ROLE OF VETERINARIANS IN ANIMAL WELFARE
INTRODUCTION
• “Being admitted to the profession of veterinary medicine, I solemnly swear to use my scientific knowledge and skills for the benefit of society through the protection of animal health and welfare, the prevention and relief of animal suffering, the conservation of animal resources, the promotion of public health, and the advancement of medical knowledge”. Every graduate entering into veterinary profession swears an oath not only to protect animal health but also welfare, to not only relieve animal suffering but to prevent it, this is what defines the goals, responsibilities of a veterinarian (RCVS, 2006; AVMA, 2010). Will Rogers once said, “The best doctor in the world is a veterinarian. He can’t ask his patients what is the matter– he’s got to just know.” Veterinarians rely on their training to ascertain ailments and diseases. The ability to identify ailments in a variety of species demands intensive multi-disciplinary training, including anatomy, physiology, microbiology, parasitology, pathology, biochemistry, diagnostic imaging, medicine and surgery. In most circumstances, this training enables veterinarians to see cases through from start to finish, which is often not the case for human health professionals. Even their work environment is too vast, ranging from long hours spent in research labs and pet clinics, on farms and in the wild dealing with often confused and scared animals.
•
• Veterinary science is a multi-disciplinary subject which includes research on diagnosis, control, prevention and treatment of animal diseases as well as on the basic zoology, welfare, and care of animals. All activities of animal science essentially affect human health either directly through biomedical research and public health or indirectly by addressing domestic animal, wildlife, or environmental health. Veterinary research at a fundamental level is a human health activity. Veterinary scientists protect the human health and well-being by ensuring food security and safety, preventing and controlling emerging infectious zoonoses, protecting environment and ecosystem, assisting in bioterrorism and agro-terrorism preparedness, advancing treatment and control of nonzoonotic diseases, contributing to public health, and engaging in medical research. The introduction of the concept of ‘One Health’ which takes a holistic approach to address human, animal, and ecosystem health, again emphasizes the role of a veterinarian as a leader in present society by addressing the risk and emergence of zoonotic diseases and promoting basic health care needs of the world.
•
• Veterinarians play a central role in biomedical (including veterinary), wildlife and farm animal research. The comprehensive nature of veterinary training equips veterinary graduates to handle a diverse range of professional responsibilities relevant to the use of animals for scientific purposes and animal welfare. In the Indian context, veterinarians in scientific institutions may be divided into two main categories: those involved in the production, medicine and surgery of animals used for scientific purposes; and those involved on Institutional Animal Ethics Committees, and, of course, there are many veterinarians whose duties involve elements of both categories.
• The broad range of duties in the first category includes management of laboratory animal production and maintenance colonies, operation of preventative medicine programs, clinical medicine, provision of research support, maintenance of quarantine facilities, operation of in-house pathology programs, experimental surgery, and involvement in animal house design. For those veterinarians involved with Institutional Animal Ethics Committees their role is to promote animal welfare and regulatory compliance duties include review of proposals to use animals for scientific purposes, the minimisation of pain and distress, the monitoring of animals in research and teaching, the administration of animal ethics committees, provision of advice to the institution, provision of advice to researchers, provision of consultation and advice concerning compliance with relevant legislation and the Code of Practice for the Care and Use of Animals for Scientific Purposes, and training of research and technical personnel.
• Veterinarians also play a major role in the development of institutional and regulatory policy, codes of practice, regulation and monitoring.
• Although principally outside the scope of this text, qualification as a veterinarian also provides a strong base for veterinary graduates to embark upon a scientific research career in such diverse fields as immunology, molecular biology, physiology, biochemistry, virology, pathology, bacteriology, parasitology, animal management, wildlife research, agricultural animal research, and exotic disease research, and indeed there are veterinary graduates currently working as investigators in all these fields.
• For many veterinarians, animal welfare is a matter of animal health: As long as an animal is healthy, it is also happy. For the past forty years, however, behaviour biologists have shown repeatedly that, whereas poor health contributes to poor welfare, the opposite is not necessarily the case. There is more to good welfare than good health.
• Numerous studies have shown that, despite many generations of selection for various traits, the behavioural repertoire of domestic animals is almost identical to that of their wild ancestors. A broiler chicken has a similar demand for dust bathing as a jungle fowl. A thoroughbred racehorse has the same demand for social contact as the Przwalski horse. These are just two of many other examples. Consequently, to ensure a certain level of welfare in our domestic animals, it is important that they are able to perform their species-specific behaviour beyond eating behaviour, drinking behaviour, eliminative behaviour and resting behaviour.
• And that’s where the controversy begins Which elements of the animal’s ethogram are essential and which ones are not? Must a prey animal show flight behaviour regularly to be happy? Must a well-fed animal show foraging behaviour to be content? Is social contact through bars enough contact?
• The controversy consists of, on the one side, practitioners or producers that need to house and manage animals in such a way that their production is productive and, on the other side, animal protection people or animal rights people who are against any “exploitation” of the domestic animals.
• As with most issues, obviously the optimum lies somewhere in between these two extremes. We all have to compromise and so must our domestic animals. In return for regular food, water, shelter and medical care, the animals must give up some of their freedom. But how much they must give up, how restrictively we can keep them with good conscience, is a matter of dispute.
