Vetnews | Maart 2026 4 « BACK TO CONTENTS As we bid farewell to the month of love, we also hopefully bid farewell to the heat of summer. In many places, the colours of autumn are already showing in preparation for the big leaf drop. I hope that it rained where it was so bitterly dry. In the first week of March, we are celebrating World Wildlife Day with a bit of a peculiar topic: “Medicinal and Aromatic plants”. The complete theme is: “Medicinal and Aromatic plants Conserving Health, Heritage and Livelihood “, but how do you even connect that to wildlife and veterinarians in particular? I found an article on Biodiversity and pathogens. A very interesting piece of research to show how the two fit into each other. How well do you know your Medicinal plants? Most veterinarians can identify poisonous plants when animals get sick, but do we know what plants are beneficial to our clients? An estimated 60,000 plant species are used globally for medicinal and related purposes. Our world heals through plants. Just look at the cycle of an overgrazed piece of land. How, by different species, the plants protect and heal the soil. Dr Willem Schultheiss presented a talk that I attended on farming micro-organisms. Micro-organisms are the building blocks for healthy plants, and healthy plants are the building blocks for healthy consumers, including our animals, whether raw (on the hoof) or processed. May we delve a little into the healthy plants we can offer our clients? On that topic, another issue is touched on, and that is Poisoning. Whether plant origin or otherwise. Lookout for the article on the perceptions of recreational drug users and the discrimination feared at the veterinary practice after a pet may or may not have ingested such drugs. The Lincoln Institute Veterinary Resiliency program is winding down, and I followed it on the side. The feedback has been fenomenal and I wish every veterinarian over the entire practice scope could have done it. I hope that the people who completed the program will be the yeast to ‘infect’ others with good practice, great resiliency, better relationships and the best self-care there is. Talking of which, the article by Dr Matts Abadsidis expertly drives that point home in his piece on “The Balance that is Illusive”, taking it from being elusive to making it practical for each day. It starts with drinking a glass of water every morning. Now, how difficult can that be? See the article for a host of ideas on how to balance work and private life and how to implement self-care. We mourn the untimely passing of two veterinarians: Dr Estian van As and Dr JW Eksteen. Our sincere condolences to the families. I hope that this month treats you well. If you celebrate World Wildlife Day in a special manner, please send some photos to us at Vetnews. We would love to see what you do. Andriette v From the Editor Editor’s notes / Redakteurs notas
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