Case reports are the oldest form of veterinary literature, and they remain one of the most accessible first publications for students and early-career clinicians. A veterinary case report describes a single animal, or a small group of animals, in enough detail that other veterinarians can learn from it: an unusual presentation, a rare condition, an unexpected outcome, or a new way of managing a familiar problem. Unlike a research paper, a case report does not test a hypothesis or recruit a sample; its value lies in careful observation, honest reporting, and a discussion that connects one case to the wider literature.
This guide explains how to write a veterinary case report that a journal will take seriously. It covers choosing a case worth publishing, the standard structure, how much clinical detail to give, and the consent and ethics requirements that apply. It builds on our guides on writing a research abstract and writing a strong introduction, and it complements our GJVAS author guide: the Global Journal of Veterinary and Animal Sciences, published by Global Academic Publishers, is currently in its launch phase, with ISSN and DOI still in application, and veterinary authors should check its current author guidelines before submitting any manuscript.
Not every interesting case deserves publication, and editors reject many case reports for one reason: they do not teach the reader anything new. Before writing, ask what a reader in another clinic would learn from your case that they could not learn from a textbook. The strongest justifications are a rare or previously unreported condition in a species or region, an unusual presentation of a known condition, an unexpected response to treatment, or a diagnostic or management approach that worked where standard approaches did not. A case that is merely uncommon in your own practice, but well described in the literature, will struggle to justify publication.
Novelty alone is not enough; the case must also be documented well enough to be useful. A rare condition with incomplete records, no diagnostic confirmation, and no follow-up teaches little, however unusual it seemed at the time. Before committing to a case report, check that you have the clinical records, the diagnostic results, the treatment details, and the outcome — including follow-up over a meaningful period. If key information is missing and cannot be recovered, it is usually better to choose a different case than to publish an incomplete one.
Most veterinary journals expect a similar structure for case reports, though exact headings vary, so always check the target journal's author guidelines first. The sections below follow the common pattern.
The title should name the condition and the species, and ideally the feature that makes the case notable — for example, the first report of a condition in a species, or an unusual complication. Avoid vague titles such as "An interesting case", which tell the reader nothing and are hard to find in searches. The abstract, usually structured or semi-structured, summarises the presentation, the diagnosis, the management, and the outcome in a short paragraph, so that a reader can judge the case's relevance without reading further.
Briefly review what is known about the condition, in the species concerned, and state the gap your case fills. This section is short — a few paragraphs, not a full literature review — but it must establish why the case matters. Cite the key references accurately, and be careful with claims of priority: saying a case is the "first ever reported" requires a thorough literature search, and a reviewer who finds an earlier report will doubt the rest of the paper. Our guide on writing a literature review explains how to search and cite the literature properly.
This is the heart of the report, and it must be chronological, complete, and precise. Start with the patient: species, breed, age, sex, and relevant history, including previous illness, vaccination, and management. Then describe the presenting complaint, the clinical examination findings, and the diagnostic workup in the order it happened, with results and reference ranges where they help interpretation. Report treatments exactly — drug, dose, route, frequency, and duration — because a treatment that cannot be repeated from your description is of limited use to another clinician.
Precision matters more here than in almost any other kind of paper. Give numbers rather than impressions: temperatures, weights, laboratory values, and time intervals, not "the animal was unwell for some time". Include relevant negative findings too — tests that were normal, or differentials that were ruled out — because they show how the diagnosis was reached, not merely asserted. If images, radiographs, or photographs support the case, include them where the journal allows, with clear captions and the owner's consent for publication.
State what happened to the patient, over what period, and how the outcome was assessed. A case report without follow-up is incomplete: a treatment that appeared to work on day three but failed by week four tells a different story, and readers need to know it. If the outcome was poor, report it honestly — a case that ended badly but teaches an important lesson is more valuable than a success story with the complications omitted. Where the patient was lost to follow-up, say so plainly and state the last point of contact.
The discussion connects your case to the literature: how does it compare with previously reported cases, what does it add, and what should other clinicians take from it? Discuss the diagnostic reasoning, including why alternatives were excluded, and the management choices, including what you would do differently. End with the limitations: a single case cannot prove that a treatment works, and it cannot be generalised to all animals with the condition. Acknowledging that limit honestly strengthens the paper rather than weakening it, because it shows the author understands what a case report can and cannot claim. Our guide on writing results and discussion sections covers the same discipline of honest interpretation for research papers.
Owner consent is essential. Before submitting, obtain the animal owner's written consent for publication, including consent for any photographs or identifying details, and keep the consent on file. Remove identifying information about the owner, the clinic, and the location where it is not needed for the clinical story. For cases arising from research or teaching, check whether institutional ethics or animal welfare approval applies, and state it where the journal requires. Our guide on research ethics, consent, and animal welfare explains these requirements in more detail, and our guide on spotting predatory journals is worth reading before choosing where to submit, because case reports are a common target for low-quality outlets.
