3 minute read
Helen Beattie, NZVA CVO
by VetScript
Welfare of the animal and human kind
NZVA CVO Helen Beattie discusses progress on key priority areas for the NZVA, the MAG and the veterinary profession.
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AS I’VE SAID before in previous columns, advocating on behalf of the membership is one of the big roles of the NZVA veterinary team. This month, I want to highlight some of that work.
ANIMAL WELFARE AND PUBLIC CONFIDENCE IN THE PROFESSION
With the continued increase in public awareness of animal welfare, veterinarians are being viewed more and more as animal welfare experts, not just ‘animal doctors’. Supporting this, the NZVA has identified as critical the need to ensure that veterinary professionals understand the science of animal welfare and how welfare can be assessed using the 5 Domains Model (for more detail, see page 28 of the August issue of VetScript). Through being up to date on animal welfare science we can give credible, evidence-based advice and be confident advocates for animals. This then further instils public confidence that veterinarians have the best interests of their animals at heart.
A tragic case in point is the recent capsize of a ship containing live cattle for export, in which both animals and humans lost their lives. The NZVA’s position – which was developed through member consultation on our policy and the Ministry for Primary Industries’ (MPI’s) consultation document – is that we oppose exports of live animals unless there are acceptable standards of welfare for the duration of their lives. This means that not only should their health be monitored at all times but, as sentient beings, so too should their positive and negative affective (mental) states.
As a result of the tragedy we’ve asked the Government to undertake an independent assessment of animal welfare throughout the live export process – from dock to dock. We need to know what’s happening at all stages to understand whether and how welfare is compromised.
We’ve also been speaking out and supporting veterinarians against allegations that we don’t notify enough animal welfare cases to MPI. We’ve laid out the rationale for our expectations of veterinarians, which you can see in the flow chart for suspected animal welfare issues on page 10 of VCNZ’s Code of Professional Conduct for Veterinarians. Being on farm regularly is the first, and very important, part of the process. If a veterinarian thinks it’s necessary to notify MPI as soon as they arrive on farm, it’s likely that there hasn’t been a robust veterinarian-client relationship in place for some time.
Now that we’re in November, fireworks are back in our consciousness for their potential to cause physical harm and trigger fear and anxiety in some animals. Despite there being a designated sales period for fireworks, there are still no restrictions on when they can be used – and the unpredictability of these events presents an ongoing threat of psychological or physical harm to animals and impairs owners’ ability to manage the situations. The NZVA is recommending the development of legislation that prevents sales of fireworks to the general public, requires local communities to be notified of any public events involving fireworks, and bans displays of fireworks near sensitive wildlife areas.
BUSINESS SUSTAINABILITY AND THE WELLBEING OF MEMBERS
The MAG has also highlighted as a key issue the current shortage of veterinarians in New Zealand. The short-term repercussions for veterinarians include increased workloads, longer work hours, detrimental effects on physical and mental health, and burnout. For the country as a whole the economic impacts could be significant, and a lack of support for farmers and their animals could compromise animal welfare, food safety and biosecurity.
This shortage of veterinarians is a long-standing issue, but it’s been exacerbated by border restrictions due to the COVID-19 pandemic. There is now a limited exemption for veterinarians to enter New Zealand for a restricted period of time.
The NZVA has been working hard to help elevate all veterinarians to critical worker status and to streamline processes to allow more veterinarians into the country.
