Vetoquinol is introducing new flip-off plastic caps on its injectable range to make the products more user-friendly.

Marbocyl 10% is the first product to benefit. The new caps mean it is no longer necessary to have the aluminium caps which were used to protect the rubber bung and were not always easy to remove. Other products in the injectable range will be adapted throughout 2008.

“Vetoquinol is continuously looking at ways to improve its products,” explains Vetoquinol’s Alvin Cerely. “The phasing out of aluminium caps and the introduction of flip-off lids is a definite improvement in the use of our injectable antibiotics.”

A rural social scientist has argued in this week's Veterinary Record that the dwindling influence of vets in the public health arena threatens food safety in the UK.

Philip Lowe, from the Centre for Rural Economy at the University of Newcastle, argues that a shift in practice from treating animals used for food on farms to looking after pets in urban communities, is largely to blame.

The proportion of time vets in private practice spent treating animals used for food halved between 1998 and 2006. Most vets run their own businesses, and pet owners have proved a more sustainable and lucrative source of income than farmers.

Professor Lowe sympathises with the need to make money, but laments this drift towards the profession turning into "another private sector service industry."

He says this fails to make use of vets' considerable and wide ranging expertise, adding: "I would argue that it also diminishes the public standing of the whole profession. I certainly couldn't imagine the medical establishment in this country accepting a role that marginalised public health, even if the NHS did not exist. More seriously for all of us, I believe that not involving vets in this important area also puts food safety in the UK at risk.

"At the same time we live in an age when there is real and widespread public concern about welfare standards for farm animals, threats from animal diseases old and new (such as blue tongue, bird flu and swine flu), and food safety."

Professor Lowe says that in the past, the veterinary arm of government traditionally provided leadership for the profession that was embodied by the Chief Veterinary Officer and was underpinned by the proportion of vets' income derived from public funding. But this is no longer the case, and is further undermined by the percentage of vets employed by government having shrunk from 11% to 4% over the past 40 years.

Professor Lowe argues that the profession needs to rethink its role and the direction in which it is travelling. He says there needs to be more specialist support and training for student vets and novice practitioners so that they are not put off from farm practice before they have had a chance to develop their skills and confidence in this area. 

However, he cautions against returning to the stereotype popularised by the fictional James Herriot vet, who was depicted as a mainstay of the rural community: "The farm vet's position and respect for their expertise needs to be restored, but not in the old Herriot mould. He or she has to take on the much greater challenge of risk and welfare regulation and management across the whole food system".

Enalees has launched Rhéa, a range of rapid molecular diagnostic tests for cattle, sheep and goats.

Unlike traditional PCR tests, Rhea molecular diagnostic tests need no lab equipment, allowing them to be used directly in the field. 

The first panel test in the new range is Rhéa Vector-Borne Diseases, which simultaneously detects four major pathogens in under 40 minutes: Theileria spp., Babesia spp., Anaplasma spp. (including A. marginale and A. phagocytophilum), and Borrelia spp.

Enalees says the Rhéa range addresses a growing need in the sector, enabling vets to act quickly and accurately. 

https://www.enalees.com 

The National Office of Animal Health has launched http://www.pethealthinfo.org.uk/, a new website that bills itself as: "A 'one stop shop' featuring a wealth of animal health information and advice to help owners and potential owners to make decisions about their pets' healthcare."

I must say, full marks to NOAH and the web designers 9xb for a really polished website that presents information in a very easy-to-navigate format. First class job.

In general, the site content seems very good too. There's help for owners deciding what pet to buy, health guides for various common conditions for each species, first aid advice, and much more.

Personally, I think it would have been a nice tweak to offer something a tad more interactive in the section about picking a pet - something that actually made suggestions depending on your answers to the questions the site poses.

I also wonder how useful the Vet FAQs are likely to be. There are so many possible questions a pet owner might have, that a slightly random list seems to me to be of limited use.

But these are small points in the grand scheme of things. Overall, an excellent production, and one you may want to link your practice website to.

Royal Canin has announced a new Approved Weight Management Centre programme for vet practices across the UK.

As part of the programme, a number of practices across the UK will receive ‘Centre of Excellence’ status for managing overweight or obese cats and dogs educating clients on prevention.

To gain approved centre status, practices are required to establish a formal Weight Management Clinic and work as a team to refer clients with overweight pets through the clinic. The chosen practices will receive bespoke training from a member of the Weight Management Team, to provide them with the skills and protocols to discuss obesity with clients and encouraging vets, nurses and receptionists to work together to raise awareness of obesity.

