Stay out of water!
Learn more here.
Environmental enrichment for fish – fish dome
Have you ever wanted fish to see you, like you see them?
Check out this nifty idea of a
Floating Observation Dome for Fish!
What is a fish vet? I’ve never heard of a fish vet before. Are you a doctor for fish?
This is one of many FAQs I get. I often answer with a question, “What do you think is a fish vet?” If you know what a vet is, and what a fish is, just combine them together, and that’s the answer.
“You mean a fish doctor?”
I reply, “Yes, sort of.” And the reason I reply like this is because I’m not a doctor, but better, I am a veterinarian! You see, not all doctors are veterinarians. The practice of diagnosing conditions and treating diseases in animals (including fish) fall under the Acts of Veterinary Science.
There goes the old adage of “Real doctors treat more than one species.”
But an aquatic vet, I’d say, “Real veterinarians treat more than one phylum!”
The next question is ,”What do you have to do, to become a fish vet?”
To be a fish veterinarian, you have to undertake studies to become a veterinarian. Nowadays, this entails enrolling into a veterinary course at a university. The standard veterinary course takes 6 to 7 years to complete, depending on where studies are undertaken. Once you have passed, it enables you to work with pretty much any animal you wish. In this instance, I’ve chosen to work with fish.
Most veterinary courses are a little light on providing students with exposure to aquatic veterinary medicine. And so, most aquatic veterinarians undertake further study to gain the knowledge and skills in order to give their clients the best possible service.
Some of these include:
· short courses such as Aquavet, Marvet, Seavet, etc.,
· examinations (e.g. by the Australian & New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists)
· private study (e.g. journal articles, books, DVDs)
· attending conferences where aquatic subjects are provided (e.g. AVMA, WSAVA, AVA)
· on-the-job training (pretty much training yourself)
· joining an aquatic veterinary medical association (e.g. WAVMA, FVS, AAFV)
· keeping your own fishes of course (there is no better way to learn, than by doing it yourself)
· and more!
Those veterinarians who’ve spent more than a decade working in the aquatic field, are able to get their knowledge, skills and experience assessed by the WAVMA, and be awarded the post-nominals CertAqV (Certified Aquatic Veterinarian).
If you’d like to learn more, here’s a presentation about “How to become a fish veterinarian. Guidance and resources for aquatic veterinarians.” – see link https://youtu.be/O8g8kL_xsM0
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Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
DipProjMgt, BSc, BVMS, MPhil (Pathology), MANZCVS (Aquatics & Pathobiology), CertAqV, CMAVA, NATA Signatory.
THE FISH VET, Perth, Western Australia, AUSTRALIA.
Mobile Aquatic Veterinary Medical & Diagnostic Services.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
Skype: thefishvet
President WAVMA 2014
Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University | Secretary Aquatic Animal Health Chapter – ANZCVS.
Looking for more books? Check out this site.
See advert on YouTube.
Finally! A fish bandage! That works!
Have you ever had to treat skin ulcers in your fish? Or to cover the wound after taking a skin biopsy?
Then you will have encountered the problem that antiseptics (e.g. Betadine) wash off as soon as you put your fish back in the water?
The Fish Vet has found the solution!
USE Powder Gel as a fish bandage, and you can really see the medicine stick to the wound!
Watch how it works – http://youtu.be/GHJtZRrx8IU
Get it today, because sick fish can’t wait.
Visit http://www.thefishvet.com.au/shop/shopping.html
Great for your emergency kit.
It’s worked on everything (fish and turtles) in freshwater and marine, except for one Wobbegong shark.
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Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
DipProjMgt, BSc, BVMS, MPhil (Pathology), MANZCVS (Aquatics& Pathobiology), CertAqV, NATA Signatory.
THE FISH VET, Perth, Western Australia, AUSTRALIA.
Mobile Aquatic Veterinary Medical & Diagnostic Services.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
Are your fish freezing?
Have your fish lost their appetite? Have you checked if your heaters are working?
