The Disciplinary Committee of the RCVS has approved an application for restoration to the Register from an Oxfordshire veterinary surgeon who had been struck off for false certification.
In November 2007, the Committee decided that Mr John Williams, of the Avonvale Veterinary Practice in Ratley, near Banbury, should have his name removed from the RCVS Register, having found him guilty of disgraceful professional conduct. Mr Williams had admitted signing export health certificates for three horses in October 2006 to state that they had received negative test results for the contagious equine metritis organism, before these results were actually available.
At the time, Mr Williams was working in his capacity as an Official Veterinarian (OV) for DEFRA and he had previously been suspended from his official duties on three separate occasions, on the basis of export certification irregularities. It was accepted that Mr Williams had not been dishonest, but his approach to certification was described by the Disciplinary Committee as "either irresponsible or cavalier or both".
In December 2007, Mr Williams appealed against this decision to the Privy Council but this was dismissed at a Hearing the following June. He was then removed from the Register in July 2008.
When the Committee met on Monday to consider Mr Williams' application, they heard oral and written supporting evidence from veterinary surgeons and equine clients, and oral evidence from Mr Williams himself. The Committee was satisfied that Mr Williams accepted its previous findings and fully understood their seriousness. He described his removal from the Register as a "salutary experience" which had been highly significant for him and his family, both financially and emotionally.
The Committee stated: "Although the decision of the Committee to remove [Mr Williams] from the Register sent a clear message to the profession of the importance of certification, it should be emphasised that his removal was the consequence of his actions in signing certificates which he could not verify. This followed three previous occasions on which he had similarly signed certificates when he should not have done so."
However, the Committee was satisfied that Mr Williams would not in future sign certificates when he should not do so, even under severe client pressure. It was impressed with the continuing professional development he had undertaken whilst off the Register and noted that no questions had been raised over his conduct during this time.
It concluded that Mr Williams fully understood the importance of accurate certification and that restoring his name to the Register therefore posed no risk to animal welfare. Neither the public nor the profession would benefit from Mr Williams staying off the Register for a further period.
Alison Bruce, Disciplinary Committee Chairman, said: "We would like to make it clear that we always find it distressing to remove clinically competent veterinary surgeons from the Register because of an irresponsible and cavalier attitude towards certification. This would not be necessary if veterinary surgeons were to follow the Twelve Principles of Certification annexed to the RCVS Guide to Professional Conduct."
The Committee then approved Mr Williams' application and directed that his name should be restored to the Register.
The College says this will pave the way for new diagnostic tests for what could be one of the most common causes of pregnancy loss in mares.
The researchers, led by Dr Mandi de Mestre (pictured right), Reader in Reproductive Immunology and Head of the Equine Pregnancy Laboratory at the RVC, collaborated with seven different veterinary practices to gain access to samples from across the UK and Ireland and found that around 20% of the pregnancies lost were aneuploid, which is when a copy of a whole chromosome is either duplicated or lost (similar to Down's).
Charlotte Shilton, RVC PhD, the student who performed the analysis, applied three different genetic approaches to confirm the results.
Work is now underway to identify the underlying cause of these aneuploid pregnancies, with early data from this study suggesting it is most commonly introduced via the egg or sperm. Until now, chromosomal defects such as aneuploidy have only been reported as a rare condition in young horses with developmental disorders.
The researchers say the study explains why the condition is so rare in horses, with most embryos and foetuses possessing this genetic change dying very early in development, as is also observed in human pregnancy. The study highlights the need to reconsider this genetic condition both in pregnancy loss but also for early developmental disorders.
Dr Mandi de Mestre, Reader in Reproductive Immunology at the RVC, said: “Early pregnancy loss remains a very frustrating condition for clinicians to treat as the underlying cause is unknown in around 80% of cases. These findings will allow researchers to develop new diagnostic tests for pregnancy losses, which would offer hope to thousands of owners of breeding mares that suffer this condition.
“A diagnostic test would allow them to make informed decisions on treatment strategies and to advise on whether they should invest in further attempts to breed their mare benefiting both horses and their breeders alike in the future. I would like to thank both the Thoroughbred Breeders Association and our collaborators at Texas A&M University and the participating veterinary surgeons for their support on this project.
Reference
The National Equine Health Survey is an online snapshot survey designed to uncover common health issues in horses, directly from horse owners themselves. Results of the survey are used to build a picture of equine health and disease in the UK and define priorities for future research, training and education.
Over the past six years the survey, in partnership with the British Equine Veterinary Association, has developed to become one of the UK’s most important endemic disease monitoring initiative. The results are referenced in leading veterinary and equestrian publications and papers and are regarded as valuable benchmarks for our general knowledge of horse health.
Blue Cross Education Officer Gemma Taylor said: "These majestic police horses have taken part in our survey and we hope that they will encourage others to follow suit and be ambassadors for horse welfare.
"The more data we can collect from the National Equine Health Survey the more robust our results will be, helping us to steer equine awareness, education and research to keep our nation’s horses healthier."