Authorship should reflect real contribution: the clinicians who managed the case, the diagnosticians who confirmed it, and anyone who wrote or substantially revised the manuscript. Discuss authorship early, before writing begins, to avoid disputes later, and follow the journal's authorship criteria. A case report with a long author list and no clear contributions invites questions from editors, so each author's role should be defensible.
The most common reason is lack of novelty: the case is well known and adds nothing to the literature. The second is incomplete documentation — missing diagnostics, vague treatments, or no follow-up. The third is overclaiming: presenting a single case as proof that a treatment works, or generalising far beyond what one animal can support. The fourth is poor structure, where the timeline is confused or the discussion merely repeats the case without connecting it to the literature. The fifth is ethical: missing owner consent or identifying details left in the text or images. Each of these is preventable by choosing the case carefully, keeping complete records, and writing the discussion with restraint. Our guide on why research papers get rejected covers the wider patterns behind editorial decisions, and our guide on how to publish a research paper places the case report in the full submission process.
Well-chosen visuals often teach more than paragraphs of description, and case reports benefit from them more than most article types. Clinical photographs, radiographs, and laboratory trends let readers see what words can only approximate, and editors welcome them when they are clear, relevant, and properly consented. Before including any image, check three things: the image genuinely adds information rather than decorating the paper, its quality is high enough to interpret, and the owner's written consent covers publication of that image. Remove any identifying details from the image itself — clinic names on equipment, owner names on labels, or backgrounds that reveal a location — and write a caption that states what the image shows, when it was taken, and what the reader should notice.
A timeline is often the single most useful figure in a case report, because cases unfold over time and prose timelines are easy to confuse. A simple horizontal timeline — presentation, key tests, treatment changes, and outcome, each dated — lets a reader grasp the whole case in seconds and check whether the sequence supports the diagnosis. Similarly, a small table of laboratory values over time, with reference ranges, shows trends far more clearly than the same numbers buried in paragraphs. Neither needs sophisticated software: a clear table in the manuscript is enough, provided the values are accurate and the units are stated.
Captions deserve as much care as the images themselves. A good caption identifies the image, gives its timing in the case, and points out the finding that matters, without repeating the whole case history. Avoid captions that merely restate the obvious, such as "a photograph of the animal", and avoid over-interpreting what an image shows — a radiograph can support a diagnosis, but it cannot prove one on its own, and the caption should say what was seen, leaving interpretation to the text. When a journal limits the number of figures, choose the images that change a reader's understanding, not the ones that merely illustrate it, and mention any additional images in the text so that interested readers know they exist.
Finally, keep the original image files and the consent forms together with the manuscript records. Journals occasionally ask for higher-resolution versions during production, and consent may need to be confirmed if the report is reused or translated. A case report's images are part of its evidence, and treating them with the same care as the clinical data protects both the patient’s owner and the paper's credibility.
| Section | What it must contain | Common weakness |
|---|---|---|
| Title and abstract | Condition, species, notable feature; brief summary | Vague titles that hide the case |
| Introduction | Known literature, the gap this case fills | Unverified "first ever" claims |
| Case presentation | History, findings, diagnostics, treatment in order | Vague doses, missing results, no timeline |
| Outcome and follow-up | Result, duration, how assessed, losses to follow-up | No follow-up, or poor outcomes hidden |
| Discussion | Comparison with literature, lessons, limitations | Overclaiming from a single case |
These authoritative external resources explain the standards and guidance mentioned in this article:
Can a student publish a case report?
Yes. Case reports are one of the most accessible first publications for veterinary students and early-career clinicians, especially when written with a supervisor or experienced clinician who managed the case.
How do I know if my case is novel enough?
Search the literature for the condition in the species concerned. If similar cases are well described and yours adds nothing new, it will struggle. A rare condition, an unusual presentation, or an unexpected outcome are the strongest justifications.
Do I need the owner's consent?
Yes. Obtain the animal owner's written consent for publication, including consent for photographs and identifying details, and keep it on file. Remove identifying information about the owner and clinic where it is not needed.
How much follow-up is enough?
Enough to show the outcome honestly — usually weeks to months, depending on the condition. State the follow-up period and how the outcome was assessed, and say plainly if the patient was lost to follow-up.
Can one case prove a treatment works?
No. A single case can suggest that a treatment deserves further study, but it cannot prove effectiveness. State that limitation honestly in the discussion; overclaiming is a common reason for rejection.
What if the outcome was poor?
Report it honestly. A case that ended badly but teaches an important lesson is more valuable than a success story with complications omitted, and reviewers respect transparency.