A. E. PALMER 
987 
Dr. Palmer: The question was: why did we 
pick the time of forty-five days for quarantine? 
As I said, the history of our quarantine period 
was given by Zinn some years ago. The period 
started at two weeks, but in 1963, there was a 
rabies scare which caused some consternation 
and, after consideration, it was decided that 
thirty days was required to make the animal 
safe. In 1967, this period was changed to forty- 
five days with the intention of eventually going 
to sixty days. After considerable experience 
with the forty-five day quarantine, it was de- 
cided that more than forty-five days would not 
add considerably to the conditioning of the ani- 
mal or improve his status. That was about all 
you could do. We have found that the forty-five 
day conditioned dog is much superior to the 
thirty-day conditioned dog. The animal has had 
a chance to resolve many of the pneumonic le- 
sions and is a much better animal. 
Dr. Thayer: One more question, please. If 
you're holding them for forty-five days because 
of a rabies scare, you're kidding yourself, of 
course, because the incubation time for rabies is 
after six months. 
Dr. Palmer : No, we're not holding them for- 
ty-five days for a rabies scare. 
Dr. Thayer : Your figures show that at least 
8% of your cats' mortality occurred in the first 
three weeks and over 9% of your dogs' mortal- 
ity occurred in the first four weeks. I see no rea- 
son for keeping the rest of them for a longer pe- 
riod of time. 
Do you differentiate between those dogs and 
cats which are going to be used for an acute 
project and those which are going to be used for 
a chronic investigation, or, is everything held 
this length of time ? 
Dr. Palmer : We have no way of determining 
what the animal is going to be used for when it 
leaves our facility. 
Dr. Thayer: That's where our tax money 
goes. 
Dr. Palmer: So we should use sick cats for 
acute experiments? Sick cats or dogs? But how 
do you know a cat or a dog is healthy after fif- 
teen days or even thirty days? 
Dr. Thayer: If you can't screen them with 
the tests you have and clinical observation, then 
I think you need a new veterinarian. 
Dr. Palmer: You don't agree that we need 
more prolonged conditioning? 
Dr. Thayer : Certainly not for acute studies. 
Dr. Palmer : Everyone's entitled to his opin- 
ion. 
Estelle H. Geller, Albert Einstein College 
of Medicine: I have two questions. One, what 
happens to the dogs that you reject because of 
microfilaria? Aren't they sold to someone else? 
Dr. Palmer : Yes ma'am. They are sent back 
to the vendor and we have no control over what 
he does with them. 
Dr. Geller: The second question is: have 
you looked for oocysts or found oocysts in the 
cat species? I'm asking that particularly be- 
cause of the toxoplasma scare that you see in 
the newspapers. 
Dr. Palmer : We use primarily a zinc sulfate 
flotation technique. We also do a direct exami- 
nation in saline ; a direct wet preparation. 
Dr. Geller : And, in this testing you haven't 
seen oocysts ? 
Dr. Palmer: We have not tried to identify 
the oocysts as those of toxoplasma. 
Dr. Geller : But, have you seen many oocysts 
in general? I mean, regardless of identifying 
this species ? 
Dr. Palmer : Yes. 
Dr. Geller : Do you have the incidence of the 
oocysts in cats ? You gave the percentages of the 
other ones. 
Dr. Palmer : No, I do not have the incidence 
in cats. 
GuiLLERMO Pacheco, NIH, Bethesda, Md. : 
May I just comment briefly on the oocysts in 
cats? I think it's been very clearly established 
that toxoplasma oocysts are shed for a very lim- 
ited period of time. And there's no evidence at 
all to indicate that the isospora or immitis 
which are found in cats are the least bit trans- 
missible to other animals. 
Dr. Geller: I'm with you on that, but you 
see articles in "Newsweek" and "The New York 
Times," and "McCall's" and all these places 
scaring everybody. 
Glen G. Wrigley, Buckshire Corp.: Have 
you used dichlorvous as a helminthic in your fe- 
lines? 
Dr. Palmer: We have used it. In fact, we 
used it routinely for a short period of time. We 
