LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE : OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLANGES

Karnataka Veterinary Animal and Fisheries Sciences University, Bidar
PROF (DR.) N B SHRIDHAR
Professor and Head
Department of Veterinary Pharmacology and Toxicology
Veterinary College, Shivamogga-577204
LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE
OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLANGES
1

LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE
STRENTH
WEAKNSS
OPPORTUNITY
THREAT

WHO IS A LARGE RUMINANT PRACTITIONER?
 A qualified veterinarian who is providing veterinary services in a
particular region and during particular time for all type of large
ruminants like cattle and buffaloes

Requirement of large RUMINANT practice
 To be ready to do the door step services of livestock of farmers
 Ready to travel long distance for veterinary services.
 Equipped with portable diagnostic equipments.
 Have the stock of all veterinary emergency medicines.
 Well knowledged in veterinary cases of particular region.
 Do have sound theoratical and practical knowledge of large animals.

Way to go ahed in large ruminant practice
LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE: OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLANGES BY DR N B SHRIDHAR

COST OF STARTING A LARGE RUMINANT PRACTICE CLINIC
Sl
No
Details Cost In Rs
1. Rent or construction of the premise or building with an office room, assistant room,
medicine store, dispensing etc
20000
1. Electricity, telephone, internet charges etc 10000
1. Salary of an assistant and receptionist 50000
1. Computer, internet etc 100000
1. Refrigerator 15000
1. Furnitures (Table, chair, visitors chair, waiting chairs etc) 200000
1. Animal Travis with shelter 15000
1. Vehicle to visit car/bike 500000
1. Liquid nitrogen container 5 liter for doorstep AI 25000
1. Medicines, vaccines 200000
1. Minimum amenities Stethoscopes, rumenotomy kit, dystocia kit, PM kit etc 100000
1. Other miscellaneous recurring charges 100000
Total 1335000

How do get prepared for large animal practice
 Need to work a minimum of 12-14 hours in
a day from morning to evening.
 Some time need to work in night time to
attend the emergencies
 Morning time need to work from 9 am to 2
pm
 After noon 3 pm to 6 pm
 The minimum travel time is 3 hours in a
day
 Minimum travel distance per day is 50-100
km per day

Workload of a vet in large ruminant practice
 Hours of Practice: 6 hours per day
 Travel time : 3 hours per day
 Consulting Time : 1 hour per day
 Cases treated time: 2 hours per day
 Cases per hour : 4 Cases
 Cases per day : 15 cases

COST OF LARGE RUMINANT PRACTICE
PER VISIT
 Medicine cost : Rs.100 to 700
 Transport cost : Rs.100 per 10 km in bike
 Transport cost :Rs.200 per 10 km in car
 Vet fee :Rs.200 per case
 Total fee per case :Rs.300 to 900 in bike
 Total fee per case :Rs.400 to 1000 in car
 Total fee per day :Rs.1200 to 3600 in Bike
 Total fee per day :Rs.1600 to 4000 in car
This will change from place to place and case to case

Sl No Details
(With minimum of 5 km travel later each km of travel can
be charged @ 20 /km )
Charges
1. Artificial insemination inclusive semen straws 350
1. Dystokia with duration of 1 hour 1000
1. Dystokia of two hours or more 3000
1. C Section with all the medicine etc 500
1. Simple indigestion, bloat, diarrhea etc 350
1. Minor operations (Small tumer extraction, wound dressing
etc)
450
1. Major surgeries (Urolithiasis, eye ball extirpation, etc) 2500
1. Other diagnostic and vaccination visits 350

➢Less chance of accidental injuries body and head
➢Comfort during rain, cold of hot weather
➢Easily carry the medicines or diagnostic equipment's to
door step
➢Can also carry a team with assistant
➢Less chance of vertebral disc problems
➢Less driving stress compared to bike
➢Low pollution injuries
WHY CAR ?

➢Visiting fees can't be afforded by very poor farmers in
Indian scenerio
➢Can't use in steep and improper road condition.
➢Fuel cost is high
➢Maintenance cost is high
➢Initial investment to purchase a car is more
DISADVANTAGES OF CAR

➢Easy to travel in rural roads
➢Easy and fast reach to the spot
of treatment
➢Fuel efficiency of the bike is
more than any car
➢Easy to park
➢Initial investment is less
➢Low maintenance cost
➢Can easily carry small LN2
container
WHY BIKE ?

