Poultry encyclopedia · NEXTEKCI School · Trades and the poultry industry
The vet and the animal health assistant
The vet is the only person authorised to make a diagnosis, prescribe treatment and set a vaccination protocol suited to the area. The animal health assistant, trained in basic tasks, supports the vet close to the farms. Together, they protect the health of the birds and of consumers.
Key facts
- Vet’s role
- Diagnosis, prescription, vaccination protocol, certificates
- Assistant’s role
- Basic tasks, supervised vaccination, early warning
- When to call
- As soon as abnormal deaths or behaviour appear
- Notifiable diseases
- Mandatory reporting to the veterinary services
The vet, the farm’s health reference
The vet examines the birds, carries out or orders post-mortems and tests, then decides on treatment. He also sets the vaccination protocol according to the diseases present in the area, the type of production and the age of the birds.
A farmer who always works with the same vet saves time in a crisis: the vet already knows the house, the history and the habits of the farm.
The assistant, close to the farms
In areas the vet cannot visit often, the animal health assistant plays a valuable role: he helps with vaccinations, spots the first signs of disease and alerts the vet.
He works under a vet’s supervision and does not replace the vet for diagnosis or prescription.
Vaccination is decided on the farm
Brown laying chicks are vaccinated against Marek’s disease at the hatchery (certificate on request). The other chicks (white broilers, red broilers, barred grey, hybrids, cockerels) receive no vaccine at the hatchery: vaccination is done on the farm, following the protocol of the vet in your area.
The farmer therefore plans his schedule with his vet, even before the chicks arrive.
Public health and notifiable diseases
Some diseases, such as Newcastle disease or avian influenza, must be reported to the veterinary services of the ministry in charge of animal resources. The vet is the natural channel for that report.
The vet also ensures medicines are used properly, so that the meat and eggs offered for sale are free of residues.
Preparing for the visit
The vet works best with precise information: age of the birds, date of the first signs, daily mortality, water and feed intake, vaccines already given. An up-to-date daily record sheet then becomes a diagnostic tool.
It also helps to keep recently dead birds in a cool place for a possible post-mortem.