Shelley Holden from the Weight Management Team said: "This is a unique platform for practices across the UK to take advantage of and really excel in addressing weight management issues in practice and tackling prevention. We are excited to currently work with an elite group of practices, all committed to raising awareness of obesity in cats and dogs."

Royal Canin has so far given nine clinics 'Centre of Excellence' status. They all now discuss body condition scoring with patients to identify whether the pet is in ideal condition. If overweight or obese, they are then referred for further advice and support to their weight clinic. The weight clinic is a complimentary 30 minute appointment with a weight management nurse, followed by ongoing monitoring, personalised advice and telephone support. Approved clinics also educate owners about prevention during puppy parties, puppy and kitten vaccinations, and at neutering to ensure owners are aware of the health risks of weight gain from the outset.

Jo Hammett BVSc MRCVS, Owner of The Stocks Vets (pictured right), said: "We have received bespoke training from Royal Canin to achieve centre status, giving our team the confidence to discuss the sensitive issues surrounding weight with clients, in addition to tackling education. This has really helped break down barriers in approaching the topic with clients about their pets’ weight and we are finding they are now much more open with the team during consultations, which is a major achievement in itself."

For more information about the Approved Weight Management Centre programme, contact your veterinary business manager or visit www.royalcanin.co.uk.

MSD Animal Health is urging vets to reassess their approach to managing neonatal calf diarrhoea, following new evidence showing a rise in resistance to paromomycin.

The March 2025 Cattle Highlights Report from the Royal GD in the Netherlands has revealed that the proportion of paromomycin-resistant isolates has jumped from 48% in 2021 to 72% in 2024.

The report also highlights an increase in the detection of cryptosporidiosis in calves up to 14 days of age.

MSD says that while it is unclear whether paromomycin is being used to treat E.coli or cryptosporidiosis, the rising use of the antibiotic could be contributing to greater exposure and increased resistance in E.coli K99.

Kat Baxter-Smith MRCVS (pictured), a vet advisor at MSD Animal Health, said: “What we need now is a mindset shift—moving away from routine antibiotic use and towards a more robust, preventative management strategy.

“It’s not about eliminating treatment altogether but using it only when it is really needed.”

“Vaccination, clean pens, and ensuring that every calf receives the right volume and quality of colostrum are the real cornerstones of effective scour control.

“Using vaccines such as Bovilis Rotavec Corona for rotavirus, coronavirus, and E.coli and Bovilis Cryptium for Cryptosporidium parvum is one of the most effective ways to reduce the incidence of neonatal diarrhoea.

"By vaccinating the dam, we ensure the calf has the best possible immunity at birth by ingesting the fortified colostrum and transition milk in the first days of life, which significantly reduces reliance on antibiotics and minimises disease risks.”

The report emphasises best-practice principles such as effective colostrum management, good hygiene and housing, balanced dry cow transition and strategic vaccination of the dam.

The report also recommends halofuginone (Halocur) as the first-line treatment for cryptosporidiosis, due to its targeted action and significantly lower risk of contributing to AMR.

Kat added: "By embracing these proactive strategies, vets and farmers can take a crucial step towards safeguarding calf health, reducing reliance on antibiotics, and combating the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance.”

https://issuu.com/gezondheidsdienstvoordieren/docs/highlights_report_cattle-march_2025 

Zero Pain Philosophy, the initiative set up by Matt Gurney and Carl Bradbrook to improve pain management in veterinary patients, is asking vets to complete its second annual Big Pain Survey.

The Big Pain Survey is designed to identifying opportunities to help veterinary professionals improve their patient pain management and take a zero tolerance approach to pain in their patients.

Last year's survey revealed that only 18% of veterinary professionals use pain scoring for chronic pain, 78% of practices don't offer pain clinics, only 23% of vets always prescribe analgesia for acute otitis externa, 70% of vets don't do epidural anaesthesia at their practice, and most veterinary professionals agreed that clients' understanding of pain is low. 

The organisers say that last year's survey results also suggest that awareness around educational information such as the WSAVA pain management guidelines needs further promotion, particularly when it comes to the use of local anaesthesia.

For example, 39% of practices don’t use local anaesthesia during bitch spays.

Lack of experience was commonly cited as the reason that local anaesthetic was not used for a variety of procedures that would benefit from it, including dental extractions.

For those vets that do use local anaesthesia more regularly, many said they feel they still need further education about it.

