Veterinarian's Oath

The Veterinarian's Oath

After graduation from veterinary school, the new vets take an oath.

It includes the words, "I solemnly swear".

Also, "I accept as a lifelong obligation the

continual improvement of my professional knowledge

and competence."

In 2010, the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) added to the oath a commitment to PREVENTION of suffering. The AVMA policy on feral cat population control does not oppose euthanasia of U.S. cats that are deemed to be excess, by local authorities, but they also state that they "encourage the use of non-lethal strategies" and the "development of new models of management".

How about requiring a trial of this known, safe, cheap, effective contraceptive in the food of the strays, before deciding that they should be killed, for being "excess"??

Gary Norsworthy, DVM, of Texas, has stated that when he entered the veterinary profession, decades ago, a cat was a pet similar to a goldfish. If it died, you just got another one.

Well, times have changed and many of us have an advanced sense of respect and empathy for house pets that are trying to survive outdoors and know that we can do better than to consider them all disposable.

If vets all went into their field because they love animals, AVMA should be demonstrating strong leadership in the promotion of stray cat contraceptives to help us stop the constant flow of kittens, some of which mature into the constant flow of sick and injured adults. We cannot wait for the development of products intended for house pets with owners, such as skin implants that need to be replaced regularly, when they wear out - or expecting us to wait for expensive immune-based injections.

It is imperative that veterinarians update their opinions on cat birth control and be ready and willing to offer it to their local rescue groups and shelters. The existing 33 U.S. veterinary schools and 13 new schools, now accepting their first students, should be developing leadership in their future vets, when it comes to the special circumstances of stray cats. Felis catus should be house pets, but are treated as wildlife, where a blind eye is turned and nature is left to "take its course'".

There should be agreement between practitioners and regulatory authorities that stray domestic animals have special circumstances that prevent them from being brought in for a check-up, before treatment. They will be brought in when we can finally catch up with trapping them and begging the public for enough money to pay for the ultimate goal of surgical sterilization and vaccination.

The constant growth of colony populations creates a barrier to bringing them in for TNR and greatly reducing the numbers of strays in the U.S. The concept of "herd health" is used in human medicine and wildlife care. It needs to take top priority here, as we can medicate these cats in groups, for the overall benefit of the group. There is no possibility of bringing millions of cats to local vets to assess their fitness for treatment. The mini-dose is safe for administration to an entire colony. It does not need to be limited to females of reproductive capability.

Providing simple, safe contraception should be the very least of what is due to these domestic animals, trying to live the homeless life.

We need something here and now

and cheap and easy to give to animals

that we really don't have any money for

and that we can't touch

WE NEED MEGESTROL ACETATE

Awareness and pro-active measures must be in use to prevent the boom of homeless and at-risk kittens, starting early each spring, and to greatly reduce the number of domestic cats trying to make it in the streets, in the bushes, in the wild.

These cats need their prevention administered out in the field, immediately, like it's urgent,

because it is.