Last year survey records were returned for almost 17,000 horses, ponies, donkeys and mules and the six most notable disease syndromes identified.
To take part in the National Equine Health Survey, visit: www.bluecross.org.uk/NEHS
To find out more about Blue Cross’s rescue and rehoming work with horses and ponies visit bluecross.org.uk
Veterinary practices are being encouraged to enter the annual Veterinary Marketing Association's (VMA) awards, which now include a practice-only category.
The annual VMA awards are intended to recognise excellence in all aspects of veterinary and animal health marketing. The Practice Marketing Award, sponsored by Pfizer, is awarded to the companion or production animal practice that demonstrates the most initiative and innovation in the marketing of its products and/or services to end users. This can involve the use of any form of activity, including advertising, websites, direct mail and media relations.
Last year's winner of this award was Kessock Equine Vets from Aberdeen, who travelled down to London to receive their award at a presentation lunch. The 2009 awards presentation ceremony takes place on Friday, 19th March at the Old Brewery in Chiswell Street, London. The meeting also presents a very good opportunity for vets to meet representatives from all the major animal health companies.
Tickets for the event cost £115+VAT for VMA/VMPA members (£150+VAT for non-members). The price includes a three-course meal (prepared by a two-star Michelin chef) with wine, a champagne reception and entertainment by a top comedian.
Further information on the awards is available on the Veterinary Marketing Association's website - http://www.vma.org.uk/. Closing date for entries is 5th February 2010.
BCF Technology has launched a competition in which the person who submits the best photograph with the theme of: All in a day's work - animal imaging, will win an iPad 2.
To enter the competition, you need to post your photographs, (and tell BCF a little about the story behind the images) at www.facebook.com/bcftechnology or email them to: info@bcftechnology.com
Jason Rogers, Marketing Manager at BCF said: "We wanted to create a fun way to show just how interesting and different each days work is when imaging animals. We have made the competition open to all that work with animal imaging including our staff, dealers and vets, vet nurses, animal contractors, etc from all over the world.
"It is great to see the BCF office in the States and our international dealers also promoting the competition in their own countries, making the competition truly international. Response to the competition has been fantastic - see our facebook page to some entries for yourself."
The closing date for the competition is 30th September 2011.
For more information, visit: www.bcftechnology.com
Richard Hepburn MRCVS has launched what is thought to be the world's first equine gastric ulcer study, designed to improve understanding and knowledge of ulceration in performance horses.
Mr Hepburn is conducting the InnerVision study of performance horses, which is being championed by the University of Liverpool, as part of his PhD.
21 appointed practices across the UK are participating in the study, and with each practice scoping between 10 and 20 animals, it will include well over 200 performance horses. Mr Hepburn said: "Gastric ulceration in sports horses is poorly understood, especially compared with racehorses. But what we do know is that it's a very important factor in the performance and well-being of many horses in training and competition."
2012 Paralympic Gold medallist Deb Criddle MBE also attended the launch event. She explained the difference that regular gastroscopy and ulcer management of Paralympic team horses had made to her success. Speaking about her Beijing ride, Pavaroti, she said: "If it weren't for the diagnosis and treatment of Pavaroti's ulcers I don't know what we'd have done. I would probably have had to withdraw him from training, so it made the difference between our partnership continuing or not".
Mr Hepburn expects a prevalence of approximately 60% and, keen to increase understanding of glandular ulceration, participants are being tasked to scope all areas of the stomach, pylorus and duodenum to ensure that every incidence of ulceration is diagnosed and recorded.
He says he is particularly eager to find out more about glandular disease, which hitherto has had little research: "Glandular disease appears to have a very different aetiology to squamous ulceration, and often presents with different signs. We also believe that prevalence of glandular ulceration is most common in sports horses."
"We hope that publication of this study will help all equine vets in their work with performance horses and the quest to prevent and manage equine ulcers," he added.
Merial is supporting the study with management assistance.
Carried out by the Royal Veterinary College (RVC), the Animal Health Trust (AHT) and Rossdales Equine Hospital, the study also revealed that the groups particularly at risk were native pony breeds and their crosses, as well as horses and ponies with a history of laminitis and those with lameness or soreness after routine hoof care.
This research, funded by World Horse Welfare, comes from the first ever online study that collected information on laminitis from a group of owners in real time.
The researchers say that the study is also the second largest to identify weight gain as a risk factor for laminitis. Data was collected from the owners of 1,070 horses and ponies in Great Britain, who reported their animal’s management, health and estimated weight via online questionnaires for 29 months.
Owners were encouraged to use a custom weight tracking tool designed by the study/research team to help regularly track changes in their animal’s weight and body condition. The uptake of this tool was high, with over half of participating owners using it.
The tool is freely available at: www.aht.org.uk/research/lameness/laminitis.
Other study findings included:
A high risk of laminitis was present in horses shod or trimmed at intervals of more than 8 weeks, and in those that took a long time to return to soundness after a bout of laminitis.
Diet, grazing management and health were factors closely associated with the development of laminitis and will be the subject of future investigation.
