Nockolds Solicitors was approved as the new administrator of the ADR trial by RCVS Council at its June 2016 meeting at Cardiff City Hall. The company was identified and approved by the RCVS Operational Board as meeting its requirements, a decision which the RCVS says has been welcomed by the Veterinary Defence Society and the British Veterinary Association, as well as receiving lay and consumer support.
The current trial, which was launched in November 2014 and is administered by Ombudsman Services, will come to a close by 1 October, when the new trial with Nockolds will start.
Nick Stace, RCVS Chief Executive and Secretary, said: "In order to be able to make an informed choice about how we wish to design and implement a permanent ADR scheme we wanted to ensure that we have as many different options and as much data as possible. It is very important that we get the permanent scheme right and this is why Operational Board made the decision to have a second trial. It was also clear that satisfaction levels from consumers for the previous trial were lower than we would have liked and that we therefore need to explore other options.
"It is important to note that this will not just be a re-run of the first trial with a different administrator – there will be some significant differences between this and our first trial with Ombudsman Services.
"First, this will be a truly alternative process as consumers will be able to access the trial directly rather than having to go through the College’s concerns process first.
"Second, this will be a process of mediation meaning that expert advisors from Nockolds will facilitate communication between the complainant and the veterinary surgeon to try and find a satisfactory solution to the concern."
The trial will be promoted to both the public and the profession as an alternative to the College’s formal concerns investigation process and participation in the trial will be voluntary. There will also still be a panel of veterinary advisors overseeing the trial and helping staff at Nockolds with any clinical queries they may have.
Jennie Jones is a Partner at Nockolds and will head up the trial. She said: "We are committed to providing a service that mediates complaints to find a fair, efficient and proportionate resolution. We are looking forward to working with everyone involved in veterinary profession to develop an effective mediation service that can be accessed by both the public and members of the profession.
"The service will focus on finding effective and practical resolutions. Understanding the root cause of the complaint and re-establishing effective communication are the crucial first steps in mediation and helping the parties to find a solution they can both accept. Over the coming months, we will be working with the RCVS, representative bodies for the profession and consumers to launch the service.
"In addition to mediating complaints, we will share insight in mediation and complaint resolution to inform practitioners and stakeholders and to enhance standards at veterinary practices. This enables complaint analysis to be used to help improve client care, avoid complaints and maintain trust and confidence in the profession."
A bespoke website for the trial will be set up in time for the launch on 1 October 2016.
Graham, 72, who worked at Westover Veterinary Centre in Norfolk for 40 years, set off on his bike from his home in Crostwick last week. He aims to complete the journey in two years, following a route that will take him through Western Europe and into Greece before flying to Ethiopia and cycling through Kenya, where he spent eight years as a government veterinary officer in his early career. He will then follow the Indian Ocean down the African continent's east coast to Cape Town.
Graham said: "I’m no stranger to life on the road – my first job on qualifying was as a field vet in Kenya which I did for eight years. This will be a real adventure though as I am definitely not an accomplished cyclist, however I look forward to the challenge and to raising money for AWF. The route may change slightly as the trip goes along, but that’s down more to government travel advice than my decision - for example, although not currently on my route, I would still like to cycle through Egypt to give a lecture or two, however we’ll need to see what’s possible."
Graham cycled via London to join the annual AWF Discussion Forum in Westminster, attended by other vets, parliamentarians and key stakeholders from the sector, before continuing his cycle to the English south coast with TV vet Emma Milne. Along the way Graham will also be working with equine charitable organisations including the Brooke, SPANA and World Horse Welfare, giving equine welfare and dentistry talks, as well as occasionally returning to the UK to lecture and attend AWF Trustee meetings.
If you would like to sponsor Graham and donate to AWF, or simply find out more about his trip through his regular blog posts, visit vetduncdares.wordpress.com.
Available for download now, the MobiVet Veterinary Formulary App is designed to make drug calculations and prescribing faster, easier and safer. It contains dose rate and interval data for over 250 drugs commonly used in small animal practice.
Searchable by drug name or trade names, with species-specific dosing information, the app calculates doses based on the patient type, weight, or body surface area as appropriate. MobiVet also provides a checklist of known relevant drug interactions for each medication, to prevent prescribing errors.
Stuart says an iOS version is in production.