Survey: https://forms.gle/prMypCrs5NB32yXZ7

Clark Dental has launched the new Nomad Handheld X-Ray machine from Aribex™.

According to the company, Nomad already has a superb track record as a practical, effective and recognised state-of-the-art device. It boasts a multitude of benefits and features and is suitable for many different environments. Two rechargeable batteries provide 150 exposures each, and it’s compatible with both digital sensors and traditional X-ray film.

The operator is protected by a patented internal radiation shield as well as an external backscatter shield, which the company says provides excellent protection: one operator would have to expose over 10,000 E-speed films per year in order to approach the lowest measurable dose on a monitoring badge. With a direct digital sensor, the scatter dose is even less.

For further information, please contact the exclusive UK supplier, Clark Dental, on Tel: 01270 613750 or email maria@clarkdental.co.uk

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Council and the Veterinary Nursing Council have decided that there will be no increase in registration and retention fees for veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses for 2012.

Last year, the Councils decided that a lower than inflation increase should apply to fees for 2011 to help mitigate the impact of the difficult economic climate on veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses. Members who are over 70 and who cease practising do not have to pay fees if they wish to remain on the Register.

Bradley Viner, RCVS Treasurer said: "We know times are tough financially for many people and hope that freezing fees will help a little. Professional regulation can be costly, but we try to keep fees as low as possible." 

The RCVS financial policy remains that fee increases should be small and incremental in order to avoid a need for periodic sharp fee hikes resulting from inflationary pressures. 

Fees for 2012 will be as follows: 

The Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) has today released details of the strategy for rolling out vaccination across England.

Under EU law, vaccination can only be carried out in a Protection Zone. As vaccine starts to be delivered by Intervet, vaccination will, therefore, commence in the Protection Zone only. Once vaccination is progressing across the Protection Zone, the intention is to extend or modify the Zone county by county, in order to permit further vaccination. The strategy has been developed and agreed with a Core Group of industry stakeholders. It is designed to be flexible, taking into account the changing nature of the disease, such as moving zones, the varying levels of disease risk in the zones and the availability of vaccine.

More details of the vaccination strategy, alongside indicative prices for the vaccine, can be found on the Defra website: http://www.defra.gov.uk/animalh/diseases/notifiable/bluetongue/control/vaccination-rolloutplan.htm

NoBACZ Healthcare is hosting a free, one-hour webinar ‘Udder Cleft Dermatitis: what we know and what we don’t (yet)’ at 7pm on Thursday 3^rd July.

The webinar will be presented by Will Gratwick BVSc MMedVet MRCVS (pictured), veterinary surgeon at LLM Farm Vets in Shropshire and RCVS Recognised Advanced Practitioner in Cattle Health and Production.

Along with colleagues at LLM, Harper-Keele Vet School and VetPartners, Will carried out an Udder Cleft Dermatitis (UCD) prevalence and risk factors study which demonstrated that over 10% of cows are affected by the condition, drawing attention to the need for improved awareness and management of the condition.

The webinar will cover the causes and risk factors for UCD, as well as how vets can approach the diagnosis and management of this challenging condition in their clients' dairy herds. 

To register, email Joely Plunkett, digital marketing manager at NoBACZ Healthcare, on j.plunkett@nobacz.com.

Dr Sarah Caney, RCVS specialist in feline medicine has launched http://www.catprofessional.com/, a new website for vets and nurses that want to become more feline friendly, and those in the animal health industry who want to be cleverer in their approach to cats.

The new site, which has been developed by Dr Caney’s own company Cat Professional Ltd, offers articles for vets and owners on various aspects of cat care, as well as detailing upcoming events and publications.

In addition, companies can access a range of consultancy services, including assistance with clinical trials and product design.

There is a facility to book training sessions and lecture slots at home and abroad with Dr Caney, who is a renowned speaker, able to combine her expertise in feline medicine with a gift for communicating difficult concepts in a way that makes learning an enjoyable experience.

Dr Caney’s latest book, ‘Caring for a Cat with Kidney Failure’ is available as an environmentally friendly download or to purchase as a hard copy from the site. Aimed at vets and cat owners, the book includes step-by-step instructions on how to give medication and better cater for a cat’s needs, providing another tool that will help owner compliance and therefore quality of life in renal failure cats.

For vets, nurses and other cat professionals, perhaps the biggest bonus is that the site provides a direct line of communication to Dr Caney and access to her vast knowledge of all things feline: from effective handling techniques to the best therapeutic protocols.