Loss of appetite from incorrect water temperatures are an easy fix.
Tropical fishes like Bettas (see also
https://thefishvet.com/2011/06/05/fighting-fish-over-wintering/) need tropical conditions year round.
If water temperature is not the problem, get TheFishVet out to investigate. It could be a serious disease that could spread.
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Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
DipProjMgt, BSc, BVMS, MPhil (Pathology), MANZCVS (Aquatics& Pathobiology), CertAqV, NATA Signatory.
THE FISH VET, Perth, Western Australia, AUSTRALIA.
Mobile Aquatic Veterinary Medical & Diagnostic Services.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
Fish joke for Monday-itis: What did the water say to the boat?
Nothing. It just waved.
Have a FINtastic week!
R <+>{
Coolest aquarium designs.
A Hawaiian man died after he was stabbed in the chest by a swordfish he was trying to spear.
Read more at this link.
Aquatic Veterinary Medicine is now officially a recognised area of specialisation.
The Europeans have established a new European College of veterinary specilization in Aquatic Animal Health and this is the only veterinary specialization in Aquatic Medicine in the world (all other specilizations are part of Zoo medicine Colleges and are subspecialities).
The primary objectives of the European College are to advance aquatic animal medicine /health in Europe. This covers all aquatic animals:
• fish, aquatic mammals, shellfish, shrimp and aquatic invertebrates whether ornamental, cultured or wild.
•water quality, welfare, zoonoses, therapeutics and relative legislation.
It aims at the improvement and promotion of the quality of veterinary practice through contacts of general practitioners with registered specialists.
This is done by:
a) Establishing guidelines for the post-graduate education and experience required as a prerequisite to become a specialist in the specialty of aquatic animal health.
b) Examining and authenticating veterinarians as specialists in aquatic animal health to serve the veterinary patient, its owner and the public in general, by providing expert care for all aquatic animals with medical diseases.
c) Encouraging research and other contributions to knowledge relating to pathogenesis, diagnosis, therapy, prevention, welfare, zoonoses and control of diseases directly or indirectly affecting aquatic animals (fish, mammals, shellfish, shrimp and aquatic invertebrates) whether ornamental, cultured or wild and promoting communication and dissemination of this knowledge thus providing improved services to the public and industry.
One essential prerequisite for becoming a Diplomate of any EBVS recognised College is to be a graduated veterinarian from a higher education institution that is accredited in a respective country, and to have a licence to practice veterinary medicine in an European country. Non-veterinarians are not eligible for becoming a Diplomate, but can request the associate membership status in the College.
In general, some form of post-veterinary graduation experience (internship, masters, clinical/practice year or equivalent experience,) will be required for admission into residency program. The residency would take minimum of three years under supervision of an ECAAH Diplomate, during which time at least one publication as first author and second written proof of expertise (significant case study, set of small case reports, co-authoring a publication) will need to be produced before becoming eligible to sit for a general and specialty exam.
PRESIDENT:
Prof. Foteini Athanasopoulou Univ. of Thessaly, Greece
Past President, World Aquatic Veterinary Medicine Association.