To download the Android version, visit: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=com.project.user.drug_formulary&hl=en
It is hoped that the treatment centre, which will use radio-iodine therapy to treat the condition, will be completed within three months at its base near Winchester.
The new centre will be one of only 11 in the UK and the aim is to reduce the waiting time for cats with hyperthyroidism to receive treatment.
Davina Anderson, European and RCVS Recognised Vet Specialist at Anderson Moores Veterinary Specialists, said: "We’re delighted to be able to get the go-ahead to build this facility and will start construction work imminently.
"Radio-iodine therapy is the gold standard of treatment for hyperthyroidism in cats, far exceeding the results seen with surgery or oral medication.
"We intend to offer a service tailor-made to each individual cat and their family, with their clinical history and circumstances screened before they travel to us. This is to ensure that treatment with radio-iodine therapy is the correct therapeutic decision.
"The ten other centres in the UK providing this treatment are spread few and far between, and we hope that opening this facility will help to reduce waiting lists for cats awaiting treatment, particularly across southern England."
The centre at Anderson Moores will be run and managed by Boarded Specialists in Internal Medicine, supported by Boarded Cardiologists and qualified nurses.
It will also have the capacity to address other clinical concerns, if necessary. Davina said: "Cats that are presented with hyperthyroidism are older, more fragile and potentially have other concurrent conditions. It’s very rare for a cat under seven years of age to develop hyperthyroidism.
"The treatment of cats with hyperthyroidism involves a single injection of radioactive iodine, followed by isolation in a radiation-proof facility for two weeks.
"Cats usually respond extremely well to treatment, and if the condition is recognised early and treated appropriately, then the outlook for the affected cat is generally very good."
The example above right demonstrates a badge linking to jobs advertised by the out-of-hours emergency care provider, Vets Now.
VetSurgeon.org Editor Arlo Guthrie said: "When you've got a vacancy available, you need to get the word out as far and wide as possible, which means you really should post details on your own practice website. Of course, your website is mainly for pet owners, but you never know, a veterinary surgeon or nurse looking for a job may stumble upon it. They need to know straight away that you're hiring."
VetSurgeon.org reviewed 20 of the lastest advertisements posted on VetSurgeon by independent practices and found that 80% had not posted any indication that they have a job available on their own website. Two even had a jobs page, but hadn't updated it.
Arlo said: "Updating your website when there's a job available can be a hassle. And when you've gone to the trouble to create a professional-looking advertisement on VetSurgeon or VetNurse, it's a duplication of effort to do it all over again on your own website."
So, as an alternative, practices can now create a unique VetSurgeon Jobs badge which, when added to their website, links to a display of just the jobs they have advertised on VetSurgeon. If there are no current vacancies advertised, there's a message to that effect.
To add the badge, login to VetSurgeon using the account used to advertise vacancies. Then visit https://www.vetsurgeon.org/p/find-our-veterinary-surgeon-jobs.aspx, grab the code snippet and add it to your website (or email it to your IT guy). If your site is one of the majority that doesn't have a jobs page, VetSurgeon.org recommends you add the badge either to your home page or the 'Contact Us' page.
If the badge doesn't fit well on your website (either the colour clashes, or it's the wrong size), you can add a text link, rather than a badge. There are instructions about how to do this.
For veterinary nursing vacancies advertised on VetNurse.co.uk, you'll need to head over to VetNurse, login and grab your code here: https://www.vetnurse.co.uk/p/find-our-veterinary-nurse-jobs.aspx.
Arlo added: "Aside from the convenience of having your jobs linked to from your own website, it'll also give your adverts a little boost, visitor traffic-wise.
"Finally, it's a good way to help spread the word about the low-cost recruitment advertising service on VetSurgeon and VetNurse."
The charity says that the survey is the largest, most comprehensive insight into pet wellbeing in the UK; an opportunity for veterinary professionals to share their views on the issues affecting the health and welfare of UK pets today.
Vicki Betton, PDSA Policy and Campaigns manager, said: "For the last five years, the PAW Report has provided valuable insight into the reality of pet health and wellbeing in the UK.
"It delivers a robust evidence base for our education programmes, campaigns and collaborative work, and enables us to track our impact on the pet wellbeing issues which are of most concern to the veterinary profession. It also provides an excellent opportunity for everyone to voice their opinions and have their say.