Researchers also noted that weight gain often occurred unintentionally, even when owners were aiming for their animals to maintain or lose it. This reiterates the need to consistently record weight and body condition in order to prevent undesirable weight gain.
Dr. Dee Pollard of the AHT, one of the study’s chief authors, said: "This is one of the largest, and the first, online laminitis studies where we collected regular information from the same group of owners in real-time. We assessed the relationship between laminitis and many potential management and health factors and identified those more likely to be present before a laminitis episode was reported.
"We now have good evidence to develop laminitis prevention guidelines, and a number of different avenues to explore in the future. We cannot emphasise enough how important systematic and regular weight and body condition monitoring are. It’s very easy to miss weight gain when you are just relying on your eyes and you see your horse or pony every day. You need to get hands on, feel for the fat deposits and take measurements, remember the figures don’t lie!"
A research project funded by The Horse Trust has made important discoveries about how two peptides regulate the inflammatory response in horses. This knowledge could help with the development of improved anti-inflammatory drugs, which are used to treat a wide range of conditions in horses.
The research project was led by Professor Fiona Cunningham at the Royal Veterinary College in Hertfordshire and Dr Karen Rickards at the Donkey Sanctuary in Sidmouth, assisted by Dr Andrew Brooks at the RVC, and by Dr Kirstie Pickles, now at the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies in Edinburgh.
Inflammation is associated with a wide range of equine diseases, including recurrent airway obstruction, laminitis and sweet itch. Anti-inflammatory drugs, such as glucocorticosteroids, mainly work by blocking the formation and/or actions of compounds produced in the horse's body that cause inflammatory responses. However, these drugs are not always effective and can have unwanted side effects.
This research, funded by The Horse Trust, aimed to find out more about two naturally-occurring peptides - chains of amino acids that are shorter than proteins - known as annexin-1 and CXCL8. Both have been shown to affect the inflammatory response but little research has been done on their effects in horses. In the long term, knowing more about these compounds could help in the development of new anti-inflammatory drugs with fewer side effects.
During inflammation, neutrophils (a type of white blood cell) stick to the cells lining blood vessels and migrate into inflamed tissue, where they ingest and break down harmful agents. Using techniques that mimic these events, CXCL8 was found to cause adherence and migration of horse neutrophils. However, when it was used in combination with another pro-inflammatory substance, neutrophil migration and adherence were markedly decreased. This suggests that attempts to reduce inflammation by blocking the actions of CXCL8 might not be as beneficial as had been thought.
At the start of the project, the researchers had no information about horse annexin-1, other than its gene sequence, so their first step was to develop a method to detect the peptide in white blood cells. They established that it was present and, as horse annexin-1 has not yet been synthesised, they used a synthetic peptide derived from annexin-1, Ac2-26, to look at the effects on horse neutrophils.
They found that Ac2-26 decreased neutrophil adherence and migration in response to other pro-inflammatory compounds, although at high concentrations the peptide itself caused some cell activation, thereby increasing inflammation. They also found that dexamethasone (a glucocorticosteroid) increased the levels of annexin-1 in cells, indicating that, as in humans, this class of drugs is likely to act in part through the formation of annexin-1.
These findings suggest that the use of compounds which mimic the actions of annexin-1 may have limitations as anti-inflammatory drugs. As glucocorticosteroids partly work by forming annexin-1, further research is needed in order to find out how annexin-1 will act in the horse's body and establish how its formation contributes to the beneficial effects of these drugs.
Professor Cunningham said: "This Horse Trust-funded research has resulted in some very interesting findings about how inflammatory cells are regulated in horses. The receptors that annexin-1 and CXCL8 act upon could be targets for new equine inflammatory drugs, but more research is needed first to fully understand their actions and how they produce these effects."
The team's research has been accepted for publication by the journal Veterinary Immunology & Immunopathology.
New research from the USA, published in the Equine Veterinary Journal (EVJ), has shown that a toxin from the box elder tree is the likely cause of Seasonal Pasture Myopathy (SPM), the US equivalent of the European disease known as Atypical Myopathy (AM).
According to the British Equine Veterinary Association, preliminary comparisons of these results with cases of AM in Europe suggest that the European condition may be linked to similar trees which could have an important bearing on the future prevention of the disease in Europe.
Seasonal Pasture Myopathy is a highly fatal muscle disease in Midwestern USA and Eastern Canada. A similar disorder called Atypical Myopathy is becoming increasingly frequent in the UK and Northern Europe. Outbreaks of both diseases tend to be seasonal, with most cases occurring in the autumn. Horses that develop SPM and AM are usually kept in sparse pastures with an accumulation of dead leaves dead wood and trees in or around the pasture and are often not fed any supplementary hay or feed.
The research1 identified that seeds from box elder trees were consistently present in the autumn pastures of all 12 horses enrolled in the study. These horses were from 11 different farms and had all presented with the clinical signs of SPM, which include muscular weakness and stiffness, dark urine, periods of recumbency, colic-like signs and muscle trembling. The toxic amino acid hypoglycin A, which is known to cause acquired multiple acyl CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MADD) was shown to be present in the box elder seeds and hypoglycin metabolites were identified in the serum or urine of all the horses. All but one of the cases proved fatal.
