Are you asking yourself if you’re a current client of Hoof & Hound?
Current clients fulfill the following criteria:
- There has been at least one farm visit to establish our relationship, examine your animals, and get an overview on their daily care and living environment.
- This is especially important for herd health. Walking the fields, walking through barns or run-ins, and having a mental blueprint of property is critical. This allows me to customize parasite and pasture management plans tailored to your specific herd, and prepare myself for any emergencies in the dark when I may have to let myself through gates and run through fields at night (don’t laugh – it happens!).
- We have communicated within the last 12 months.
- You are up to date in paying for any services previously rendered by myself.
What’s the big deal about maintaining an established relationship?
Well, the bottom line is that there is something called a Veterinarian-Client-Patient-Relationship (VCPR) recognized by both the state regulatory board and the AVMA (the American Veterinary Medical Association, the national governing body of the veterinary profession). This VCPR is what legally allows licensed doctors to dispense medication, perform medical and/or surgical treatment for, and otherwise advise decisions pertaining to patient health. In short, if there’s no legally valid VCPR, you don’t get advice or medication. This is why veterinarians get so upset when you text them a blurry picture of your cousin’s roommate’s chinchilla’s toe, or why you get denied refills of meds if you haven’t seen your doctor in a while. You’re asking them to break the law, their oath, and their various licenses.
Please follow the follow two links for more information on when a veterinarian can legally make or break a client relationship:
- VCPR: No person may practice veterinary medicine in the State except within the context of a veterinarian-client-patient relationship.
- VCPR: A VCPR is established only when your veterinarian examines your animal in person, and is maintained by regular veterinary visits as needed to monitor your animal’s health. If a VCPR is established but your veterinarian does not regularly see your pet afterward, the VCPR is no longer valid and it would be illegal and unethical for your veterinarian to dispense or prescribe medications or recommend treatment without recently examining your pet.