Monthly Archives: October 2015

Now, dialysis for canines too in Kollam

Records, All, Science & Technology
Labrador Jack undergoing dialysis at the District Veterinary Centre in Kollam on Thursday.
Labrador Jack undergoing dialysis at the District Veterinary Centre in Kollam on Thursday.

Jack, the Labrador, is the first dialysis patient in a government vet hospital in the State.

Jack, a seven-year-old ebony Labrador, has become the first canine patient to undergo dialysis at a government veterinary hospital in the State. The dog, diagnosed with acute kidney failure, underwent treatment on Thursday for about six hours.

Veterinary surgeon B. Aravind, who led the treatment, said the dog would have to be on treatment for two weeks. The owner, Dilip of Mundakkal in the city, took Jack to the District Veterinary Centre (DVC) after noticing that the animal was constantly vomiting and was very lethargic.

Dr. Aravind, who found that Jack was not responding to medicines, subjected the dog to a thorough check-up and diagnosed it with acute renal failure, probably caused by ingestion. The dialysis was carried out with machines installed by the district panchayat at the DVC.

The fee for the treatment on Thursday was Rs.5,000. On subsequent days, the fee will be less. The Kollam DVC is attached with a superspecialty veterinary centre constructed with funds provided by the panchayat. Dr. Aravind said that another canine patient bitten by a snake will also be given treatment at the DVC on Friday.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> News> National / by Ignatius Pereira / Kollam – October 30th, 2015

Kuttoosan rice to be marketed

Agriculture, Business & Economy, Green Initiatives & Environment, Nature
Paddy farmers harvesting the traditional rice variety cultivated in the brackish water fields at Vellikkeel Chera in Kannur on Sunday.
Paddy farmers harvesting the traditional rice variety cultivated in the brackish water fields at Vellikkeel Chera in Kannur on Sunday.

Traditional paddy farmers who have revived the paddy-cum-shrimp cultivation in the tidal marshes near Anthur here, by cultivating a rare salinity-resistant rice seed, are planning to market the organically grown rice.

Ketharam, a self-help group of paddy farmers of Vellikkeel Chera in the Anthur municipality, has been cultivating the Kuttoosan variety of rice that was once popular in the kaipad fields (traditional brackish water paddy fields). The variant had almost become extinct after a large extent of tidal marshes was left fallow for years. It is for the fourth successive year that the group is harvesting produce on its 16-acre field, which includes the land owned by each member and cultivable land on lease.

“We have been harvesting 1,500 kg rice per acre after the revival of the kaipad cultivation under the rice-cum-shrimp scheme of under the Agency for Aquaculture Development, Kerala (ADAK),” said M. Sureshan, secretary of the group.

source: http://www.thehindu.com / The Hindu / Home> National> Kerala / by Mohamed Nazeer / Kannur – October 26th, 2015