Administration

The roles and responsibilities of Veterinary Services Administration are as follows:

Regulation of Importation & Export of Animals, Products of Animal Origin

CAP. 253 of the Laws of Barbados placed the responsibility on the Senior Veterinary Officer for:

1. Control of diseased or suspect animals, their quarantine and/or disposal.
2. Importation control of all birds, reptiles, animals, animal products, meat and meat by products, veterinary biologicals, fodder, used harnesses, etc. Importers must complete applications forms prior to importation of these items and a permit subject to conditions as required will be issued. Approval for landing will be granted following inspection at time of entry to certify that those conditions were satisfied.
3. Granting of Veterinary Health Certificates for the export of animals, animal products, meat and meat products that meet the requirements of the importing country.

All regulations governing the importation and export of animals, animal products and veterinary biologicals are developed by this section.

To assist in the above, Veterinary Services Administration is responsible for issuing:

• Commercial Meat & Dairy Permits
• Veterinary Sanitary Export Health Certificates
• Passenger (Personal) Permits
• Transit Permits
• Live Animal Import Permits

Disease Control, Monitoring & Surveillance

The Veterinary Services Department is able to maintain the good health of the animal population through the prevention of the introduction of exotic diseases by:

1. Controlling the Importation of Animals, Animal By-Products, Meat and Meat products, Birds, Eggs, and Veterinary Biologicals through the issuing of permits and accompanying conditions for importation.
2. The detection of diseases/conditions by island wide surveys and inspections/monitoring at the slaughterhouses.
3. The diagnosis of diseases/conditions through the services of the Veterinary Services Laboratory.
4. The early diagnosis of exotic animal diseases allowing rational decisions on control or eradication programmes (e.g. Swine Fever, velogenic (highly virulent) Newcastle Disease, Highly Pathogenic Avian Influenza).
5. The control or eradication of diseases/conditions that limit livestock production and export potential.
6. The control or eradication of diseases/conditions that may be harmful to the human population (zoonotic diseases e.g. Tuberculosis, Brucellosis, Rabies, Leptospirosis).
   Veterinary Services Administration is directly responsible the functions of Veterinary Quarantine Services, Veterinary Public Health and Veterinary Field Services that play a major role in this area.

Liaison with International Agencies

Veterinary Services has a significant role to play as liaison with various international agencies for the development and implementation of animal and human health projects in Barbados and the Caribbean and to assist with the securing of necessary funding.

Such projects are of benefit to livestock farmers and participating nations since they promote production and export capability in livestock and meat products.

The major aims of these projects are usually to improve disease surveillance and diagnostic capabilities in participating countries and to prevent, control or eradicate zoonotic diseases that may spread to the human population.

Some of the international agencies Veterinary Services liaises with include:

• F.A.O.
• P.A.H.O.
• I.I.C.A.
• C.I.D.A.
• U.S.D.A
• World Organization for Animal Health (OIE)

Lectures\Talks

Officers of Veterinary Services give lectures/talks on animal health matters to farmers, associations and other groups such as:

• Teachers Training College
• Barbados Community College
• Samuel Jackman Prescod Polytechnic
• Visiting Professional Associations
• School Career Showcases
• Customs and Excise Department
• Mass media (print, radio and television services)