Professor Valberg DVM PhD of the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, who instigated the study, said: "The fact that another acquired form of MADD in rats and humans is caused by hypoglycin A ingestion strengthens our conclusion that hypoglycin A is the likely toxic cause of SPM in horses. We are intending to conduct further studies to determine the factors that affect the highly variable hypoglycin A concentrations in box elder seeds."
Professor Valberg has established collaborative links with groups in Europe in order to investigate if a similar toxin is involved in European Atypical Myopathy. Working with Professor Vince Gerber and Dr Lucia Unger at the University of Bern, Professor Valberg has obtained seeds from a tree related to the Box Elder found on many pastures where Atypical Myopathy has occurred.
Professor Celia Marr, Editor of Equine Veterinary Journal said: "This is a really important step forwards. We don't yet know for sure that the cause of European disease, Atypical Myopathy, is the same as Seasonal Pasture Myopathy in the US. But the clinical signs and MADD aberrations are identical and both conditions have a high fatality rate. It remains to be seen whether this research will help European horses, but there is no doubt that it will allow American horse owners to prevent this devastating condition affecting their horses with immediate effect."
1 Seasonal Pasture Myopathy/Atypical Myopathy in North America associated with Ingestion of Hypoglycin A within Seeds of the Box Elder Tree Stephanie J Valberg DVM PhD1, Beatrice T Sponseller Dr. med. vet2, Adrian D Hegeman PhD3, Jennifer Earing PhD, Jeffery B. Bender DVM MS1, Krishona L Martinson PhD4, Steven E Patterson PhD5, Lawrence Sweetman PhD1
BlueSky says that conventional treatment for equine sarcoids, which are induced by tumour antigens E6 and E7 of the bovine papillomavirus, have only limited effect and typically result in the recurrence of the tumours.
However, research published by the company in PLoSONE1 showed that sarcoids treated with delNS/E6E7 were completely and permanently eliminated.
For the study, 29 horses were treated with different regimes involving direct injection into the tumours over three years.
Visible and very significant regression of the sarcoids was achieved in 20 of the treated horses, and 100% regression of the sarcoids in 10 equine patients.
Thomas Muster, CEO of BlueSky Immunotherapies said: "The complete elimination of very aggressive and difficult-to-cure equine sarcoids is yet another important proof of the potential offered by our delNS platform."
In addition, the systemic delNS-mediated immune stimulation eliminated non-injected sarcoids and the papillomavirus that caused the sarcoids.
Thomas added: "We are therefore confident that we will also be able to successfully heal and/or eliminate the cervical tumours of the women enrolled in the clinical trials currently under way."
Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (AHVLA) has announced the formation of a new independent advisory group to recommend a future delivery model for veterinary surveillance in England and Wales.
The Advisory Group will be chaired by Dirk Pfeiffer, Professor of Veterinary Epidemiology at the Royal Veterinary College. According to the AHVLA, it will include representatives from government, the veterinary profession and the livestock farming and private laboratory industries and is being created so all those with an interest in veterinary surveillance can shape a future model and ensure that all issues are thoroughly considered.
Veterinary surveillance seeks to identify new or re-emerging threats to our livestock population and to public health. It involves a partnership approach between livestock keepers, private veterinary surgeons, the Scottish Agricultural College, industry bodies and AHVLA in order to effectively gather and assess intelligence.
AHVLA is seeking to identify ways to undertake veterinary surveillance both more effectively and at an affordable cost to the taxpayer. Work in this area has been on-going since 2010, and the merger of the former Animal Health and Veterinary Laboratories Agency (VLA) has created opportunities to review how veterinary surveillance can best be delivered.
The new model will aim to address capacity imbalances in the current service where provision sometimes outstrips demand. The independent advisory group are also expected to recommend how better and closer working methods across the partners can make the surveillance stronger as well as more cost effective.
Surveillance has historically been based on in-depth investigation of disease incidents with an emphasis on post mortem examinations carried out at AHVLA's regional laboratories. This system is a key element in the government's risk-based approach to the management of animal disease related threats.
AHVLA says that the current model, although successful in identifying diseases in the past, can be improved upon. A recent internal AHVLA report identified viable options for achieving better surveillance at the same or lower cost by, for example, exploring moving towards risk and intelligence based surveillance and improving the value added by working more closely in partnership with vets and their farmer clients and other sources of intelligence data.
In mid-January 2012, AHVLA will also be publishing, and publicising, an online survey aimed at individual veterinary practioners and livestock keepers. The survey will seek individual opinions on the inputs, mechanisms, outputs and value of surveillance in England and Wales Work is expected to run until spring 2012, following which recommendations on a way forward will be made.
Carl Padgett, President of the BVA, said: “Veterinary surveillance is an essential component in our animal health, public health, food security, and international trade work.