"In 2015, two of the main concerns identified were lack of public understanding of the cost of pet ownership, and a lack of pre-purchase education relating to suitable pet choice. This was reinforced in our survey of pet owners, in which over 95% of pet owners incorrectly estimated the lifetime costs for their pet. As a result, we launched our #PawsFirst campaign to engage pet owners about how to choose the right pet for their lifestyle, while raising awareness of the lifetime costs of different species."
The current survey closes on 4 July. Vicki added: "It only takes 15 minutes, so please help us maintain an accurate picture of the biggest welfare issues facing pets in the UK today."
Take the survey at www.yougov.com/PDSA and help spread the word by sharing on social media - #PAWreport
Effipro Duo contains fipronil to kill adult fleas and ticks, and pyriproxyfen, an insect growth regulator, to sterilise adult fleas and inhibit the immature life stages. It provides three months protection against flea life cycle completion.
The product is presented in Effipro’s patented ‘drop-lock’ pipette, designed to ensure that the solution is released only when the owner is ready.
Effipro Duo is offered in packs of 4 pipettes and in a 24-pipette dispensing pack to suit practices offering health plans.
Product Manager Kate Woolley MRCVS said: "Because Effipro Duo targets not just the adult fleas on the pet but also the key developmental stages in the flea life cycle often found in the home, it represents an integrated and easy-to-use solution, both for on-animal flea and tick control and for long-lasting protection of the home environment.
"Household flea infestations are common all year round and experts agree that the combination of an adulticide and an insect growth regulator is the most effective way for owners to protect their homes from this unpleasant problem¹. For complete flea control in the home, we recommend that it is used in conjunction with Indorex®, the UK’s no. 1 household flea spray².
"Virbac offers one of the most extensive parasiticide ranges on the market and we believe Effipro Duo will provide a popular addition, offering owners long-lasting protection from fleas and ticks for their cats and dogs, while helping practices to retain vital parasite control sales in-house."
References
Zoetis has announced that a batch of the bluetongue vaccines, Zulvac® 8 Bovis and Zulvac® 8 Ovis, is expected to become available to veterinary practices in mid-July, in time to manage the risk of an outbreak predicted by Defra to reach mainland UK by the late summer.
The company says the quantity of vaccine will not be unlimited and that it will strive to achieve as widespread availability as possible.
The two vaccines (Bovis for cattle and Ovis for sheep) are licensed to “prevent viraemia” caused by bluetongue virus serotype 8 (BTV-8). Prevention of viraemia, the presence of bluetongue virus in the blood, ensures no onward spread of infection via the blood sucking Culicoides midge.
The vaccines can be used in cattle from three months of age, or six weeks in sheep, requiring two doses three weeks apart in either species. Each dose is 2ml administered intramuscularly in cattle or subcutaneously in sheep, and onset of immunity is 25 days after the second dose. The vaccine provides immunity for a full 12 months.
The British Veterinary Association (BVA), British Cattle Veterinary Association (BCVA), Goat Veterinary Society (GVS), and Sheep Veterinary Society (SVS) welcomed the announcement from Zoetis, and another from MSD, but sought clarification about the cost and the amount of vaccine likely to be available in July and thereafter.
BVA President Sean Wensley said: "We welcome the announcement that vaccine will be available in time to meet potential demand. This disease seriously affects animal health and welfare as well as the productivity of livestock, and vaccination is the key control. While it is good news that vaccine will be available, we know that both farmers and vets will have questions about cost and whether there will a limit to the amount of vaccine available in July. It would be helpful to have these questions clarified as soon as possible."
Photo by Fourrure (http://www.boulesdefourrure.fr) [CC BY-SA 2.0], via Wikimedia Commons
1004 veterinary professionals attended VET Festival to hear talks from a line up of 21 speakers from around the world. On the Friday night, VETFest Live provided an opportunity for delegates to network and relax in front of a number of acts, including Hunter and the Bear, Lucy Spraggan and Morrissey & Marshall.
Noel said: "I think that change is inevitable within veterinary education. My experience with the students of today is that they wish to embrace new learning formats and are especially enthusiastic about learning environments where didactic lectures become an immersive experience. My goal therefore was to achieve the perfect mix of education and a chilled-out festival atmosphere.
