The rural veterinary shortage is greater than ever before.
In 2023, the USDA reported 237 rural veterinary shortage areas across 47 states. What this means is that with only so much time and a limited number of veterinarians available to service more rural communities, time is of the essence. Whether your veterinarian is coming out to examine a sick animal or for a herd working event, there are some simple best practices you can implement to help make their time on your farm as efficient as possible. Keep in mind the following considerations:
1. Communication is key
Having great communication is number one for ensuring a productive vet callout. To make sure schedules are still in line, consider calling the clinic a few days in advance to confirm the date, time and goals for that day. If you have multiple farm locations, be sure to specify the address. Also, determine which products, such as vaccines, needles and syringes, you will be supplying and what products your veterinarian may need to bring with them. Having great communication is important not only between you and your veterinarian but also between you and your personnel, if you may have any employees. For instance, if your veterinarian is coming out to examine a sick animal and you will not be present, ensure your personnel knows which animal needs seen, signs they are displaying, when symptoms started and any other background needed. If another animal is unexpectedly in need of being examined, go ahead and alert the clinic early if you can. That way, the proper tools can be brought out, and your veterinarian can factor in the extra time needed to see the animal, helping with their scheduling for the day.
I know there is such a thing as overcommunication; however, in my years as a veterinarian, I don't think I've ever experienced that yet.
2. Ready facilities and equipment
Try to bring cattle up before the appointment time. And, if your veterinarian is going to be using your chute or gates – anything like that – go ahead and run an animal through before the veterinarian arrives to make sure everything's working OK. With this, make sure everything is lubricated up and that all the parts that are supposed to be moving are moving and all the parts that aren't supposed to be moving are not. What we don’t want to happen is for the veterinarian to arrive, and instead of having a working chute, which you thought you had, you end up having to catch a cow by a rope and hold her onto a gate – which not only takes longer but also takes more of a toll on your body. People are more likely to get hurt. This acts as a domino effect because whenever a veterinarian gets hurt, they can’t do their job, which can escalate the rural veterinary shortage even more.
If you're going to use your equipment, please make sure your equipment is ready to go. It’s also helpful to have spares on hand when it comes to things such as syringes (if you’re using an automatic syringe) and extra pour-on guns. Keep in mind things can happen, so it’s always nice to have spare equipment on hand when we're working with cattle. As we know, some days cattle can be a little more unpredictable. Something else of importance that can be easily forgotten is to have a working table to place product and equipment. And, it really doesn’t have to be a table. It could be two 50-gallon drums put together or two small hay bales stacked up – just something to set things on and make it more efficient for everyone.
3. Make a list outlining goals and outcomes
To help optimize an on-farm veterinary appointment, I suggest making a list of the things that you want done. As much as we try, we don't always remember everything. Having that list ready and on hand, versus just in your head, can help us to accomplish all of your goals that day.
4. Strive to be positive and patient
While some days can be more trying, do strive to be positive and patient. This suggestion is not just for the producer but for the veterinarian as well. It’s not uncommon for many ranchers to be in need of farm call services at once, getting ahead of rain or turnout needs due to limited hay amounts. In addition to staying positive, try to prioritize safety and efficiency for everybody involved. To best accomplish this, I truly believe that it helps when everybody's in a positive attitude. At the end of the day, we all have the same goal, which is to do our best for the animal.
As we navigate a record-setting rural veterinary shortage, try to keep these thoughts in mind to work more productively with your veterinarian and to optimize their time during farm calls.
