Dunhelm Veterinary Group in Durham has been targeted by an unusual protest, parked outside its front door.

According to a report in the Northern Echo, the van appeared outside the practice last Saturday.

One of the partners, Jack Creaner told the newspaper that there were no outstanding complaints against the practice and the protest was unexplained.

Although the van has now gone, the practice still has no idea who was behind the protest. However, it does seems to have backfired spectacularly, unleashing a wave of support on the practice's Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Dunelm-Veterinary-Group/299184546875132

Jack said: "We are very grateful to all the people who took time to make such lovely remarks on social media." 

He added the following advice for anyone else who in the profession who finds themselves at the receiving end of this kind of behaviour: "Try not to let these things get to you on a personal level. As we saw lots more people like what we do than don't. As one client put it - you can be the ripest sweetest juiciest peach in the world but someone out there doesn't like peaches."

US publisher Hoofcare Publishing has launched HoofSearch, a new monthly curated collection of all the latest peer-reviewed research, academic papers, conference proceedings, and patents covering hoof science, equine lameness, biomechanics, imaging and related topics like equine metabolic syndrome, footing studies, and racing, breed and sport-specific lameness research.

In short, it's a way for equine vets, researchers and students to stay on top of the latest research without accumulating towering stacks of unread journals. 

Early reaction to the publication has been very positive. Professor Renate Weller at the Royal Veterinary College said: "HoofSearch is a great tool for anybody interested in staying up to date with what work is going on in relation to horse feet. It is a trustworthy source at an affordable price.

Renate added: "I am not the only one who appreciates HoofSearch; the farriers enrolled in our new degree in research are also using it for their work."

RVC Structure and Motion Laboratory PhD candidate Amy Barstow, BVetMed (Hons), agreed: "HoofSearch gives you a straightforward, time-efficient way to stay on top of the latest research."

Michigan State University College of Veterinary Medicine Professor Emerita Hilary M. Clayton also endorses the new publication. She said: "HoofSearch is worth its weight in gold – instead of spending countless hours scouring the literature, I just go through HoofSearch each month and find all the new publications, proceedings and patents neatly classified and enough of the abstract to convey the contents of the article."

Publisher Fran Jurga said: "Everywhere professionals are involved in helping horses with foot problems, the push is on to both be able to access and build on a comprehensive, if still evolving, body of knowledge. These reports will be useful to track how this newly expanding field of research grew and contributed to the improved welfare, longevity and soundness of horses in the future. I can’t wait to add more editions on other equine health subjects."

A subscription to HoofSearch is US$119, worldwide, for 12 editions.

For more information, visit: https://goo.gl/hJTISt

To subscribe (outside the US), visit: https://www.paypal.me/Hoofcare/119 

Remote Monitoring Ltd has launched RemoteM, a new fridge monitoring system which it says has already saved a Yorkshire practice thousands of pounds. 

The system consists of a number of small wireless sensors which are placed in each fridge and which transmit data to a base station. It records a temperature history for each fridge, transmitting the data in real time to secure cloud storage, from where it can provide reports on the changing temperature in each fridge for compliance and regulatory purposes.

RemoteM is self-installed and battery operated, and it transmits data using the mobile phone network, so it is not reliant on a power source or working internet connection. Temperature alarms can be sent to one or more recipients, using email, automated voice calls or SMS. 

Dalehead Veterinary Group, which has practices in Settle, Bentham and Gisburn, began trialling the RemoteM system almost a year ago. 

Dalehead has six fridges at its Settle practice. Before installing RemoteM, practice staff needed to record daily readings of fridge temperatures, taken at different times of the day. As well as being a time-consuming process, it risked being inaccurate, as simple in-fridge monitors do not record all fluctuations in temperature.

Practice Manager Emma Spence said: "RemoteM has already saved us at least £4,000.

"One of our small animal vaccine fridges failed overnight, and the instant alarm meant we were able to respond immediately, with our on-call vet moving the stock to another fridge without risk of deterioration. At various times of year when we can have high values of stock in individual large fridges, this could have been even more critical."

