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Important News

  • Repeated reminder from Fall 2008 Newsletter: Expired medications cannot be used or donated. Once a drug is outdated, it is considered adulterated and must be disposed of.

  • The Board has filed changes to the Veterinary Medical Licensing Board rules which can be accessed at: http://www.registerofohio.state.oh.us The public hearing will be held November 4, 2009 at 08:30 a.m. on the 31st Floor of the Riffe Center.

  • Please note: There is nothing in the law that allows a euthanasia technician or dog warden to have access to or administer any drug other than the lethal solution to perform euthanasia.

  • The Board has received multiple inquiries related to courses for the euthanasia technician certification courses. Please note that the curriculum must be approved by the Board and must meet the requirements set out in Rule 4741-1-23 OAC (http://codes.ohio.gov/oac/4741-1-23). Recently approved courses will appear on the Board web site under Continuing Education once approved.

  • At the September 10, 2008 Board meeting, while reviewing disciplinary cases, it was discovered that a number of veterinary practices are withholding medical records if the owner of the client/animal has an outstanding balance for previous medical care received. Rule 4741-1-21 OAC (http://codes.ohio.gov/oac/4741-1-21) does not allow a veterinarian to withhold the medical records as long as the owner pays the costs for the copying of the medical records. The purpose of the rule was to provide for continuity of care for the pet. Therefore, the Board has taken the position that medical records must be provided to the subsequent veterinarian (free of charge) or to the owner who pays for the copying costs of the records, regardless of whether the owner has an outstanding balance owed to the veterinary practice.
  • After some discussion and review of the AVMA guidelines on euthanasia (http://www.avma.org/issues/animal_welfare/euthanasia.pdf), the Board determined by general consensus that "As a general rule, the practice of intracardiac euthanasia is not the preferred method of euthanasia, but realize there are circumstances where it may be necessary. Intracardiac euthanasia should only be utilized in situations where it is absolutely necessary."
Animal Alternative Therapies

The Ohio Veterinary Medical Licensing Board has had multiple inquiries regarding the ability of animal massage therapists and other allied health professionals to perform therapies on animals and not violate the veterinary practice act. The Board appreciates these individuals willingness to understand and work within the law and rules of the veterinary practice act. Basically, the use of massage therapy to treat a medical condition of an animal is the practice of veterinary medicine and should be monitored by a veterinarian.

It is not the intent of the Ohio Veterinary Medical Licensing Board to restrict the practice of alternative therapy practitioners as long as they are not straying into the field of diagnosing and medical treatment of animals. The Board reiterates that if the animal practitioner is performing therapy for the purpose of relaxation or other non-medical purposes, then it is not considered the practice of veterinary medicine and is permissible. For instance, an animal that has inhibitions regarding travel may require massage therapy to relax it. In the event of a medical situation a veterinarian can certainly prescribe such services as a therapist can provide or the therapist can work under the supervision of the veterinarian as long as the veterinarian maintains the medical supervision for the animal.

Recent legislation, HB 458, was enacted to provide the Board with legal authority to ensure that only those practitioners trained to perform veterinary medicine, are doing so. The Board has recently filed rules to further clarify the definitions, etc. which will hopefully allay any concerns. You can access the Board's web site at www.ovmlb.ohio.gov for updates regarding the rule filing.
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