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Working with Animals

If your agency keeps records for working animals (K9s), a K9 Assets section appears in your left-hand menu. This page explains when it shows up and how to find the animals assigned to you. For the full workflow (adding animals, medical records, the emergency QR profile), see the Animal Management guide.

Animal Management is an optional module

It's off by default, and only RAM can switch it on for an agency. If you work with K9s and don't see K9 Assets, ask your Agency Admin to contact RAM support about enabling Animal Management.

When the K9 Assets section appears​

The K9 Assets section shows once Animal Management is enabled for your agency. Under it you'll see:

  • Agency K9s: the agency's animal list
  • K9 Settings: breeds for the agency
  • Each animal assigned to you, listed by name, with a Profile link

You're assigned an animal when you're its primary handler.

Agency K9s and K9 Settings are unavailable unless you have the View animals permission. Animals you handle still appear in the menu under your name, and you can open them without it. See Roles & Permissions.

What you can do​

With View animals, open Agency K9s to see the list (call sign, name, species, status, primary handler) and select an animal to see its page, including its QR Code.

  • Add Animal needs Create animals or Edit animals.
  • Edit Animal needs Edit animals, or you're that animal's primary handler.
  • View Medications and View Medical Records need View animal medical records, even for your own animal. Adding, changing, and removing entries follow the Create, Edit, and Delete animal medical records permissions.
  • There's no delete button. An animal is retired by editing it and setting its Status to Retired.

Each animal's QR code opens a public page that anyone can read without signing in. It shows the animal's basics, emergency contacts, and its current medications and medical history, even to people who can't see them inside RAM. Be careful what you write in medication, medical record, and public notes fields.

Troubleshooting​

I don't see the K9 Assets section​

  • Check that the module is on. Ask your Agency Admin to confirm Animal Management is enabled for your agency. It's off by default.
  • Check that your membership is active. An account belongs to one agency, so the menu always reflects that agency.

The section is there, but my animals aren't listed​

  • Check your assignment. An animal appears only if you're its primary handler.
  • Refresh the page. Your assigned animals load when the menu first opens.

Agency K9s is unavailable​

You need the View animals permission. Ask your administrator.

For agency administrators​

To assign an animal to a handler, open Agency K9s, select the animal, select Edit Animal, and choose the Primary Handler. The animal then appears in that member's menu.