The practice says the system has also proved useful in alerting staff to fluctuating temperatures in warm summer months, helping to ensure that vaccines and medicines are used in optimum condition.

For this reason, RemoteM sensors are also used outside fridges to monitor stock held at ambient temperatures, where the alarm trigger is set at 25 degrees to ensure stock does not exceed manufacturers' recommended storage temperature limits.

Another benefit of the system has been that Dalehead's insurer has said that with RemoteM, it is happy for the practice to continue to use its older fridges, instead of stipulating that they are replaced every three years. 

So, it's not just saving the practice money, then. It's helping reduce pollution too. 

For more information, call 0330 223 4553, email: info@remotem.co.uk or visit: www.remotem.co.uk.

Ceva Animal Health has launched Cystease Advanced, a new urinary tract support supplement for cats.

The new product, which contains N-acetyl glucosamine, L-tryptophan and Hyaluronic Acid, is described as an elaboration on the original product, Cystease S. 

Ceva says Cystease Advanced has been designed to help support the bladder lining while also reducing stress-related behaviour in cats.  

Fraser Broadfoot, small animal product manager at Ceva Animal Health, said: "It is well documented that stress can adversely affect the integrity of the bladder lining.  There are many factors that cause stress in cats, for example inter-cat conflict, moving house, new arrivals to the home environment and car travel, to name just a few.

"Our new product has been developed to address both conditions; it contains N-acetyl glucosamine and Hyaluronic Acid which are key components of the GAG lining, whereas L-tryptophan has been proven to reduce stress-related behaviour in cats."

Cystease Advanced is taken orally and is available in pots of 30 and 300 tablets.

Ceva recommends that Cystease Advanced is used with Feliway, the company's appeasing pheromone for cats.

For further details please contact the customer support team on 01494 781510.

The RCVS has tightened up the guidance on remote prescribing, such that veterinary surgeons may now only remote prescribe for animals that are not already under their care if it is impossible to physically examine the animal. 

RCVS Council had introduced temporary guidance allowing the remote prescription of drugs for animals not under care back in March, to ensure that animal health and welfare could be maintained during lockdown without risking the health of veterinary teams or their clients.

Since then, the College has twice extended this guidance, because of the ongoing situation. 

However the College says it now recognises that many practices are returning more to 'business as usual' and that the guidance and associated flowchart should be updated according. 

Consequently, before deciding to prescribe POM-Vs remotely, the updated guidance now requires veterinary surgeons to first consider whether the animal is already under their care; or, if not, whether it is possible to physically examine the animal in order to bring the animal under their care. If the answer to both questions is ‘no’, POM-Vs may still be prescribed remotely providing the guidelines set out in the College’s coronavirus advice hub are adhered to.

Surprisingly, the College says that its surveys of the profession have thus far identified no immediate safety concerns around remote prescribing. 

RCVS President Dr Mandisa Greene, who chairs the Taskforce, said: “The reason for maintaining the possibility of remote prescribing without a physical examination was that we recognised that the current situation is unpredictable, and while the ability for the public to visit practices in person has improved over the last few months, we felt that situations might still arise where that would not be possible, and where access to remote prescribing would be necessary. These could include further local lockdowns, ongoing quarantine arrangements, and the remaining fact that some members of both the veterinary team and the public continue to shield.

“It remains our intention that this guidance will continue to be a temporary measure and may be subject to further extensions or updates given the uncertain nature of the Covid-19 pandemic.”

RCVS Council will review the position on 8 October, with any changes being effective by 1 November at the earliest.

Meanwhile, the RCVS review of ‘under care’ and out-of-hours emergency cover has now resumed, starting with a number of virtual focus groups and consultation with stakeholders within the veterinary and veterinary nursing professions.

The findings from these focus group discussions will then inform a wider survey to be sent to all veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in early 2021, along with stakeholder organisations and the animal-owning public. Remote prescribing will continue to form a part of this review.

The RCVS VN Council has developed a definition of veterinary nursing, in order to provide greater clarity both to the veterinary profession and the public about what the role entails. 

