This worksheet is a required portion of the IVAP program. Please complete once you've finished the module material. You will receive a copy of your answers once you click "Submit" at the bottom of the page.
Being sensitive to the ethical issues encountered in everyday clinical practice is important as a veterinary assistant. Each real-life scenario on this worksheet illustrates a veterinary ethical dilemma. How would you respond to each situation?
1) Diet fads (vegetarian diets, raw food, and organic diets) are not only popular among people, but they are increasingly popular for pets. How would you respond to a client who is feeding their pet as they feed themselves?
2) If “ideal” homes are not available for all unwanted or feral domestic animals, are environments with higher risks of morbidity (shelters or animal control) and mortality (hoarders) acceptable alternatives to euthanasia?
3) An elderly client has begun arranging weekly appointments for his four-year-old cocker spaniel. Each week, he describes a new problem. Physical examinations revealed no serious illnesses. On most occasions, you send the client home to watch the dog and see if the problem recurs. The client is openly dissatisfied with this approach and wants tests and treatment. These visits began shortly after the client’s wife passed away.
4) A regular client who owns two boa constrictors feeds them one rat each per month. He buys the rats from a local pet shop for $4.00 each. The client feels bad that he is buying pet rats and feeding them to his snakes. A receptionist at your clinic saw the client at the local reptile swap and told him that 2-4 kittens are euthanized at the clinic monthly. This client wants to pay $4.00 per kitten, and the money can go to a fund to help stray animals find homes.
5) A man brings in a 4-year-old castrated male domestic shorthaired cat that has recently begun spraying in the house. This behavior began shortly after the birth of the couple’s first child and has cost the family over five hundred dollars in cleaning bills alone. In these instances, the clinic policy has been a referral to a behaviorist, but the client refuses to spend more money on the cat. While this cat may do well in a childless home, currently, there are six healthy, problem-free, young cats at the clinic for adoption that have been there for three weeks.
Notes
Use this area to write notes from what you've learned from the Veterinary Ethics chapter, which you would like to reflect on.
Summary of Reading - Veterinary Ethics
Compose your summary notes from the following pages.
Chapter 1
Introduction to the Veterinary (or Assistant) Profession
Pages 1-5
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