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One of the most overlooked tenets of Fear Free is the hospital environment and how it can affect your patients’ fear, anxiety, and stress. Our roundtable of experts discuss how you can create a welcoming environment for your patients, clients, and team members.

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The roundtable of experts discuss how the implementation of Fear Free in hospitals can help reduce the stress of all members of the veterinary team and owners—and thus the FAS of the clients and patients. There is also a discussion on how to handle referral clients, especially those who may not be able to come back for repeated visits and how putting yourself in the place of the animal can help you to understand how to manage the hospital environment for them.

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Blood draws are an essential part of practicing veterinary medicine, but they can be stressful for the professional, let alone the patient. Veterinary nurse/animal trainer Laura Ryder, CPDT-KA, KPA-CTP, shows you how you can get a canine blood draw done the Fear Free way.

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Join a star-studded roundtable of Fear Free experts discussing the interaction of pain and fear, how the variability between specific patients and species can affect pain, and how management of fear can help to alleviate pain.

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Steve DaleWhile rabbits can be wonderful pets, they’re often acquired without much forethought or concern for their needs. The following information can help curious clients decide if a bunny is right for their family and provide the proper care these special animals need.

  1. Rabbits are often an impulse purchase made for young children, but in reality they are an 8- to 12-year commitment and better suited to adults or to families with older children. Research beforehand can help ensure that they are the right pet at the right time for a family.
  2. Rabbits have special health needs and require regular veterinary checks and wellness exams. Be prepared to refer clients to an exotic companion mammal specialist or, if one isn’t available in your area, to educate yourself about their needs.
  3. House rabbits should be spayed or neutered. Uterine cancer rates are high among female rabbits. If the cancer hasn’t metastasized, there’s a high curative rate, but if it has, which is common as rabbits age, the outlook is not good. Females can be spayed when they are six months old. Male rabbits can be neutered when 8 to 12 weeks old. Neutering can help to prevent potential hormone-related behaviors in bunnies. That’s important, because those behaviors are often a reason rabbits are relinquished to shelters. Clients should be prepared to seek the advice of a rabbit behavior expert in case their rabbit exhibits behaviors they don’t understand. Putting a house rabbit outdoors to fend for himself is a death sentence.
  4. Pet rabbits aren’t Bugs Bunny. People think rabbits like to eat carrots, and they’re right about that. However, carrots, apples, and other fruits high in sugar should be offered only as small occasional treats. A rabbit’s diet should consist of high-quality pellets and daily fresh hay (timothy hay, oat hay, and other grass hays). Access to fresh hay is essential to rabbit health. Note: rabbits can be great companions for vegetarians in search of a non-meat-eating pet.
  5. Rabbits are often purchased for young children, but the two aren’t a good match. Young children are hard-wired to hug, cuddle, pick up, and carry rabbits. “Rabbits are prey animals by nature; the only time they’re picked up is if they are about to be dinner,” says Anne Martin, executive director of the House Rabbit Society. “They’re usually very fearful of being held and snuggled. Adults and older children are better aware of rabbit body language and respond to what the rabbit is ‘saying.’”
  6. Rabbits don’t like being held, lifted up, or hugged. They may squirm when picked up, Martin says, and are easily injured if dropped.
  7. Rabbits are easy to litter box train. They need a litter box that is large enough to give them plenty of space to move around. Advise clients to fill the box with rabbit-safe litter and fresh hay.
  8. Rabbits are social and love having friends. Before bunny play dates are arranged, though, each bunny should be spayed or neutered and have a clean bill of health. Rabbits can be picky about who their friends are. Clients should place them side by side in cages at first to test compatibility.
  9. Bunnies prefer predictability and aren’t fond of turmoil. They need a place where they can retreat from commotion.
  10. Rabbits should live indoors. Rabbits kept outdoors are at risk from lawn herbicides and pesticides; predators, including neighborhood dogs; and inclement weather. They are happier, healthier, and safer living indoors.

This article was reviewed/edited by board-certified veterinary behaviorist Dr. Kenneth Martin and/or veterinary technician specialist in behavior Debbie Martin, LVT.

Steve Dale, CABC (certified animal behavior consultant) has written and contributed to many books about pets; hosts three radio shows; contributes to Veterinary Practice News, CATSTER and others; is on the Board of Directors of the Human Animal Bond Association and Winn Feline Foundation, and is chief correspondent for Fear Free Happy Homes. He speaks at conferences worldwide. His blog: www.stevedale.tv
 

Experiences That Matter: Providing Veterinary Care During The Pandemic

Pet owners have many options when choosing their veterinary healthcare provider. Why should they choose you? Differentiating yourself is a challenge at the best of times, made even more problematic during a pandemic where curbside care has limited our ability to created strong, long-lasting bonds with our clients.

In this webinar, Jonathan Bloom, DVM, presents new, easy-to-use strategies that result in “experiences that matter” and that very quickly define you as the veterinarian of choice.

Brought to you by Elanco.

Vaccines, Clients & Curbside… Oh My! Navigating Your Practice’s Preventative Care Yellow Brick Road During a Pandemic

Join Dr. Julie Reck, owner and founder of Fear Free Certified Practice Veterinary Medical Center of Fort Mill, for a discussion on vaccines, how to administer vaccines in a Fear Free manner, and how to improve communication throughout your practice to navigate preventative care in a curbside environment.

Brought to you by Elanco.

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

Lions and Tigers and Hamsters… Oh My!

We invite you to join us for the third 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.

Take an hour to laugh and learn! Join Mark Goldstein, DVM for a fun inside look at the unique challenges encountered around caring for and treating captive wildlife. He will draw upon true stories from his recently published book, “Lions and Tigers and Hamsters: What Animals Large and Small Taught Me About Life, Love, and Humanity,” to keep your interest. He will also share additional cases never published, which will entertain and have you laughing while you wonder how he is still alive to share them.

There will be ample opportunity for Q&A regarding anything in the presentation or related questions regarding working with and caring for captive wildlife or animals in general. During these very challenging times, allow yourself the luxury of sitting back with your beverage of choice, with no responsibility except to pamper yourself and reduce your FAS score!

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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.