Times have changed. Gone are the days of driving to your local farm store for modified live vaccines or antibiotics. Nor can you simply go into any vet clinic and pick up whatever medication you desire. In 2018, Health Canada implemented new regulations, requiring all antimicrobials be sold on prescription basis only, in an effort to decrease drug resistance. A few things need to be in place and maintained for your veterinarian to be able to prescribe and dispense these medications. Please review this information and know the regulations so you can be prepared, BEFORE a crisis hits. 

Valid Veterinary Client Patient Relationship

• The veterinarian(s) has assumed responsibility of the health of your animals in the livestock operation. Just because we saw an animal for you years ago, doesn't constitute a working relationship or current VCPR. This is a mutual relationship, in which both parties have agreed to work together when it comes to herd health.
• The producer must be in agreement with the veterinarian's recommendations and maintain a productive working relationship. 
• The veterinarian(s) need to have an understanding of your production system, the type and number of animals, common health issues for the herd, medications frequently used, and vaccination and deworming protocols. The type and scale of the operation will dictate the relationship we have. This includes but is not limited to annual farm visit to review and revise protocols, address concerns, and offer advise on improving the production system. Please don't think of this as an inspection. We aren't here to report you or criticize you. Our goal is to help you be as profitable as possible by maximizing the health of your animals. 
• The veterinarian(s) are available and have arranged follow up as indicated, especially in the event of an adverse reaction, treatment failure, or outbreak. 

Want to establish a VCPR with our clinic? 

It's always best to be prepared and have a relationship established before your have a wreck. Give our clinic a call and our staff will assist you in booking a farm visit. Many producers will opt to do this in conjunction with pregnancy testing, semen testing, or other herd level services. 

Need medications but don't have a valid VCPR with us? 

Should you need medications that require a prescription, and don't have a current VCPR with one of our clinics, not to worry! Simply have your herd veterinarian send over a prescription and we will be happy to fill it. Please keep in mind that we may not stock the same products as other clinics, so 24-48 hours notice is always appreciated. If you don't have such a relationship with any clinic, give us a call and we can discuss how to go about establishing one. 

For more information about VCPR's, please visit:

Establishing a valid VCPR: https://www.canadianveterinari...

Establish your VCPR: https://www.albertaanimalhealt...

Livestock producers and vets need to communicate in the new VCPR world: https://www.albertafarmexpress...

Do you have a VCPR? https://www.canadiancattlemen....

Herd health isn't just about selling drugs! 

Our veterinarians pride themselves on being a beneficial member of your team. We are here to help you maximize the health of your animals, increase productivity and profitability, help make educated decisions about inputs (i.e. which vaccines or treatments are economically beneficial for your specific herd), and provide advice on both individual and herd level health issues. 

Some of the ways we can help serve you are:

• Pregnancy testing. This is about finding open cows more so than bred ones! We want to find those animals that are not being productive members of the herd so you can make an educated decision about whether or not to keep them. In years when feed is in short supply and at a premium, why feed an animal that isn't going to produce for you? 
• Semen testing. No one wants to find out at preg testing time that their bull was no good. Let's find out if your bull is healthy and fertile before breeding season. For bulls that go down during the season, we can assess him and if possible help get him back up and working again. 
• Nutrition. While we make no claims to be nutritionists, we understand the importance proper nutrition plays. Missing key nutrients, even those that may seem insignificant, can have devastating effects on the herd. From decreased conception rates, increased fetal and calf losses, down cows, poor gains...and so much more! We are able to perform herd and individual animal evaluations, mineral testing and bloodwork, as well as other diagnostic tests to help determine your herd's overall nutritional status, then work with you and your nutritionist to help rectify these issues.
• Create health protocols for your herd. This includes vaccinations, internal and external parasite control, calf management, new animal isolation protocols, facility design, disease control, sick animal treatments, and much more. 
• Be there for those emergencies! If you have livestock, you have deadstock. But we'd like to try to minimize these losses. We are here for those critical situations such as calvings, prolapses, down cows, scouring calves, injuries, and more.