“The emergence of Schmallenberg virus in ruminants in northern Europe demonstrates the current value and ongoing need for a robust surveillance system to work both nationally and internationally.
“The BVA welcomes the establishment of the advisory group and particularly the wide range of veterinary expertise and experience that is represented on the group. It is important that views from both veterinary practitioners and veterinary scientists are fed into this review.
“While we understand that AHVLA and Defra must ensure value for money from the surveillance network, any future model must be shaped by good surveillance strategies, not the need to cut costs.
“We urge all practitioners in England and Wales to contribute to the discussions by completing the online survey.
“We look forward to engaging with the advisory group as it carries out the review and beyond.”
BEVA has announced that tickets are now on sale for BEVA Congress and members who register before 4th August 2016 can benefit from big discounts.
This year, BEVA Congress is being held at the ICC in central Birmingham.
In addition to the clinical programme, tactics to achieve the elusive work life balance and the applicability of evidence based medicine are recurring themes over the three days of the event.
Five separate programmes will run concurrently in five adjacent halls, deploying a mix of traditional lectures, panel discussions and interactive forums to suit equine vets and mixed practitioners at any stage in their career. Vet nurses, farriers, equine physiotherapists and equine dental technicians can also attend specific sessions focused on their areas of expertise.
There will be daily practical sessions in the exhibition hall: Jonathan Anderson, Will Barker, Tim Barnett, Ollie Crowe, Richard Reardon, Neil Townsend and Thomas Witte will be demonstrating sinoscopy and gastroscopy techniques and delegates will have the chance to roll up their sleeves and get hands on with dead heads and digital models.
Programme highlights include a day of advanced orthopaedics in combination with the European Society of Veterinary Orthopaedics and Traumatology (ESVOT). The sessions will draw on canine and human experience, with speakers including Ian Wright from the Newmarket Equine Hospital, Peter Clegg from the University of Liverpool, Wayne McIlwraith from Colorado State University and Martin Waselau from Equine Hospital Aschheim, Germany.
There will also be career and practice development sessions exploring what you can do with your veterinary degree, how to look after your staff and how to take advantage of smartphone technology in practice. Evidence in surgery and critical appraisal tools will be explored in a series of presentations on two separate days across a wide range of conditions. Speakers will include Will Barker, Bruce McGorum, and Etienne O'Brien.
Kathy Clarke, Professor of Veterinary Anaesthesia at the Royal Veterinary College, will be giving the plenary lecture on from the difficult horse to the demanding surgeon; how effective sedation has revolutionised what is achievable in equine clinical practice. There will be a debate on the Friday with Victoria Harris chairing the promisingly divisive This house believes that lab tests are overused and abused.
There will also be comprehensive sessions on parasitology, laminitis, skin disease, anaesthesia and analgesia, colic, respiratory disease, sports injuries, standing surgery, ophthalmology, diagnostics, wounds, neurology and differentiating lameness from neurological disease, mare and foal, reproduction, dentistry, gastro intestinal disease and nutrition, cardiology and medicine.
Saturday’s vet nurse sessions will cover surgical management, emergency patients, the use of antimicrobials and adjunctive therapies. In addition, daily clinical research presentations will provide exclusive opportunities to hear about novel and exciting research projects.
There's a free BEVA Congress App with the full scientific programme and to help you manage your day. And if you are struggling for time or torn between several lectures you can use the BEVA Congress Encore Room which gives you the chance to play back missed lectures at your convenience.
For more information, visit www.beva.org.uk.
The successful candidates, who completed their studies during 2020 and passed the examination in November, are Lucy Wilson (pictured right), from Equibreed UK, Reading, Vanessa Austin, who works at at Vets4Pets, Northampton, and Donna Johnson, the Clinical Services Manager at The Pet Vet, Barnsley.
Lucy said: “I chose to do the CVPM to cement my knowledge of how to run our practice to the best of my ability and to provide the highest level of support to my colleagues. The CVPM resources, syllabus and experience have given me a thorough understanding of my skills and areas to develop. I cannot recommend the experience highly enough.”
Chair of the VMG Certification and Training Committee, Philippa Davies, said: “The CVPM exam tests candidates’ skills in operational management, prioritising, strategy, and thinking on your feet. It’s a gruelling assessment and holders are an elite group. We are delighted to welcome Vanessa, Donna and Lucy and congratulate them on their achievement.”
For more information, visit: https://www.vetmg.com/education/cvpm/
Equistro® has produced a dust-free pelleted presentation of Secreta Pro, following requests from clients. Secreta Pro-Max® was launched to vets at BEVA Congress.
Secreta Pro is a respiratory supplement used to support the bronchial system and natural defences on a long term basis.
For more information on Secreta Pro-Max® and all Equistro products, please visit http://www.equistro.co.uk/, or contact your Vetoquinol representative.
The 2020 OV Conference will offer up to 25 hours of CPD with lectures, workshops and Q&A sessions from world-class speakers in streams covering small animals, farm animals and equines. There will also be exclusive offers from industry sponsors and online networking opportunities.