The definition agreed by VN Council is as follows:

Veterinary nursing aims to ease the suffering and pain of animals, and to improve their health and welfare. 

This includes providing any medical treatment or any minor surgery (not involving entry into a body cavity) to animals under the direction of a veterinary surgeon who has that animal under their care.

Veterinary nursing can be either proactive or reactive, and autonomous or collaborative. It is carried out in a wide variety of settings, for animals at all life stages, and considers the background and needs of the animal’s owner or keeper. 

Matthew Rendle RVN, the Chair of VN Council, said: “Although it is just a few short lines, this definition of veterinary nursing has been in the pipeline for some time.

"While we as veterinary nurses have always been able to define ourselves by the type of tasks we carry out, or our relation to veterinary surgeons in terms of delegation, there hasn’t necessarily been a clear statement articulating the art and science of veterinary nursing.

“With the RCVS looking to expand its regulatory remit to include other veterinary paraprofessionals over the long term, we thought it was particularly important that we set out the stall for veterinary nursing and we hope that this clear statement will, in particular, aid the public in understanding the role of a veterinary nurse.

“It should be noted that this definition is VN Council’s own considered interpretation of the art and science of veterinary nursing.

"Other interpretations from other organisations, provided they conform with both Schedule 3 of the Veterinary Surgeons Act and the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct, could sit comfortably alongside ours, and we hope there continues to be healthy discussion about the contribution of the profession to the veterinary team, as our role evolves.”

Defra has announced that new rules on pet travel will be introduced from 1^st January 2012. The changes will mean that the rules on rabies vaccination for entry into the UK will be in line with the rest of Europe.

Defra has carried out a risk assessment to find out how the changes will affect the level of risk of rabies entering the UK. Although the probability of rabies introduction into the UK will increase, the assessment found the risk will remain very low after the increase.

The British Veterinary Association and the British Small Animal Veterinary Association are informing their members of the new rules so that the right advice can be given to pet owners planning to travel abroad with their animals.

Dogs, cats and pet ferrets entering the UK from an EU or 'listed' third country from 1 January 2012 must:

• be microchipped
• be vaccinated against rabies
• have waited 21 days after vaccination before entering
• have an EU Pet Passport

The current requirement to carry out a blood test followed by a six-month wait before entry into the UK will no longer be required.

From 1^st January pets entering from a non-listed third country must pass a blood test 30 days after vaccination followed by a three-month wait.

Until now, the UK, Ireland and three other Member States have had derogations from EU pet travel rules to allow for additional controls to protect against rabies, ticks and tapeworms.

Successful vaccination programmes in wildlife in mainland Europe have now allowed the UK to consider whether the additional controls for rabies are still necessary.

The BVA and BSAVA have continued to lobby in Europe for additional controls to be maintained for tapeworms, which could introduce Echinococcus multilocularis to the UK - a significant public health concern.

Although a final decision has not yet been made the European Commission has indicated that it will support the UK case for additional tapeworm controls.

Harvey Locke, President of the BVA, said: "It is vital that any controls on animal movements are proportionate to the risk.

"Due to the highly successful vaccination programme in wildlife in mainland Europe there has been a huge reduction in the incidence in rabies. Research carried out by Defra reveals that the risk of introducing rabies under the new rules is very low.

"However, it is essential that pet owners get good veterinary advice when planning to take their animals abroad because pets can be exposed to a number of diseases not currently endemic in the UK, for example leishmaniasis, babesiosis, and ehrlichiosis.

"As part of responsible ownership we would always advise pet owners to visit their vet for a pre-travel consultation to discuss how to protect the health and welfare of their animals when travelling abroad."

Andrew Ash, President of the BSAVA, added: "The Pet Travel Scheme has been highly successful in keeping the UK free of rabies. BVA and BSAVA have been working closely with Defra to ensure that any changes to the pet travel rules do not threaten our disease-free status.

"The rabies vaccine has advanced and now has a longer duration of immunity and we welcome the continuing requirement for all pets to be vaccinated before travel."

