Page 78 - Zoo Animal Learning and Training

62 Tasks for the Veterinary Assistant

water temperature, presoak, heavily soiled setting, add a Air-cooled clipper Oil-cooled clipper
disinfectant and turn on the machine. When the presoak
cycle is finished, add detergent, leave settings the same
other than wash and turn on the machine. Dry with a
fabric softener sheet.
When laundry is finished, run the washing machine a
final time without any items. Add bleach and/or deter-
gent and set for hot water wash. This cleans the machine
so it is ready for the next day’s surgical scrubs. There are
attachments for a vacuum cleaner that can reach into
the lint trap area. Vacuuming this once a week will pick On–off switch
up the lint, dirt, and hair that escapes the lint screen as
if left to build up it could cause a fire.

TIP BOX 4.5
Air vents
Do not overload washing machine or dryer! Doing so
decreases the effectiveness of the machine’s action and will
end up costing more time and money.
On–off switch
Fold all the laundry as it comes out of the dryer and
store in the proper locations. Once laundry is finished
for the day, clean the tops of the machines, sweep and FIGURE 4.5 Air‐cooled and oil‐cooled hair clippers.
empty the trash, and mop if necessary.
manual that can be consulted for the clipper body main-
tenance. If not, you may be able to find instructions
Reflection online for the major maintenance of the body. The fol-
lowing needs to be done daily and sometimes throughout
Now that you have some idea of how much work the day if the clipper is heavily used.
goes into keeping a facility clean, how could you Determine if the clipper is an air‐cooled or oil‐cooled
help the janitorial staff in the clinic or even at your clipper. An air‐cooled clipper will have air vents or air
school throughout the day? intake screens on the end or near the end of the body.
Oil‐cooled clippers do not have these vents (Figure 4.5).
Make sure these are not plugged with hair or debris as
this will make the clipper overheat. These clippers also
require the clipper blades to be sprayed with a lubricant
Equipment Maintenance cooling agent when in use. It is sprayed onto the clipper
blades while the clipper is on and applied as the handle
There are many pieces of equipment that require gets warm (Figure 4.6). You should hear the motor run
constant cleaning between patients. A veterinary assistant faster and louder as you apply the spray. If you don’t
must be capable of thoroughly cleaning each piece in lubricate the blades, the clipper body will get too hot to
order to have it ready for the next patient. Remember handle.
that inanimate objects can be fomites and our job is to Oil‐cooled hair clippers require the clipper blades to
make sure they don’t become one! There are also other be oiled first thing before use and at regular intervals
instruments or pieces of equipment that require certain while in use. The oil is applied at the junction of the
maintenance procedures, which are covered in the blades (Figure 4.7). Again, if this isn’t done the handle
individual chapters later in this textbook. The following will get too hot to hold.
are instructions for general cleaning or maintenance of Both types of clippers will need to have the blade
common pieces of equipment found in the veterinary heads cleaned in between patients. The heads can be
hospital. removed by pushing up on a small lever at the base of
The most notorious potential fomite is the hair clip- the clipper head (Figure 4.8a). While pushing the
per. This piece of equipment is utilized to trim or shave lever up, ease the clipper head away from the clipper
the hair from animals. The hair clipper has two parts: body (Figure 4.8b). When the clipper head is pushed
the base which houses the motor and driving piston, and all the way back it should slide off the clipper pin
the clipper head which is the part that removes the hair. (Figure 4.8c). The blades can be cleaned by pushing
It is to be hoped that the clinic has kept an owner’s the top blade over approximately half way, then using