➢High chances of accidental injuries body and head
➢Very much discomfort during during rain, cold of hot
weather
➢Difficult to carry the medicines or diagnostic equipment's
to door step
➢Can't be accompanied by a team with assistant
➢More chances of intervertebral disc diseases and other
vertebral disc problems
➢More driving stress compared to car
➢High dust, noise, air pollution injuries
DISADVANTAGES OF BIKE

Captial investment,Recurring expenses and Profit
 Capital Investment:1.6 Lakhs to 20 Lakhs
 Recurring expenses
 :Disposable items,shoes,medicines Rs.6000+4000+2,50,000:2,60,000
 Gross Profit:Rs.374000 to 1123200 in bike
 Rs. 499200 to 1248000 in car
 Average gross profit:Rs.935600 in bike
 Rs.1123200 in car
 Net profit:Vet fee:Rs.124800+31200:156000 in bike and
Rs.249600+62400:312000 in car.

Strength of large ruminant practice
 Low initial capital investment
 Job satisfaction
 Social recognition
 Acquiring professional knowledge
 Improvement of social status
 Contribution to the GDP of the country

Weakness of large ruminant practice
 Time travel
 Health hazards
 Road accidents during travel
 Quacks- Ignorant pretender to
veterinary medical skill
 Ignorance of farmers about the
suggestion of the vet
 Professional insecurity
 High cost of medicine

Opportunity in large ruminant practice
 Portable diagnostic equipment's
 Medicines manufacturing
 Artificial insemination technology
 Embryo transfer technology
 Sheep and goat farming
 Poultry farming
 Training institutes
 Camel farming

Threats in LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE
 Zoonotic diseases
 Life style Health hazards
 Self treatment by farmers
 Direct medicine sales to farmers by
pharma
 Farms with new breeds
 Chance of injuries due to improper
restrain of animals in doorsteps

20
PHYSICAL HAZARDS TO LARGE RUMINANT PRACTITIONERS
Trauma
Trauma is the greatest cause of physical injury to veterinarians and their staff.
Veterinarians practicing large animal practice do suffer from
✓ 36% were from animal bites
✓ 8% from being hit by an animal
✓ 9% from being hit by falling or moving objects
✓ 8% from falls
✓ 15% from muscular stress and pain
✓ 28% from sprains and strains
✓ 9% from contusions and crushes
✓ 5% of claims due to vehicle accidents
✓ Women have more injury claims than do men
This is true in Austrelia.The data on in Indian scenario is not known.
Jeyaretnam and Jones, 2000

21

22
Injuries
➢ Kicks and bites from animals cause the
greatest number of injuries (70%) to
practicing veterinarians
➢ Crushes and scratches accounting for
15% of the total injuries.
➢ 10% of Veterinarians had missed at
least 1 day of work due to injury in the
previous year
➢ 42% had missed work due to
occupational injury in their veterinary
career.
➢ 5% of the veterinarians working in zoo's
or wildlife get injured severly by animal
bites

23
Cause of admission of veterinarians
to hospitals due to injury
➢Falls from horses :33%.
➢Kicked by a cow :21%
➢Attacked by a cow :19%,
➢Equine attack :13%
➢Horse kick :8%.
➢Facial injuries : 2%
➢Fractures :11 %

Most frequently reported injuries
to veterinarians
➢Animal bites
➢Being struck by an animal
➢Scratches
➢Lacerations
➢Needle-stick injuries (87 % in Zoo
vets)
➢Injuries to legs (knees, ankles, feet
and toes)

25
✓ Arms (elbows, wrists, hands and fingers) and
head (face, chin, ear, nose and mouth) get
damaged
✓ These three areas accounted for 62% of all
injuries reported.
✓ Injuries to the back, spine and neck (excluding
disk problems) accounted for 7% of the total
sites.
✓ Hands were most often involved (41%)
followed by face (19%) and legs (18%).

✓ Back injuries accounted for 9% of major
injuries.
✓ Veterinarians are at risk because they pull, push
and lift animals, some of which are very heavy.
✓ Vets (19%) get high injury while handling the
dystocia.
✓ 3% of zoo veterinarians and 22% of pig
veterinarians have reported hearing losses.
✓ Barking has been estimated often to cause sound
pressures over 85 dB and even up to 105 dB
✓ 14% and 31% of veterinarians experiencing
cold or heat related injuries, respectively

27
Injuries in zoo veterinarians
✓61.5% reported at least one
major animal-related injury
during their career.
✓18% of the total had been
hospitalised.