• The veterinary profession plays a key role in the controversy in that it possesses a detailed knowledge of both camps. Practicing veterinarians and veterinary inspectors are in regular contact with the animals, either in the clinic or during visits to the farms, either to treat sick animals, to institute preventive measures, or to control that legislation is being followed. At the same time veterinarians possess (or should possess) the scientific background that enable them to judge the welfare of their patients and clients.
• Public concern for the welfare of domestic animals is likely to increase in the future. At the present time behaviour biologists still struggle with the difficult task of “measuring happiness” in the animals. Similarly, programs for monitoring welfare in praxis are being developed in many countries. An important question in these developments is how the veterinary profession can best prepare itself for future challenges, both in the veterinary curriculum and in terms of continued education.
As public concern for animal welfare grew, people began asking awkward questions regarding, for example, the production of foie gras, the forced molting of laying hens, and the slaughter of horses for human consumption overseas.
• The public views veterinarians favorably, regarding them as experts in animal care and welfare. But the veterinary profession has had a love-hate relationship with animal advocates.
• The profession’s economics and changing demographics—in 1960, less than 2% of veterinarians were female; today 45% are female—will have an impact on the way the profession deals with animal welfare and animal rights. Public opinion polls find that women are about 15 percentage points more positive toward animal welfare issues than are men. One could argue that the increased of numbers of female veterinarians is already having an impact, even though there are still relatively few women in leadership positions in the profession. In addition, most pet caregivers who take their animals to veterinarians will favor those veterinarians who emphasize animal welfare.
• Because their animals are now considered members of the household, people are requesting advanced veterinary services—and paying more for them. The more veterinary hospitals respond to this change in pet caregiver attitudes by, for example, focusing more on animal welfare and working cooperatively with local humane societies, the more their clients are likely to trust them and accept the new economic realities of pet medicine.
• Moreover, as people have come to value their pets more highly, many veterinarians have responded by offering—and charging for—medical and surgical services that meet their clients’ expanding demands for advanced healthcare.
In animal clinics, veterinarians work with companion, farm and exotic animals to diagnose and treat acute and chronic diseases, provide targeted vaccines, treat parasitic infection and infestation and perform minor surgeries like dressing wounds, mending broken bones, performing dental work to major ones like caesarean sections and also humanely euthanize whenever necessary. Veterinarians are also key contributors to ethical review processes in Vetero-legal cases, speaking with authority and pragmatism as the animals’ advocate. That is what these animals deserve, not only the five freedoms- freedom from hunger, freedom from discomfort i.e. having shelter, freedom from pain and suffering from disease, freedom to express its normal behavior, freedom from fear and distress; but proper internationally achievable and respected standards for their whole life
ROLE OF A VETERINARIAN IN INDIAN SOCIETY
India’s livestock sector is one of the largest in the world. It has 56.7% of world’s buffaloes, 12.5% cattle, 20.4% small ruminants, 2.4% camel, 1.4% equine, 1.5% pigs and 3.1% poultry (AHD, 2011). In 2010- 11 livestock generated outputs worth Rs 2075 billion (at 2004-05 prices) which comprised 4% of the GDP and 26% of the agricultural GDP. Nonetheless, the share of livestock in the agricultural GDP improved consistently from 15% in 1981-82 to 26% in 2010-11 (AHD, 2011). Animal husbandry is an integral component of Indian agriculture supporting livelihood of more than two-thirds of the rural population. Livestock sector is expected to emerge as an engine of agricultural growth in the 12th plan and beyond in view of rapid growth in demand for animal food products. Considering the existing orientation of livestock production systems and specialized requirements of livestock owners, it’s the time to reminisce the role of veterinarians in addressing the constraints and provide extension services towards spreading the awareness about animal health and welfare. This would call for building up an exclusive cadre of livestock extension workers, establishment of Krishi Vigyan Kendra (KVK) exclusively for livestock activities and strengthening Agriculture Technology Management Agency (ATMA) with Animal Husbandry experts. India has about 55000 veterinary institutions including poly clinics, hospitals, dispensaries and livestockman centers. All veterinarians and veterinary para-professionals are licensed to practice by an autonomous Veterinary Council of India and are subjected to legal disciplinary provisions for any professional misconduct (OIE, 2007). Veterinarians performing official government functions use their best efforts to ensure that any colleagues in clinical practice, either government or private, are kept informed on matters affecting their clients and their animals like an outbreak of notifiable disease. Veterinarian expertised in curing the sick or injured animal will always be in demand as their knowledge in the welfare of animals is unique and they are never reticent in
coming forward. Society expects veterinarians to be involved wherever animals are at risk or are about to be placed at risk. They are always pro-active, ask never complacent and willing to be involved. With an increasing global population, they will continue to play an ever more important role in ensuring a healthy world, for animals and humans.
CONCLUSION
The veterinary profession has the independence, integrity, knowledge and skills to provide the consumer with reassurance that their expectation of high food safety, human and animal welfare as well as environmental standards has all been met – all the way from farm to fork.
Dr Ajeet Kumar Singh
Veterinary Surgeon
Founder and director of Global Veterinary Clinic and Surgery Centre Gorakhpur
Reference-On request