Ex Dean of the Faculty of Veterinary Medicine
Laboratory of Ichthyology and Fish Diseases, Veterinary Faculty
221 Trikalon str, Karditsa 43100
Tel +30 24410 66008, 66045, +30 6984214219
eathan@vet.uth.gr foteini8@gmail.com
VICE PRESIDENT:
Prof. Dusan Palic Univ. of Munich, Germany
Professor and Chair of Fish Diseases and Fisheries Biology
Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, Ludwig-Maximilians University Munich
Lehrstuhl für Fischkrankheiten und Fischereibiologie
Tierärztliche Fakultät, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Kaulbachstraße 37, 80539 München, Deutschland
Email: d.palic@fisch.vetmed.uni-muenchen.de
Tel: +49 (0)89 2180 2282
TREASURER:
Dr Hamish Rodgers Ireland
Hamish Rodger, PhD, MRCVS,
Vet-Aqua International,
Unit 7b, Oranmore Business Park,
Oranmore, Co. Galway,
Ireland
tel/fax + 353 91 792997, mobile +353 87 6184166
email: hamishrodger@eircom.net
SECRETARY:
Ass. Prof. Vassilis Bakopoulos Univ. of Aegean, Greece
Assistant Professor
Department of Marine Science
Aegean University
University Hill
Mytilene 81100
Greece
Tel. +30-22510-36870
Cel. 6932371586
E-mail: v.bakopoulos@marine.aegean.gr
MEMBERS
Dr Ioannis Vatsos Norway
Associate Professor in Veterinary Sciences at the Faculty of Biosciences and Aquaculture, University of Nordland, Norway
ivatsos@vet.auth.gr, inv@uin.no
Dr Francesc Padros University of Barcelona, Spain. UAB associated researcher , Animal Biology Unit, Veterinary Faculty. UAB.
Tel: +34 93 581 46 37, Fax : + 34 93 581 20 06.
Follow me on: Facebook “Fin Page” – YouTube – Blog – Linkedin – Twitter
—
Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
DipProjMgt, BSc, BVMS, MPhil (Pathology), MANZCVS (Aquatics & Pathobiology), CertAqV, CMAVA, NATA Signatory.
THE FISH VET, Perth, Western Australia, AUSTRALIA.
Mobile Aquatic Veterinary Medical & Diagnostic Services.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
Skype: thefishvet
President WAVMA 2014
Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University | Secretary Aquatic Animal Health Chapter – ANZCVS.
See advert on YouTube.
Microscopes are essential for diagnostic work. What does TheFishVet recommend?
Many have asked me what I think is the best microscope for diagnostic use. It really depends on what you’re going to use it for. Below are the scopes I have found to be more than satisfactory for my works.
For my site visits, I can’t go past the monocular microscope (see link) because it is just so portable and practical. You can set up just about anywhere. There’s no need to find powerpoints or run long extension cords which can be a hazard for tripping, and ofcourse, electricity around water is dangerous. Examination of wet mounts can be conducted rather quickly. It is excellent for pond-side diagnostics.
I also spend a lot of time reading histology slides. For this sort of work, I can’t go past binocular microscopes (see link). If you’ve to spend lots of time reading slides, it becomes a strain if you’re using a monocular. You have to use both eyes, because squinting through one eye become tiresome and a strain for the working eye. However, in my ealy days, I found it very difficult to use both eyes at the same time. It’s something that takes practice, but your eyes will thank you. Unfortunately, I’ve not found a decent binocular scope that is very portable. This is the closest thing to a binocular scope that is compact enough for a mobile veterinarian, but it needs to be plugged into a powerpoint.
If you are not moving your microscope around and don’t like to look through the eye-pieces, then I recommend the trinocular microscope (see link) combined with a digital camera. This will relay an image onto a computer screen.
The digital camera options in increasing quality are :
ISH500 (5 megapixels) – $795
ISH1000 (10 megapixels) – $995
HDMI-2 – $1,495.
This week we are offering free shipping within Australia. Take advantage of savings by placing your orders now.
Follow me on: Facebook "Fin Page" – YouTube – Blog – Linkedin – Twitter
—
Yours sincerely,
Dr Richmond Loh
DipProjMgt, BSc, BVMS, MPhil (Pathology), MANZCVS (Aquatics & Pathobiology), CertAqV, CMAVA, NATA Signatory.
THE FISH VET, Perth, Western Australia, AUSTRALIA.
Mobile Aquatic Veterinary Medical & Diagnostic Services.
http://www.thefishvet.com.au
Ph: +61 (0)421 822 383
Skype: thefishvet
President WAVMA 2014
Adjunct Lecturer Murdoch University | Secretary Aquatic Animal Health Chapter – ANZCVS.
See advert on YouTube.
