Resources on veterinary feed directives cover honeybees, aquaculture

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The AVMA has produced new resources on veterinary feed directives, covering VFDs for honeybees and aquaculture.

According to the AVMA webpage “Honey Bees 101 for Veterinarians”: “In veterinary school you were taught how to diagnose and treat just about every animal species, but you probably had little education—if any—on honey bees. Until the federal government’s Veterinary Feed Directive (VFD) final rule was issued, most veterinarians in the United States had little to no reason to be concerned about apiculture (beekeeping) and honey bee medicine.”

Honeybees have always been considered a food-producing animal, but there wasn’t a requirement for veterinary oversight until the VFD rule implemented certain changes in federal policy regarding antimicrobials important in human medicine.

Members of the AVMA may access a 56-page document, “Honey Bees: A Guide for Veterinarians,” and three webinars on “Honey Bees, Antimicrobials and the Role of the Veterinarian.” A fourth webinar is in development.

The AVMA also has produced a webinar for members that discusses VFDs in aquaculture. The webinar “explains the requirements of the VFD rule, the aquatic veterinarian’s role, and how to issue a VFD order when needed.”

The honeybee and aquaculture resources are available from the webpage on VFD basics.

Related JAVMA content:

Federal directive brings veterinarians and beekeepers together (Oct. 15, 2016)