Triage of the Wildlife Patient
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.53607/wrb.v35.16Keywords:
Abducted, triage, protocol, physiological stressAbstract
Treating wildlife patients necessitates a unique approach and a different set of practices than is normally set forth for companion animals. The physiological stress placed on wildlife patients—simply while doing a physical examination—can be enough to cause cardiac arrest (Bewig and Mitchell 2009). Knowing how to address an individual patient’s injuries and the time necessary for that animal to recover from each episode of human contact is essential to successful patient triage.
Each wild animal brought in for help constitutes an emergency. Triage may entail rapid patient assessment, or may involve several animals, all needing medical attention immediately. Deciding which patient to treat first, how much human interaction that individual can tolerate for a given procedure, and when to stop, often determines the potential for patient survival and release.
Downloads
References
Beal, M. W. 2011. Triage and Primary Survey. Pp. 6–18 in Manual of Trauma Management of the Dog and Cat. Wiley–Blackwell: Ames, IA.
Bewig, M., and M. A. Mitchell. 2009. Wildlife. Pp. 483–529 in Manual of Exotic Pet Practice. Saunders Elsevier: St. Louis, MO.
Coles, B. H. 2007. Release of Casualty Wild Birds. Pp. 212–218 in Essentials of Avian Medicine and Surgery, 3rd edition. Blackwell Publishing: Ames, IA.
Coles, B. H. 2007. Anesthesia. Pp. 125 in Essentials of Avian Medicine and Surgery, 3rd edition. Blackwell Publishing: Ames, IA.
Diehl, S., and C. Stockhaug. 1997. Release Criteria for Rehabilitated Wild Mammals. Pp. 459–466 in NWRA Principles of Wildlife Rehabilitation. National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association: St. Cloud, MN.
Grossman, V. 2003. Quick Reference to Triage, 2nd edition. Pp. 3–20. Lipincott, Williams & Wilkins: Philadelphia, PA.
Hoggard, C. 2007. Nutritional Considerations for Critical Wildlife Patients. Pp. 112–196 in Topics in Wildlife Medicine Emergency and Critical Care (F. Tseng, and M. Mitchell, editors). National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association: St. Cloud, MN.
Joosten, S., and A. Moore, editors. 2004. Principles of Wildlife Rehabilitation, 2nd edition. National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association: St. Cloud, MN.
Klasing, K. C. 1999. Pp. 131–132 in Comparative Avian Nutrition. CAB International: Cambridge, MA.
Luther, E. 2010. Answering the Call of the Wild: A Hotline Operator’s Guide to Helping People and Wildlife. Toronto Wildlife Center: Toronto, ON.
Marcum, D. 1997. Mammal Rehabilitation: The Basics. Pp. 298 in Principles of Wildlife Rehabilitation. National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association: St. Cloud, MN.
Martin, R. and B. Ritchie. 1994. Orthopedic Surgical Techniques. Pp. 1141 in Avian Medicine: Principles and Applications (B. Ritchie, G. Harrison, and L. Harrison, editors). Wingers Publishing, Inc., Lake Worth, FL.
Miller, E. A., editor. 2006. Quick Reference, 3rd edition. National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association: St. Cloud, MN.
Moulton, C. and D. Yates. 1999. Major Trauma and Multiple Injuries. Pp. 19 in Emergency Medicine, 2nd edition. Blackwell Science Inc.: Malden, MA.
Papich, M. G. 2002. Pp. 193 in Handbook of Veterinary Drugs. W. B. Saunders Company: Philadelphia, PA.
Plumb, D. C. 2005. Pp. 728 in Veterinary Drug Handbook, 3rd edition. PharmaVet Inc.: Stockholm, WI.
Rupley, A. E. 1998. Critical Care of Pet Birds: Procedures, Therapeutics and Patient Support. Pp. 11–15 in The Veterinary Clinics of North America Exotic Animal Practice: Critical Care. W. B. Saunders Company: Philadelphia, PA.
Syring, R. S. 2011. Traumatic Brain Injury. Pp. 136–156 in Manual of Trauma Management of the Dog and Cat. Wiley–Blackwell: Ames, IA.
Tseng, F. S. 2007. Pain Management in Wildlife Rehabilitation. Pp 98–111 in Topics in Wildlife Medicine Emergency and Critical Care (F. Tseng, and M. Mitchell, editors.). National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association: St. Cloud, MN.
WDFW. 2017. Wildlife Rehabilitation: Overview of Release Criteria. Accessed August 2017. Available from: <http://wdfw.wa.gov/conservation/health/rehabilitation/release_criteria.html>.
Welte, S., and L. Frink. 1991. Rescue and Rehabilitation of Oiled Birds. United States Department of the Interior, Fish and Wildlife Service: Washington, DC
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
License
Copyright (c) 2017 National Wildlife Rehabilitators Association (NWRA)
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivatives 4.0 International License.
The copyright for articles in this journal is retained by the author(s), with first publication rights granted to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Bulletin and NWRA. Articles published as open-access in this journal are free to use and share with proper attribution in educational and other non-commercial purposes. To obtain reprint permission for articles that are not open access, please contact the journal editor.
