Nor'West News: December 21, 2023

20 The
RURAL LIFE
North Canterbury News, December 21, 2023
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Holiday plea ... Animal owners are being urged to remember P.E.T in an emergency to
avoid overwhelming vets.
PHOTO: SUPPLIED
P.E.T in emergency
If you have an animal emergency, think
P.E.T.
This is the message the New Zealand
Veterinary Association Te Pae Kīrehe
(NZVA) is urging animal owners to
remember, as part of anew campaign to
improve the way people useveterinary
emergency services.
‘AnimalEmergency? Think P.E.T’, is
being launched ahead of the summer
holidays,and asks owners to follow three
simple steps if their pet is sick or hurt
and their vet clinic is closed.
P.E.T stands for:
Pause. Think for amoment about
whether your pet needs emergency care
or could be seen by their vet during
normal business hours.
Emergency call. Phone your vet if you
think your pet needs emergency care or
you’re unsure.
Take. Follow the advice you receive to
either take your pet to an emergency
service provider, or book an
appointment duringnormal business
hours.
NZVAHead of Veterinary Services ­
Companion Animal, Sally Cory says
keeping veterinary emergency services
for emergenciesonly means very sick
animals can receive the treatment they
need quickly, and vet teams are not
overwhelmed.
‘‘It’simportant that teams can focus on
the patients that need it most.
‘‘There are currently too many
animals being seen by emergency
service providers that do not require
emergency care’’ Sally says.
‘‘This campaign is all about people
taking just amoment to consider
whether their pet needs immediate care,
and if they think they do, to then call
their vet for further advice.’’ If owners
are advised to go to an emergency
service provider, they may also be asked
to ring ahead to let the vet team know
they are coming.
Sally says this helps prepare staff for
arrival of animals, and urges people to
remember an animal emergency service
provider is like going to ahospital —
animals with more urgent needs might
be seen ahead of others.
Animal owners are also being asked to
help prevent emergencies from
happening by keeping routine
vaccinations up­to­date; booking
daytime appointments wherever
possible; providing plenty of shade and
shelter for their animals; and ensuring
pets are safe and secure while at home
and out in the community.
‘‘Over the upcoming holiday season,
most vet clinics will be closed for afew
days.
‘‘Make sure you are registered with a
clinic, know what days they will be shut,
and their emergency phone number, just
in case you need it,’’ Sally says.
Owners who are travelling with their
pets during the holidays are encouraged
to find out where their closest vet will
be, and if their animal takes medication,
to have enough packed for the trip.
For more information about the
campaign, visit nzva.org.nz/emergency
care.
Tonnes of porkimported
More than 40,000 metric tonnes (MT) of
overseas pork from 22 countries has been
imported into New Zealand during 2023,
most of it from nations thatallow pig
farming practices banned in New Zealand.
An analysis of pork imports from January
to October by NZPork shows the highest
volume of imported pork was from the
United States with 7336MT, a128 percent
increase compared to the same period in
2022 (3216MT).
Canada was the next highest, at 6238MT,
up from 3824MT. Imports from Spain were
down however, at 6047MT compared to
9685MT. Imports from Australia (3551MT)
and the Netherlands (3418MT) also
increased.
The next highest were Germany (262MT)
asignificant decrease from 10,042MT last
year, Finland (2775MT), Poland (2406MT),
Denmark (2360MT) and Sweden (1623MT).
NZPork chief executive Brent Kleiss says
that while two­thirds of pork consumed in
New Zealand is imported, there is no
requirement for the products to meet New
Zealand’s rigorous pig welfare standards.
New Zealand has imported pork from 22
different countries this year.
‘‘Although the European Union is
currently reviewing animal welfare
legislation, most EU members and other
countries exporting pork to New Zealand
have lower standards of pig care and less
rigorous enforcement regimes than we do.
‘‘For example, gestation stalls are
banned here but in Canada and most
European countries sows can be confined
in gestation stalls for the first four weeks of
pregnancy and in the USthey can be
confined for their entire pregnancy.
‘‘Our farmers do not castrate piglets at all
but they are routinely castrated in Europe,
the US and Canada and in Spain, Poland
and the US that is done without pain
relief.’’
‘‘In New Zealand, sows are only housed
in farrowing systems when it is time for
them to give birth and care for their piglets
with amaximum of five days pre­farrowing
and 28 days after,’’ Mr Kleiss says.