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Animal Handling & Planning
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When to call in the vet
Friday, 14 August 2009
An obviously distressed or deteriorating animal is clear cause for alarm and should have you reaching for the vet’s phone number immediately.
Outside of this, it can be difficult to know when to call the vet– and even the most experienced can be caught out by silent or sudden symptoms.
Call your vet if:
- An animal giving birth has not made significant progress after a couple of hours – especially if significant time has elapsed since the appearance of the water bag.
- An animal does not get to its feet and attend to its young after giving birth.
- You have an animal that is older than six months and requires castration or - You are unsure or concerned about an animal. Your vet would prefer to ensure the animal is safe and well than have to deal with an extremely unwell animal – or learn the animal died because you didn’t want to disturb the vet.
Be prepared for the vet by ensuring, where possible, the animals are in the yards. If you can’t move a sick animal be aware your vet may want their vehicle handy so try to make this as easy as possible. Ensure water is available, either running or in a bucket – especially if the vet is helping with lambing or calving.
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