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Alone in the Wilderness

Course Overview

Are you the only person in your clinic who has a passion for Fear Free? It’s easy to get discouraged and frustrated when we are surrounded by obstacles. This course provides tools to achieve your Fear Free goals even when you feel like you are all alone in your work. Learn how to get buy-in, implement strategies from the ground up, and encourage your colleagues to join your heart’s work of protecting the emotional welfare of our treasured animal patients.

This course, approved for 1 RACE CE hour, was written by Monique Feyrecilde BA, LVT, VTS (Behavior).

This course consists of five lessons:

  • Lesson 1: The essence and importance of Fear Free Practice
  • Lesson 2: Understanding the dynamics of change
  • Lesson 3: Implementing change within your practice
  • Lesson 4: Addressing common push-back topics
  • Lesson 5: Thrive where you’re planted, or transplant to a new garden

The Impact of Pain

Course Overview

Pain is not just physically unpleasant for animals. Beyond physiological symptoms such as GI dysfunction, immunosuppression and delayed wound healing, pain also affects animals emotionally and increases FAS. If not controlled, acute pain can lead to central sensitization, chronic pain states, increased morbidity and increased mortality.

If left untreated for too long, pain can become maladaptive and lead to a vicious cycle of reduced activity, weaker muscles, even less exercise, and even more pain. This course will show the importance of treating pain early and why doing so can lessen its overall impact on patients.

This course, approved for 1 RACE CE hour, was written by Ralph Harvey, DVM, MS, DACVA, UTCVM.

This course consists of 6 lessons. 

  • Lesson 1: Defining and Classifying Pain
  • Lesson 2: Surgical and Post-Operative Pain
  • Lesson 3: Chronic Pain
  • Lesson 4: Pain from Cancer
  • Lesson 5: Impact on the Human-Animal Bond
  • Lesson 6: Modern Analgesic Therapies

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Stand-Up Comedy with Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald

Stand-Up Comedy with Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald

We invite you to join us for the second installation of our Fun Webinar series to break up your stressful weeks with something to look forward to! These webinars are for our human clients and intended to give you a mental break, learn something new and fun, or cater to your own emotional and mental wellbeing.

We’ve been told laughter is the best medicine, so we’ve asked comedian Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald to fill our prescriptions. Best known for his 11 seasons on the popular Animal Planet television series “Emergency Vets”, Dr. Kevin Fitzgerald practices small animal medicine at VCA Alameda East Veterinary Hospital in Denver, continues to do research, has authored over a hundred peer-reviewed scientific articles, and is on multiple boards for different Denver-area veterinary and zoo associations. In addition to his veterinary career, Dr. Fitzgerald has been performing stand-up comedy since 1986, opening for and working with performers such as Joan Rivers, Bob Hope, Kevin Nealon, Brian Regan, and Norm McDonald.

Quantifying Pain

Course Overview

Inadequate pain control can damage the human-animal bond and impede an animal’s ability to maintain normal function and to recover from injury or illness. This module will focus on the fundamentals in measurement and the scaling and scoring of pain, so that we can more effectively treat patients’ pain and suffering.

This course, approved for 1 RACE CE hour, was written by Dr. Ralph Harvey, DVM, MS, DACVA, UTCVM.

This course consists of five lessons:

  • Lesson 1: Pain as a Vital Sign
  • Lesson 2: Behavioral Signs of Pain
  • Lesson 3: Scales and Scoring of Acute Pain
  • Lesson 4: Evaluating Chronic Pain
  • Lesson 5: Case Examples

This course is endorsed by the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management.

You must be a certified veterinary professional to take this course.

Effects and Management of Chronic Pain

Course Overview

This course will discuss chronic pain, its causes, and its impact on animals’ wellbeing. It will include case studies, as well as a discussion of alternative and complementary treatment.

This course, approved for 1 RACE CE hour, was written by Dr. Michael Petty, DVM, CVPP, CVMA, CCRT, CAAPM.

There are six lessons in this course.

  • Lesson 1: Review of Causes of Chronic Pain
  • Lesson 2: A Brief Discussion of Acute vs. Chronic Pain
  • Lesson 3: Measuring Chronic Pain
  • Lesson 4: Effects of Chronic Pain
  • Lesson 5: Pain Cases
  • Lesson 6: Alternative and Complementary Treatments

This course is endorsed by the International Veterinary Academy of Pain Management.

Emotional Medical Record & Fear, Anxiety, and Stress (FAS) Scale

Emotional Medical Record Template

A customized care routine is crucial to a successful Fear Free veterinary visit. Use this Fear Free Emotional Medical Record (EMR) template to organize each patient’s preferences of examination area, motivational aid, and specifics of incidents of FAS. Templates are available for dogs/cats and also for birds.

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Avian

Fear, Anxiety, and Stress (FAS) Scale

Because it is critically important to rate an animal’s level of FAS, Fear Free created this FAS scale for certified professionals. This scale will give you the opportunity to be consistent in assessing and recording every animal’s FAS level, and it will give you recommendations on how to proceed. Page two of the scale is your tool to record details on each animal.

Print out the scale, laminate it, and hang it on the wall. The second page goes into each patient’s medical record. Scales are available for dogs, cats, horses, and birds.

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FAS Spectrum

FAS Spectrum Handouts

The bulk of communication between humans is through body language and the same goes for animals. It’s important for both your team and your customers to understand the often subtle signs of fear, anxiety, and stress that their pet is expressing. Use these FAS Spectrum sheets to visually explain the different signs of FAS and the corresponding levels of arousal. Handouts available for dogs, cats, horses, birds, and rats.

Spectrum of FAS – Dog
Spectrum of FAS – Cat
Spectrum of FAS – Horses
Spectrum of FAS – Birds
Spectrum of FAS – Rats

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Episode Zero: Welcome to the Fear Free Podcast Series

Becoming Fear Free certified is certainly an accomplishment, but it doesn’t stop there. Seeing the benefits of how you implement Fear Free theories, techniques and strategies into your practice takes more than just a certificate. This introductory Episode Zero in our highly anticipated series of podcasts is the precursor to a series of monthly podcast discussions featuring certified Fear Free professionals that are on the forefront of Fear Free. With real world examples, advice, insights and more, this series will help put your certification into action.

Veterinary Professional Certification Program

The Fear Free Veterinary Certification Program teaches veterinary healthcare professionals how to eliminate fear, anxiety, and stress for happier patients, more compliant clients, and safer veterinary healthcare teams.

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