How to Cut Veterinary Bills!

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You should also have your livestock records on hand. A listless dog-with a high fever and no appetite-that's been vaccinated for distemper, for example, will be diagnosed differently from such a beast that hasn't had the vaccine.

When the cause of an animal's trouble isn't immediately apparent, take its temperature regularly and keep a record of it until the vet arrives . . . so you'll be able to tell the doctor whether it's steady, rising, or falling.

Finally, make the animal as comfortable as possible and avoid causing it any more stress than is absolutely necessary. Be prepared, within the scope of your knowledge, to assist the patient in any way you can.

HOW TO AVOID VETS

The amount of aid you can give your livestock will increase with your experience, and you should constantly try to learn more about caring for your animals' health. Castration, vaccinations, worming, and normal births are typical things that the successful homesteader should eventually be capable to manage without professional aid.

It follows, then, that a good veterinary guide is a must in any farm's reference library. I keep two: an up-to-date volume and another-from the 30's-which pro vides a little insight into homesteading before the days of agribiz and factory farms. There have, however, been many advances in veterinary medicine since that time (notably the use of penicillin), so an older book should never be considered the final authority on treating animal diseases.

Prevention, though, is still the best medicine . . . and nothing is as important as giving your beasts good food, exercise, and lots of sunlight. Provide a dry, clean place for them to sleep . . . keep their food and water pans clean . . . and rotate your pastures, so animals won't walk in manure or have only ground - level grass to eat.

THE MEDICINE CHEST

As you become more knowledgeable in medical matters, you'll accumulate more and more equipment . . . but start keeping a veterinary cupboard now and fill it as you learn. Be sure the name, address, and phone number of your vet (or vets) are placed in a prominent location, along with a small notebook and pencil for jotting down observations about your animals, treatments you've tried, etc.

Then lay to the following supplies: a washpan . . . a rectal thermometer . . . antiseptic for wire cuts, scrapes, castrations, and so on . . . petroleum jelly . . . adhesive tape . . . cotton and cotton swabs . . . antibiotics (calf scour tablets, for example, or powdered tetracycline for poultry or pigs) . . . isopropyl alcohol . . . soap and towels . . . disinfectant for cleaning infected areas and tools . . . hypodermic syringe and needles . . . a marking pencil to keep track of animals as they're vaccinated ... a good rope, harness, twitch, hog catcher, or whatever restraining devices are appropriate for your livestock . . . and animal health records, which should cover each critter (and litter) you raise and include vaccination, illness, breeding, and birthing dates. In short, your livestock files should contain everything from each animal's health history to its production record.

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