Registration = Qualifications and Trustworthy Standards
Would you expect your doctor to be qualified? Would you let an unqualified surgeon operate on your loved one? If the answer if no, the same should be for your animals.
The are lots of professions in the animal care industry, but unfortunately most are poorly regulated. This means that anybody can call themselves a professional but will never have undergone any training. Apart from being bad practice, it can put your pet at risk.
Things have turned a corner in the veterinary industry. All vets legally have to be qualified (after spending on average 5 years at university studying veterinary medicine), and have the letters MRCVS after their name. Veterinary Nurses are fighting to become a protected profession. Qualified, registered Veterinary Nurses that are legally allowed to practice train up to three years to become qualified, and have the letters RVN after their name. All vets and nurses have a unique number and anybody can be searched by anybody on the RCVS register.
So what about other professions?
All disciplines of animal care have voluntary regulation bodies. To be a part of this they have to pay an annual fee, prove they have undertaken sufficient qualifications and training, and complete yearly CPD (Continuous Professional Development) to keep up to date with the latest standards to ensure they are safe to practice. They will all work under The Veterinary Surgeons Act and Animal Welfare Act, meaning they can only work under veterinary referral. This ensures the Vet is happy for the animal to undergo treatments – the Vet has overall charge of an animals care.
If a business is advertising but do not work under veterinary referral, show their qualifications and regulatory body, the chances are they will not be safe to work with your pet. This means it can make their condition worse, or cause harm to them.
Below is a list of disciplines and their associated regulatory bodies. By following this, your pet will be in the best and safest hands. REMEMBER TO ASK TO SEE THEIR CERTIFICATES IF THEY CANNOT EASILY BE SEEN (most people will have them either on display or to hand).
Hydrotherapy: NARCH or CHA (canine hydrotherapy association)
Physiotherapy: APACT
Massage Therapy: SFTR (Sherwood Foundation Therapists Register), Massage Guild Therapists Register and International Association of Animal Therapists