← Natural animal health H34-06 · Module 6 of 7 · Pages: 20 · Worksheets: 7

When to call the vet

Clear signs by species for when to call at once, when the same day and when to watch, what to say on the phone, notifiable diseases, post-mortems and euthanasia only with the vet

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Whole series: Natural animal health, €39

When to call the vet

In short

  • Red, call at once: bloat, colic, can't get up, birth not progressing, heavy bleeding, nervous signs, poisoning, a male not passing urine.
  • Call and report: abortions, sudden deaths of several animals, blisters in the mouth and on the feet, suspected rabies (US, CA). That is a legal duty.
  • Take the temperature before you call, and write down the signs and times. The vet decides on the facts.
  • When you're not sure, call. The vet will tell you whether it can wait.
  • Only a vet carries out euthanasia. Dead and euthanised animals are disposed of under the rules, never in a wood, in water or fed to dogs.
  • Fever, joint pain or round bald patches on your skin after working with animals: see your doctor, and tell them you keep livestock.

What's inside

Chapters

  1. Three colours of urgency
  2. Emergency signs by species
  3. Before you call: measure and write down
  4. Talking to the vet and their visit
  5. Notifiable diseases
  6. When you need a doctor
  7. Post-mortems and dead animals
  8. Euthanasia
  9. Common mistakes
  10. Printable checklist

Worksheets

  • When to call the vet at once
  • Normal values to hang up
  • Phone sheet
  • Record of vet visits and treatments with withdrawal periods
  • Annual plan with the vet
  • Vet cost calculator
  • Contacts

Fields and checkboxes can be filled in with Adobe Acrobat Reader (desktop and mobile), and the calculator adds up by itself. Filling in may not work in some browsers. A print version comes with the screen PDF.

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