Day 1
We had a brief orientation and got to meet many of our teachers and classmates. We were then split into 2 classes, those attending Aquavet I (more general with emphasis on practical experience) and AquaVet II (with greater emphasis on microscopic work).
In AqV2, Dr Dianne Brown gave us an overview on fish blood. We covered the practical aspects of teleost vs elasmobranch vs mollusc blood types and how to sample, prepare and interpret blood films to give us some clues as to the health of the animals. You can tell if there is inflammation (e.g. bacterial infection), viral infection, what their immune status is, toxicity issues and more!
I can see great value in using this tool in a weekly routine in aquacultured fishes to give us an idea of their health and to be able to quickly detect signs of diseased states early on in the piece so we can do something about it. This is of particular importance because when things in aquaculture go wrong, they go very wrong, very quickly! To be able to predict disease states would save pens of fish from mass mortalities.
Is your farm routinely sampling and examining blood?
Dr Loh’s trip to attend AquaVet has been made possible through the – “People development program: 2011 Aquatic Animal Health Training Scheme which is supported by funding from the FRDC on behalf of the Australian Government”.
—
Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
BSc BVMS MPhil MANZCVS (Aq & Pathol)
The Fish Vet, Perth, Western Australia.
Veterinary Medicine for fish.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
