{"data":{"id":"us-nv/nrs-638.1521","jurisdiction":"us-nv","citation":"NRS 638.1521","heading":"Practice of veterinary medicine without establishment of veterinarian-client-patient relationship prohibited; exceptions.","body":"1. Except as otherwise provided in subsection 2, a person may not practice veterinary medicine in this State except within the context of a veterinarian-client-patient relationship.\n2. A licensed veterinarian may, in good faith and without the establishment of a veterinarian-client-patient relationship, provide emergency or urgent care to an animal when a client cannot be identified.\n3. A veterinarian has a veterinarian-client-patient relationship concerning an animal if the veterinarian:\n(a) Assumes responsibility for making medical judgments concerning the health of the animal and the need for medical treatment of the animal;\n(b) Has knowledge of the present care and health of the animal sufficient to provide at least a general or preliminary diagnosis of the medical condition of the animal, which knowledge must have been acquired by:\n(1) Conducting a physical examination of the animal; or\n(2) Visiting, within a period of time that is appropriate for the medical issue in question, the premises where the animal is kept;\n(c) Obtains an agreement with the client to follow the instructions provided by the veterinarian for the care and medical treatment of the animal;\n(d) Is readily available for follow-up evaluation or has arranged for:\n(1) Emergency or urgent care coverage; or\n(2) Continuing medical care and treatment which has been designated by the veterinarian to be provided by another licensed veterinarian who:\n(I) Has access to the medical records of the animal; or\n(II) Can provide reasonable and appropriate medical care; and\n(e) Provides oversight of treatment.\n4. A veterinarian-client-patient relationship is not established solely through veterinary telemedicine. However, once established, a veterinarian-client-patient relationship may be maintained via veterinary telemedicine between:\n(a) Medically necessary examinations; or\n(b) Visits, within periods of time that are appropriate for the medical issue in question, to the premises where the animal is kept.\n5. In the absence of a veterinarian-client-patient relationship:\n(a) Except as otherwise provided in paragraph (b), any advice which is provided through electronic means must be general and not specific to a particular animal or its diagnosis or treatment.\n(b) Advice and recommendations may be provided via veterinary telemedicine in an emergency, but only until the animal can be examined in person by a licensed veterinarian.","path":["TITLE 54 — PROFESSIONS, OCCUPATIONS AND BUSINESSES","CHAPTER 638 - VETERINARY MEDICINE; EUTHANASIA TECHNICIANS","PROHIBITED ACTS; PENALTIES; ENFORCEMENT"],"source_url":"https://www.leg.state.nv.us/NRS/NRS-638.html#NRS638Sec1521","current_through":"2025 session (NRS as revised 2026-08-25)","vintage":"","retrieved_at":"2026-09-03T05:51:44Z","sha256":"34cd9e426c91ea0a70ebb305230aa95e684d9fd0bc24b0ce57ea319bdd999edd","source_id":"us-nv","stale":true,"prev":"us-nv/nrs-638.152","next":"us-nv/nrs-638.1525"},"notice":"GroundRules: Original legal text. Not legal advice."}