Forensic Veterinarian Research Paper

Words: 752
Pages: 4

Veterinary Forensics

Veterinary forensics is a branch of veterinary medicine. Forensic veterinarians take and interpret evidence from animal abuse crime scenes, provide veterinary care to the animals involved, and testify in court to help bring animal abusers to justice. On a typical day, a forensic veterinarian would either testify in or work with the police to prepare for a court case or would be called to investigate a scene and provide care to the animals involved. Forensic veterinarians usually work either with animal shelters/rescues or police. Forensic vets must have a solid understanding of the way court cases work and of terms commonly used in court. They must be able to testify in front of a judge and jury and present evidence clearly. To become a forensic veterinarian, one must first obtain a DVM (Doctor of Veterinary Medicine) degree or the equivalent. Next, they usually take additional courses in veterinary forensics (offered at some universities or through organizations like the ASPCA. They may then take courses to help prepare them for the legal aspects of the job or may jump into work either in research or with law enforcement.
Forensic veterinarians use many of the same tools as the medical
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T arrives at the crime scene, a shabby-looking house on the outside of the city. Her eyes immediately go to stake driven into the yard in front of the house. On the end of a chain attached to the stake is a medium-sized dog. The police at the scene inform her that they got called to investigate a possible animal abuse case reported by concerned neighbors. Dr. T takes pictures of and notes about the scene and dog while the police talk to the owners of the house. Since they have a search warrant, they are able to walk around the yard and house, but don’t find anything more of interest. Dr. T deems the dog to be in medical danger, so she puts him in a crate and transports him to her clinic while the police finish talking to the