"We are learning all the time, and we invite suggestions. I take very seriously the commitment I voiced in the welcome address, which is to reinvest every penny for the greater good for animals and the profession. I sincerely believe that vets and vet nurses will over time question where their money is spent and will take a good hard look not only at what value they get for their investment, but also where their money actually goes."
Picture: Richard Dunwoody.
Hosted by Nick Steele, National Consulting Manager at Zoetis and Rachael Whittle, a business coach specialist, the course will present the best techniques to analyse mixed personalities that cause problematic situations, allowing staff to deal with difficulties that may occur on a daily basis. Nick will use his knowledge from working at the world’s largest global animal health company, while Rachael will use her experience in business training and coaching to help anyone that works with people on a daily basis manage these daily challenges, using common examples from their own background.
For the chance to win a free place at this event, send an email with your name, the name of your veterinary practice and the reason attending this course will help grow your practice’s business to royalcaninvet.gbr@royalcanin.com.
Royal Canin will select three applicants at random, and will inform the winners via email, by Thursday 30 June.
Places on the course can also be booked by calling 01453 872731 or by visiting www.spvs-vpma-events.co.uk. Workshops cost £265 plus VAT for non-members and £190 plus VAT for VPMA and SPVS members (group/ bulk booking discounts are also available). Cost includes CPD certificates, lunch and refreshments.
Located in the South East of England, the centre is part of the new School of Veterinary Medicine at the University of Surrey, and one of the UK's largest veterinary pathology centres, offering high-containment post-mortem examination facilities and histopathology.
The centre is staffed by a team of board-certified veterinary pathologists, veterinary investigation officers and technicians, with expertise in farm-animal, equine, exotic and small-animal pathology.
The new building centres on a large containment level 2 post-mortem examination room with high ceilings, natural lighting, post-mortem examination tables, biological safety cabinets and integrated cold rooms, all served by a powerful winch system which means that post-mortem examinations can be performed on a wide range of species. A viewing gallery overlooks the suite and post-mortem examinations can be recorded and streamed for training purposes.
Professor Roberto La Ragione, Director of the Veterinary Pathology Centre, said: "Veterinary pathology is a growing discipline and its importance has been highlighted in recent disease outbreaks and the important role veterinary pathologists make in drug development. Helping the farming community to be more effective, sustainable and innovative, the Centre will work with partners, businesses and researchers to address some of the unique challenges faced by the veterinary and scientific community.
"It is the close relationships with our external clinical and scientific partners that enables us to be innovative in our approach to education and training here at the Surrey. An example of the latter is the use of digital pathology in teaching, research and diagnostics, which was the subject of discussion at the recent launch of the Veterinary Health Innovation Engine (vHive).
"Together with our partners such as the National Physical Laboratory and the 5G Innovation centre, the Centre is at the forefront of the digitalisation of pathology and innovative big data management.
"The Centre offers the opportunity to inspire the next generation of veterinary pathologists and complements the centres of excellence that already exist in other vet schools and research institutes."
Simon Wootton, Northern European Region CAG Marketing Manager at Idexx said: "It is widely accepted that 1 in 3 cats and 1 in 10 dogs will develop CKD. The adoption by IRIS of the Idexx SDMA™ renal function test is testament to its benefits, and should give vets much more time to intervene and prescribe an appropriate course of action to help improve longevity and quality of life in CKD patients."
Idexx has produced two new wall-charts for practices, intended to assist with the diagnosis, staging and treatment of CKD in dogs and cats. They are being distributed to all practices in the UK, and can also be downloaded from the Idexx website – www.idexx.eu or ordered from Idexx by ringing 00800 1234 33 99.
The guide has been written by Simon Tappin, European and RCVS Recognised Specialist in Veterinary Internal Medicine at Dick White Referrals, and is designed to offer practical advice on the appropriate use of antibiotics in general practice. It covers a range of topics including how to create an antibiotic practice policy, ways to optimise therapy and how to limit the development of antimicrobial resistance.
Simon said: "Making rational and informed antimicrobial choices is vitally important in veterinary medicine, both for the welfare of our patients and in reducing the risk of developing antimicrobial resistance.
