Exotic Pets Medicine & Surgery
Individual Courses and Comprehensive Study Program
Exotic Pets – Small Mammal: Diagnostic Imaging and Medicine
ESAVS is delighted to organize this new course on Small Mammal Diagnostic Imaging and Medicine. The small mammal courses have been totally reorganized since the first sessions in 2021 with new topics and new lecturers. This course is design for practitioners who already work with small mammals and who are willing to improve their knowledge and practice in this topic. The course will be illustrated by several clinical cases, and the lecturers will always pay attention to share with the participants the latest evidence-based data published and emphasize clinical application of these publications.
The first part of the course will focus on diagnostic imaging with lectures presenting radiography (including contrast), ultrasound techniques and radio anatomy in order to finely interpret the images. The CT scan and MRI lecture will focus on reasonable but necessary indications to perform these diagnostics and interpretations of the main lesions. These lectures will lead to an interactive clinical cases session and an ultrasound wet lab where the participants will be trained to perform abdominal ultrasounds on different live small mammal species.
The second part of the course will be on medicine with lectures on cardiology, pneumology, uro-nephrology, gastroenterology, reproduction, ophthalmology, dermatology, neurology and oncology. During these lecture, new and emerging diseases will be presented as well as updates on common diseases in order to give practical tools the practitioners to be able to improve the medical management of their patients. These lectures will lead to an interactive clinical cases session and a wetlab on cadavers about noninvasive endoscopy (oculoscopy, otoscopy, rhinoscopy, esophagoscopy, gastroscopy, coloscopy, cystoscopy on rabbits and guinea pigs).
Learning outcomes
At the end of the course, participants will be able to:
1. Interpret skull, thoracic and abdominal radiographs in small mammals.
2. To perform and interpret an abdominal ultrasound in small mammals.
3. To prescribe and to interpret major lesions on CT scan and MRI in small mammals.
4. To diagnose and to treat the most important medical diseases in small mammals.
5. To perform noninvasive endoscopy in rabbits and guinea pigs.
Main topics:
Radiography. Contrast radiography. Abdominal ultrasound. Introduction to CT scan and MRI.
Cardiology, pneumology, uro-nephrology, gastroenterology, reproduction, ophthalmology, dermatology, neurology and oncology.
Noninvasive endoscopy.
Wetlabs:
Abdominal ultrasound on small mammals supervised by small mammal and diagnostic imaging instructors.
Noninvasive endoscopy in rabbits and guinea pigs.
Journal clubs, discussions and controversies:
Principles of evidence-based medicine in small mammal and its use in clinics.
Two one-hour recorded webinars will be perform at 1 month and 2 months after the course. The topic will be decided depending on the demands of the participants.
Exotic Pets – Small Mammal: Anaesthesia and Surgery
This course is not for beginners in small mammal practice, but for practitioners who are already receiving small mammals on a regular basis. It is a cases-oriented course, presenting clinical data from the latest literature and illustrated with clinical cases.
Exotic Pets: Reptile and Avian Surgery & Endoscopy
The ESAVS Exotic Pets – Reptile and Avian Surgery and Endoscopy course cover the core of the reptile and avian surgery and endoscopy curriculum, with particular emphasis on the soft tissue surgery, orthopaedics, diagnostic endoscopy and mini-invasive surgery in reptiles and birds from an advanced care perspective.
This program is designed specifically for veterinarians wishing to gain advanced experience in reptile and avian surgery and endoscopy.
Participants of ESAVS Exotic Pets Reptile and Avian Surgery and Endoscopy course will learn and discuss anaesthesia and analgesia in chelonians, lizards, snakes and birds, methods of soft tissue surgery and orthopaedics including shell repair or beak repair. Participants of the course will learn modern methods of diagnostic endoscopy and mini-invasive surgery in clinical practice with reptiles and birds. The successful management of difficult to treat problems will be discussed. Wet labs will provide practical approaches.
Key Features of Exotic Pets – Reptile and Avian Surgery and Endoscopy Course
• The program consists of five-days residential course (one week course)
• The course consist of teaching classes (~50%) and intensive practical sessions in labs (~50%)
• Course participants obtain access to comprehensive teaching materials and have the opportunity to practice in small groups.
• Participants have access to distance learning modules.
• Exotic Pets – Reptile and Avian Surgery and Endoscopy Course of ESAVS is routinely recognized by the European College of Zoological Medicine (ECZM), which means they satisfy all the required criteria for continuing recognition in this discipline.
Topics covered
• Clinical anatomy of reptiles
• Clinical anatomy of birds
• Reptile anaesthesia
• Reptile analgesia
• Anaesthesia in avian medicine
• Analgesia in avian medicine
• Soft tissue surgery in reptiles I, II, III
• Soft tissue surgery in birds
• Reptile orthopaedics and shell repair
• Avian orthopaedics and beak repair
• Endoscopy in reptiles
• Endoscope assisted surgery in reptiles
• Avian endoscopy
• Endo-surgery in exotic animal practice
Learning outcomes
At the end of this course, participants will be able to:
1. Supervise and perform effective anaesthesia and analgesia, including the use of modern methods of monitoring the reptile and avian patient.
2. Supervise and perform the classical as well as the newest methods of soft tissue surgery and orthopaedics in reptile and avian patients (including the shell repair in chelonians or beak repair in birds).
3. Perform modern techniques of diagnostic endoscopy in reptile and avian practice.
4. Perform methods of endoscope-assisted surgery or mini-invasive surgery in exotic pet patients.