Preventative Veterinary Care
Veterinary Services Provision
Veterinary Provision
It is the requirement of the Zoo Licensing Act 1981 that a licensed zoo
appoints a senior veterinarian to oversee the health and welfare of the animal
collection, manage the preventative medicine and zoonoses protocols and
pathology investigation service.
This service is supplied by:
Insert veterinary provider and contact details
Secondary referral services are provided by :
Insert referral practices and contact details
Call Out Procedure:
1. On finding an animal that is sick or injured the staff member should
immediately seek advice from:
Insert zoo employees responsible for calling vet out
2. If it is agreed veterinary attention is required the veterinarian should be
contacted with the following information.
a) Identification of the animal.
b) Signs seen.
c) Duration of signs seen.
d) Assessment of urgency.
Insert any other information relevant to call out procedures.
Visual Animal Checks
All animals at should be given a visual health check first thing in the morning
and last thing in the afternoon as well as periodically through out the day.
The following should be checked:
1. Does the animal have any visible cuts, grazes, wounds or hair loss ?
2. Is the animal moving normally ?
a) Is the animal limping ?
b) Is the animal standing normally/comfortably ?
c) Is the animal holding a limb in an abnormal position ?
3. Is the animal eating normally ?
a) If the animal is a ruminant is it chewing the cud ?
b) Is the animal uninterested in the food presented ?
c) Is the animal showing normal feeding behaviour ?
d) Is there the usual amount of food remaining uneaten ?
4. Are there any discharges from the following, what colour are the
discharges, is there any blood ?
a) Eyes
b) Ears
c) Nose
d) Mouth
e) Rectum
f) Vagina
g) Penis
5. Is the animal passing normal faeces, is it the normal colour and
consistency? Is there any blood, diarrhea or excessive straining ?
6 Is the animal behaving normally ?
a) Is it alert ?
b) Is it subdued or lethargic ?
c) Unusually quiet or unusually vocal ?
d) Is it kicking at its side, excessive licking any body part, Head
swinging or agitated ?
e) Is it teeth grinding ?
f) Is it sweating ?
h) Is it interacting with the group normally ?
Preventative Medicine Programme
BIAZA has produced a comprehensive range of guidance documents to assist
in the development of Preventative Medicine Programmes. The full set of
guidance describes in detail the complex aspects of preventative medicine in
zoos and should be used to complete a full programme specific to the
individual collection. This document provides a high level template only.
For Each Taxon or Species Complete the Following Template
Source of Stock
Animals should be sourced from known suppliers with a known health status.
Refer to: BIAZA Animal Transactions Policy
Animal Acquisition Protocol
Acquisition Procedure
Refer to: BIAZA Disease Management During Transfers Guidelines
BALAI Directive Guidelines
Required Records, Veterinary Procedures and Certification before Acquisition
Insert details specific to your collection
Length of Required Isolation or Quarantine (depends on BALAI Status)
Insert details specific to your collection
Management Whilst in Quarantine or Isolation
Insert details specific to your collection
Veterinary Procedures During Isolation/Quarantine
Insert details specific to your collection
Routine Monitoring
 Temperature and humidity monitors (where relevant) should be in use
and the parameters recoded on the animals record on a daily basis.
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Food consumption should be recorded on the animals record.
The animals weight should be recorded on a regular basis.
Other information regarding the physiology of the animal should be
recorded such snake shedding, moulting, reproductive activity etc.
Hooves, claws, nails, beaks etc should be checked and maintained if
necessary on a regular basis.
Biosecurity and Hygiene Protocols
Insert Details of the specific biosecurity and hygiene provisions for this
Taxon/Species include frequency of disinfection, paddock cleaning etc.
Routine Disease Screening
Describe the diagnostic disease testing undertaken for each
Taxon/Species
Describe in which circumstances animals will be tested eg, routine health
examinations, opportunistic etc.
Vaccinations
Describe the use of any vaccines include disease, frequency, dose and route
Endoparasite Control
Describe your faecal parasite testing regime
Describe the frequency of ‘worming’ – every X weeks or following faecal
Parasite testing only
Describe the drugs, dose and route
Ectoparasite Control
Describe any treatments for fleas, mites, lice etc used on a routine basis
include drug, dose, route
Faecal Bacterial Culture Submission
As stated in the Guidance on Management of Zoonoses in Zoos produced
jointly by BIAZA, Defra, HSE and HPA.
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Any screening or monitoring programme needs to take into account
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the costs associated with such a programme as compared to any
likely benefits to human visitors and the animals being tested.
Consideration should be given to the validity of test regimes in the
species in question and what action would be taken in the event of
a positive test result.
Routine screening of animals that may be infected with endemic
infections such as E.Coli O157, Campylobacter or Salmonella is
unlikely to be of any benefit. It may not be possible to prove that a
particular animal is negative so all should be treated as potential
carriers since excretion can be intermittent and the organism can
survive in the environment. Therefore the focus should be on
controlling the risk of infection through good personal hygiene
measures and good environmental hygiene design.
Screening is better focused on the higher hazard but rarer
infectious diseases that may be associated with certain animals.
Screening animals prior to import and during quarantine is highly
recommended as it will reduce the chance of bringing zoonotic
organisms into the collection.
Explain in which circumstances faecal culture is undertaken
End of Species or Taxon Specific Template
Post-Mortem Procedure
Define which animals will be submitted for PME
Who undertakes the gross PME and explain histology submission process
Explain storage of the body prior to PME
Describe the routine PME protocol including protective clothing
requirements
Explain how the body should be disposed of.
Animal By-Products Management
The correct handling, storage and disposal or animal waste products is an
important component of the preventative health programme in a zoo. Most
zoos will need to be licensed under Animal By-Products Legislation.
Refer to: BIAZA Animal By-Products Guidelines
Zoonotic Disease Management
Due to the risk of transmission of infectious disease (in either direction)
between animals and humans, both keeping staff and the public, it is essential
that zoos have a documented policy regards management of this risk. Close
contact with animal body fluids, faeces and tissues is inevitable and
minimising the risk of disease transmission requires well-trained personnel
and stringent personal hygiene.
BIAZA has published extensive zoonotic disease management guidance for
zoos which was developed in conjunction with HSE, HPA and Defra. This
document should be used to develop a full risk assessment and management
plan.
Refer to : BIAZA Zoonoses Management Guidelines
General precautionary measures to be followed;
1. Correct handling of all animals, their body fluids, faeces and tissues
with respect to zoonotic disease. In other words, strict personal
hygiene practices, including the use of protective clothing and
prohibition of eating, drinking and smoking in potentially infective areas.
Staff hand-washing facilities must be available and used regularly.
2. All staff to alert the medical profession to their nature of employment
should they be taken ill. (This process will be supervised by HR
department).
3. Potential implementation of a targeted animal health screening
programme where circumstances indicate (e.g. instances of
tuberculosis, pathogenic enteric bacteria and endo-parasites).
4. Particular care with species of known zoonotic susceptibility or
individuals of known zoonotic status, considering them as lifelong
carriers.
5. All carcases, body fluids, faeces and tissues to be disposed of in a
manner that is not detrimental to public health.
6. The working areas of the zoo are off display and not open to the public.
7. In enclosures, barriers must prevent direct contact between members
of the public and zoo stock.
8. Direct animal contact is only allowed under close supervision and hand
washing is enforced before and after handling.
9. Where ever possible movement of animals and animal products is
separated from public paths, play areas and picnic areas.