"Highlighting this issue to vets, providing education and supporting them in making these decisions is crucial to ensure a responsible approach to antimicrobial prescribing."
Recent surveys have highlighted the need for education on this topic, with 63 per cent of vets1 stating that they would like to improve their knowledge on antimicrobials, and 90 per cent of vets2 admitting that they are concerned about antimicrobial resistance.
In addition, there's a quiz where you can test and your knowledge on antimicrobials, and enter a competition to win an iPad Pro. The quiz can be accessed at https://veraflox.typeform.com/to/KY8lxX.
The guide is available from the Bayer Vet Centre, www.vetcentre.bayer.co.uk. Alternatively, you can download it here www.bit.ly/Veraflox2016 or contact your local Bayer Territory Manager.
Last year, over 1,400 veterinary practices collected more than 6,000 ticks from dogs for the Big Tick Project, contributing to the largest-ever study of tick-borne illnesses in dogs in Britain, if not worldwide.
Now MSD is calling on practices to do the same for cats. The company says that data collected from the contributions will be used in a scientific paper which will help vets make more specific recommendations to cat owners, and help keep their pets safe.
Amanda Melvin, Senior Product Manager for Bravecto said: "We were delighted and rather overwhelmed by the response, support and level of interest in the BTP for dogs from the veterinary profession. We were expecting 100s of ticks to be submitted but they arrived in their 1000s!
"It made us realise that, with the low levels of awareness of the risks of tick-borne disease to both people and animals, there was an even wider issue to be addressed. The risks to cats could not be ignored.
"We have therefore created the BTP for cats and are asking the vets, once again, to show their support by collecting and sending in ticks from their practices. The more samples we receive the better. This way we can help the profession better understand the risks associated with ticks and how best to help cat owners treat their pets."
Those practices that participated in the BTP last year will automatically be registered and will be sent an email with details of this phase of the project. Any practices that did not participate last year and would like to should send their details to vet-support.uk@merck.com.
To support vets in promoting the BTP for cats to their clients MSD Animal Health has designed a range of materials for display in practice and as takeaways for clients. They include a practice waiting room poster and a cat certificate.
The aim of the study was to assess the adverse effect profile of each individual AED by analysing all available data that has been published for each specific AED and then evaluating how reliable the data was. The study was published in BMC Veterinary Research (DOI: 10.1186/s12917-016-0703-y).
To do this the researchers gathered, screened and assessed all the information published in peer-reviewed journals and publications. The individual studies were then evaluated based on the quality of evidence, study design, study group sizes, subject enrolment quality and overall risk of bias. The results, say researchers, now provide a new and more objective insight into the tolerability and safety of the AEDs.
Co-author of the study, Marios Charalambous, said: "We recruited systematic and statistical methods to combine, compare and summarize the results of independent studies and, therefore, create more objective and reliable conclusions based on the current evidence. It was a time-consuming, demanding and challenging process, but we are sure that we provide the clinicians now with essential information which they can use for daily practice."
By reviewing, assessing and untangling the vast amounts of data, the researchers found that much of the evidence for the medical treatment of canine epilepsy was based on subpar reporting of adverse effect and in studies that were below the expected standard. They say that only in recent years can the quality of studies carried out be considered adequate.
Professor Holger Volk, Clinical Director of the RVC Small Animal Referral Hospital and Professor of Veterinary Neurology and Neurosurgery (pictured right), said: "Not only does this study offer a new perspective on the management of canine epilepsy, but also highlights the importance of the need for trials which provide high quality evidence in order to have more reliable and objective results about the safety and tolerability of the AEDs in veterinary medicine."
Dr. Dave Brodbelt, Senior Lecturer in Companion Animal Epidemiology, added: “This is a valuable addition to the body of literature on canine epilepsy, highlighting safety issues and adverse events related to its management and adding further depth to the evidence base relevant to practicing vets."
The presentation comes in the form of an editable Powerpoint presentation which can be downloaded from www.training-progress.com (visit 'downloads').
Laura Shaw from Training-Progress said: "Most of our clients are PSS accredited practices. Getting the practice accredited is a great achievement and the whole team should be aware of this and ‘singing it from the roof tops’. The resource outlines why PSS is good for the practice, the clients, the patients and the practice team - helping team members to promote it."