Pfizer Animal Health's Equine Herpes Virus (EHV) vaccine (Duvaxyn EHV 1,4) has been rebranded Equip EHV 1,4).

Pfizer says that EHV is carried by most horses in the UK¹ and can cause respiratory disease, abortion and more rarely neurological disease. However, it is the more common sub-clinical infections that pose the most apparent issue for the competition client, with the associated loss of performance and the potential effect on the health of the whole yard.

Once infected with EHV, a horse can harbour the virus throughout its life and potentially shed the disease to other animals without showing any outward signs. According to the company, vaccinating helps to minimise the severity of the disease itself and importantly, can also help to reduce the amount of infective virus that is shed to other in-contact horses.

Equip EHV 1,4 is given as a primary course of two vaccinations, 4-6 weeks apart followed by a single dose every six months. It can also be used as an aid in the control of EHV-1 abortion - pregnant mares should be vaccinated with a single dose during each of the 5th, 7th and 9th months of pregnancy.

For further information on Pfizer's EHV campaign, to obtain literature for your practice or to book a talk for your clients contact your Pfizer Account Manager or Pfizer Animal Health, Walton Oaks, Tadworth, Surrey KT20 7NS.

Reference

1. Eddington et al. Equine Vet. J. 1994; 26 (2): 140-142.

TVM has launched the Digital Toxin Toolkit, billed as offering everything you need to manage poisoning cases at your fingertips. 

The toolkit contains triage forms, a contact directory, emergency action guidelines and a drug glossary, together with dosage rates for its Anti-Tox Range.

Miranda Davis, Territory Manager at TVM said: "The Toxin Toolkit is designed to make it as easy as possible to access advice when veterinary staff are dealing with pet poisoning cases which need immediate attention. 

"We are launching the Toxin Toolkit to make information more easily accessible to vets, however an added benefit is that it helps us and our clients to minimise our environmental impact by reducing the need for our printed poisoning guidelines." 

To access the Toxin Toolkit, visit: https://www.tvm-uk.com/vet-resource-library/ 

A new study carried out by scientists from The Pirbright Institute and Wageningen Bioveterinary Research, published in the Journal of Clinical Microbiology, has concluded that pre-clinical diagnosis could be key to helping control the transmission of foot-and-mouth disease virus (FMDV) in the event of an outbreak.

In the study, the Pirbright - Wageningen research team combined their expertise in both FMDV and mathematical modelling to evaluate the methods and effects of preclinical diagnosis during surveillance (as would be in place during an outbreak), in order to reduce the risk of transmission between herds of cattle on neighbouring farms. 

Transmission experiments in cattle were used to collect samples taken from individual animals such as blood, saliva and nasal swabs, and at herd level such as air samples, on a daily basis during the course of infection. The sensitivity of each of these types of samples for the detection of infected cattle during different phases of infection was then quantified. 

Dr. Simon Gubbins, Head of Transmission Biology at Pirbright said: "Our results were incorporated into a mathematical model for FMDV transmission in a cattle herd in order to evaluate the impact of early detection and removal of an infected herd on the reduction in the amount of infectious output which could enable transmission of the virus to cattle on a neighbouring farm.

"By using weekly surveillance, clinical inspection alone was found to be ineffective at blocking transmission. This was in contrast to the impact of weekly sampling using saliva swabs of at least ten animals per farm or daily air sampling (for housed cattle), both of which were shown to reduce the risk of transmission substantially."

Dr. José Gonzáles from Wageningen Bioveterinary Research added: "These findings provide a new approach to disease control which could be added to our emergency preparedness programmes. A potential benefit of applying this strategy is a reduction in the number of animals culled unnecessarily, which is likely to happen when traditional strategies such as pre-emptive culling are implemented."

Following these initial results, the Pirbright - Wageningen research team plan to take their approach from the controlled conditions of the laboratory and test it in field trials. If successful, they hope it will help to reduce the social and economic impact of one of the world’s most devastating livestock diseases.

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons is seeking feedback on a new draft Code of Professional Conduct for Veterinary Nurses.

