The article emphasizes the distinction between professional veterinarians and unqualified breeders or pet handlers who improperly provide medical care to animals. It highlights the responsibilities of regulatory bodies, such as the Veterinary Council of Nigeria, to uphold veterinary standards and combat malpractice, which has resulted in significant harm to pets and their owners. Pet owners are urged to avoid engaging with unlicensed individuals and to ensure they verify veterinary credentials to prevent potential dangers.

1. BEWARE!
BREEDERS ARE NOT VETERINARIANS.
By
Dr. olutunde john olarinde( D.V.M)
An article published in his column (You and your pets)
In Sunday Newswatch, a National Daily Newspaper in Nigeria.
Professionals are people that have been trained, certified, registered
and recognized by their respective regulatory bodies after a detailed,
thorough and rigorous scrutiny based on acceptable and recognized
world standard. These regulatory bodies which are created by the
laws of the land, usually through a gazette, recognized and
adequately funded by the Federal Government regulate the conducts
and practice of their members within a standard framework of
acceptable codes of conduct. They also organize from time to time
continuous education trainings to update and upgrade the knowledge
base of their members amongst other varied functions, and would not
hesitate to sanction and discipline any erring members who has
derailed and has not played by the acceptable laid–down rules and
regulations. The fear of these bodies is always the beginning of
wisdom for any discerning and right thinking member. These bodies,
as part of their statutory duties are also to certify and register
members’ practice premises and to have current and up- to- date
record and data of its members in its database. And to organize,
through their representatives domiciled in the states (The state

2. Director of Veterinary services) enforcement committee and task
force to ensure that laid-down rules and regulations are adhered to
and to weed out miscreants, unqualified and unlicensed personnel in
the system for sanity to prevail as it is presently experienced in more
organized and developed societies. These regulatory bodies are the
likes of The Veterinary Council of Nigeria (VCN),The Medical and
Dental Council of Nigeria, The Council of Legal Education, The Council
of Registered Engineers of Nigeria(COREN), The Architects
Registration Council ,The Pharmacist Council, Institute of Chartered
Accounts of Nigeria(ICAN)and others. These regulatory bodies are
complemented by various Professional Associations like the
Nigerian Veterinary Medical Association(NVMA),The Nigerian
Medical Association(NMA),The Nigeria Bar Association (NBA) etc
which are basically pressure groups created by the members to
clamor for improved welfare and conditions for its members through
the creation of the right environment ,medium , policies and laws
amongst several other functions.
In the Animal health sector, specifically the small animal or Pets sub-
sector, there are Veterinarians that render invaluable services as
there are some other personnel like The Dog and Cat breeders, The
Dog trainers, The Dog Handlers, Pets shop owners and others who
render services to complement the ones rendered by the vets. And in
all cases of these personnel, the job functions are delineated, defined
and obvious with or without formal trainings and are to work
collaboratively with the Vets to achieve the best attainable for the
Pets and the Pet owners. But most times, great disservice, distortions,
problems and calamities are caused when in some cases a non-
professional, unqualified and unlicensed personnel starts to take on

3. job functions and responsibilities he or she is not formally trained for,
especially for a high skill, technical, delicate and knowledge
demanding field like Veterinary medicine. These problems are even
more compounded when regulatory authorities whose function is to
regulate the Animal health industry has decided to do otherwise, look
the other way and pretend that everything is alright resulting in
malpractices leading to untimely death of millions of pets ,great losses
and agonies for their owners.
This warning is necessitated by an increase in the deluge of cases of
referrals of near death situations and or complaints of death of pets in
some cases being experienced in clinics over time, where Dog
breeders who breed and sell dogs and pets to people are also
illegally taking on the responsibility of the healthcare of the pets by
prescribing and administering drugs ,vaccines and other medicaments
with impunity .
In most cases, impersonating and claiming to be a veterinarian or ‘vet’
as they popularly call themselves. These quacks in most instances
claim and boost to be more knowledgeable and experienced than the
veterinarians in perpetuating their illegal activities. The same
malpractice is oftentimes perpetuated by Dog trainers, Dog handlers
and Pets shop owners who camouflage under the guise of rendering
one service or the other or selling pets’ products to canvass for and
render illegal veterinary healthcare services to uninformed and
sometimes informed clients.
This is where a clarion call is going to the regulatory authorities
specifically the Veterinary Council of Nigeria (VCN) and by extension,
the states’ representatives (The Director of Veterinary Services), The

4. Ministries of Agriculture and Co-operatives and of Justice, both state
and federal, The Police and The Nigerian Veterinary Medical
Association (NVMA) to wake up from their deep slumber, to get their
acts together, collaborate ,be alive to their civic and professional
responsibilities and make the tax payers’ money counts. It is also
pertinent to advise pet owners not to patronize quacks as it comes
with many dangers and to verify the identity of the person who
presents and calls himself a Veterinarian, Vet. Doctor or Vet as there
are several impostors and charlatans around.