The OV Conference provides an opportunity for OVs to discuss current topics of interest and recent developments in their work. Themes this year will include notifiable diseases, biosecurity and disease control, and export certification.
In addition to the live lectures, delegates will be able to view recordings of all the sessions on-demand for three months following the conference. The CPD on offer counts towards OV revalidation qualifications with the event open to all vets, as well as animal health paraprofessionals, nurses and practice managers.
David Babington MRCVS, Business Development Director at Improve International, said: "Moving the OV Conference online has given us an opportunity to harness the technology we use regularly in all of our veterinary training to bring OVs an exceptional but affordable CPD experience.
"Our excellent speakers are looking forward to sharing the latest updates in all aspects of OV work with our delegates and to discussing the challenges ahead, particularly in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic and with the UK moving inexorably towards leaving the EU at the end of the year.
"We’re looking forward to meeting our delegates old and new online at the OV Conference in September.”
The full programme and tickets are now available from https://officialvet.com
The first 150 tickets will get an ‘Early Bird’ 25% discount from £160 to £120+ VAT using the code UK.OV.EARLYBIRD.
So far this year the charity says it has received 144 requests from people asking for it to take in or help rehome their horse or pony through the Blue Cross Home Direct service.
More than 70% cited personal or financial circumstances as the reason.
In comparison for the full year of 2021, 43 (or around 15%) of a total of 277 intake and rehoming requests specified financial reasons.
In 2020 a total of 32 (around 14%) out of 231 requests stated financial reasons.
Annabelle Taylor, Rehoming Coordinator at Blue Cross, said: “It is distressing to see that the number of people seeking rehoming support because of financial reasons is already more than double last year’s annual total and we still have a third of the year to go.
A DNA test which will save foals from unnecessary pain and suffering, and ultimately death, has been launched by the Animal Health Trust.
Foal Immunodeficiency Syndrome (FIS), a genetic disorder which is known to affect Fell and Dales ponies, causes foals to become anaemic and prone to opportunistic infections. Any foal born with the syndrome will not survive.
The new diagnostic DNA test, which costs £40, is the result of ten years of research by the Animal Health Trust (AHT) and the University of Liverpool. The test will not only identify foals which have the fatal condition but will highlight adult ponies who are carriers of the genetic trait which causes the syndrome. Affected foals will be prevented by avoiding covering a carrier mare with a carrier stallion.
Owners and breeders who wish to find out the genetic status of their ponies can arrange for a simple pulled mane or tail hair sample to be taken by a vet and submitted to the AHT. The Fell Pony or Dales Pony Societies will supply sample bags for submission on request. A fast-track system to identify foals suffering with the condition will report results within three working days.
The team that developed the DNA test was led by the AHT's Dr June Swinburne and Professor Stuart Carter of the University of Liverpool with research student Laura Fox-Clipsham. They believe that by using the test, owners and breeders will eventually be able to eradicate this awful condition.
Dr. June Swinburne, said: "The DNA test gives owners and breeders the power to overcome this devastating illness. It enables them to make informed decisions about which ponies to breed. We have already had samples submitted by HM The Queen from her own breeding stock of Fell ponies. I'd urge any breeders of Fell or Dales ponies to submit samples in order to arm themselves with the facts they need to prevent the birth of affected foals and thereby avoid this distressing condition."
Professor Carter, said: "The research, and ultimately the DNA test, has only been possible thanks to funding from The Horse Trust and the support of the Fell Pony Society and the Dales Pony Society who have supplied DNA samples. We consider that the efforts of all involved in enabling this research have lead to a major advance in animal welfare."
For more information on testing, contact the Fell or Dales Pony Societies. Alternatively visit the AHT website http://www.aht.org.uk/genetics_fis.html or email FIStesting@aht.org.uk
World Horse Welfare and Federation of European Equine Veterinary Associations (FEEVA) have announced the publication of a new set of practical guidelines on assessing the fitness for transport of equidae (horses, ponies, donkeys and their hybrids).
The publication was produced by a collaboration of agri-food, transport, veterinary organisations and animal welfare groups supported by the European Commission.
The guidelines are designed to set out clear and simple methods of assessing the fitness of equidae for transport to support a number of objectives including: helping maintain good health among animals and humans, reducing the risk of disease transmission and preventing animal suffering. The guidelines also support transporters in avoiding penalties, financial losses, and withdrawal of the transporter’s authorisation or driver’s certificate of competence.
The guidelines also offer a health and transport checklist and a quick reference guide to assess vital signs and health concerns.
Whilst the guidelines have been produced to protect animal welfare, they also aim to help protect the health and safety of anyone involved in the transport of equidae, supporting transport professionals in the enforcement and understanding of EU Regulation 1/2005 which states that 'No animal shall be transported unless it is fit for the intended journey'.
Andrea Gavinelli, Head of Unit for Official Controls and Eradication of Diseases in Animals, said: "These guidelines will be an essential resource for anyone involved in the transportation of horses, donkeys, mules or their hybrids and I am pleased that the Commission has been able to support their production and dissemination."