The new draft Code, which would replace the existing RCVS Guide to Professional Conduct for Veterinary Nurses, has been produced by a Working Party set up by the RCVS Advisory Committee to review the Guides for both veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses.

It is the benchmark for professional conduct against which registered veterinary nurses will be measured in any hearings on serious professional misconduct held by the recently-introduced VN Disciplinary Committee.

The purpose of the review is to ensure that guidance to the profession, and the public, is clear, for example, using consistent language to distinguish between what must be done and what is advised.

The new Code is a short, principles-based document, using the Federation of Veterinarians of Europe's Code of Conduct as the starting point. It will be supported by additional advice on specific areas of veterinary practice or issues, for example, clinical governance.

The consultation follows an earlier one for a new draft Code for veterinary surgeons that closed at the end of June: the new Code for veterinary nurses follows the format and style of that for veterinary surgeons. Comments made during the veterinary surgeon consultation will be taken account of alongside comments made during this new consultation.

For the first time, the draft proposes that veterinary nurses make a declaration on joining the VN Register, which underlines the primary importance of animal health and welfare: "I PROMISE AND SOLEMNLY DECLARE that my constant endeavour will be to ensure the welfare of animals committed to my care and that I will pursue the work of my profession with integrity and accept my responsibilities to my clients, the public, the profession and the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons."

Comments on the proposed draft are invited from the veterinary nursing profession, the veterinary profession and the public, particularly on the issue of whether the Codes for veterinary nurses and veterinary surgeons ought to be combined.

Andrea Jeffery, the RCVS Veterinary Nurses Council member who led the group tasked with developing the new Code, said: "It is 50 years since the start of the veterinary nursing profession and the changes proposed in the Code reflect the development of our professional role over this time.

"This new Code is a simplified document that focuses on key principles and which will be supported by more detailed guidance. Although it follows the format of the draft Code for veterinary surgeons, it is important that we recognise our unique position as veterinary nurses."

The new Code, together with the consultation paper, can be downloaded at www.rcvs.org.uk/VNcodeconsultation.

Comments should be sent by email to Christopher Murdoch, Secretary to the Guides Review Working Party, at c.murdoch@rcvs.org.uk by Friday, 21 October 2011.

With the upcoming introduction of the General Data Protection Regulations (GDPR) in May 2018, the Veterinary Practice Management Association has published a webinar presented by Helen Thomas (Senior Policy Officer at the Information Commissioners Office), to deliver the key facts and help veterinary practices prepare for the changes ahead.

The new law, which replaces the Data Protection Directive, come into effect from 25^th May 2018. All businesses will be affected, including the veterinary profession, and failure to comply could result in heavy financial penalties. It is important, therefore, that all practices start to prepare for them and ensure that they will be compliant when the new legislation comes into play next year.

Renay Rickard, president of the VPMA said: "These new regulations concern how we will manage personal data, both that of our clients and our staff, and it’s imperative that we understand them and act on them. We arranged this webinar to inform our members, and were very lucky to have such a tailored presentation directly from the regulator – helped by the fact that Helen, the speaker, comes from a veterinary practice background. It was so useful, we felt that the wider veterinary community would benefit from listening to it, so we’re pleased to open it up to non-members."

The webinar content guides listeners through the key changes ahead and the steps that practices will need to take to ensure they are compliant with the new legal requirements. This includes the impact the changes will have on marketing strategies and practice positioning on sending client reminders (e.g. vaccination, appointment); sharing case histories; passing on data regarding 'bad-debtors', as well as how to approach 'tagging' clients records (for example, re debt) in compliance with the GDPR.

The webinar also provides useful information on where to turn if practices need help and advice, as well as what to do if a data breach is detected. Finally, a detailed questions and answers session covers the day-to-day scenarios in practice that involve handling or sharing client data.

The recording can be accessed on request by emailing the VPMA Secretariat, secretariat@vpma.co.uk.

Photo: GDPR - General Data Protection Regulation. data 25 may 2018. Map EU and flag. Shutterstock/a_Jarm