Mê Thú Cưng - Pet Magazine for Vietnam Số Tết | Số 6 | Tet Issue | Issue Six 2015 | Page 75

Animal Rescue & Care Vietnam 70 77

Mê Thú Cưng

finally enacted, and they will be, the vets will be
the watchdogs for those who break them. They
will help set standards of sheltering and care.
They will be the guardians of our pets health
as well as vehicles for the message of animal
welfare to both their clients and the public.
If we look to the root of the problem, we have
to first step into the universities that that are
lagging far behind the standards of much
of Asia in their curriculum, resources, and
quality of professional educators. Much of the
current curriculum is focused on production
animals and even that lacks the application
of internationally accepted animal welfare
standards. Those who wish to focus more on
domestic animals, or even wildlife, are being
short-changed with a very limited concentration
on these non-productive animals. The
economic value of pets and the pet industry in
general is greatly undervalued in Vietnam and I
think it is a matter of time and good marketing
before more institutional reforms are made to
match with the current state of the companion
animal care sector.
In the meantime, we have veterinarians who
come out of vet school with less education
on animal care than a vet assistant in the US,
the lowest level of veterinary staff requiring
less than a year of study. Many vets have
had very little, if any, surgical experience or
even training on basic exam procedure and
diagnostics before being able to run their
own clinic. A massive readjustment of the
veterinary curriculum is going to be vital if we
are to ever see an improvement in the skills
of companion animal vets and vet nurses.
The universities are failing us and I’d like to
see that change with the help of international
universities and organizations committing
to long term development projects in the
universities. Outreach into the smaller towns
will be a big step in making sure that the
capacity of vets is getting closer to meeting that
in the big cities as well. In addition, continuing
education as well as increased oversight from
the government and veterinary associations
on standards of care will be a big step towards
ensuring that our pets, farm animals, and
wildlife are receiving the best care possible.
Issue 06 | 2015 | petmagazine.vn

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