The guidelines also received recognition from Dr Bernard Vallat Director General of the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) for 15 years before recently leaving the position. He said: "It is my pleasure to commend this visual guide to health conditions that may impact on the fitness of animals to travel. This clear and simple guide will help all those involved in animal transport to quickly and easily assess the situation and understand what course of action to take."
The guidelines are available by registering via FVE (Federation of Veterinarians of Europe) www.fve.org
The Arthrex Vet Systems Mobile Lab will be hosting hands-on sessions to help practitioners develop their arthroscopy and joint block skills in its state-of-the-art laboratory.
BEVA President Roger Smith said: “Our practical sessions are always highly popular and the wetlab experience takes things to the next level."
"The ability to practice ultrasound-guided injections at the conference provides the opportunity to hone your skills in ultrasound and enable you to cement to ultrasound-guided injections of tendons and ligaments and joints into your daily practice.
On the Thursday there will be three wetlab taster sessions at three different stations, giving delegates the chance to sharpen their skills with an ultrasound scanner, arthroscope and arthrobox.
Friday’s sessions will be focused on forelimb joint blocks and arthroscopic demonstrations of the needle locations.
The full BEVA Congress programme is now live and super early bird tickets are available until 7th June 2024.
Individual super early bird BEVA members prices are £524 for vets and £144 for vet nurses for all three days (with concessionary available for those in their first three years of graduation or earning less than £25,000).
Day tickets and practice passes are also available.
http://www.bevacongress.org
Omics refers to a field of biological sciences including genomics (studying DNA), transcriptomics (RNA), proteomics (proteins) and metabolomics (metabolites).
Guest Editor Carrie Finno has contributed an editorial in support of the nine EVJ articles demonstrating how genomic and transcriptomic approaches have been used to investigate equine diseases.
She said: “While equine genomics and transcriptomics continue to evolve, improvements in the annotation of the equine genome will undoubtedly accelerate the rate of discovery.
"With the need for large sample sizes of well-phenotyped horses to study the most complex diseases, equine genomics and transcriptomics research will likely become increasingly collaborative, similar to the current status of human genomics initiatives.
"Aligned with this collaborative effort is the strong need for publicly available genomic and transcriptomic data that are accessible to all researchers.”
Guest Editor James Anderson prefaces five papers on advances made in equine medicine within the disciplines of proteomics, metabolomics and lipidomics (a subset of metabolomics).
He said: “Omics technologies have enhanced our knowledge of the molecular world and provided fascinating insight into the composition and functions of these components across a range of different animal species.
"Particularly for equine science and medicine they have increased our understanding of molecular changes in disease and informed the development of diagnostic tests.
"Although still in its infancy within equine veterinary science, this field looks likely to have a significant impact in the coming years.”
The virtual Issue is available to all at https://beva.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/toc/10.1001/(ISSN)2042-3306.OmicsEVJ
Moral Maze, a debate held by members at the British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA) Congress earlier this month, has concluded that equine practice needs to adapt to accommodate family life.
92% of voters agreed with the motion: Equine practice needs to change to become more compatible with family life.
BEVA says the result may reflect in part the changing demographics of the profession, with females now accounting for 76% of new graduate intakes.
Traditionally vets have worked together in practices, able to share resources and expertise as well as the out-of-hours rota. Until recently, men from the Baby Boomer Generation dominated the profession and many vets focused their efforts on work at the expense of their family. However, as Generation Y takes hold and more females are joining equine practice, there are different personal expectations with many vets now wanting greater commitment to family life and a better work-life balance.
The session took the form of a moral maze debate, chaired by Malcolm Morley, in which expert witnesses were challenged by informed interrogators. The proposers contended that it is possible to achieve a good work-life balance as an effective vet in a successful equine practice by working smarter, not harder and adopting a flexible approach.
Carolyne Crowe, veterinary coach and mentor, said: “Choosing to be an equine vet shouldn’t go hand in hand with giving up the rest of your life. Allowing flexibility within job roles should result in more engagement, productivity and thus economic benefit for the practice.”
Job share that included a proportionate allocation of the out-of-hours rota, was cited as a tenable solution for those juggling maternity leave and parenthood. The consistency of attending vets so often demanded by clients could be achieved by introducing two vets of equal calibre to the client, from the outset. Members of the audience outlined successful examples of job sharing and the consensus was that the turnover generated by part time, job share employees was often higher than their full time equivalents.
Mark Bowen, President of BEVA, said: “I’m not surprised that 92% of voters supported the motion, given the fact that the recent Vet Futures survey has shown a high rate of job dissatisfaction in equine practice. It reiterates the importance of moving with the times to evaluate the needs of working parents and make the equine veterinary workplace more adaptable to family life.”
BEVA is already working on various projects to help address and support the needs of members who are striving for a better work-life balance. CPD on personal effectiveness, covering work-life balance and time management is scheduled for the New Year. Further information on other initiatives will be released towards the end of the year.
The debate can be viewed online for free at beva.org.uk in the webinar tab.