Motor vehicle accidents
➢ Most veterinarians had driven between 16,000
and 32,000 km in a year
➢ Motor vehicle accidents were the third most
common cause of injury to veterinarians
➢ 29 % of travelling vets met with accidents
➢ 426 vets were killed in world due to vehicle
accidents
(Schnurrenberger and Martin,1977)

➢Mycobacterium paratuberculosis (Johne’s
bacterin), 11% of veterinarians reported 1
or more exposures including needle-stick
injuries.
➢Nose tongs for cattle, halters,
➢calf pulling equipment,
➢metal cattle chutes,
➢restraining equipment
➢opthalmoscopes
May cause injury especially to fingers,
wrists and hands
Injuries caused by equipment and
instruments

➢Vets get drug abuse desire
such as pethidine, ketamine,
barbiturates and many
analgesics
➢Many vets get beaten by
disgruntled clients.
➢Veterinarians who respond
to after-hours emergency
calls are particularly
susceptible to assault
Assault and drug abuse

The hazardous chemicals
commonly used in veterinary
practice include
disinfectants (ethylene oxide,
hexachlorophene,
glutaraldehyde, formaldehyde),
➢Inhalant anaesthetic gases
(nitrous oxide, halothane),
➢Injectable anaesthetic agents,
➢Pesticides (organophosphates
and pyrethrins),
Chemical hazards

➢Antineoplastic drugs,
analgesics (including
narcotics like pethidine and
morphine),
➢Therapeutic agents
(antibiotics),
➢Diethylstilboestrol (DES),
➢Non-des hormones,
➢Solvents like xylene and
heavy metals.
Chemical hazards ...CONTD

Allergens
➢Animal hair,
➢Dander, urine,
➢Saliva
➢Body fluids as well as chemicals that can cause irritation or allergic
reactions.
➢Contact with vaginal secretions
➢Amniotic fluid of animals
➢Handling of intestines, pancreases, and
➢Pig blood have caused dermatitis in veterinarians
➢Domestic cats
Biological hazards

➢Brucellosis (39 %)
➢Tuberculosis (14 %)
➢Leptospirosis (12 %)
➢Salmonellosis (16%)
➢Q fever (10%)
➢Leptospirosis (7%)
➢Others (2 %)
Abola et al., 2016
Zoonotic diseases

In 2009
➢ The majority (90.9%) of the
participating veterinarians
reported having been
occupationally exposed to
zoonotic pathogens.
➢Zoonotic infections (15.0%),
needle stick incidents (78.8%),
bites (85.0%), as well as infected
skin lesions (24.2%) were
reported.

➢In all, 13.9% of respondents had never been vaccinated against rabies,
and 20.8% had been exposed to suspect rabid animals, mostly (64.4%) a
single time.
Other zoonoses were reported by
➢47.2% of respondents: mostly diseases transmitted via contact (57.4%)
especially ringworm, followed by those with oral transmission (21.7%).
➢Most zoonotic infections were reportedly acquired by young
veterinarians working in primary care veterinary practice.
➢Cats were the species most commonly reported as the animal source of
a zoonotic infection.
➢Brucellosis is a most common disease in Indian vets handling RFM but
not in Australia as they have eradicated it.
Jackson and Villarroel, 2012
Why high zoonotic diseases in vets?

Veterinarians, especially practice principals, have an enormous
responsibility in managing a veterinary practice.
➢Ordering chemicals and drugs,
➢Overseeing the running of the hospital,
➢Supervising the business operation,
➢Medical and surgical management
➢Being involved in community activities such as speaking at local
meetings and schools.
➢Indian veterinarians in Government sector have much more stress of
implementing socio economical schemes, digitalization of data etc.
Mental and physical stress

➢Kinnunen, P.M., Matomäki, A., Verkola, M., Heikinheimo, A.,
Vapalahti, O., Kallio-kokko, H., Virtala, A.M. and Jokelainen, P., 2022.
Veterinarians as a risk group for zoonoses: Exposure, knowledge and
protective practices in Finland. Safety and Health at Work, 13(1), pp.78-
85.
➢Jeyaretnam, J. and Jones, H., 2000. Physical, chemical and biological
hazards in veterinary practice. Australian veterinary journal, 78(11),
pp.751-758.
➢Jackson, J. and Villarroel, A., 2012. A survey of the risk of zoonoses for
veterinarians. Zoonoses and public health, 59(3), pp.193-201.
➢Veterinary Council of India, MSVE 2016 Guidelines
➢American Veterinary Medical Association Guidelines
➢Other related ,materials from internet etc
References

LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE : OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLANGES

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LARGE RUMINANT VETERINARY PRACTICE : OPPORTUNITIES AND CHALLANGES