Autumn 2003

Aussie Vet In Wales

Some of you might have been lucky indeed and met Lucy Blair, the locum vet who has been here for a  few weeks helping out this Summer. Lucy had spent the previous two months working in a small animal practice in Cardiff, Wales and has kindly penned this article comparing working in Wales and in Australia:

“ Working as a vet in the UK is quite similar to practising in Australia, with a few exceptions:

Due to the population density, cats, rabbits and ‘pocket pets’ are much more common eg. hamsters, guinea pigs and chinchillas. Dogs tend to be smaller breeds eg. West Highland Whites and Yorkshire Terriers, and bloodhounds are more common.

Rabbits can be vaccinated against Myxomatosis in the UK.

Cats are spayed via a flank approach, compared to the midline approach mainly practised in Australia. Another notable difference with regard to surgery, most vets in the UK do not wear gloves when performing soft tissue surgeries eg. castrations, spays.

Heartworm and paralysis tick do not pose a threat to pets in the UK. Flea preventatives (such as the top spots) are prescription only, and not available over the counter unless the pet has been seen in the last 6 months. Some drugs are registered under a different name.

Firecrackers are legal and available to anyone over 18 in the UK, so unfortunately I found anxiety problems related to fireworks a common problem in dogs.

Consultations are much shorter, with standard consultations 10 minutes and short consultations of 5 minutes also booked. A lot of clients have health insurance for their pets. Veterinary nurse training is highly regulated in the UK and a specific uniform for each level is standard across the UK.

Wales was a lovely place to work and visit. The Welsh are lovely people and the countryside is beautiful. Being winter, the weather was cold and bleak, and occasionally snowed. The Welsh accent is enchanting, if a little hard to understand at times. It was often a challenge to pronounce the Welsh name of the animal due to their enthusiastic use of consonants!”                                                                             

Lucy