Training-Progress is a training management system and communication tool to support a practice through PSS accreditation. It includes features such as ensuring processes are in place; sharing information; implementing change in processes and reporting systems which provide evidence for accreditation and allow concentration of training resources.
BVA’s Voice of the Veterinary Profession survey panel, which polls over 1,000 UK vets, highlighted that many vets support the higher welfare standards of British farming, with 9 out of 10 vets saying they would be more likely to buy food if it was labelled as British or locally sourced. Over three quarters of vets said that they would be more likely to buy free-range (77%) or food that carried a Farm Assurance Scheme label (over 50% for Red Tractor and RSPCA Assured; formerly known as Freedom Food).
BVA President Sean Wensley encouraged consumers to check labels as the warmer weather sees BBQs and picnics take centre stage in gatherings of families and friends. He said: "Animal welfare should be a paramount consideration whether we’re thinking about purchasing pets or the food we eat. For vets it’s a top priority that the animals we rear for food have a good life and a humane death.
"Vets are not alone in caring about where their food comes from. To support high standards of animal welfare, all of us can vote for good animal health and welfare through our thoughtful meat, fish, and dairy purchases and send a strong message to food producers and retailers this summer."
BVA’s Voice of the Veterinary Profession survey panel also revealed that 9 out of 10 vets would be less likely to buy meat or fish if it was labelled as not stunned prior to slaughter.
BVA is leading a campaign to end slaughter without pre-stunning for animal welfare reasons and calling for better labelling of food to help consumers make pro-animal welfare choices.
To find out more about BVA’s campaign to end non-stun slaughter, visit: http://www.bva.co.uk/News-campaigns-and-policy/Campaigns/An-end-to-non-stun-slaughter
Image: CC BY-SA 2.0 cyclonebill
The initiative is part of the company’s Keeping Britain’s Horses Healthy (KBHH), and provides a way that practices can work with their Equine Account Manager to help horse owners bring their vaccination status up-to-date for equine influenza and tetanus.
Peter Young, Equine Business Manager said: "We’re aware how easy it is for owners to get behind on their horses’ vaccinations but with over half of the UK horse population not protected against equine ‘flu, vets need all the help they can get to improve vaccination rates in their area. We should be aiming for at least 70% ‘flu vaccination rates to ensure our horses benefit from herd immunity so we’re offering vets some practical support to help them improve the situation."
The KBHH vaccination amnesty will be offering a reduced cost option for horses needing to restart a primary course, encouraging horse owners to add their horse to the population already protected.
Horses will need to be over 12 months of age and be unvaccinated or have lapsed from their normal booster vaccination for more than three months.
MSD is also providing a range of online and printed material for vets to help promote the amnesty and ensure their clients take action, including materials that practices can post on Facebook to raise awareness of the symptoms of equine ‘flu and the importance of vaccination.
For further details contact your MSD Animal Health equine representative.
Biogal Galed Labs has announced the launch of the PCRun Canine Babesia gibsoni molecular detection test kit.
Existing PCRun molecular detection test kits include one for canine Leptospira, Ehrlichia canis, Anaplasma platys, Parvovirus, Babesia canis, Leishmania, Feline Panleukopenia and Feline Mycoplasma haemofelis.
The company says that the major benefit of these tests is in having a PCR result inside 75 minutes, rather than waiting for up to a week for a result from a specialised laboratory.
For more information, see: http://www.biogal.co.il/about-biogal/pcrun
The vaccine will be available to order directly from Merial on receipt of a Special Import Certificate (SIC) issued by the VMD to the named vet. The SIC is only required once but needs to accommodate all potential doses required, enabling Merial to supply to direct orders from the practice.
The product is available in 10 dose packs at a net price of £89.00 per pack.
For further information, contact Merial Customer Support Centre (UK) on 0870 6000 123 or your local equine territory manager.
Eukanuba's Longevity Council has published a new video in which the panel of experts offer their thoughts about how veterinary surgeons can educate clients about helping their pets grow old gracefully.
The video includes contributions from the following council members, discussing things like preventative medicine and the importance of good diet/body weight and exercise:
watch?v=JRjCWhnGaGY
During her two-day hearing, the RCVS Disciplinary Committee heard that Ms Vockert had been convicted under Animal Welfare Act 2006 at Bournemouth Magistrates Court in April for, by her own admission, failing to protect two dogs she owned from pain, suffering, injury and disease, by not adequately grooming them.
