VET PROFESSIONALS 'WILDLIFE SELF SUPPORT NETWORK' GROUP

About This Group...

This is a group for Vet Professionals to self create a formal, friendly national/regional network(s) so that the more wildlife experienced Vet Professionals in the network can be accessible and available to offer advice (either urgent or general) to those who would benefit from support, when wildlife casualties are dropped into Practices.

FAWR in Nottingham have set up a regional network where the more wildlife experienced Vet Professionals are on hand to offer remote advice to the staff at less wildlife experienced Vet Practices, so that local wildlife are helped as much as possible in the area (and so that everyone also feels supported in their wildlife efforts).

At a recent WCB brainstorming session between Vets & Wildlife Rehabbers, it was wondered whether this could be a template that can be replicated regionally and even nationally, with Vet Professionals being members of a self supporting network to help them to treat wildlife?

This group is to invite any Vet Professionals who are interested in seeing if such a national network (or regional networks) would be possible to set up to help everyone and what it might look like and how it might run.

Background On WCB And Past Meetings...

Since starting the WCB we have held 2 specific meetings for Vet Professionals, to help on 2 levels… [Click HERE to see the full details on past meetings.]

1. To see about setting up a voluntary network for wildlife experienced Vet Professionals to support those who are less experienced.

2. To provide presentations from wildlife friendly Vet Practices on not only being wildlife friendly but also making it profitable and of benefit to the Practice as well as the local community.

We made quite a bit of progress in those 2 meetings, with an idea of a structure created - probably localised supportive structures rather than one national effort - with a template letter also made available to use. Beth Ragan RVN & Charlee Howard SVN (both from different, very wildlife friendly Vet Practices & both also Rehabbers) gave presentations on how they had set up to help wildlife and how the community benefitted from it. Heidi Hargreaves, Vet Surgeon, also attended to present her experiences working in Practice and with Wildlife Centres.

Some support documents are now available and some more will be available in the new year (suggested kit lists for Vet Practices etc).

WILDLIFE SUPPORT DURING 2025...

[WE ARE SCHEDULING OUR NEXT EVENT FOR 20th MARCH 2025. THE ZOOM LINK FOR THE EVENT IS HERE: https://us06web.zoom.us/j/85413555262 ]

WILDLIFE SUPPORT DURING 2025…

We would like to build on what has been done so far, to support Vet Practices & Professionals even more.

We get a lot of requests from Vet Professionals asking for wildlife advice (even on just how to be more wildlife friendly overall or how to unite with local Rescues) so this is a way to make this information more widely available. It’s also important that the info is provided by Vet Professionals for Vet Professionals.

Our next meeting will be on zoom (link will be provided on the day) on Thursday 20th March 2025 at 20:00 for one hour.

The WCB would like to use this meeting to reconnect with everyone who has attended meetings in the past - and hopefully lots of new attendees - to ask the following questions….

1. Do you have any concerns about wildlife casualties/orphans coming into your Practices over Spring/Summer every year?
2. If you do have concerns, what support do you need to feel more confident to treat the wildlife that are dropped into you before you can move them onto local Rescues?
3. What help might you need to move them onto local Rescues?

Once these questions are answered, the WCB will dedicate time from now until our next meeting in March to do our best to provide the support that is requested, be that setting up connections for you to more wildlife experienced Vet Professionals or Practices, sending you pdf ‘How To Guides’ on treating different species or templates for Hospital Admission Forms, Medication Record Templates or Kit Lists.

Here’s to our UK wildlife.