Welcome to FEV Laboratory

At Five Exotic Vets we get that vet fees can be out with your budget. By sending in faecal samples for testing instead of a conventional appointment, we can diagnose diseases, supply treatment and give advice remotely, saving time and unnecessary expenditure. 

 

We offer routine parasitology, cryptosporidium testing for reptiles and avian gastric yeast testing for small parrotlike birds. 

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Some commercial clinical diagnostic laboratories offer testing available online, but are unable to provide you with the support needed to act on those results or supply you with medications to treat the diseases that the testing identified. Here, we can do both.

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Step 1

Book an appointment on our system with 'Consultation FEV Laboratory Service' selected as 'Reason Group'. This will be a 15 minute online consultation in which we can talk through your case, let you know which testing you'll need and answer any questions.

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Step 2

Pack and send your sample.

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The faecal samples sent to Exotic Vets Ltd. are treated as Biological substances, Category B. For these to be sent via mail, The Royal Mail specifies their 'IATA packing instructions 650' as the standard. The following is a modified summary of these instructions from their website.

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The packaging must be of good quality, and strong enough to withstand the shocks and loadings normally encountered during transport. Packaging must be well constructed and closed so as to prevent any loss of contents that might be caused under normal conditions of transport, by vibration, or by changes in temperature, humidity or pressure. Royal Mail provides such packaging, which is available online here.​

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The sample(s) must be packed as follows: 

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1. Place the sample in a primary receptacle which are typically 30ml plastic universal sample containers with lids that screw on (these can be found in our first aid kits). They must be shatter-proof and leak-proof.

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2. Place the primary receptacle in a sealed ziplock bag stuffed with enough absorbent, cushioning material (such as cotton wool or paper towel) that if the samples were to leak, their entire contents would be absorbed by this layer and would not seep out of the ziplock bag. If multiple primary receptacles are placed in a ziplock bag, they must be either individually wrapped or separated to prevent contact between them. 

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3. Place the full ziplock bag and a sheet of paper containing an itemised list of contents, your email and contact details in cardboard box addressed to us (Fife Exotic Vets, Fife Zoo, Birnie Field, Ladybank, Cupar, Fife KY15 7UT) and labelled ‘Biological Substances, Category B, UN3373’ with some internal padding to prevent the samples bashing about inside. 

 

Further guidance can be found here on the UK government website.

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Step 3

Once we've received and tested your samples, we'll be able to provide you with a diagnosis and a give you the name of the appropriate medication to treat the issue. As well as give you instructions on how to deal with any environmental contamination and advice on how to monitor your pet to reduce the likelihood of infections occurring again in the future

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You can then purchase these medications here on our shop, which doubles as our pharmacy or if you need a smaller quantity of any medication we can post them directly to you. They'll be delivered to your door and you can begin treating your animals!

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