The prosecution had been brought by the RSPCA after one of her dogs, a Shih Tzu named Happy, was taken into care by the local Council in September 2014 as a stray.
The dog was examined by Chris Devlin MRCVS who reported at the time that the dog’s coat was in an "appalling state, with multiple mats of hair all over his body" and with "evidence of faecal and urinary soiling on the fur around the rear end", which constituted clear signs of neglect. The dog was anaesthetised and treated by Mr Devlin for an eye condition and was also given a full body shave. The dog made a full recovery after these operations.
Council employees discovered that Happy belonged to Ms Vockert and referred the matter to the RSPCA who started an investigation into his condition. When two RSPCA inspectors visited Ms Vockert’s home in September 2014 they observed a Cocker Spaniel named Millie which had severely matted fur. There were no concerns about any of the other dogs owned by Ms Vockert.
The two inspectors visited Ms Vockert’s home the next day by appointment and were told by Ms Vockert that Millie had been euthanased. Millie’s body was subsequently taken to Professor Kenneth Smith MRCVS and Claire Muir MRCVS for a post-mortem examination. In their report following the post-mortem, they observed Millie’s hair coat to be "extensively matted and given the growth of hair over the collar and claws, it is likely that the hair has not been clipped for an extremely long period... and is likely to have restricted the dog’s ability to walk. In addition, a large amount of faecal material has become matted within the hair coat and this finding strongly suggests that this dog was neglected."
As a result of her prosecution by the RSCPA, Ms Vockert was fined £620, ordered to pay costs of £300, a victim surcharge of £62 and a deprivation of animal ownership order was made under the Animal Welfare Act 2006.
The Disciplinary Committee considered that the failure to groom extended over a period of months and that any conviction on the part of a veterinary surgeon relating to animal welfare was an extremely serious matter.
Ian Green, chairing the Committee and speaking on its behalf, said: "The College submitted that the conviction of a veterinary surgeon for an animal welfare offence, of necessity has the potential to undermine both the reputation of the profession and public confidence in the profession.
"In such circumstances, the respondent’s conviction fell far below the standard to be expected of a veterinary surgeon and therefore renders her unfit to practise veterinary surgery."
In considering Ms Vockert’s sanction, the Committee took into mitigation her long and otherwise unblemished career both in the UK and Germany, her guilty plea to the RSPCA conviction and the fact she made no attempt to challenge the College’s submissions in relation to her fitness to practise.
However, it also took into account a number of aggravating features, particularly the fact there was "actual neglect of the welfare of two animals, over a protracted period of time, which resulted in pain, suffering and discomfort. This aspect of the case is made more serious because the two animals in question belonged to the respondent, who is a practising veterinary surgeon with access to the drugs and equipment necessary to groom the dogs."
Ultimately, the Committee decided that the only appropriate sanction was to direct the Acting Registrar to remove Ms Vockert’s name from the Register.
Ian Green, summing up, said: "The Committee considers that the respondent’s conduct which led to the conviction, involved a departure from the most basic and pivotal principle of the Code [of Professional Conduct], which states that the first consideration when attending to animals is health and welfare.
"Accordingly, the Committee had decided that removal from the Register is appropriate and proportionate in this case."
It was the only organisation from the veterinary profession to be shortlisted.
The Antibiotic Guardian Awards were introduced this year by Public Health England (PHE) and aim to champion UK organisations and individuals who have demonstrated achievement in tackling antimicrobial resistance at a local, regional or national level.
BEVA first launched its Protect ME antimicrobial campaign in 2012 to coincide with European Antimicrobial Awareness day. The Association has launched additional resources each year to facilitate compliance and educate the public about the importance of antimicrobial awareness.
Mark Bowen, President of BEVA and co-author of the Protect ME toolkit, said: "It is a great achievement for a veterinary organisation to be recognised alongside the human health sector which invariably has significantly more resources to support antimicrobial stewardship. Protect ME has had a fantastic uptake from the equine profession and are proud of the impact that it is having. BEVA is grateful to all who have contributed to its success, especially Wendy Furness and Jacky Paton of the Scarsdale veterinary group, Derby who trialled it prior to launch and adopted it fully within the practice."
