefitted from more detailed examination with appropriate examples . The succeeding chapters give broad coverage of the wide field of drugs used in veterinary medicine and surgery . The need for brevity has demanded a style which reads like a student's notebook with short and sometimes unrelated factual statements following each other in rapid succession . Each chapter provides a wealth of information, but additional sources must be consulted if it is to be digested and understood . The text is liberally interspersed with structural formulae for the majority of the compounds mentioned . The purpose of these is not always made clear, since there is often little reference in the text to the pharmacological importance of the structural differences presented . Many of the illustrations proved disappointing and did not usefully enhance the text. Some are not referred to directly and the captions are often inadequate unless the reader is already familiar with the subject . For example, the illustrations of equipment in the chapter on general anaesthetics were particularly uninformative, while those showing atrial fibrillation in the dog and the effect of ouabain on the isolated auricle in Ch . 13 require captions to explain what is shown . In contrast, the schematic diagrams are very instructive, as are the few graphs and histograms . Occasionally the determination to achieve brevity at all costs leads to the inadequate treatment of an important topic . For example, the endogenous opioid peptides are covered in a single paragraph (p . 133), while the paragraph on carcinogenicity (and mutagenicity) tests in the final chapter fails to
convey what is involved in this complex and evolving area . A list of references for further reading is given at the end of each chapter and these will prove essential for the serious student of the subject . The general layout of the text allows easy reading and the use of subheadings within each chapter is helpful . Overall the book achieves its objective as an introduction to the subject and will continue to give good service to present and future veterinary students . Its value to the veterinary clinician is limited by the lack of therapeutic detail, although it provides interesting and useful background information . J .SAXiuRU
Equine Diseases H . J . Wintzer Translated and revised by David Weaver Berlin : Paul Parey . 1986 . 439 pp . D M 196 . The orginal publication of Krankheiten des
Pferdes in 1982 by Professor Wintzer benefited by contributions from other eminent workers in Berlin, together with those from Berne, Zurich, Utrecht, Stroe, Vienna and Saskatoon . Professor Weaver (formerly of Glasgow University) has not only successfully translated the 1982 edition from the German, but also revised parts of the text and added two appendices appropriate to an English language version . Inclusion in the bibliography of current references in the English language is especially valuable . Thirteen chapters deal comprehensively with diseases under the following headings : Respiratory, Cardiovascular, Digestive, Urinary System, Reproductive (mare and stallion), Limbs, Soft tissues of the head region (including eye and ear) and neck, Trunk, Skin, Central Nervous System, Infectious, Metabolic and finally Toxicology . There is good reference to both surgical and medical treatments although the opinions expressed on topical matters, e .g . navicular disease and thermo-cautery are contentious . Recent advances in diagnostic imaging such as scintigraphy or echo-cardiography are omitted . This is a well illustrated book which both has a sound basis in pathology and distills current knowledge succinctly . It can be recommended to the student of equine disease and the veterinarian alike . S . G . LAKE