Exotics, Wildlife & Unusual Pets for Nurses & Techs

Bonus module – Exotic companion pet emergencies
In recent years, non-traditional pet ownership has increased dramatically with many owners opting to own exotic pets such as reptiles, birds, small mammals, fish, and amphibians. As husbandry plays a significant role in the health and well-being of these pets, it is inevitable that they will present to veterinary clinics for care. This creates a unique challenge for the emergency team as exotic pets contain a huge diversity of species that vary greatly in their husbandry, anatomy, physiology, and common disease processes and treatment protocols.

In this module, we will cover:

• Assessment & triage, including the emergency ABC’s 
• Clinical exam covering common emergency presentations
• First aid including the 4 x H’s (hypoxaemia, hypothermia, hypovolaemia & hypoglycaemia)
• Common analgesia protocols.

Module 1 – Exotic companion pet handling and restraint: creating positive outcomes
Exotic companion pets are not domesticated, and many of them are also prey species. This should be taken into consideration when a patient presents to the clinic, as stress, escape or sudden death are all risks associated with handling these species. On the other hand, some of these species can be dangerous and pose a risk to you and your colleagues.

In this module, we will cover:

• Rules for handling exotic animals, including mitigating risks to both you & the patient
• Handling considerations for different species
• Techniques for using the least amount of restraint necessary
• Strategies for reducing stress during the hospital stay.

Module 2 – Clinical techniques for the exotic technician / nurse
Clinical techniques in exotic patients, although challenging, are readily achievable by the veterinary nurse and technician. Coupled with the advancement of veterinary diagnostic equipment, this allows nurses and technicians to add significant value to patient outcomes.

In this module, we will cover common clinical and diagnostic techniques used daily in an exotics practice including but not limited to:

• Venipuncture
• Intravenous access
• Crop feeding
• Cytology sampling
• Radiographic positioning.

Module 3 – Anaesthesia of small mammals
Anaesthesia of small mammals is a challenging but regular event in the life of the exotic animal nurse or technician. Physical restraint of our exotic patients can be particularly stressful, with the potential to be fatal. For this reason, general anaesthesia is the preferred low-stress approach to diagnostic, therapeutic and surgical procedures. Anaesthesia techniques have advanced dramatically in recent history but anaesthetic-related mortality is still significantly higher than our canine and feline patients.

Anaesthesia management is an area where the nurse or technician can add significant value to the care of the small mammal patient, where diligent monitoring produces positive outcomes.

In this module, we will cover the specifics of small mammal anaesthesia:

• Preparing for the anaesthetic
• Assigning an ASA score
• Options for premedication combinations and analgesia
• Induction & intubation
• Intraoperative fluid therapy
• Perioperative monitoring equipment & intelligent interpretation
• Recovery.

Module 4 – Anaesthesia of avian patients
Avian species share some characteristics with small mammals, but there are plenty of clinically-important differences. During this module, we will cover the following aspects specifically for avian species:

• Preparing for the anaesthetic
• Assigning an ASA score
• Options for premedication combinations and analgesia
• Induction and intubation
• Intraoperative fluid therapy
• Perioperative monitoring equipment and intelligent interpretation
• Recovery.

Module 5 – Anaesthesia of reptile patients
The final challenge in this course is reptilian anaesthesia. This module is dedicated to how reptiles behave before, during, and after an anaesthetic, including:

• Preparing for the anaesthetic
• Assigning an ASA score
• Options for premedication combinations and analgesia
• Induction and intubation
• Intraoperative fluid therapy
• Perioperative monitoring equipment and intelligent interpretation
• Recovery.