The BEVA Protect ME toolkit is free to BEVA members and can be downloaded at www.beva.org.uk.
Elanco is highlighting new research which shows that using monensin in dairy cows at high risk of developing subclinical ketosis reduces curative antibiotic use by 25%.
According to the company, good herd management before calving is known to mitigate antimicrobial use in cows suffering from subclinical ketosis related conditions, but to date little research has quantified it.
The new research, by the University of Toulouse, was presented to leading cattle vets, academics and representatives of the pharmaceutical industry by veterinary cattle health specialist, Professor Didier Raboisson at the European Buiatrics Forum in Rome in October.1 It showed that using a monensin bolus in cows at high risk of getting subclinical ketosis led to a 25% reduction in antibiotics to treat and cure conditions associated with the metabolic condition.
Fiona Anderson MRCVS of Elanco said: "Responsible use of antimicrobials must be the target for veterinary medicine. Reducing use by whatever means could help improve the antimicrobial resistance situation. This new study shows that using monensin, which is available in the form of a Kexxtone bolus, is a powerful way to cut antibiotic use in the dairy herd. This is in addition to monensin already proven to be a valuable tool to reduce the risk of ketosis and subclinical ketosis and its associated losses in dairy herd productivity and profitability."
Subclinical ketosis is very common. It can affect up to 30% of cows in early lactation with a large variation between herds.2 It can be very costly for a dairy herd. A study from 2015 found that for a 100 cow herd with 30% ketosis, the direct and indirect costs can be around £10,416 or around £347 per affected cow.3
Cows affected by subclinical ketosis are at a higher risk of getting mastitis and metritis. They are also at higher risk of developing displaced abomasum, retained placenta and cystic ovaries and consequently face a higher culling risk. Subclinical ketosis also lowers milk production, reduces conception rates and lengthens calving intervals.4
If ketosis is an issue in a dairy herd, targeted administration of monensin in a Kexxtone bolus to cows at high risk of developing ketosis reduces the incidences of ketosis by 74%.6
The bolus is given three weeks before calving and provides coverage during the main risk period for the condition. Kexxtone uses monensin to improve rumen function and increase glucose delivery. This ultimately increases the energy available and buffers the dairy cow against the tendency to drop into negative energy balance.5
To make a big difference to clients’ profitability, Fiona encourages vets to not just consider the traditional nutritional intervention and the emergency treatment of ketosis cases, but to develop an effective strategy to highlight cows at risk of subclinical ketosis and to take targeted preventative action. She said: "Vets who can offer positive interventions to subclinical ketosis and its associated losses in the dairy herd are going to be increasingly important to their clients’ herd health planning."
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The Bella Moss Foundation (BMF) has announced the launch of a mobile app version of its online veterinary practice hygiene audit.
The app, which was developed with the help of Ceva Animal Health, is now available to download free from Google Play (for Android-based smartphones) and itunes.
To download the audit app for iOS visit: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/app/bella-moss-foundation-practice/id1096044355
To download the audit app for Android visit: https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=thebellamossfoundation.bmfhygieneself_auditapp
The original online check list, which continues to be hosted on the BMF website, was devised by BMF's team of clinical advisers, including VN Louise O'Dwyer and vets Pam Mosedale, Tim Nuttall and Chris Laurence. It enables staff to rate hygiene protocols across every area of their practice, resulting in a room-by-room percentage hygiene score, as well as an overall contamination risk score.
Since its launch last year, more than 150 practices have used the web-based tool and BMF hopes many more practices will download the app and use it regularly to check and maintain their hygiene standards.
BMF founder and infection control campaigner Jill Moss said: "We are absolutely thrilled to have teamed up with Ceva to create this new super-accessible app version of our audit tool. We've been really pleased to see uptake of the Practice Hygiene Self-Audit online, and hope more practice staff give the smartphone app a go.
"While we all know how important infection control is, sometimes it's the basics that get forgotten in a busy practice environment – but now, with our free audit app in your pocket, implementing good hygiene processes could not be easier, so there's no excuse!"
For more information about BMF, visit www.thebellamossfoundation.com or visit http://www.thebellamossfoundation.com/practice-hygiene-self-audit/ to complete the hygiene audit online.