Zoetis, formerly Pfizer Animal Health, has launched Flexi4, a nutritional supplement for horses containing a patented combination of natural plant extracts designed to help maintain joint flexibility and the management of joint pain.
Flexi4 contains a blend of four plant extracts, Curcumin, Yucca schidigera, Salix alba and Boswellia serrata, which the company says have been shown to have anti-inflammatory, anti-pyretic and analgesic properties as follows:
Mary King, Olympic three day eventing team silver medallist, said: "When performing at the highest level it's important that my horses' joints remain flexible and free of pain. Using Flexi4 has made them more resilient to aches and pains during intense training and I am confident when competing that my horses are feeling the benefit of this natural product, helping them to perform at their very best."
Flexi4 is an apple-flavoured gel that is fed as a once daily supplement. It doesn't contain any substances listed as prohibited by the FEI.* For more information, contact your Zoetis Account Manager, call 0845 300 8034 or email customersupportuk@zoetis.com.
References
*FEI prohibited substance list, 2013
Endell Veterinary Group Equine Hospital in Wiltshire has stationed an equine veterinary surgeon on the Isle of Wight permanently to ensure that the island's numerous horses can receive rapid treatment when they need it.
Florus Oskam MRCVS is providing a routine and emergency mobile ambulatory service around the island 24 hours a day. Florus also has the back up of mainland ambulatory vets who also spend time on the Island. Appointments with specific vets to visit the island can also be arranged.
Florus said: "We have been providing a veterinary service on the Isle of Wight for the past 30 years and have a very loyal client base. For years they have been asking us for a permanent service on the island and we are delighted to be able to provide it at last."
Anita Niccolls, dressage rider and trainer on the Isle of Wight, added: "It's very reassuring to know that a vet of Florus's calibre is now resident on the Island and that we are able to have continuity of vet care should a horse need further treatment at the practice's equine hospital in Salisbury."
Intervet/Schering-Plough Animal Health has reported that since launch, its diagnostic service RespCheck has identified infectious diseases in 15 per cent of all animals checked under the scheme.
Offered to qualifying practices for no charge and implemented by the Animal Health Trust (AHT), Intervet/Schering Plough set up RespCheck to help identify the cause of infectious respiratory problems in horses.
The RespCheck kit, which has been used to swab more than 700 horses since launch, consists of naso pharyngeal swabs, enabling two horses per yard or outbreak to be swabbed for a variety of diseases. These include equine influenza, equine herpesvirus, Streptococcus equi (strangles), pasteurella, rhinovirus and Streptococcus zooepidemicus. The swabs are sent to the AHT for analysis and the results returned direct to the vet.
John Dickerson from Chine House Equine Hospital in Leicestershire said: "The service is fantastic, made all the better by being completely free of charge! The benefits are two-fold. From the clinical perspective it means we can discount or treat potential infections in a more timely fashion; for instance, we use RespCheck to screen for any suspected infectious respiratory disease cases which enables us to deal with the problem, through quarantine and strict hygiene measures, helping to prevent the spread of the disease.
The other benefit is to our practice reputation and the standard of service we can offer. It's great to be able to provide owners with peace of mind without it costing more than our call out fee. By the time an owner calls the vet they are usually stressed and worried about their horses symptoms and need some reassurance, which is exactly what RespCheck gives them. We are confident that providing a diagnostic service that is completely free and that puts an owners mind at rest regarding the risk of an infection can only be a good thing for our practice reputation and customer care.
Last year, the service proved its worth when the screening of a recently imported horse showed the animal had equine influenza. I believe that had RespCheck not been employed, we would have had an outbreak in that particular yard."
Practices interested in knowing more about RespCheck should contact their local Intervet/Schering-Plough Veterinary Business Manager or phone the company's Veterinary Support Group on 01908 685685.
The new Tosoh AIA 900 analysers have been trialled for the last 18 months at Liphook Equine Hospital, which was the first practice to introduce ACTH testing for horses 25 years ago and gets hundreds of blood samples every week from veterinary practices all over the UK and Europe.
Professor Andy Durham, who heads up the laboratory at Liphook, said the test period has shown that the new machine produces more accurate results primarily because it’s less sensitive to ACTH degrading in blood samples between collection and receipt by the laboratory.
Andy said: “There are several analytic methods available for use in horses, and we wanted to see if this alternative machine had diagnostic benefits over the ones we’d used previously.
"The ACTH molecule we test for immediately begins to break down after a blood sample is taken, even if you handle it carefully and place it in chilled packaging, but this new analyser is able to detect much more of the degraded ACTH molecule, and therefore it gives a more accurate result.
“As a comparison, ACTH values measured using the previous method suffered about three to four times more degradation over 24 hours.
"What this means for horse owners is that it will reduce the risk of false negative results in ACTH tests, so more horses suffering from Cushing’s disease will receive the treatment they need.”
In testing, the new analysers also demonstrated greater accuracy when measuring insulin levels in blood samples.
https://liphookequinehospital.co.ukhttps://www.rainbowequinehospital.co.uk https://www.rossdales.com